Lumineers' Wesley Schultz's Brother Dies Suddenly at 39: 'Someone That Always Lifted Up a Room'

The Lumineers' co-founder Wesley Schultz's relative Sam, has died. He was 39.

Wesley, 42, announced his decease successful an Instagram post connected Thursday, May 29. "My small relative Sam died yesterday. He was only 39, and leaves down his awesome woman Lily and their 2 beautiful kids," he began.

"Sam really was my champion friend and personification that ever lifted up a room. I really admired him successful truthful galore ways, particularly really damn funny he was — and ever felt fortunate that he was everlastingly stuck pinch maine arsenic a brother.."

"Just devastated and successful shock," he continued. "And because group would wonder, arsenic I would - each we cognize regarding his passing was that it was earthy causes, meaning immoderate benignant of wellness emergency happened and he was recovered successful his car parked but still moving - truthful I'm praying that it was painless and that he didn't suffer."

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Wesley captioned nan station "Love you everlastingly Sam."

The musician shared a video of Sam giving a reside astatine Wes' wedding, a video of nan brothers sledding arsenic children, on pinch family photos passim nan years. One image featured Sam and Wesley dressed up arsenic Game of Thrones characters for Halloween.

The Lumineers are presently connected their Automatic World Tour. The group is made up of Wesley and Jeremiah Fraites, who grew up alongside 1 another. Wesley was adjacent pinch Fraites' older brother.

The musicians reconnected erstwhile Wesley returned to their hometown of Ramsey, New Jersey and bonded complete their passion for euphony and nan hardships they endured.

They said to PEOPLE successful February astir their relationship and caller music. "He wanted to activity connected euphony arsenic overmuch arsenic I did, and I deliberation for him it was this beautiful solace aft losing his relative to a heroin addiction a fewer years earlier, and maine being successful a holding shape and sticking astir because my dada was sick pinch cancer,” Wesley said of Fraites, 39.

He added:  "I deliberation we're some efficaciously losers that felt really enticed by penning music. It gave america wings, it liberated america from immoderate life was dealing america astatine that time."

Wesley besides said astir really their latest medium Automatic came together. "We’re asking ourselves caller questions and raising nan bar: How susceptible tin you be? How galore inconvenient truths tin you stock astir yourself? How overmuch tin you put into nan music?"

Welsey added they were capable to respond "to each different successful real-time" while moving connected it. "There’s a batch of joke connected this record, mostly astatine my expense, but besides a consciousness of puerility wherever it was very unfastened and going pinch nan flow," he explained. "I don’t deliberation that was really we were successful nan beginning."