Singer Lauren Bennett, who was featured on LMFAO’s 2011 smash hit “Party Rock Anthem,” has died, her former band confirmed Monday. She was 37.
Bennett’s former girl group, G.R.L., announced in a statement Monday: “It is with great sadness that we share the passing of our beloved Lauren.”
“Our hearts are broken, and we cannot begin to express how much she meant to us. We will forever cherish the love, laughter, and countless memories she gave us. Her beautiful spirit touched so many lives, and she will be deeply missed and forever loved,” said the note, which was signed by G.R.L. members Emmalyn Estrada, Natasha Slayton and Paula van Oppen.
Her official cause of death has not been confirmed. She is survived by her six-year-old daughter, Harlow, who she shared with dancer Kenny Wormald.
The English performer started her music career at 18 by forming the Paradiso Girls in 2007. The group’s debut single, “Patron Tequila,” featured Lil Jon and Eve, and became a dance hit. However, the Paradiso Girls disbanded in 2010 after their second single was unsuccessful.
Bennett then embarked on her solo career, which led her to collaborate with stars like CeeLo Green, will.i.am and the Pussycat Dolls. She hit her first number one single in the U.S. with “Party Rock Anthem,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for six weeks. It also stayed on top of the U.K. Singles Chart for four weeks.
The singer joined G.R.L. — which was slated to be the next Pussycat Dolls with Robin Antin as their choreographer — in 2011, alongside the original lineup of van Oppen and three other members who were all cut from the group. Eventually, the group officially launched when Simone Battle, Estrada and Slayton joined.
After G.R.L. debuted their single “Vacation” on the Smurfs 2 soundtrack in 2013, the group was featured on Pitbull’s 2014 hit “Wild Wild Love” before releasing their self-titled EP in July 2014.
Battle — Bennett’s co-star in the group who had risen to fame after competing on the US version of X Factor — died by suicide at age 25 in September 2014. In the next months, group released a song called “Lighthouse” to honor Battle and raise mental health awareness. The group officially disbanded in June 2015.
The next year, Bennett released a song called “Hurricane” on her own and said on Instagram that the song was written about watching her mother and a friend struggle with their mental health.
G.R.L. later reformed as a trio in 2016 before Bennett, Slayton, Estrada and van Oppen briefly reunited in 2020.
“Rest peacefully, sweet Lauren,” Slayton, Estrada and van Oppen wrote in their statement Monday. “You will always be in our hearts.”
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