James Daniel Sundquist is the alleged son of rock legend Jimi Hendrix who rose to fame as one of the most influential guitarists and singer-songwriters of the last century known for his time with his band, The Experience. His father died at the age of 27 in 1970, yet, the years after were filled with scandals about James’ paternity.
While this may seem to be a lot of information about the Stockholm born, there is so much to know about him.
The Early Life and Background of James Daniel Sunquist
James Daniel Sandquist, as you would find was born on October 5, 1969, in Stockholm, Sweden to Eva Sundquist and his alleged father Jimi Hendrix. As of this writing, Sundquist is 55-year-old.
At the time of his birth, there was much speculation about his paternity and his mother’s background. While his mother is said to have been born in Sweden back in the 50s, the issue of his paternity followed James into adulthood.
Through his parents, James is of mixed ethnicity as his father is of African American and Native American ancestry.
James Daniel Sundquist Never Met his Alleged Father Jimi Hendrix
As captured earlier, James is Jimi Hendrix’s alleged son. The singer and songwriter is believed to have met James’ mother in a tram when his band The Experience traveled to Stockholm in 1968. Shortly after the two started a relationship that was shortlived due to Hendrix’s move back to the state
Their short affair led to James’ birth but due to Hendrix’s engagement with his career, he never met their son in his lifetime.
While a meeting between the two could have been arranged in the future, this never came to be due to Hendrix’s sad death on September 18, 1970. The details about his death were confirmed to be from suffocation caused by barbiturates after a post-mortem examination was conducted. Prior to his death, the songwriter is said to have left a message on his manager’s answering machine asking for help.
Thusly, the circumstances surrounding his death raised questions as to how he got the drugs that suffocated him. It turns out that Hendrix had taken about 9 out of his then-girlfriend, Monika Dannemann’s sleeping tablets. She reported that she found him unresponsive around 11 after which she called the ambulance which took him to St Mary Abbots Hospital, London.
Despite Monika’s account of his death, it is still considered to be full of discrepancies. Regardless of the truth about his sad death, it was not only his career and life that were cut short but also the opportunity to meet his son.
He Sued His Grandfather in 1994
Despite never meeting his biological father while the late singer-songwriter lived, he and his grandfather made headlines when James sued him in 1994. While the then 24-year-old revealed he was not angry with his grandfather, he filed for the suit because he felt left out of his father’s estate.
Allegedly, James was legally declared his son in 1975 leading to his change of name to Jimi Hendrix jr. shortly after. In fact, he is said to have visited his grandfather, Al Hendrix, a Seattle gardener when he turned 7.
Thus, Al’s decision to take over Hendrix’s mastered and unmastered tapes as well as an estate worth over $400 thousand became a sour point between the two. Things came to the public notice after Jimi Hendrix’s son filed the lawsuit at a Los Angeles court. In Al’s defense, his lawyers refuted James’ paternity claim. According to them, Al’s claim on his late son’s estate was not a conspiracy.
While there were speculations of having a DNA test to prove his paternity, this never happened and he ended up losing the lawsuit. Al took over Hendrix’s estate till 2002 when he died.
James Daniel Hendrix is not the Only Child of the Late Singer
While James had to struggle over his paternity and a claim on his late father’s property, he never got part of it. Following Al’s death, his half-sister, Tamika, and an uncle named Leon Hendrix continued the battle over Jimi’s estate.
Apparently, Tamika is another child born to Jimi Hendrix in 1967, two years before James was born. Like her little brother, Tamika Hendrix’s paternity was also questionable. Reportedly, Jimi planned to have a paternity test done in 1970 but he never got around to doing it due to his sudden death in the same year.
Jimi Hendrix’s Son Decided to Change his Gender at the Age of 32
Considering the controversy and scandal around James’ life as a celebrity child, one may want to understand why he wanted to have a new identity. He started taking pills at the age of 32 to change his gender. While his decision may have nothing to do with this experience, James claimed that he felt more like a woman trapped in a man’s body.
In addition to changing his gender, he also chose to be addressed as Nicole. His mother later revealed that the decision was a difficult one due to its unpopularity at the time.
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Where is Jimi Hendrix’s Son Now?
Since the news of his gender transformation, not much is known about his whereabouts except that he may still be living in Stockholm.
While he is generally believed to be a musician, not much is known about the career of the 55-year-old. At the moment it is only speculated that James or Nicole as he wants to be addressed is living a quiet life away from the media.
