Madonna shares moving tribute for late brother Christopher Ciccone: 'I know he's dancing somewhere'
Madonna is remembering her younger brother Christopher Ciccone, who died Friday from cancer.
"My brother Christopher is gone. He was the closest human to me for so long," the legendary pop star wrote in a moving and lengthy tribute posted to Instagram on Sunday.
The "Vogue" singer recounted the ups and downs of her relationship with Ciccone, from the time they were children in the Midwest to going to New York City together.
"My brother was right by my side," she wrote. "He was a painter a poet and a visionary. I admired him."
"We soared the highest heights together And floundered in the lowest lows," she continued. "Somehow, we always found each other again and We held hands and we kept dancing.
Madonna said she and Ciccone had not spoken for the "last few years" but said they eventually found their way back to each other after Ciccone became sick.
"I'm glad he's not suffering anymore," she concluded. "There will never be anyone like him. I know he's dancing somewhere. 💔."
Ciccone, an artist and designer, died Oct. 4 at age 63, according to his family.
"Christopher Ciccone died peacefully on October 4th, surrounded by his husband and loved ones; surrounded by love," the Ciccone family said in a statement provided to ABC News.
"Like his siblings, Christopher came of age in Rochester, Michigan, where both his personal and creative identities bloomed to reveal an expansively artistic soul," the statement continued.
The Ciccone family statement also touched on his work with Madonna.
"Christopher moved to New York City where he applied his craft of dancer and choreographer in support of his sister Madonna's emerging singing career," the statement read.
"His role expanded and his creative life surged within that collaborative and familial framework -- Chris becoming dresser and creative consultant to his elder sibling during her meteoric rise; and he further flourished in the role of interior designer within the homes his elder sibling owned and occupied in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles," the statement continued.
Following the "symbiotic collaboration" with his sister, Ciccone worked as "an interior specialist; a designer of footwear; a memoirist -- all the while dedicating himself to painting as his primary mode of personal expression," his family said.
Madonna's late brother, Anthony Ciccone, and late stepmother, Joan Gustafson Ciccone, preceded Christopher in death.
Christopher Ciccone's spouse, Ray Thacker, whom he married in 2016, "was faithfully by his side during the final stages of the cancer that would ultimately end his life," his family said.
Along with his father and sister Madonna, Ciccone leaves behind several siblings, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends, according to his family.
