Former America’s Got Talent and The Voice contestant Nolan Neal’s cause of death has been determined.
The Nashville-based singer, who competed on season 15 of AGT and season 11 of The Voice, died at 41 on July 18 in his apartment. The coroner determined that Neal died from “acute combined drug toxicity,” and his death was ruled an accident. (The news was first reported by the New York Post’s Page Six and subsequently confirmed by multiple outlets.)
A spokesperson from the Davidson County Medical Examiner’s office in Nashville confirmed to the outlet that the drugs found in Neal’s system included a deadly combination of morphine, methamphetamine, fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl.
Neal’s cousin Dylan Seals confirmed to TMZ at the time of the musician’s death that the singer was found dead in his apartment. At the time, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department told Page Six that officers received a call of a “deceased person” that was later identified as Neal.
“On the desk next to the bed was a black guitar pick that appeared to contain a powder residue,” a spokesperson from the department revealed to the outlet. “The victim reportedly struggled with substance abuse.”
Seals told PEOPLE at the time of Neal’s death that he was “saddened” that the musician “ultimately succumbed to his battle with substance abuse.”
“He was always open and honest about that struggle,” Seals said. “He was a loving father and son. A light to all who knew him. My heart goes out to his two children and his mother Cathy.”
In July 2020, Neal told WBIR, “I joined the rock band Hinder, they were all about drinking and partying.”
“I remember going to a bar and ordering a drink. I tried to hide it,” he continued. “I remember pretending to be normal. I was just lying to myself telling myself that I could control it.”
Neal first rose to recognition on The Voice in 2016. His audition performance of the Incubus song “Drive” allowed him to nab a spot on Adam Levine’s team, though he was eventually eliminated from the competition.
Nearly four years later, Neal went on to compete on America’s Got Talent in 2020. He auditioned with an original song called “Lost.” He was later eliminated in the Judges’ Choice section of the Quarterfinals.
Weeks after Neal died, Simon Cowell shared his thoughts on the tragedy with PEOPLE.
“Unfortunately, it happens too much over the years,” Cowell, 62, says ahead of AGT’s live shows on Tuesday. “I was thinking about this the other day. People [who] passed too soon. Every time it happens, because you’ve gotten to know them, it’s horrible.”
“At that moment, it’s like, ‘What can I say?'” he notes. “The unfortunate thing is it’s happened too many times and every time it happens, it’s hard.”
Referencing the February death of fellow AGT contestant Nightbirde, who was also his Golden Buzzer selection in season 16, Cowell says: “After the last three years, it’s been tough. And then, you think everything’s okay and then something hits you like a story like that and it’s hard.”
“But all I can say is, what I’ve learned from this, is that you just take every day as it is and you try and stay positive, you try and stay healthy,” he adds. “That’s it. I mean, I was talking about this to someone earlier on, you’re never prepared for these days.”
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