| Sims Ellison | |
| Birth Name: | Sims Edgar Ellison |
| Birth Date: | 10 March 1967 |
| Birth Place: | San Antonio, Texas, United States |
| Death Place: | Austin, Texas, United States |
| Instrument: | Guitar |
| Genre: | Alternative, heavy metal, hard rock |
| Occupation: | Musician, guiatirst |
| Years Active: | 1980's–1995 |
| Past Member Of: | Pariah |
| Website: | http://simsfoundation.org/ |
Sims Ellison (March 10, 1967 – June 6, 1995) was an American guitarist, who played for Pariah. In 1995, Ellison killed himself due to depression about the music industry. Today there is a charity for local Austin musicians who suffer from mental health and suicidal issues called the Sims Foundation.
Ellison was born into a San Antonio musical family. He and his brother Kyle formed a heavy metal band in high school called Pariah. After a few albums released with different record labels they signed with Geffen Records in 1991 recording their notable album To Mock A Killingbird that was released in 1993. In May 1995 Geffen Records dumped the band after which Ellison went into a major depression.
On June 6, 1995 Ellison died after he shot himself with a gun in his Austin apartment. He was 28 years old.[1]
The SIMS Foundation was founded by former Pariah manager Wayne Nagle shortly after Sims`death, in honor of him. This charity helps local Austin musicians who have mental health issues by supporting them and their families.[2]
In October 2021, the SIMS Foundation launched a campaign to treat musicians' mental health. The idea first arose in the immediate aftermath of the 2017 Las Vegas shooting and was expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic when, in late 2020, Ellison's father launched The Founders Challenge to address mental health in the musical stage.[3]
Ellison dated actress Renée Zellweger for a few years.