Wayne Swinny, founding member of Saliva and guitarist of the band Saliva, has passed away.
TMZ reports that Swinny passed away after he suffered a brain hemorrhage. TMZ's report includes a statement from a rep for the brand, who shared the news of Swinny's passing due to a "spontaneous brain hemorrhage while on tour." Swinny was taken to the hospital on March 21, and he had been in the ICU before he passed away. He was 59 years old.
Per TMZ, Bobby Amaru, Saliva's lead singer, commented on Swinny's passing.
"I’m not even sure what to think or how to feel right now. My heart aches for Wayne’s family, his friends, and anyone who had the joy of being around him. My heart aches for his daughter Nikki. He loved that little girl so much. He would go out of his way to make sure you had a good time. I’m grateful that I got to share almost 12 years of my life with Wayne on the stage and most importantly off the stage. He was the older brother I never had. I learned so much from him and we had a fucking blast together! I will cherish it all for the rest of my life! God Bless you Wayne. I know we’ll meet again," Amaru said.
Wayne and the other founding members launched Saliva in 1996. In the wrestling world, a number of Saliva's songs have been used by WWE. Most notably, they are known for "I Walk Alone", which was Batista's theme song. "Always" was the theme song for Survivor Series 2002, and Saliva performed "Superstar" live at WrestleMania X8. "Hunt You Down" was used as No Way Out 2009's theme.
Among other examples, Saliva's song "King of My World" was used as Chris Jericho's theme song in 2002, and "Ladies and Gentlemen" was the theme song of WrestleMania 23 in 2007, and was inspired by WrestleMania in general. Plus, Saliva's "Don't Question My Heart" was the theme song of WWE ECW from 2008 until the conclusion of the show in 2010. They also recorded a version of the Dudley Boyz' theme.
Fightful sends its condolences to Swinny's friends, family, and fans.
