Madonna's brother has died

Christopher was 63 years old.

He and Madonna were very close in the early days of her career, and she hired him as one of her backing dancers.

He later became her show designer and backstage dresser and was the art director for her 'Blonde Ambition' world tour and tour director for 'The Girlie Show'.

Christopher - who also directed videos for Tony Bennett and Dolly Parton, as well as working as an interior designer - fell out with his superstar sibling when he released his 2008 best-selling book 'Life With My Sister Madonna'.

The two eventually reconciled, and in 2012, Christopher released his own footwear line.

The tragic news comes just a few weeks after Madonna's stepmother, Joan Ciccone, died from a "very aggressive cancer".

The 81 year old - who was married to the singer's Silvio Ciccone - passed away "peacefully" on 24 September after a brief bout of ill health and a memorial posted online revealed her family's sadness over the loss.

It read: "Joan Clare Ciccone passed away peacefully early in the morning of September 24th, 2024, after a brief encounter with a very aggressive cancer. She will be terribly missed by her family and friends whose lives she enriched with her enthusiasm, joy and love."

Joan married Silvio in 1966 following the death of his first wife - Madonna's mother who shared the same name as the singer - and took on his six kids. They had three children of their own, including a son who died shortly after birth.

The obituary added: "She took special joy in her grandkids later in life and with the grim cancer prognosis lamented that she was sad she would not see them marry and have kids of their own."

Madonna's mother died in 1963 after a battle with breast cancer when the pop star was five years old.