Soap veteran Vincent Irizarry shares a powerful message

Vincent Irizarry, who played David in Young and restless and Deimos on Days of our lives, can relate to what Meryl Streep once said at the Golden Globe Awards about “taking your broken heart, making art out of it.” The Soap Dispenser, best known to fans for his role as Lujack in Guiding lightshares a personal story about a family loss.

Transforming tragedy into art

“Some of you may remember the post several years ago about the tragic end of my cousin, Lauren, who took her own life during the Covid peak, in July 2022, in Brooklyn, New York” , began Irizarry in his publication on social networks.

“The lasting impact she made as an active member of her Bushwick community was so deeply felt in her absence by those who loved her and celebrated life with her,” Irizarry continues, “that an artist and internationally renowned muralist, Nicole Salgar, @nmsalgar, has worked to commemorate her artistically on several stunning murals: one on the streets of Bushwick, another at Old Stanley’s Bar, where she was manager/bartender for 8 years , and finally, to NOLA, the enchanted city she loved so much, next to the New York City Orleans Healing Center, a treatment center for those suffering from mental illness and other needs within their community.

“I’m posting this because I’d like to share something with you all about my exceptionally talented and beloved Uncle Johnny, @johnirizarrymusic, father of Lauren, who has been like a third brother to me and is a big part of my life’s love and appreciation for music since my early years, as he always studied guitar and bass (he was the one who taught me how to play 40 Beatles songs on bass in 2 weeks when I was cast as Paul McCartney in the Off-Broadway play Lennon, in 1982, when I had never played bass in my life! Another story… : ). He was one of many people in my life who inspired me, at the age of 11, to also learn an instrument.

“Let’s get back to the point of this post,” the actor says. “My Uncle Johnny did what artists are obligated to do by using their gifts to process insurmountable grief and create something lasting and loving in memory of his beloved daughter forever. He recorded an album called “This Girl”, entirely inspired by the precious moments they were lucky enough to share throughout his terrible short life together. The album is an absolutely beautiful tribute to Lauren, also affectionately known to many of her loving friends as Izzy, @izzy_sixx.

“‘This Girl can be enjoyed wherever you stream and can be downloaded or purchased in CD or vinyl form by following the link in my bio.”