Lucian Piane, Former ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Music Producer, Dies at 46

Lucian Piane, the former RuPaul’s Drag Race music producer and writer on a number of RuPaul’s hit songs, has died. He was 46.

Piane died Monday, per the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, after being involved in a traffic collision in Glendale, People reported.

World of Wonder, the production company behind RuPaul’s Drag Race, shared a tribute on Instagram Tuesday, which read, “We are devastated to learn of the passing of Lucian Piane. Lucian left behind a legacy of truly beautiful music. May his struggles never dim the memories of a sweet man, a dear friend, and a master musician. Rest in peace, Lucian.”

Longtime judge and executive producer Michelle Visage wrote in the comments, “Such a beautiful soul, so talented…such a loss.”

He was born in in Kansas City, Missouri in October 1980, and graduated from New York University with a bachelor of music in musical composition in 2003.

Piane began working on RuPaul’s Drag Race during its debut season in 2009; he often lent his songwriting talents to the show’s Rusical (a play on the word “RuPaul” and “musical.”) He remained on the series through its eighth season, and also worked on the All Stars spinoff.

Aside from RuPaul’s Drag Race, Piane also collaborated with RuPaul on his own personal music, co-writing and producing some of his beloved hits including “Cover Girl,” “Sissy That Walk,” “Glamazon,” “Peanut Butter” and “Freaky Money,” among others.

Piane also earned a Grammy nomination tied to his work on 2007’s Hairspray.

After his tenure with the show, the music producer struggled with substance abuse and mental health issues. He had recently shared on Instagram in August that he had been sober for over a year.