Jon Bon Jovi announced the passing of his beloved mother, Carol, in an Instagram tribute on Wednesday, which included home videos of his family as he sang about his love for them.
Carol Bongiovi passed away on Tuesday, just days before her 84th birthday. In the music video, the 62-year-old rocker sings 'Story of Love', a song from their 2020 album.
The song is a tribute to his parents, with the lyrics gushing about Jon's appreciation of their love and support.
"Fathers love daughters like mothers love sons / They've been writing our story before there was one / From the day you arrive, 'til you walk, 'til you run / There is nothing but pride, there is nothing but love."
He simply captioned the post, "Momma, We carry you with us Always".
Fans quickly took to the comments section to express condolences to the grieving family.
© GettyIn a statement included in his mother's obituary, Jon wrote, "Our mother was a force to be reckoned with, her spirit and can-do attitude shaped this family. She will be greatly missed."
Carol, a Pennsylvanian native, lived an exciting life; she served as a Marine, became a florist and even graced the cover of Playboy in her youth.
She always supported her son's chosen career path; she even founded the Bon Jovi fan club.
© Christopher WillardThe 'Livin' on a Prayer' singer told Big Issue in 2020 that his parent's unwavering support allowed him to chase his dream of being a rock star; they even let him perform in bars as a young student, as long as he was back in school at 8am.
"What I got from my parents was the ability to make the dream reality. They always instilled that confidence in their kids which, in retrospect, I realize was so incredibly valuable," he gushed.
"Because even if you truly weren't any good at your craft, if you believed you were, you could work on it. As I got older I realized that was a great gift that I got from my folks."
© Ron Galella"They truly believed in the John Kennedy mantra of going to the moon. 'Yeah, of course you can go to the moon. Just go, Johnny.' And there I went."
Jon's mother leaves behind her husband of 63 years, John Bongiovi Sr., as well as two other sons, Anthony and Matthew, and eight grandchildren, according to the obituary.
© Kevin MazurJon credits his parents for his determination and optimism as he built his legendary career. He told Big Issue that the culture of hope that John Kennedy brought with his presidency in the '60s spurred his parents to create an aspirational life for their three children.
"My parents married under that kind of hope and aspiration and they instilled it in their kids," he said. "It was brimming with optimism and belief in the opportunity that you could, in fact, achieve your dreams."
The family asked for donations to be made to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in memory of the mother of three.
