“My heart is broken,” he wrote in a Nov. 6 post. “Even though my brother and I have had a complicated relationship, my love for him has never ever faded. I have always held on to the hope that he would somehow, someday want to walk a healthy path and eventually find the help that he so desperately needed.”
During his lifetime, Aaron spoke publicly about his battle with addiction and mental health struggles, which Nick referenced in his post.
“Sometimes we want to blame someone or something for a loss, but the truth is that addiction and mental illness is the real villain here,” the 42-year-old continued. “I will miss my brother more than anyone will ever know. I love you Chizz. Now you can finally have the peace you could never find here on earth….God, Please take care of my baby brother.”
On Jan. 18, Nick and his sister Angel Conrad will take part in a benefit concert to raise mental health awareness in honor of Aaron. It is also where Nick will perform “Hurts To Love You” for the first time.
“As we still mourn the loss of our brother,” he wrote in Dec. 8 post, “my sister and I turn our focus to what we can do to try to make a difference and raise awareness.”