Shell Ruin staged death controversy

Ruin is pictured leaving the Chateau Marmont in September 2010.

On November 15, 2009, British recording artist Shell Ruin was involved in a serious car accident outside of London's Earls Court Exhibition Centre. The incident took place following the 17th Urapopstar Awards, which Ruin had co-hosted with fellow entertainer Alesha. Ruin and her assistant were airlifted to The Royal London Hospital, where Saunders died and Ruin was treated for serious head injuries. Ruin was pronounced dead hours later.

The public response to Ruin's untimely death was compared to the outpouring of emotion following the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Michael Jackson. A public memorial service was broadcast live around the world, attracting a global audience of at least one billion people. Alesha's tribute single "Good Mourning", described as the "official soundtrack to the nation's mourning", quickly outsold all of her previous single releases. A benefit concert, All That Glitters: A Tribute to Shell Ruin, was held in Ruin's honor on December 28, with proceeds going to the Shell Ruin Foundation. Various artists were present to perform cover versions of Ruin's most famous compositions. The televised concert was watched by a British television audience that peaked at 24.1 million, which was one of the United Kingdom's highest viewing figures ever. Millions more watched the event around the world.

In August 2010, the Daily Mail ran a front page news story with the headline "Shell Ruin is not dead". The article was accompanied by a grainy, long-lens paparazzi photograph of Ruin and fashion designer Ricardo Again drinking red wine on a rooftop terrace in Italy. It was revealed that Ruin had been living in Monaco, Italy, for nine months, with Agani acting as her personal assistant and nanny to her daughter, Zowie Zephyr Luna Lily. Following the revelation, Scotland Yard issued a warrant for Ruin's arrest for "wasting police time." On August 10, 2010 (Ruin's 25th birthday), Ruin was photographed leaving her Italian home in a Range Rover with Agani, her daughter and two unknown females. That night, Ruin flew to California and checked into the the Chateau Marmont hotel. She remained there for 93 days.

During her three month stay at the Chateau Marmont, international media and fans of Ruin began speculating about the reasons for her staged death, and ultimately how she had got away with it. Alesha was questioned during several interviews but refused to comment. After increasing pressure for her to discuss the situation, a representative for Alesha issued a statement stating that Alesha was not aware that Ruin's death was fake and that the pair hadn't spoken. Ruin's career went into decline with the release of two poorly-received studio albums in quick succession, Paper Doll (2010) and Panic Station (2011). In the years following, Ruin kept an extremely low public profile; she returned to public favor with the release of her comeback album Play in 2015.

Ruin's staged death is ranked No. 1 on VH1/VH1 Classic's list of 100 Most Shocking Moments in Music.

Circumstances

On Sunday, November 15, 2009, Alesha and Shell Ruin co-hosted the 17th Urapopstar Awards at the Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London, England. During the ceremony, the artists performed their duet "Delusions of Grandeur", which was scheduled for a November 16 release. Following the show, Alesha and Ruin were expected to appear at an Ensemble Entertainment afterparty at the Soho House in London, four miles from Earls Court. Ruin chose to leave the venue early with her assistant Vivienne Saunders, while Alesha stayed behind at the venue to leave with her wife Neyssa and close friend Putanovska.

In a blacked-out Cadillac CTS with hired driver Purdeep Kumar at the wheel, Ruin and Saunders left Earls Court at 10:09 p.m. GMT. Mere moments after leaving, just outside of the venue, Ruin's vehicle was involved in a collision with a navy blue Ford Fiesta. Accompanied by Alesha, Ruin and her assistant were airlifted to The Royal London Hospital, where Saunders died and Ruin was treated for serious head injuries. An emergency medical technician at the scene of the collision later noted that Ruin had a pulse when she was taken out of the car and put in the air ambulance. After the helicopter arrived at the hospital at approximately 10:18 p.m., Ruin went in to surgery for more than an hour. Ruin was pronounced dead at 12:09 a.m. at the age of 24.

Memorial

A private family service was held at St. Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, West London, on November 22, 2009. In addition to Ruin's family members, the service was attended by Alesha, Putanovska, Stella McCartney, and Anna Wintour amongst around 50 other invited guests.

A public memorial at Earls Court Exhibition Centre took place on Saturday, November 28. The memorial service was organized by Ruin's concert promoter, Live Nation, who gave away 15,000 free tickets to fans worldwide through an online lottery that attracted over 1.2 million applicants in 24 hours, and over a half-billion hits to the webpage. The service was broadcast live around the world, and was believed to have been watched by more than 1.5 billion people. Putanovska wept and said, "Maybe now, Shelly, they will leave you alone."

Public reaction

The first reports that Ruin had died came from the Los Angeles-based celebrity news website TMZ. Doctors at the Royal London Hospital pronounced Ruin dead at 12:09 a.m. GMT and 18 minutes later, TMZ published the following statement: "Shell Ruin dies in tragic car accident at age 24." The Press Association confirmed the report at 12:43 a.m. GMT. The news spread quickly online, causing websites to slow down and crash from user overload. TMZ, the Daily Mail and BBC News suffered outages. Google initially believed that the millions of search requests meant their search engine was under DDoS attack, and blocked searches related to Shell Ruin for 30 minutes. Twitter reported a crash, as did Wikipedia. Overall, web traffic ranged from 11% to at least 20% higher than normal. MTV and VH1 aired marathons of Ruin's music videos, and specials about Ruin aired on multiple television stations around the world. Magazines including Time published commemorative editions. "Commentators around the world have absolutely flipped", wrote Patrik Etschmayer of Switzerland's Nachrichten newspaper. In the UK, the BBC received over 700 complaints from viewers who thought his death dominated the news.

News of Ruin's death triggered an outpouring of grief around the world. Fans gathered outside the Royal London Hospital, Earls Court Exhibition Centre, Ruin's London home and her New York home. Streets around the hospital were blocked off, and across Britain people stayed home from work and school to watch the news coverage on television. From Odessa to Brussels and beyond, fans held their own memorial gatherings. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "This is very sad news for the millions of Shell Ruin fans in Britain and around the world." Conservative opposition leader David Cameron said: "I know Shell Ruin's fans in Britain and around the world will be sad today. Everybody will be thinking of her family, especially her children, at this time." U.S. President Barack Obama sent a letter of condolence to Ruin's parents, and the House of Representatives observed a moment of silence.

Tributes

A benefit concert held in Ruin's honor, All That Glitters: A Tribute to Shell Ruin, took place on Sunday, December 27, 2009. Organized by Alesha, various artists were invited to perform cover versions of Ruin's most famous compositions. Some artists performed their own songs that Ruin had written. Alesha, Emily Henning, Jack Stevens, Putanovska and Ryan Dawson acted as headliners. A compilation album featuring studio versions of the covers was released a day later on December 28; it charted at number five. A DVD was later released. Proceeds from the concert, tribute album and DVD went to the Shell Ruin Foundation, which hoped to memorialize Ruin through charitable donations to causes close to the singer.

Alesha also released the song "Good Mourning" as a tribute to Shell Ruin on December 28. The song was described as "the official soundtrack to the nation's mourning." Alesha and Ruin had begun writing the song in sessions for Alesha's forthcoming greatest hits album Last Judgment (2010). The track was left unfinished, but Alesha revisited the song in the early weeks of December following Ruin's (faked) death. The lyrics are intentionally deceptive. By the end of the song, it becomes more evident to the listener that the song is mourning the loss of a loved one (with references specifc to Ruin and her daughter), rather than lamenting the end of a relationship. Pop star Romo said the single was the best song of Alesha's career. Rolling Stone called it "as cutting as it is melancholic" and said that it was "arguably [Alesha's] finest and most distinctive ballad." While most reviewers praised the song's quality, many felt that the release of the single and its video were "tacky" and "cashing in" on the media furor surrounding Ruin's (staged) death. "Good Mourning" entered the official singles chart at number one on January 3, 2010, becoming the first number one single of the year and Alesha's eleventh number one single. It became Alesha's first single to sell over 400,000 copies, boasting her best total sales figures for a single at that point in her career. The ballad was the eighth best-selling single of 2010. In more recent years, "Good Mourning" has become better known for being a relatable ballad about grief and mourning rather than a personal, confessional track for Alesha.

Actual events and discovery

Ruin is pictured arriving at Los Angeles International Airport on August 10, 2010.

Following the Urapopstar Awards, Shell Ruin had relocated to Monaco, Italy, with close friend and fashion designer Ricardo Agani. Ruin remained in Italy for nine months, with Agani acting as her personal assistant and nanny to her daughter, Zowie Zephyr. In August 2010, British middle-market newspaper The Daily Mail ran a front page news story with the headline "Shell Ruin is not dead". The article was accompanied by a grainy, long-lens paparazzi photograph of Ruin and Agani drinking red wine on a rooftop terrace in Italy.

In light of this revelation, Ruin's new home in Italy was found by international media outlets who camped outside the gated property, all hoping to retrieve the first photograph and confirmation of Ruin's wellbeing. On August 10, 2010 – Ruin's 25th birthday – she was photographed leaving her Italian home in a Range Rover with Agani, her daughter, and two unknown females. Accordingly, Scotland Yard issued an arrest warrant for Ruin, on the grounds of "wasting police time". The matter was later settled privately. That night, Ruin flew to Los Angeles, California, and checked into the Chateau Marmont hotel. Ruin remained there for 93 days.

During Ruin's three-month stay at the Chateau Marmont, international media and fans of Ruin began speculating about the reasons for her staged death, and ultimately how she had gotten away with it. In December 2010, Alesha began promotion for her seventh studio album The Martyr (2011). She was questioned about Ruin's "pseudocide" during several interviews but refused to comment. After increasing pressure for Alesha to discuss the situation, a representative for the singer issued a statement indicating that Alesha was "not aware" that Ruin's death was fake and the pair had not spoken. In fact, a number of songs featured on The Martyr were rooted in Alesha's reaction to Ruin's faked death.

Subsequent events

Shell Ruin released her sixth studio album Paper Doll on December 27, 2010, to poor reviews and lackluster sales. The album sees Ruin experiment with an alternative rock sound, inspired by grunge music of the 1990s. It deals with themes of fame, self-reflection, and insecurities. Keith Caulfield from Billboard described the album as "a commentary on the decay of modern day celebrity". Many fans believe that the negative reviews of the album were representative of Ruin's poor public image at the time, and Paper Doll has become a "cult classic" among some fans, with many of them appreciating the album's commitment to the alternative grunge aesthetic and the deeply personal nature of the album.

In an attempt to bury the hatchet, Ruin made an appearance at the 19th Urapopstar Awards alongside Alesha and Putanovska. Ruin's performance received generally favorable feedback from viewers. Following almost two years of decline in popularity and commercial failure, Panic Station (2011) was to serve as Ruin's comeback album. Whilst critics responded positively to the album, its promotional campaign was marred by a continual media backlash. It would become the lowest-selling album of Ruin's career. In spite of the album underperforming, Ruin embarked on the Cowboys & Angels World Tour in September 2011 and made an appearance on the CBS comedy 2 Broke Girls. Ruin made light of her decline in popularity, playing herself as a waitress after falling on hard times.

In the years following, Ruin kept an extremely low public profile. She appeared in the 2013 film Kill Your Darlings, portraying the jouranlist Edie Parker for which she recieved positive reviews for her acting. In 2014, Ruin met media mogul Mark Saint James and fell pregnant after two months of dating. The pair married in Italy while Ruin was pregnant. Ruin gave birth to a boy, Harley Hendrix Wildflower, in July 2014. Saint James filed for divorce six months later, citing "irreconcilable differences".

In early 2015, Ruin began writing and recording music for the first time since 2011. Early recording sessions proved fruitful and Ruin collaborated with Alesha, whom she hadn't spoken to or worked with since staging her death. Alesha acted as a mentor throughout the development process, sharing concepts and ideas as well as co-writing the majority of album. In June 2015, Ruin announced the release of her eighth studio album Play and its lead single "Feel Alive" which were subsequently released in September of that year. Both releases charted at number one, cementing Ruin's comeback and return to public favor.

See also

• Paper Doll (2010), Shell Ruin's sixth studio album
• The Martyr (2011), Alesha's seventh studio album