Madonna's brother, Christopher Ciccone, has died aged 63, according to reports from TMZ.
Christopher's representative confirmed the news to the outlet, stating that the author and designer died on Friday in Michigan, having suffered from cancer.
Christopher famously worked with Madonna early in her career as a backup dancer, before going on to be the art director for her Blond Ambition World Tour in 1990.
He also worked as the tour director for Madonna’s The Girlie Show, in 1993, but the pair's relationship reportedly suffered fractures after the release of his book, Life With My Sister Madonna, in 2008.
In the book, which became a New York Times bestseller, Christopher claimed his sister was "a middle-class girl who propagates the story that she landed in Times Square with just a pair of ballet shoes and $35 to her name."
He claimed that her rags to riches story was "pure mythology and the further she progresses, the more mythological her life story becomes."
Christopher told The Sun in 2017: "I could have written that book, the book about how horrifying she is or can be, but I didn’t write that book.
"I was just looking for a little recognition for the work I’ve done for 20 years with her, that it wasn’t one person."
The pair's feud appeared to have ended in 2012 as Christopher told the Evening Standard: "[We are] on a perfectly personable level right now. As far as I’m concerned, we’re good.
"We are in contact with each other, although I haven’t seen her for a long time.
"We’re back to being a brother and sister. I don’t work for her, and it’s better this way."
He added in the same interview: "I couldn’t be more proud of her. She is a force to be reckoned with.
"Does she have Barbra Streisand’s voice? No. Can she dance like Martha Graham? Probably not. But the combination of her abilities has made her great, and left a huge legacy for her, and through her, for me. So yeah, God bless her."
The news of Christopher's death comes weeks after Madonna's stepmother, Joan Clare Ciccone, also died on September 24, having suffered a brief battle with a "very aggressive" cancer.
Our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time.
