‘He passed holding my hand’: Brenda Edwards speaks about Jamal’s death as she returns to Loose Women

Brenda Edwards broke down in tears as she revealed she was holding her son Jamal’s hand while he passed away from a ‘sudden heart attack’ aged 31 in February of this year.

The Loose Women panellist, 53, also revealed details of his Chelsea FC-themed funeral for the very first time in a chat with her co-star Coleen Nolan during the ITV show on Monday.

She went on to add that her daughter Tanisha, 22, was also with the businessman while he died at their home, adding that ‘it’s a vision she will never forget’.

‘He passed holding my hand’: Brenda Edwards returned to Loose Women on Monday for the first time since on Jamal’s death as she revealed they celebrated his life with a Chelsea themed ‘home going’

In the extremely candid interview, she began: ‘I’m doing OK. The way I’m looking at it I’m taking each day as it comes. The one thing I do want to say is I was with him and his sister was with us we were all at home.

‘It was sudden and unexpected and he went into the cardiac arrest and he passed with us holding his hand. I get a little bit of comfort knowing I was with him.

‘As much as that is comfort, at the same time it’s a vision I’m never gonna forget when I wake up every morning, there are still photos in the house and I look at him and say, “Goodnight baby.”

‘He always had this bright smile, he had this funny laugh, I feel his presence constantly, I believe in faith and that has been a comfort for me

Mother-and-son: Music mogul Jamal died at the home he shared with mum Brenda, 53, after DJing the night before (Jamal and Brenda pictured November 2021)

‘All the people coming up to me that I don’t know is overwhelming, we’re so grateful for all those messages of support despite how hard they were to read. It means a lot that my son made a difference for so many people.’

While his death was unexpected, the SBTV founder had planned ahead and written out details for his loved ones to follow, including that for his funeral.

Brenda explained: ‘I only found this out after he passed that he had left instructions with all the businesses he was running a few years ago. I was glad to get that instructing from him, he pretty much thought of everything.

‘He had even left instructions for his homegoing, we don’t call it a funeral, we went back to Luton where he was born and had his homegoing service there.

‘He was a fan of Chelsea so we had a blue and white theme, it was beautiful. Everyone wore blue and white and the music was there, he had live entertainment.

Bawling: She went on to add that her daughter Tanisha, 22, was also with the businessman while he died at their home, adding that ‘it’s a vision she will never forget’

Tragic: In the extremely candid interview, she began: ‘I’m doing OK. The way I’m looking at it I’m taking each day as it comes. The one thing I do want to say is I was with him and his sister was with us we were all at home’

Open: ‘It was sudden and unexpected and he went into the cardiac arrest and he passed with us holding his hand. I get a little bit of comfort knowing I was with him’

‘When we laid him to rest it was really beautiful and the clouds had made a J.

‘Something that was hard was that the announcement of the passing was taken away from me and it was announced elsewhere but I got to control the homegoing service.

‘Jamal was all about empowering young people, we want to set up an academy for 16-to-21-year-olds giving them an internship over a year where they learn everything from the ground up and a homeless sanctuary.

‘He said, “We all die the goal is not to live together but to create something that will live on,” and I’m determined to make sure it will.

‘Tanesha has been a massive support and has provided a lot of strength though this. I did my best with raising them, as he said when he came onto the panel, that’s Jamal Edwards’ mum or Brenda Edwards’ son. We were so proud of each other.

Gut-wrenching: ‘As much as that is comfort, at the same time it’s a vision I’m never gonna forget when I wake up every morning, there are still photos in the house and I look at him and say, “Goodnight baby”‘

Awful: ‘He always had this bright smile, he had this funny laugh, I feel his presence constantly, I believe in faith and that has been a comfort for me’

Hug: ‘All the people coming up to me that I don’t know is overwhelming, we’re so grateful for all those messages of support despite how hard they were to read. It means a lot that my son made a difference for so many people’

In a preview for the tear-jerking chat Brenda admitted she ‘needs’ to return to Loose Women as her first TV appearance was teased following the tragedy.

The TV personality will head back to her role on Tuesday but is first opening her heart to her co-star Coleen in a candid interview which aired on Monday afternoon.

Wiping her eyes, the emotional former X Factor contestant told her friend: ‘It was funny because everyone was like, “What can I do?”

‘I had Judy [Love] and Charlene [White] wanting to bring food round… I have food coming from all angles!’ she quipped.

Brenda added: ‘It has been great having the ladies there and that is something that is a big part of my life. It’s not that I want to return, I need to return.

‘I’ve missed everyone but I thank you for supporting and being there at the end of the phone for me.’

Revealing: In a preview for the tear-jerking chat Brenda admitted she ‘needs’ to return to Loose Women as her first TV appearance was teased following the tragedy

Candid: Wiping her eyes, the emotional former X Factor contestant told her friend: ‘It was funny because everyone was like, “What can I do?”

It comes after Brenda shared a touching tribute to her late son Jamal as she marked her first Mother’s Day without him. 

The former singer took to Instagram with a heartfelt collage, which captured happy memories throughout her late son’s life.  

Music mogul Jamal died in February aged 31 following a ‘sudden heart attack’ at the home he shared with mum Brenda, after DJing the night before. 

Support: ‘I had Judy [Love] and Charlene [White] wanting to bring food round… I have food coming from all angles!’ she quipped

Ready now: Brenda added: ‘It has been great having the ladies there and that is something that is a big part of my life. It’s not that I want to return, I need to return’

Stroll: ‘I’ve missed everyone but I thank you for supporting and being there at the end of the phone for me’

The collection of photographs heavily featured Jamal with his sister Tanisha during their childhood, whilst proud mum Brenda also shared photos of them altogether. 

The poignant post, captioned, ‘Always and Forever. [sic]’, was immediately met with kind condolences from her followers.

‘You are the mother of a legend Miss Brenda,’ one comment read. 

Another left their wishes by writing: ‘Special Mother’s Day Blessings Brenda… Love you all forever and always [prayer and heart emojis]’. 

 

‘Always and Forever’: It comes after Brenda shared a touching tribute to her late son Jamal as she marked her first Mother’s Day without him

Jamal – who was credited with launching the careers of numerous pop stars including Ed Sheeran and Jessie J – is famous for setting up the online media platform SBTV.

It showcased emerging artists, and currently has 1.23 million subscribers to its YouTube channel.

Jamal’s sudden death was announced online on February 20 and later confirmed by his management. 

How Jamal Edwards launched the careers of some of Britain’s biggest stars from a YouTube channel set up in his bedroom when he was 15 and working in Topman

Little Mix on SBTV in 2012

Jamal was 15 when his mother Brenda bought him extra special Christmas present – a £200 video camera. 

YouTube had just been launched and Jamal, who like most teenagers spent hours in his bedroom online, decided to upload some footage of foxes in his back garden. ‘I thought I was Steve Irwin,’ he said in an interview with MailOnline.

But when the footage got 1,000 views, he realised he was on to something. 

He went out on to the estate and made some clips of his friends, most of whom were into grime – the music style now defined by stars such as Dizzee Rascal and Skepta. 

‘Back then, there was no place to showcase our sort of spitting and rapping, so I thought, OK, I want to create that platform,’ he said. He took his own rap moniker ‘Smokey Barz’ to coin his brand name and SBTV was born.

Jamal was not an overnight success, and Brenda had no idea that her son would be hailed as a 21st-century pioneer. 

From her vantage point, she had a boy who had struggled at school, was being threatened with expulsion from his college and needed a reality check about the world of work. 

When he was 17, Brenda marched him into a branch of Topman and demanded that they give him a job. 

‘It was so embarrassing. They were saying, ‘We don’t have any jobs going,’ but she wouldn’t take no for an answer,’ he says. ‘She said, ‘I don’t care, he’ll work for free, you have to take him on.’ And they agreed, probably because they wanted to get rid of her.’

Jamal began his Topman career as a shop assistant but at the same time started hanging out at the BBC, sneaking into raves and messaging record labels to beg for interview time with their artists. His big break came three years later when he secured his first non-grime interview with Kelly Rowland.

From that, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj, Trey Songz and countless other A-listers followed. In 2011, he was invited to 10 Downing Street to interview the prime minister after being appointed a Spirit of London Awards ambassador.

Jamal was still hands-on with both filming and editing at SBTV, and had big plans to expand the brand into sport, comedy and fashion. 

Away from work his great passion was Chelsea FC. 

A statement by his mother Brenda was read out on Loose Women, where she is a presenter, the following day stating that he had died on Sunday morning following a ‘sudden illness’ and that his family and friends are ‘completely devastated’.

She added: ‘Jamal was an inspiration to myself and so many. Our love for him lives on, his legacy lives on.’

At a vigil the next day, Brenda sang the Whitney Houston hit Greatest Love of All to hushed crowds who gathered to remember the music impresario’s life.   

Singing through a megaphone, she sang the words ‘I believe the children are the future. Learning to love yourself – it is the greatest love of all’, reducing the crowd to tears. 

In another poignant moment, after finishing her song, Brenda addressed the mourners and said she hoped that her son’s death would help unite their community.

She said: ‘If we can do anything in 2022, can we please bring the community together. Stop the fighting. Stop the killing. And build up our community.’

‘We are not supposed to be losing our young people. If you see something happening. 

‘Try to stop it please’. Police have confirmed there is no suggestion that violence played a part in Jamal’s death, describing it as a non-suspicious ‘medical emergency’.

Brenda, a Loose Women panellist who finished fourth in the second series of The X Factor, is mourning her son’s death with his sister Tanisha. 

Friends told MailOnline they believe he had suffered a ‘sudden’ cardiac arrest after a night DJing in the West End.

Dwayne, who attended Acton High School with him told MailOnline: ‘The details are still a still not clear but we’ve been told that it was a heart attack.

‘He was out DJing on Saturday night and eventually got home in the early hours of Sunday morning. The family are still trying to come to terms with it all, but we’ve heard that his mum found him in his bedroom and called an ambulance.’ 

Another friend added: ‘Jamal lives with his mum and came home late after DJing on Saturday night.

‘We’ve heard from relatives that he had a sudden heart attack but what caused it, I just don’t know. I saw him a couple of days ago and he was absolutely fine, laughing and joking.’

Jerry, another friend said: ‘Jamal is a legend in this part of West London, and this has hit us all really hard. For him to go so suddenly in the prime of his life, when he was doing so much is truly shocking.’ 

London Ambulance Service confirmed they were called to a house at 9.34am on Sunday and two paramedics in fast response cars and an advanced paramedic in critical care. 

The Metropolitan Police have said they were called to the family home at just before 10.30am on Sunday. 

His sudden death is being treated as non-suspicious but unexplained, meaning it will likely be referred to the coroner for an inquest into the cause of his death.

‘Police were called by the London Ambulance Service’, a Scotland Yard spokesman said, adding: ‘A 31-year-old man had suffered a medical emergency and had been pronounced dead at the scene. 

‘Officers attended and determined that the circumstances were not suspicious. The man’s death is being treated as unexplained.’  

Fame: Jamal  is famous for setting up the online media platform SBTV, which showcased emerging artists. He was awarded an MBE at Buckingham Palace in 2015