Meat Loaf’s surprising death at age 74 is reportedly the result of COVID.
TMZ reports their sources said the singer was scheduled to attend a business dinner this week, but the dinner was canceled after he “became seriously ill with COVID.” Meat Loaf’s reported COVID illness “quickly became critical.”
Meat Loaf’s death comes less than a year after the passing of his collaborator, Jim Steinman. Steinman wrote most of Meat Loaf’s greatest songs, including all the songs on Bat Out Of Hell, and Meat Loaf’s 1993 comeback hit, “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That).” In an interview with Rolling Stone following Steinman’s death, he said, “I don’t want to die, but I may die this year because of Jim. I’m always with him and he’s right here with me now. I’ve always been with Jim and Jim has always been with me. We belonged heart and soul to each other.”
One of Meat Loaf’s last projects we reported on was the singer signing on as an executive producer of a new reality show loosely based on his 1993 hit “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That).” In March 2021, Deadline reported, “In each episode, two couples will put their relationship on the line for the show’s cash prize. After two rounds of absurd and sometimes frightening physical contests, inspired and accompanied by ballads, the couple on top will advance to the ‘Endgame,’ where their faith in each other will undergo the ultimate challenge.”