Jimmy Kimmel was visibly distraught following the death of his close friend Cleto Escobedo III , the musical director of Jimmy Kimmel Live ! and the leader of the in-house band.

The late-night show host was teary-eyed as he began the monologue in tribute to the late musician who had passed away earlier that day.

“We’ve been on the air for almost 23 years and I’ve had to do some hard monologues along the way,” he said. “But this will… This one’s the hardest because late last night, early this morning, we lost someone very special who was too young to go.”

Kimmel recalled how he met Escobedo during his childhood and shared some moments he spent with him growing up in Las Vegas.

Earlier today, Kimmel shared a post on Instagram as a tribute to Escobedo following his death.

“Early t

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