Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys responded on Sunday to the death of his younger brother, Aaron Carter, expressing love and heartbreak in an emotional Instagram post.

The younger Carter, 34, was found dead on Nov. 5 at his home in Southern California.

“My heart is broken,” Nick Carter said the next day via Instagram. “Even though my brother and I have had a complicated relationship, my love for him has never ever faded. I have always held on to the hope that he would somehow, someday want to walk a healthy path and eventually find the help that he so desperately needed. Sometimes we want to blame someone or something for a loss, but the truth is that addiction and mental illness is the real villain here. I will miss my brother more than anyone will ever know. I love you Chizz. Now you can finally have the peace you could never find here on earth. … I love you baby brother.”

The post included several photos of the two brothers during their childhood and teen years.

Aaron Carter — a singer, actor, reality TV star and former teen idol — was found dead in a bathtub, according to reports by CNN and other media outlets. Taylor Helgeson, a representative for the singer, confirmed Carter’s death to reporters but didn’t comment on the cause.

Aaron Carter had a history of substance abuse and mental illness, according to interviews over the years with various media outlets. In 2018, for example, Carter told People magazine he had “hit a rock bottom personally and emotionally,” and was working on his mental and emotional health.

Aaron Carter’s troubled relationship with brother Nick was no secret, either.

“In 2019, (Aaron) Carter’s brother, Nick, and sister, Angel, said they had filed for a restraining order against him,” The New York Times said. “In a statement at the time, Nick Carter said his brother had confessed to having violent thoughts about his wife and that family members ‘were left with no choice but to take away every measure possible to protect ourselves and our family.’”

In early November, Aaron Carter appeared on the “No Jumper” podcast, talking about a variety of subjects with host Adam Grandmaison. With a service dog at his side, Carter described himself as “Cali sober,” saying he smoked marijuana occasionally. Carter also talked about his family and said of brother Nick, “I just hope that relationship gets fixed.”

Aaron Carter started his music career during childhood, releasing a self-titled album at age 9. He opened for the Backstreet Boys during his youth, made appearances on TV shows such as “Lizzie McGuire” and “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” and released three more studio albums in the early 2000s.

His most popular records — “Aaron’s Party (Come Get It),” “Oh, Aaron” and “Another Earthquake” — made him an idol with teens and pre-teens. Carter’s final album, “Love,” came out in 2018. As an adult, he appeared on “Dancing with the Stars,” taking fifth place in Season 9, and performed on Broadway in “The Fantasticks” and “Seussical.”

Carter also toured as a solo artist, drawing thousands of young fans to concerts during his heyday. He performed in Alabama in 2002 at Oak Mountain Amphitheatre, headlining the bill in Pelham with Jump 5, No Secrets and Triple Image. A nationally known pop star at age 14, Carter talked about his life, career and ambitions during a phone interview with The Birmingham News.

“Fans are everything. They create you,” Carter said. He pointed to Michael Jackson and Steve Perry of Journey as two of his idols, and told a reporter he hoped for a bright future.

His plans included “acting a little bit,” Carter said. “But I’m still going to be singing, too. And I want to go to college.”

He admitted that entertainers have to make sacrifices in the quest for fame, but Carter seemed happy with his place in the world. His advice to fans: “Listen to your heart. Do what you want to do. Set your goals. Then go for them.”