- Madonna's older brother Anthony Ciccone died at the age of 66 over the weekend.
- The singer shared a tribute to her sibling on Instagram on Monday evening.
Madonna has paid tribute to her older brother Anthony Ciccone following the news of his death.
According to multiple outlets, Ciccone — who was the eldest of the star's seven siblings — died at the age of 66 over the weekend. The cause of his death has not yet been revealed.
The Queen of Pop's brother-in-law, Joe Henry, was the one to make public Ciccone's passing, sharing on Instagram on Monday that he had "exited this earthly plane," alongside an old black-and-white photograph.
Madonna liked Henry's social media post and then later shared a sentimental tribute of her own in which she thanked her brother for the cultural wisdom he passed down to her, name-checking musicians, novelists, and religions.
"Thank you for blowing my mind as a young girl and introducing me to Charlie Parker, Miles David, Buddhism, Taoism, Charles Bukowski, Richard Brautigan, Jack Kerouac, expansive thinking outing the box," she wrote in an Instagram Story on Monday evening alongside a sepia-toned photograph.
The "Vogue" singer concluded her tribute: "You planted many important seeds… ❤️"
In the picture, which was taken in 1986, Madonna can be seen with her siblings sitting at a square table drinking and playing cards. As she pointed out with an arrow, her late brother is sitting on her left-hand side.
The "Hung Up" singer's other siblings in the photograph from left to right are Christopher, Jennifer, Marty, Mario, Paula, and Melanie.
In his own Instagram statement, Henry, who is married to Melanie Ciccone, added: "I've known him since I was 15, in the spring of our lives in Michigan so many years now gone."
He went on to say that Ciccone was a "complex character," presumably referring to his estrangement from the rest of the family and struggles with alcoholism.
"But I loved him, and understood him better than I was sometimes willing to let on. But trouble fades; and family remains - with hands reached across the table. Farewell, then, brother Anthony," wrote Henry.
"I want to think the god your blessed mother (and mine) believed in has her there, waiting to receive you. At least for today, no one shall dissuade me from this vision."
Ciccone, who was born two years before the singer, in 1956, previously told the Daily Mail in 2011 that the rest of his family did not care about him.
"I'm a zero in their eyes; a non-person. I'm an embarrassment," he said. "If I froze to death, my family probably wouldn't know or care about it for six months."
Six years later, in 2017, it was reported that he had completed a rehab program and reconnected with his siblings.