Niko McKnight a singer, guitarist, and the estranged son of R&B singer Brian McKnight, has reportedly died following a battle with cancer.
The unfortunate news was confirmed by Brian’s brother, Claude McKnight, in a video posted to TikTok on Thursday, May 29. The date Niko passed away nor his age at the time of his passing have been confirmed.
“This morning I found out that my nephew, Niko McKnight, passed away,” Claude began in the video. “He’d been bravely battling cancer for the past two years or so.”
He continued, “Niko was one of those amazing kids quirky, and curious and ridiculously talented. Amazing singer, amazing guitar player. Had a great eye as a photographer. And one of those kids, at least in my estimation, that you always wanted to be around.”
Niko, his siblings, and their mother made headlines years ago when it was revealed that Brian had an estranged relationship with several of his children. The R&B star has referred to his four oldest children—Brian Jr., Niko, Brianna and Clyde—as “products of sin,” as recently as 2024, saying that “In order to live a life that you love, you have to get rid of the evil and the negativity — even if that evil and negativity is related [to you],” according to Page Six.
While Claude didn’t directly address the family drama, he did allude to the topic.
“I wanted to post this about Niko, about his legacy, about how amazing he is, not about what some of you may have heard about family drama that has existed for quite some time, in our family,” he said in his TikTok video. “I don’t know exactly what was going on there, I know what I’ve seen. I know what I’ve heard from all parties involved…a lot of things didn’t get resolved.”
Claude McKnight concluded his video by saying, “I know that kid had a lot inside, a lot eating at him for a long, long time. I may have contributed to what happened with him, what I do know is he’s out of pain now. I just want to uplift that young man.”
Back in April, Niko spoke openly about his poor relationship with his father in a series of tweets, as captured by Golden Era Stories. Just a month before news of his passing, he wrote, “Sometimes, I wonder if my dad’s karma is my close proximity to death. Like maybe if I end up dying, it’ll release him from the grip of evil.”
He continued in another, now-deleted tweet, “When I was about to die in the hospital from complications from my cancer, I just wanted to bury the hatched and hear him say he loves me and told me he couldn’t arbitrarily tell me he loves me. Still cuts so deep.”
That was far from the first time Niko voiced his discontent with the situation, tweeting in September of 2024: “If I could just one more group hug between me, my brother, my mom, and my dad–I’d truly be ready.”
R.I.P. Niko McKnight.
