Gary Numan Praises Daughter Raven for Supporting Him on Tour Amid Personal Struggles

Gary Numan praised his daughter Raven for rising to an ‘almost impossible’ challenge of supporting him on her first tour while he ‘falls apart on stage each night’ after his brother died.

The singer, 67, announced the sudden death of his younger brother John last month after he collapsed from suffering a heart attack while walking to his car, just moments after saying goodbye to him.

The music star has now taken to Instagram to praise his daughter Raven, 22, as she has continued on her ‘first ever tour’, living in ‘low end motels’, while he ‘struggles’ on stage every night.  

Alongside a sweet picture of the pair backstage, Gary gushed: ‘I would also like to say how proud I am of @ravennuman Raven. 

‘With all the shock and emotion of my brother passing I’ve noticed Raven’s success has been pushed to the side somewhat and I’ve barely mentioned her incredible performances throughout this tour.

‘This is her first ever tour and that in itself is no easy thing. She’s traveling in a van with her band, staying in (mostly) low end motels every night, long drives each day. Doing it for real, not in tour bus luxury with her parents.

He continued: ‘On top of all the usual stress, fear and pressure of being a support act just starting out she’s also had to deal with the loss of her much loved uncle John, and seeing her Dad fall apart each night. 

‘This tour has obviously proven to be far, far harder for me than I could possibly have imagined. But, for a first tour, for Raven, it must be almost impossible. 

‘And yet she has risen to it in a way that, if I’m honest, and as much as I love and support her, I didn’t think she was capable of. She has been remarkable, both on stage and off.’ 

The proud father praised Raven, who he shares with his wife Gemma Numan, for still going on to perform each night ‘flawlessly’ as he reflected that he would not have the same ‘strength and resilience’ that she has at her age. 

He said: ‘A tower of strength to me as I’m struggling, at the same time dealing quietly with her own pain and yet still doing her shows flawlessly night after night. 

‘When I think back to me at her age (also touring Telekon strangely enough in 1980) I had none of the strength and resilience she has shown these last few weeks. I couldn’t love her more, but my admiration for what she’s done (is still doing) couldn’t be higher. I am so proud of her.’

Recalling a recent incident where a concertgoer fell ill in the crowd, Gary explained how Raven handled the ‘difficult situation’ perfectly. 

He added: ‘In addition, last night during her show in Manchester she noticed someone struggling in the crowd, stopped her set, guided the venue staff to the unfortunate person and so got them the help they needed as quickly as possible. It was a difficult situation well handled. Again, so proud of her.’

The music hitmaker gushed that he is ‘impressed’ with his daughter and has ‘shed a tear of pride’ watching her perform.  

Gary concluded: ‘Despite all the emotional turmoil this tour has seen she has delivered, along with her amazing band, quality performances every night.

‘Her songs a mix of beauty and power, her voice soaring above. To say I’m impressed doesn’t come close. 

‘Most nights, before I shed a tear or two of sadness for my brother, I’ve already shed a tear or two of pride watching Raven. And so the world keeps turning. @ravennuman’. 

Gary announced the sudden death of his younger brother – just hours after breaking down in front of stunned fans during a live performance in Birmingham last month. 

The electro-pop pioneer struggled to continue after telling fans at the city’s O2 Academy he had received ‘the worst news’ earlier that day. 

He later confirmed the death of his brother John in a statement, writing: ‘My brother John died suddenly in the early hours of Saturday morning in Leeds, he was just 60 years old.’ 

The pop legend confirmed John had collapsed after suffering a heart attack while walking to his car, just moments after saying goodbye to Numan. 

‘He had spent the evening with me at my Telekon show, catching up, swapping stories, telling me about his newly found love for reading.

‘I hugged him at the door of our tour bus, I think it was about 12:20am, asked him how far he had to walk to get his car (I always worried about him waking the streets at night).

‘It was not far apparently, we said goodbye and I watched him walk away. Sadly, he never made it to his car, betrayed by his own heart.

‘It will haunt me forever that we may have driven off not knowing that he was lying in a rainy street just yards away.

‘Luckily a kind person saw him and called an ambulance, but it was too late.’ 

He continued in the heartbreaking post: ‘This is not a tribute to John, I can barely think straight enough to find the words for this let alone a fitting and deserving tribute to someone I loved more than the world, those words will come in time. This is to explain why I’m struggling.

‘We are continuing with the tour because my Dad thinks I should, because John’s lovely wife said John would want me to. I have no capacity at the moment to make decisions of any kind. 

‘I’m drifting, broken, shell shocked, just watching one foot fall in front of the other. The emotion overwhelms and then backs away, it screams and then whispers. This is the worst moment of my life and I have no idea what to do, other than to continue doing the only thing I know how to do, the thing John was always so proud of. He loved Telekon. 

‘He was only 15 when I made it. So this tour is no longer a celebration of an album, it’s a tribute to John, my brother, the best brother a man could ever have.’

Gary left fans concerned during his concert after he stopped his setlist midway through his show last month.

He was performing Please Push No More at the O2 Academy Birmingham when he broke down on stage.

According to The Mirror, Gary’s worried wife Gemma O’Neil was seen running on stage to comfort him.

He then told the crowd he had received ‘the worst news’ earlier in the day that resulted in him becoming distressed during the set.

Gary’s representatives declined to comment when contacted by the Daily Mail at the time.

Worried fans flooded social media with concern for Numan on Saturday, with one writing: ‘Gary Numan breaks down at O2 in Birmingham?? Hope he’s ok! He’s heard something today but said it’ll all come out in a few days.’

A second posted: ‘Rough to see him so upset during PPNM – not looking forward to hearing the reason in the coming days. Can’t be good. Absolute pro to battle on.’

‘Hearing today that Gary was struggling in his Birmingham show, sending love,’ said a third.

While a fourth penned: ‘Fantastic show, very emotional. Hope it isn’t anything to do with his health or his family.’

Gary and his wife have three children; Raven, Persia, and Echo.

Previously speaking about his wife, Gary gushed to the Daily Mail: ‘This is going to sound corny, given that it’s 30 years and four days since our first date, but I miss her even when she’s in a different part of the house.

‘She’s everything I am not – which is most things, really.’