Swedish DJ Tim 'Avicii' Bergling died on April 20, 2018 at the far too young age of 28. Known for the smash hits Levels, Wake Me Up, and Hey Brother, he pioneered today's electronic dance movement. However, he also suffered from health issues due to excessive drinking, like acute pancreatitis. The fast-paced rock star life and hectic tour schedule eventually took its toll. TMZ reported that Avicii's cause of death was suicide, due to self-inflicted injuries with a broken wine bottle.
Avicii's tragic death robbed the world of decades of amazing music, but next week, fans will get a chance to see him again: On December 28, Netflix is releasing Avicii: True Stories, a 2017 documentary that offers a heartbreaking look at the late DJ's life. Earlier this year, the streaming service removed the film, but now it's back.
Stockholm-based filmmaker Levan Tsikurishvili directed the documentary over a four-year period. It shows the passionate DJ's meteoric rise in the world of electronic music, as well as his struggle to handle the stress of a frantic tour schedule, turning to alcohol to unwind before shows. Through the exuberant highs and the agonizing lows, viewers get a closer glimpse of the troubled artist.
Also, in the wake of Avicii's untimely death, certain moments in the film become poignant. For example, at one point, the exhausted DJ says, "There was never an end to the shows, even when I hit a wall. My life is all about stress." And in a prophetic moment, Avicii’s manager Ash Pournouri states, "Tim is going to die, with all the interviews, radio tours and playing. He’ll drop dead."
In 2017, Tsikurishvili told The 405, "I wanted to do a brutally honest film about Tim as a person and not only about Avicii. Everybody knows Avicii but very few people know Tim. I think this documentary really shows Tim’s struggle and strength of character. Being a worldwide superstar artist is not as easy as it looks on Instagram."
He continued, "What I think I want people to understand about Avicii is the actual person behind it which is Tim. What I mean by that is, it’s so easy to judge nowadays from social media, and the press, and all the information we are getting from our phones. We really don’t know who the person is, but you think you know – that is what I think is the biggest point with that. Also, there is the whole explanation of who he is and how his life has been the past 8 years."
On Instagram, Tsikurishvili announced that the film qualified for Oscar consideration, and hopes it will make a difference to young viewers: "This documentary hasn’t left a single person emotionally untouched and even if some memories are very painful for me to watch, I’m very proud and thankful that we did it," he wrote in the caption. "Looking out for one another has never been more important than NOW, and I DO hope that we’ve changed SOMETHING to the better in this industry, especially for the younger generation."