NORWICH, UK (CelebrityAccess) — William “Billy” Clayton, an aspiring pop artist who became an international celebrity last year after Charli XCX hosted a benefit concert in his honor, has died.
In a post on Clayton’s Twitter account on Thursday, his mother said Becky Clayton said Billy died on Tuesday after a battle with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare and aggressive form of bone cancer.
“On Tuesday 26th March at approximately 5pm my darling, beautiful boy Billy had to go to his new home in another realm. He held on for so long and had more strength than anyone could ever imagine. But his body would no longer allow him to live the life he desperately wished for and his soul needed to escape to be free,” she wrote.
Clayton was diagnosed with his affliction four years ago when he was 18. In August, he spoke candidly of the strain the disease had inflicted on him but said his art and music had kept him motivated even at his lowest points.
Clayton produced just two EPs over the course of his brief career — Bloom and Luminary — along with a collection of stray singles and covers.
In November, Charli XCX, Allie X, and Dorian Electra teamed up to produce The Billy Ball, a benefit concert aimed at assisting Clayton with his medical expenses and raising awareness of Ewing’s Sarcoma. The concert also featured peformances by Chester Lockhart, Vincint, Jesse Saint John, Leland, DJ Baby Uniq, and Zolita, among others.
