{"id":204614,"date":"2025-11-11T21:24:48","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T21:24:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/11\/cleto-escobedo-cause-of-death-jimmy-kimmel-live-bandleader-was-59\/"},"modified":"2025-11-11T21:24:48","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T21:24:48","slug":"cleto-escobedo-cause-of-death-jimmy-kimmel-live-bandleader-was-59","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/11\/cleto-escobedo-cause-of-death-jimmy-kimmel-live-bandleader-was-59\/","title":{"rendered":"Cleto Escobedo Cause of Death: &#8216;Jimmy Kimmel Live&#8217; Bandleader Was 59"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Cleto Escobedo III \u2014 who had served as the bandleader on<em> Jimmy Kimmel Live<\/em> since the show began back in 2003 \u2014 has passed away.<\/p>\n<p>He was just 59 years old.<\/p>\n<p>News of Escobedo\u2019s passing comes courtesy of a social media statement posted by Kimmel on Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><noscript><\/noscript><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Cleto Escobedo attends as Keep Memory Alive hosts star-studded lineup at annual &quot;Power Of Love&quot; gala at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  \" class=\"wp-image-540084 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-960x640.jpg 960w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-1080x720.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201394486-scaled.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Cleto Escobedo attends as Keep Memory Alive hosts star-studded lineup at annual \u201cPower Of Love\u201d gala at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  <span class=\"image-caption-credit\"> (Photo by Gabe Ginsberg\/Getty Images for Keep Memory Alive)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-jimmy-kimmel-announces-death-of-lifelong-friend\">Jimmy Kimmel announces death of lifelong friend<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cEarly this morning, we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DQ7f5moEYYy\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kimmel wrote<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo say that we are heartbroken is an understatement. Cleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true. Cherish your friends and please keep Cleto\u2019s wife, children and parents in your prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The cause of Escobedo\u2019s death is unknown at this time.<\/p>\n<p>Kimmel and Escobedo were childhood friends, and the host has stated on numerous occasions that there\u2019s no one else he would\u2019ve hired to lead his band.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"777\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-777x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Cleto Escobedo III attends the annual Keep Memory Alive &quot;Power of Love&quot; gala benefit for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health honoring Jimmy Kimmel at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. \" class=\"wp-image-540085\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-777x1024.jpg 777w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-228x300.jpg 228w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-768x1012.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-1555x2048.jpg 1555w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-729x960.jpg 729w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-820x1080.jpg 820w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-911x1200.jpg 911w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-scaled.jpg 1944w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"777\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-777x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Cleto Escobedo III attends the annual Keep Memory Alive &quot;Power of Love&quot; gala benefit for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health honoring Jimmy Kimmel at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. \" class=\"wp-image-540085 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-777x1024.jpg 777w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-228x300.jpg 228w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-768x1012.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-1555x2048.jpg 1555w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-729x960.jpg 729w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-820x1080.jpg 820w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-911x1200.jpg 911w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-scaled.jpg 1944w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201417516-scaled.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Cleto Escobedo III attends the annual Keep Memory Alive \u201cPower of Love\u201d gala benefit for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health honoring Jimmy Kimmel at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. <span class=\"image-caption-credit\"> (Photo by Ethan Miller\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Kimmel paid tribute to their friendship in a 2016 segment for Escobedo\u2019s 50th birthday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCleto had a bicycle with a sidecar attached to it. We called it the side hack. I would get in the sidecar and then Cleto would drive me directly into garbage cans and bushes,\u201d the comic recalled at the time.<\/p>\n<p>He added that Escobedo could often be found \u201con the lawn with his BB gun just shooting at me\u201d and that they would steal his dad\u2019s shotgun and \u201cshoot kites out of the sky,\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a later interview with ABC7, Kimmel described his bandleader as \u201ca child prodigy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe whole school would gather to watch. He\u2019d get standing ovations. It was a crazy thing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Escobedo, Kimmel explained, \u201ctoured with Earth, Wind and Fire, Paula Abdul\u201d and \u201chad his own record deal\u201d before joining his show.<\/p>\n<p>Kimmel recalled that hiring Escobedo was non-negotiable when he landed his late night gig.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Cleto Escobedo attends as Keep Memory Alive hosts star-studded lineup at annual &quot;Power Of Love&quot; gala at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  \" class=\"wp-image-540086\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-960x640.jpg 960w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1080x720.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Cleto Escobedo attends as Keep Memory Alive hosts star-studded lineup at annual &quot;Power Of Love&quot; gala at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  \" class=\"wp-image-540086 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-960x640.jpg 960w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1080x720.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.thehollywoodgossip.com\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2201392659-scaled.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Cleto Escobedo attends as Keep Memory Alive hosts star-studded lineup at annual \u201cPower Of Love\u201d gala at MGM Grand Garden Arena on February 22, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  <span class=\"image-caption-credit\"> (Photo by Gabe Ginsberg\/Getty Images for Keep Memory Alive)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ll tell you one thing. It had to have my band leader, Cleto,\u201d the host told ABC7, adding:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was nervous, because I thought they\u2019d say, \u2018We don\u2019t want your friend to be the band leader.\u2019 So I took the president of ABC to see him play with his band, and he loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course I wanted great musicians, but I wanted somebody I had chemistry with. And there\u2019s nobody in my life I have better chemistry with than him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cleto\u2019s father, Cleto Escobedo Sr., is also a member of Kimmel\u2019s house band.<\/p>\n<p>His passing comes at a time when Kimmel\u2019s show has been making headlines due to the host\u2019s ongoing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehollywoodgossip.com\/2025\/10\/jimmy-kimmel-invites-donald-trump-on-his-show-gets-brutally-shot-down-by-white-house\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">feud with Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Our thoughts go out to Cleto Escobedo\u2019s loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async defer src=\"https:\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehollywoodgossip.com\/2025\/11\/cleto-escobedo-cause-of-death-jimmy-kimmel-live-bandleader-was-59\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Reading Time: 3 minutes Cleto Escobedo III \u2014 who had served as the bandleader on Jimmy Kimmel Live since the show began back in 2003 \u2014 has passed away. He was just 59 years old. News of Escobedo\u2019s passing comes courtesy of a social media statement posted by Kimmel on Tuesday afternoon. Cleto Escobedo attends [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":204615,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-204614","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hollywood"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204614"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204614\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/204615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}