Quindon Tarver death: Romeo + Juliet choir boy dies at 38

Singer said in 2017 that his early career had been derailed following sexual abuse within the music industry

Quindon Tarver, who found fame as a choir boy in 1996’s Romeo + Juliet, has died at the age of 38.

Tarver was killed in a car accident in Dallas, Texas on Friday (2 April), his uncle confirmed to The Daily Beast.

“He had an accident,” said Willie Tarver. “All we know is he had a wreck, crashed into a wall somewhere on George Bush [Turnpike]. That’s all the information I have.”

Tarver appeared in two pivotal musical scenes in Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of the William Shakespeare play, which starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.

He was the key choir boy during the secret wedding scene, wherein he belted out a cover of Rozalla’s “Everybody’s Free (To Feel Good)”. He also sung another cover in the film, of Prince’s “When Doves Cry”.

Read more:

• Daniel Kaluuya jokes about royal family and Meghan Markle on SNL
• Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan reacts to co-star Regé-Jean Page’s departure
• Kate Winslet says she knows ‘at least’ four gay actors who haven’t publicly come out
• DMX’s ‘worried’ lawyer updates fans on rapper’s health after heart attack

Along with Romeo + Juliet, Tarver appeared in the video for Madonna’s “Like a Prayer”, and auditioned as an adult for two seasons of American Idol. In 1996, he released a solo album, Quindon.

Quindon Tarver in 1996’s Romeo and Juliet (left), and in 2020 (right) (Fox/Shefik/YouTube)

In 2017, Tarver said that his early career had been derailed after he was molested in the music industry.

“I was hurting,” he told ABC News. “I had been molested, I had been raped, I had lost my career, which is what I had dreamed of doing all my life. I had to come back home because someone did something to me … I began drinking and dabbling in drugs and I lost it, man. I spiralled completely.”

He also said that he had been working in insurance after getting clean, while still occasionally recording music.

Tarver’s last recording, “Stand Our Ground”, was released in January as a tribute to his cousin Darius Tarver, who was shot and killed by Texas police officers in 2020.

If you’ve been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support: www.rapecrisis.org.uk.