Natalie Cole's Only Child, Robert Yancy, Dies At 39

Robert Yancy, the only child of the R&B star late Natalie Cole and grandson of legendary crooner Nat King Cole, has died. He was 39. Yancy was found dead Monday night at his home in the Sherman Oaks section of Los Angeles after authorities were contacted to make a welfare check. The Los Angeles County coroner's office said Tuesday that his death was reported as due to natural causes but the official cause must await an autopsy. His death comes just 18 months after his mother died at age 65 on Dec. 31, 2015, of pulmonary arterial hypertension, which led to heart failure. Yancy's father, Marvin, the first of Cole's three husbands, died of a heart attack at age 34 in 1985, when Yancy was 7. His grandfather, Nat King Cole, the enormously popular singer of the late 1950s and early 1960s, died of cancer in 1965, at age 45. Yancy's aunt, Timolin Cole Augustus, told The Associated Press, his death "appears to be a sudden heart attack." Yancy was a drummer who played in his mother's touring band and performed at her funeral in January 2016. "We are just numb," Cole Augustus said. "The only consolation is that he's with the person he loved the most." Cole Augustus said by phone from her Florida home that Yancy was "completely torn apart" upon his mother's death, but had since rebounded and was performing again. "He was in a happy place. He was feeling good," she said. "We were looking forward to celebrating his 40th birthday." Yancy, who went by Robbie, and his mother shared a strong Baptist faith and were regular churchgoers. "What a woman," Yancy told mourners at Cole's funeral. "She taught me how to love. She had my back every time when I needed it. The greatest gift she ever gave me was Jesus. I cannot wait until that day that I see you again." At the funeral, one of Cole's sisters read a condolence letter from then-President Barack Obama to Yancy. Robert "Robbie' Yancy greets guest at a Celebration Of Natalie Cole's Life Jan.11, 2016 in Los Angeles. (Photo: Larry Busacca, Getty Images) - USA Today Cole Augustus recalled her nephew as "a man of great strength and faith in God. He had an indomitable spirit. Everybody loved him." Born Robert Adam Yancy on Oct. 14, 1977, he never married. He is survived by Cole's twin sisters, Timolin and Casey Cole Hooker, and five cousins. Funeral arrangements were pending. Cole Augustus said Yancy would be laid to rest with his mother and grandfather at Forest Lawn in Glendale, California. "The dynasty is up in heaven," said Cole Augustus, who along with her sister runs the Nat King Cole Generation Hope organization that works to keep music in schools. (Source: USA Today) - Associated Press Writers Robert Jablon and Andrew Dalton contributed to this report.

Natalie Cole’s Only Child, Robert Yancy, Dies At 39

by K. Gitter
Published August 20, 2017

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