Remembering Denise “Vanity” Matthews on the Anniversary of Her Passing Denise Katrina Matthews, aka Vanity, was born on January 4, 1959, in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. Sadly, on February 15, 2016, she passed away from kidney failure after years of health struggles. She endured daily dialysis and 23 surgeries following kidney failure caused by a 1994 drug overdose. Near the end of her life, she was also diagnosed with sclerosing encapsulating peritonitis, a painful and severe kidney condition