Jill Janus [photo], lead singer of the heavy metal band Huntress, killed herself outside Portland, Oregon, on Tuesday

Jill Janus, lead singer of the heavy metal band Huntress, has died at age 43, her family and band made the announcement Thursday.

Janus had long struggled with mental Illness, and killed herself outside Portland, Oregon, on Tuesday, her relatives and bandmates said in a statement released through publicist Alexandra Greenberg.
Janus fronted Huntress from the group’s inception in Los Angeles in 2009, singing on three full-length albums and on tours with bands including Motorhead and Lamb of God.

Founding member and boyfriend Blake Meahl said on his Facebook page Thursday that he and Janus ‘spent 9 years together creating a home, having a family and building our passion project Huntress. The devastation of knowing I will never see her again is the most gutting emotion I have ever experienced.’
‘I hope you have found the peace that you couldn’t find on this planet,’ Meahl added.
A post on the band’s Facebook page read: ‘It is with crushed hearts that we announce that Jill Janus—frontwoman for the California heavy metal band Huntress—passed away on Tuesday, August 14.

Janus who is a long-time sufferer of mental illness, she took her own life outside of Portland, Oregon.
Janus [photo right], spoke publicly about these challenges in hopes of guiding others to address and overcome their mental illness.
‘Janus was a truly special creative involved with numerous musical projects including her role as vocalist for female metal/hard rock cover bands TheStarbreakers and Chelsea Girls.
‘In addition, Janus was co-composer and creator of an upcoming rock opera with Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s Angus Clark and had a decade-long career as NYC DJ Penelope Tuesdae.
Her musical career began in childhood.’
Janus she struggled with suicidal thoughts and lost some of her long-term memory when she suffered from ‘full blown mania’
Former Huntress bandmate, Casey Wood, wrote on Facebook: ‘I’m in shock and can’t stop crying. My ex band mate singer has left the world.
‘She was the biggest sweetheart and I hope that her legacy lives on as it should! You were supposed to be on your way back here Jill Janus. I love you I miss you, and my door is still open for you always. Rest in peace my sister.’
The band’s sound was classic thrash-inflected metal, with Janus, one of the few female vocalists in the genre, screaming through songs like ‘Spell Eater,’ ‘Eight of Swords,’ and ‘Sorrow’ with her long blonde hair and tight, black leather stage suits.

She also sang in an all-female metal band known as The Starbreakers on the side.
Janus had been an advocate for mental health and encouraged fans who were suffering to seek help.
Her struggles with bipolar disorder nearly brought an end to the band in 2018, but they returned for another album and more touring.
Janus said in an interview with Revolver magazine in July 2015 that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was 20 years old.

‘That’s when I was admitted into a mental health facility and was diagnosed bipolar with schizoaffective disorder, which progressed into schizophrenia and dissociative disorder.’
She also said she struggled with suicidal thoughts and lost some of her long-term memory when she suffered from ‘full blown mania’.
Janus was diagnosed with cancer of the uterus in 2015 after she started bleeding heavily between periods while on tour.