Chris Cornell's death officially ruled a suicide following chilling final performance: Watch

The shocking death of Chris Cornell, vocalist for the rock bands Soundgarden and Audioslave, has officially been ruled a suicide, the Associated Press reports. He was 52.

A Wayne County medical examiner confirmed the prolific singer and guitarist had taken his own life following his final performance with Soundgarden at Detroit's Fox Theater on May 17.  Police found his body on the floor of his hotel room's bathroom in the early morning hours after the concert.

Chris was in "high spirits" during the show, according to fan videos posted online.

"It’s great to be back here!" he reportedly told the at-capacity crowd. The frontman's signature soaring vocals were met with enthusiastic cheers as he launched through the band's biggest hits, including 1994's 'Spoonman' and 'Black Hole Sun', which earned Soundgarden two Grammy Awards in 1995.


Chris performs with Soundgarden in 2015. Image: Getty

Chris reportedly closed the set with a chilling cover of Led Zepplin's 'In My Time of Dying', for which the lyrics paint a haunting picture: "In my time of dying, I want nobody to mourn/All I want for you to do is take my body home."

A Seattle native, Chris publicly struggled with depression and substance abuse over the years. He had also ruminated about the shared struggles among his rock and roll contemporaries who met untimely deaths.

"I've lost a lot of young, brilliant friends, people that I thought were very inspired," he told Rolling Stone in 2015. "They're all young and these guys all had limitless potential in their lives in front of them."