James Van Der Beek, who was known for portraying Dawson Leery in 1990s teen drama Dawson’s Creek, died at 48 on Wednesday (Feb. 11) after a battle with cancer, his family announced.

“Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace,” the statement, posted to Instgram, read. “There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend.”

The actor revealed in an exclusive interview with People in November 2024, that he had stage 3 colorectal cancer; he was 46 at the time. Van Der Beek told the magazine that his family had no history of cancer, and that he was careful to take good care of his health. “I’d always associated cancer with age and with unhealthy, sedentary lifestyles,” he told People. “But I was in amazing cardiovascular shape. I tried to eat healthy — or as far as I knew it at the time.”

He said that he first noticed changes with his bowel movements in 2023, but assumed it was diet related, but decided to be safe and get a colonoscopy. That’s when he learned he had colorectal cancer. Despite the diagnosis, Van Der Beek said he was “cautiously optimistic at the time,” telling People, “I have a lot to live for.”

Throughout his treatment, the actor shared his story, repeating in interviews that he hoped his tale would encourage others to talk to their doctors and get tested.

In addition to Dawson’s Creek, the actor also starred in films such as Varsity Blues and The Rules of Attraction, and also had memorable guest roles on shows including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, One Tree Hill and Ugly Betty.

Van Der Beek also had a memorable starring role in Kesha’s 2011 video for “Blow.” In the visual, the actor and musician eye each other across a dance floor, then bust out laser guns and start shooting (taking out a few unicorns in the process), before Kesha reigns victorious.

James Van Der Beek is survived by his wife, Kimberly, and their kids Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwen and Jeremiah.

See the family’s announcement of his passing below:

The European Union is expected to approve Universal Music Group’s $775 million acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings as soon as this week, following a remedy UMG submitted in December that it says addresses regulators’ concerns over its access to commercially sensitive data.

The European Commission’s probe, launched last year, centered on concerns that the deal would reduce competition by giving UMG access to sensitive data from rival labels through Downtown’s Curve royalty accounting and rights management business, as well as its artist and label services.

The Financial Times first reported on Wednesday (Feb. 11) that the European Commission (EC) is planning to approve the deal this week, and sources say the plan UMG submitted in December included conditional commitments to spin off these divisions of Downtown.

UMG and Virgin Music Group, which would oversee the acquired entity, declined to comment. Representatives from the European Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trade groups representing the independent side of the music industry in Europe say that, regardless of the outcome, they see a win in the European Commission’s lengthy two-phase investigation of the acquisition and the remedies it was able to secure from UMG.

“Entities planning consolidation need to expect full scrutiny and regulator appetite to make full use of what they have in their toolkit,” Martin Mills, founder and chair of Beggars Group, said through a statement provided by IMPALA. “The unprecedented speaking out we have seen in the independent sector sends a clear message that the concerns are real. A level playing field is in the interests of all.”

Founded as a music publisher in 2007, Downtown has grown into a major provider of distribution, royalty accounting and rights-management services to record labels and artists. In addition to Curve, it owns the distribution services FUGA and CD Baby and the publishing administration provider Songtrust.

UMG, the world’s largest music company, announced in December 2024 that its Virgin Music Group would buy Downtown to position Virgin to provide labels and artists with a “global end-to-end solution” for client services and technology.

The move sparked fears of UMG dominance over one of the few remaining large distribution companies for independents. In July, a group of more than 200 executives and others from the independent music industry said the deal would give UMG too much power over the basic logistics of the modern music business.

“A concentration of this magnitude would narrow the range of voices, styles and cultures that reach the public,” the letter read. “It would give UMG further power to shape digital services, influence monetization thresholds and extract more, at the expense of the independent sector.”

UMG and Virgin have said that acquiring Downtown’s suite of companies does not dramatically reduce the options in independent services. The market remains so fragmented, they say, that even with Downtown, Virgin would rank behind Sony’s The Orchard and Believe in terms of market share.

Virgin’s executives have called concerns over proprietary data of competing companies overblown.

“Virgin already handles — with the care and confidentiality they deserve — the sensitive client data of hundreds of partners,” Virgin’s co-CEOs Nat Pastor and JT Meyers wrote in an internal memo reported by Billboard last year. “Betraying the trust our clients have bestowed on us would be self-destructive: they would quickly, and quite rightly, end the relationship.”

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Tupac Shakur, to many, is synonymous with the words “rap excellence,” no more, no less.

Sonic Editions is aiming to capture that excellence in a print set launched in celebration of the rapper’s 1996 album, All Eyez on Me, his last album before passing in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. The photo set dropped by Sonic Editions captures important moments and figures in hip-hop history from the 1990s. Viewers are treated to appearances from big names like Nas, Redman, and Chuck D snapped alongside Shakur while in New York or Chicago. Our chosen prints were captured by the likes of Al Pereira and Raymond Boyd, the two main contributors for photos in this drop. Every print is available on Sonic Editions’ website.

Prints of each scene can be found in black and white or in color, and begin at $99. Sizing and framing of your chosen print determine pricing. Sizing goes up to XXL. Every framed print is glazed with crystal-clear, gallery-grade shatterproof plexiglass for premium protection and printed on archival-grade Fuji Crystal Archive paper for depth and color accuracy. These prints are also mounted with acid-free, conservation-grade materials that ensure longevity.

2 Pac in Chicago by Raymond Boyd

$175

Buy Now at sonic editions

This print is a photo taken at the Regal Theatre in Chicago in 1994. This performance photo was taken while Shakur was still a part of the group consisting of Big Syke, Mopreme, Macadoshis and The Rated R. Shakur would leave the group around 1995. This print captured a moment of the rapper’s iconic and short-lived career.

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One of the unique sets of photos in this print set is those taken at Club Amazon in New York on July 23, 1993. The set features appearances from rappers mentioned above along with The Notorious B.I.G., who wasn’t in these prints. This freeze-frame captures peace, a point in time before Shakur and B.I.G.’s infamous East Coast-West Coast rivalry began.

This 1990s rivalry was birthed from a battle of cultural dominance and a hunger for success, primarily between Bad Boy Records, owned by Sean “Puffy” Combs, a New York-based label, and Death Row Records, a Los Angeles-based label. Shakur was signed to Death Row in 1995, while Biggie was signed with Bad Boy in 1993, cultivating a natural beef that was often violent and ugly.

Shakur has more than five No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 and eight No. 1 albums on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. All Eyez on Me landed on the Billboard 200 and included hits such as “California Love” and “How Do U Want It.” Shakur died in a drive-by shooting shortly after the launch of All Eyez on Me in 1996. Skaur’s death was a direct consequence of the violent East Coast-West Coast feud. The Notorious B.I.G. would also fall victim to the beef, dying a year later in 1997.

Tupac Shakur & Chuck D by Al Pereira

$399

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Rapper Chuck D served as a mentor to Shakur throughout his life and is seen here in a July 23, 1993, print of the pair in New York backstage at one of Shakur’s shows. After Shakur’s death, Chuck D participated in a 2015 Grammy Museum exhibit nodding to Shakur’s 1996 album with a title “All Eyez on Me: The Writings of Tupac Shakur.”

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Tupac at Club Amazon by by Al Pereira

$699

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Shakur graced Club Amazon on July 23, 1993, in New York. His appearance at the club was a pivotal moment in hip-hop history, capturing a snapshot of the era before the notorious East Coast-West Coast beef.

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