Son on singer Jubilant Sykes charged with his murder

LOS ANGELES - The son of Grammy-nominated opera singer Jubilant Sykes was charged Thursday with his murder.

Micah Curtis Sykes, 31, is accused of stabbing his father to death at the family's Santa Monica home.

Sykes appeared in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom Thursday, but his arraignment was delayed until after the New Year. He was ordered to remain jailed without bail. He has been in custody since his arrest on Monday night.

The murder charge against him includes a sentence-enhancing allegation of use of a deadly weapon.

The backstory:

On Monday, Dec. 8, police responded to the house around 9:20 p.m. after receiving a 911 call about an assault.

The person who called, reported to be Sykes' wife, directed officers into the home, where they found the singer with significant injuries consistent with a stabbing. 

Micah Sykes was found inside the home and taken into custody and booked at the Santa Monica Jail on suspicion of murder, police said. A weapon was recovered at the scene.

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He's being held in lieu of $4 million bail, according to jail records. Jail records show that Micah Sykes was previously arrested on Oct. 24, 2024, by officers from the Los Angeles Police Department's Pacific Division, but was released on his own recognizance the following day. Police records show the 2024 arrest was for felony grand larceny, but there was no record of any criminal charges being filed against him in Los Angeles Superior Court at that time.

Community mourns Jubilant Sykes

Dig deeper:

Jubilant Sykes was a renowned baritone who has performed at top venues and with celebrated orchestras in America and abroad.

Neighbors told reporters at the scene that he grew up in the area and would sing at the nearby Calvary Baptist Church.

Sykes was nominated for a Grammy for best classical album for his performance as the celebrant in the 2009 recording of Leonard Bernstein's "Mass."

Sykes has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Arena di Verona in Italy, the Apollo Theater and Hollywood Bowl.

He also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Atlanta Symphony, New York Philharmonic, London Symphony and the Boston Pops, among others. He has also collaborated with artists such as Josh Groban, Julie Andrews, Carlos Santana and Brian Wilson.

He appeared in the 2014 film "Freedom" playing an African slave, and appeared on stage in the play "Breath and Imagination" and in the musicals "Bloomer Girl" and "1776." He lent his voice to the soundtrack for the 1990 baseball drama film "Pastime."

According to the biography, he and his wife Cecelia had three sons.