My Uncle Chris Benik (May 19, 1963 – August 8, 2025)

My uncle Chris was one of the biggest influences in my life and music. He was kind, sensitive, funny, and somehow never sentimental about any of it...so I figured I’d write this the way he’d want me to..

Chris lived in the moment—always. Even in his last hours, lying on the couch surrounded by family, the movie he asked to put on was Apocalypse Now. That about sums him up: badass to the end. He made people laugh until they cried, left his problems at the door, and always managed to squeeze joy out of whatever hand he was dealt, including cancer.

He’s the closest person I’ve ever lost, and I owe a lot of who I am to him. Chris shaped my ears, my taste, and my heart as a songwriter. He made the mixtape my family listened to from when I was two until I was a teenager...on a black Maxell tape labeled Naive Melody. The Talking Heads’ “This Must Be the Place” is still one of my all-time favorite songs because of him.

When a hero goes, the heroes left behind carry the weight. My aunt & cousins gave up their lives these last few years, moving home to care for their dad full-time. They never complained, but it came at a cost financially and otherwise. I know Chris wouldn’t have wanted to ask for help, but I also know he’d be proud of people stepping up for the family he loved so much.

Chris died with dignity, strength, and yes—literally with a smile on his face. His energy is still here, and it always will be.

So, thank you Carly, Paige, Analee, Cahill, and Sue for being there for him, and for showing me what real love and family look like. And thank you, Uncle Chris, for being one of the coolest people I’ll ever know.

Love Your Nephew,

-Justin Raisen