Jimmy Kimmel Breaks Down In Tears During Tribute To Longtime Bandleader Cleto Escobedo, “It’s Just Not Fair”
on Nov 12, 2025
On Tuesday, November 11, it was announced that Cleto Escobedo III, the longtime band leader for Jimmy Kimmel Live!, passed away at the age of 59.
The news was confirmed by Jimmy Kimmel, who shared a post on his social media about Escobedo’s sudden death. His statement read:
“Early this morning, we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III. To say that we are heartbroken is an understatement. Cleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old. The fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true. Cherish your friends and please keep Cleto’s wife, children and parents in your prayers.”
Kimmel and Escobedo had been close friends for nearly 50 years. They first met in 1977, growing up next door to each other in Las Vegas.
Throughout his career, Escobedo was a very successful musician. Before becoming the musical director for Jimmy Kimmel Live!, he worked with big names like Earth, Wind & Fire, Paula Abdul, and Marc Anthony. His specialty was playing the saxophone.
Jimmy Kimmel Gives An Emotional Opening Monologue In Tribute To His Late Friend
Hours after Escobedo died, Jimmy Kimmel appeared for the taping of his late-night show.
During the opening monologue, he honored his childhood friend, pausing between words as he fought back tears over the loss. For nearly 23 minutes, Kimmel shared stories and memories of the times they spent together.
“We’ve been on the air for almost 23 years and I’ve had to do some hard monologues along the way, but this one’s the hardest because late last night, early this morning, we lost someone very special who was much too young to go,” Kimmel said, voice cracking.
Kimmel continued by explaining how they first met. He said that he and Escobedo immediately became inseparable.
“We had so many adventures,” Kimmel said. “We would laugh so hard. We had our own language that, like, almost no one else understood.”
Escobedo’s parents were in attendance for Kimmel’s tribute. His mother, Sylvia, sat in the audience, and his father, Cleto II, stood on the side stage with the rest of the show’s band members, who were visibly saddened by the loss of their friend and colleague.
“Everyone loves Cleto, everyone here at the show,” Kimmel said. “We are devastated by this. It’s not … It’s just not fair.”
At this time, Cleto Escobedo’s cause of death hasn’t been revealed.
Kimmel also added that following his friend’s death, he will be taking “the next couple nights off.” He told the crowd that it was important for him to be there at the moment, though, so he could “tell you about my friend.”
You can watch Jimmy Kimmel’s emotional monologue honoring Cleto Escobedo below.
