Madonna breaks her silence on the death of her eldest brother Anthony Ciccone, who died aged 66: ‘Thank you for surprising me as a young girl’

Madonna broke her silence on the death of her older brother Anthony Ciccone a day after news of his death at the age of 66 broke on Instagram on Sunday.

As she paid tribute to her late sibling, the Queen of Pop, 64, fondly recalled the wisdom he passed on to her, from different faiths and his favorite novelists to music recommendations.

“Thank you for blowing me up as a young girl and introducing me to Charlie Parker, Miles David, Buddhism, Taoism, Charles Bukowski, Richard Brautigan, Jack Kerouac, and expansive thinking outside the box,” she wrote in a sepia throwback writing. “You have sown very important seeds.”

The photo, which was uploaded to her Instagram story on Monday morning, shows her smiling at a crowded table with numerous friends and Anthony.

The singer’s siblings, who had her arm wrapped around a man in a black leather jacket and leopard scarf over their shoulders, looked handsome as he looked away from the camera.

“Thank you for blowing me up as a young girl and introducing me to Charlie Parker, Miles David, Buddhism, Taoism, Charles Bukowski, Richard Brautigan, Jack Kerouac, expansive thinking outside the box,” she wrote in retrospect on Instagram.

Less than an hour later, she shared behind-the-scenes footage of rehearsals for her upcoming 40th anniversary tour, The Celebration, which she announced in January.

Thank God I have my creative life to inspire me and keep me going…. ‘ she captioned the shot along with a ‘grateful’ hashtag.

In the video, she can be seen working with her dancers on stage before saying: “See you later.”

Last weekend, Joe Henry, husband of Madonna’s sister Melanie Ciccone, wrote in a statement: “My brother-in-law, Anthony Gerard Ciccone, left this earthly plane last night. I’ve known him since I was fifteen, in the spring of our life in Michigan, so many years ago now.”

Born to Catholic parents in Michigan, Madonna grew up in suburban Detroit with five siblings, the eldest of whom was Anthony, who was born two years before her in 1956.

Although she moved to New York in 1978 to dance and began a highly successful career, he remained mostly in Michigan, occasionally working for her father before falling victim to alcoholism and homelessness.

“Anthony was a complex character; and Lord knows we are caught up in moments like real brothers can. But I loved him and understood him better than I sometimes wanted to show,” he added.

“But the problems fade; and family relics – with hands stretched across the table. Farewell then, Brother Anthony. I want to remember that the God your blessed mother (and mine) believed in has her there waiting to receive you. At least for today, no one will dissuade me from this vision,” Ciccone finished his letter.

Rest in peace: Joe Henry, husband of Madonna’s sister Melanie Ciccone, wrote in a statement at the weekend: “My brother-in-law, Anthony Gerard Ciccone (seen in 2013) left this earthly plane last night. I’ve known him since I was 15, in the spring of our life in Michigan, so many years have passed.”

Like Madonna, Cicconi spent some time in New York in the late 1980s in his thirties.

Carolina Gengo (59), who was dating him at the time, described him in a positive light. “He was a lost soul trying to find his way, but he was a good person,” she said.

“He had books everywhere, that’s all he really had. He liked to read about life and philosophy,” Gengo said. “And he wanted to sit down and talk about it,” she added.

“He talked about what it was like to be Madonna’s brother, he didn’t like being known as Madonna’s brother,” she said.

Gengo told of a time when his sister’s assistant called on his birthday to ask how much money he wanted as a present. This, she said, alienated him.

After several years of sleeping under a Michigan bridge, Madonna’s family said they would reunite with estranged Anthony in 2017.

It came after he publicly claimed for years that his family had turned their backs on him. “I am a zero in their eyes; a non-person, a disgrace,” he told the Daily Mail in 2011.

“If I froze to death, my family probably wouldn’t know or care for six months.”

Ciccone said he was living under a river bridge in Michigan at the time with a sleeping bag and his only companion, another street dweller named Michael.

Ciccone said he has been one of the homeless people at the Traverse City ski resort since he lost his job at his father’s vineyard and winery six miles away.

Aware of her brother’s plight, Madonna repeatedly offered to help by paying for him to go to rehab. She is pictured here appearing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon

His father and stepmother own a vineyard about 20 miles north of where Anthony is supposed to be sleeping, under the Union St. bridge in Traverse City.

“My family actually turned their back on me when I was going through a tough time,” he said. “You think I haven’t answered this question a zillion times – why is my sister a multi-billionaire and I’m homeless on the street? Never say never. It can happen to anyone.”

He said it annoyed him when some found it funny that the brother of such a famous star would end up living under a bridge. He maintained at the time that he did not want any of her money – whether it was offered or not.

“I’m not looking for free handouts because of my sister,” he said. “I’m not looking for publicity.” Instead, he relies on the generosity of soup kitchens run by local churches for food.

Ciccone, who claims to have previously worked in the Alaskan fishing industry and as a photographer’s assistant in New York, now earns a few dollars doing odd jobs and collecting bottles and cans from people’s garbage cans.

Aware of his plight, Madonna repeatedly offered to help by paying for him to go to rehab. His father also offered to give him his job back if he could get professional help.

However, he was not always receptive. “My family seems to think that rehab is some kind of magical panacea for life’s woes,” he once said.

Still, things seemed to be looking up for Cicconi after a stint in rehab in 2017 and his reintegration into family life.

Karen McCarthy, a founder of Dann’s House rehabilitation clinic, confirmed his stay and told the Sunday People: “Anthony loved being at Dann’s House for a while and improved his life a lot while he was with us.

“Dann’s House does good work with vulnerable people. We have seen good, positive results.”