Former ‘American Idol’ Star Dies Suddenly at 31 After Apparent Heart Attack, Family Says

C.J. Harris onstage during Fox's "American Idol" XIII Finale at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles, Calif., on May 21, 2014. Kevin Winter/Getty Images

C.J. Harris, a singer who competed in the U.S. television series “American Idol” nearly a decade ago, died over the weekend, according to his family. He was 31.

The family member, who was not identified, told TMZ on Monday that the singer, whose full name is Curtis “C.J.” Harris, was rushed to a local hospital by ambulance on Jan. 15 after suffering an apparent heart attack at a home in Jasper, Alabama.

According to the report, all life-saving efforts failed and Harris was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the medical center.

Harris’s sudden death was also confirmed by a spokesperson for the Walker County Coroner’s Office, who told celebrity news agency PEOPLE that the singer was pronounced dead at the Walker Baptist Medical Center in Jasper after CPR efforts were unsuccessful.

In 2014, Harris finished in sixth place on the thirteenth season of the talent show.

Jessica Meuse, who performed alongside Harris that same season, wrote in a heartfelt tribute on Instagram that she was “completely shocked” after hearing about her friend’s sudden passing.

“The world is definitely a darker and eerily quieter place without you in it,” Meuse wrote. “I’ll miss your random phone calls asking for life advice and talking about the music world. When you go through something like Idol together, it brings everyone involved together like a big, weird, dysfunctional family.”

“I’m grateful that our paths crossed,” she continued, adding that Harris was, and always will be, a part of her.

Jessica Meuse performs with C.J. Harris during the American Idol Live! 2014 Tour Kickoff at the Broome County Arena in Binghamton, New York, on July 24, 2014. Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

During an interview with the Hollywood Reporter in 2014, Harris said the talent show helped him to get to know himself better while noting that it also changed his life after being in a difficult period financially.

“I was just barely trying to get by,” the Alabama native told the publication. “I was doing everything I could to make it in the music industry, and then American Idol came along and changed my life.”

In another interview, Harris revealed that prior to competing on American Idol, he auditioned for “The X-Factor” and “The Voice,” but never made it past the first round.

“I never got through, and it hurt me. It really did,” he told the Hollywood Reporter. “So I went back home and that’s what made me stop playing in bars. I wanted to get it together and find out who I am.”

Harris attributed many accomplishments in his life to his grandfather, saying he helped him “so much with becoming a man.”

“My granddad had me working and hunting in the summertime. I was shoveling dirt and gravel. He showed me how to cook and how to run a business. He helped me so much with becoming a man. It’s a big reason why I am who I am today,” he said.

In 2016, Harris was arrested during a drug sting by a team from the Walker County Sheriff’s Office who busted him selling oxycodone and marijuana to a confidential informant. The singer was hit with three counts of felony distribution of a controlled substance.

In this handout photo provided by the Walker County Sheriff's Office, former "American Idol" season 13 finalist Curtis "C.J." Harris is seen in a police booking photo after his arrest for allegedly selling oxycodone and marijuana to an informant in Walker County, Alabama, on Oct. 6, 2016. Walker County Sheriffs Office via Getty Images

Heart Attacks Among Young Adults Rising

In recent years, an alarming trend in the number of people suffering from heart disease has taken hold among younger adults, and a recent study appears to confirm that heart problems in people in their 30s and 40s are on the rise.

Some health professionals and experts have attributed this uptick in incidents to COVID-19 and its vaccines, while others have focused the increase on lifestyle factors and underlying health problems.

From NTD News