An inquest was opened into his death at East London Coroner’s Court on Thursday morning (August 7).
Mr Owusu’s cousin contacted the police as he had not heard from him for two weeks, coroner’s officer Jean Smyth told coroner Nadia Persaud.
Officers visited his home and spoke to a neighbour, who also said she had not seen Mr Owusu for a few weeks but had seen maggots around his property.
Police forced entry and found Mr Owusu dead in his living room.
His death was treated as non-suspicious but a post-mortem gave his cause of death as unascertained due to the extent of decomposition.
“The inquest will be opened and adjourned for further investigation to take place,” Mrs Persaud said.
She declared Mr Owusu’s next of kin an “interested person” – a legal status entitling them to legal representation, to scrutinise evidence ahead of the final inquest and to question any witnesses called to testify.
“Adrian had the rare ability to get on with everyone he met. No one ever had a bad word to say about him,” Jake said.
Adrian, a guitarist, played with The Heliocentrics, Mulatu Astatke, DJ Shadow, Orlando Julius, Paloma Faith and many others.
A track he wrote with The Heliocentrics, Space Time Girl, was sampled by US rap legend NAS on his track Everything.
Jake said: “He was often found busking on London streets or hanging at Eldica Records in Dalston.”
Adrian was featured on the cover of a book – Humans of London – and was a regular caller on LBC radio.
“Ade was a true free spirit that was loved by so many and will be sorely missed by all who knew him,” Jake said.
“He’s probably up there in heaven right now jamming with Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone, James Brown and all the great blues musicians that inspired him. In fact he could easily have been part of any of their bands as he was that good!”
The fundraiser was launched to help with the funeral costs for Mr Owusu, with any extra money going to a Hackney charity supporting musicians facing mental health challenges, Core Arts.
