List of murdered musicians
Appearance
Many musicians have been murdered during their active career. Most of the musicians had been shot or stabbed to death. Some of them have received extensive media attention, including the murder of John Lennon in 1980, the killing of Marvin Gaye in 1984, the murder of Selena in 1995, the murder of Tupac Shakur in 1996, the murder of the Notorious B.I.G. in 1997, the murder of XXXTentacion in 2018, and the assassination of Sidhu Moose Wala in 2022. Others have received less media attention, including the murder of Bryan Harvey, who was killed during the 2006 Richmond spree murders.
For hip hop musicians see: list of murdered hip hop musicians.
Murdered musicians
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Below is a list of notable murders of musicians.
Name | Known as | Date of murder | Age | Site of death | Perpetrator | Method of murder | Credit | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alessandro Stradella | Alessandro Stradella | 25 February 1682 | 38 | Genoa, Italy | Unknown | Stabbing | Classical composer | [1] |
Jean-Marie Leclair | Jean-Marie Leclair | 22 October 1764 | 67 | Paris, France | Unknown | Stabbing | Classical composer and violinist | [2] |
Clarence Smith | Pinetop Smith | 15 March 1929 | 24 | Chicago, Illinois, US | Unknown | Shooting | Boogie-woogie pianist | [3] |
Alejandro García Caturla | Alejandro García Caturla | 12 November 1940 | 34 | Havana, Cuba | Unknown | Unknown | Classical composer | [4][circular reference] |
Anton Webern | Anton Webern | 15 September 1945 | 61 | Vienna, Austria | Pfc. Raymond Norwood Bell | Shooting | Classical composer | [5] |
John Williamson | Sonny Boy Williamson | 1 June 1948 | 34 | Chicago, Illinois, US | Unknown | Shooting | Blues singer | [6] |
Francis Blackwell | Scrapper Blackwell | 7 October 1962 | 59 | Indianapolis, Indiana, US | Unknown | Shooting | Blues guitarist, composer | |
Marc Blitzstein | Marc Blitzstein | 22 January 1964 | 58 | Martinique | Three men | Beating | Classical/musical theatre composer | [7] |
Sam Cooke | Sam Cooke | 11 December 1964 | 33 | Los Angeles, US | Bertha Franklin | Shooting | Soul singer-songwriter | |
Darrell Banks | Darrell Banks | February 24, 1970 | 32 | Detroit, Michigan, US | Aaron Bullock | Shooting | Soul singer | |
Curtis Ousley | King Curtis | 13 August 1971 | 37 | New York City, US | Juan Montanez | Stabbing | Jazz saxophonist | [8] |
Lee Morgan | Lee Morgan | 19 February 1972 | 33 | New York City, US | Helen Morgan | Shooting | Jazz trumpeter | |
Víctor Lidio Jara Martínez | Víctor Jara | 16 September 1973 | 40 | Santiago, Chile | Chilean military officers | Shooting and torture | Singer-songwriter | |
David Akeman | Stringbean | 10 November 1973 | 58 | Ridgetop, Tennessee, US | John A. Brown and Marvin Douglas Brown | Shooting | Country banjo player | [9] |
Albert Jackson Jr. | Al Jackson Jr. | 1 October 1975 | 39 | Memphis, Tennessee, US | Unknown | Stabbing | R&B, funk and soul drummer | [10] |
Eddie Jefferson | Eddie Jefferson | 9 May 1979 | 60 | Detroit, Michigan, US | Unknown | Shooting | Vocalese | [11] |
Jannie Pought | Jannie Pought | September 1980 | 34 | New Jersey | Unknown | Stabbing | R&B singer | [12] |
John Lennon | John Lennon | 8 December 1980 | 40 | New York City, US | Mark David Chapman | Shooting | Rock and pop artist | |
Claude Vivier | Claude Vivier | 7 March 1983 | 34 | Paris, France | Pascal Dolzan | Stabbing | Classical composer | [13] |
Felix Pappalardi Jr. | Felix Pappalardi | 17 April 1983 | 43 | New York City, US | Gail Pappalardi | Shooting | Rock artist | [14] |
Hugh Mundell | Hugh Mundell | 14 October 1983 | 21 | Kingston, Jamaica | Ricardo Codrington | Shooting | Reggae singer | |
Walter Notheis Jr. | Walter Scott | 27 December 1983 | 40 | St. Peters, Missouri, US | James H. Williams Sr. | Shooting | Rock and roll singer | |
Marvin Gaye | Marvin Gaye | 1 April 1984 | 44 | Los Angeles, California, US | Marvin Gay Sr. | Shooting | R&B singer | |
Leonard Breau | Lenny Breau | 12 August 1984 | 43 | Los Angeles, California, US | Unknown | Strangling | Guitarist | [15] |
Carlton Barrett | Carly Barrett | 17 April 1987 | 36 | Kingston, Jamaica | Glenroy Carter and Junior Neil | Shooting | Reggae drummer | |
Winston Hubert McIntosh | Peter Tosh | 11 September 1987 | 42 | Kingston, Jamaica | Dennis Lobban and two other individuals | Shooting and torture | Reggae artist | |
John Pastorius, III | Jaco Pastorius | 21 September 1987 | 35 | Fort Lauderdale, Florida, US | Luc Havan | Beaten (barfight), brain hemorrhage | Jazz bassist | |
Amar Singh Chamkila | Chamkila | 8 March 1988 | 27 | Mehsampur, Punjab, India | Unknown | Shooting | Punjabi singer | |
Michael David Fuller | Blaze Foley | 1 February 1989 | 39 | Austin, Texas, US | Carey January | Shooting | Country, folk singer-songwriter | [16] |
Osbourne Ruddock | King Tubby | 6 February 1989 | 48 | Kingston, Jamaica | Unknown | Shooting | Reggae sound engineer | [17] |
Cornell Gunter | Cornell Gunter | 26 February 1990 | 53 | Las Vegas, Nevada, US | Unknown | Shooting | R&B singer | |
Andrzej Zaucha | Andrzej Zaucha | 10 October 1991 | 42 | Kraków, Poland | Yves Goulais | Shooting | R&B singer, saxophonist | |
David Rowbotham | Dave Rowbotham | 8 November 1991 | 33 | Manchester, England | Unknown | Bludgeoned by hammer | Rock musician | |
Rosalino Sánchez Félix | Chalino Sanchez | 16 May 1992 | 31 | Culiacán, Mexico | Unknown | Shooting | Narcocorrido singer | [18] |
Willie Irving Gaston Junior | Heavy One | 29 September 1992 | 24 | Eaton Road Barry Farms Southeast DC | Unknown | Shooting | Bass, drummer, of the Junk Yard Band | [19] |
Mia Zapata | Mia Zapata | 7 July 1993 | 27 | Seattle, Washington, US | Jesus Mezquia | Strangling | Rock singer | [20] |
Donald Myrick | Don Myrick | 30 July 1993 | 53 | Los Angeles, California, US | Police Officer Gary Barbaro | Shooting | Jazz saxophonist | [21] |
Øystein Aarseth | Euronymous | 10 August 1993 | 25 | Oslo, Norway | Varg Vikernes | Stabbing | Black metal guitarist | |
Rhett Forrester | Rhett Forrester | 22 January 1994 | 37 | Atlanta, Georgia, US | Unknown | Shooting | Heavy metal musician | [22] |
Hasni Chakroun | Cheb Hasni | 29 September 1994 | 26 | Oran, Algeria | Armed Islamic Group of Algeria | Shooting | Raï singer | |
Selena Quintanilla-Pérez | Selena | 31 March 1995 | 23 | Corpus Christi, Texas, US | Yolanda Saldivar | Shooting | Tejano singer | |
Tupac Shakur | Tupac; 2Pac; Makaveli |
13 September 1996 | 25 | Las Vegas, Nevada, US | Orlando Anderson (suspected) | Shooting | Rapper | |
Christopher Wallace | The Notorious B.I.G.; Biggie Smalls; Frank White |
9 March 1997 | 24 | Los Angeles, California, US | Wardell "Poochie" Fouse (suspected) | Shooting | Rapper | |
Lounès Matoub | Lounès Matoub | 25 June 1998 | 42 | Aït Aissi, Tizi Ouzou, Algeria | Armed Islamic Group of Algeria | Shooting | Kabyle music singer | |
Jaki Byard | Jaki Byard | 11 February 1999 | 76 | New York City, US | Unknown | Shooting | Jazz pianist | |
Roger Troutman | Roger Troutman | 25 April 1999 | 47 | Dayton, Ohio, US | Larry Troutman | Shooting | Funk musician | |
Darrell Abbott | Dimebag Darrell | 8 December 2004 | 38 | Columbus, Ohio, US | Nathan Gale | Shooting | Heavy metal guitarist | |
Bryan Harvey | Bryan Harvey | 1 January 2006 | 49 | Richmond, Virginia, US | Ray Joseph Dandridge and Ricky Javon Gray | Blunt-force trauma | Folk rock singer/guitarist | |
Valentín Elizalde | Valentin Elizalde | 25 November 2006 | 27 | Reynosa, Mexico | Unknown | Shooting | Banda singer | [23] |
Winston Riley | Winston Riley | 19 January 2012 | 68 | Kingston, Jamaica | Unknown | Shooting | Rocksteady/reggae singer and producer | |
Natalia Strelchenko | Natalia Strelle | 30 August 2015 | 38 | Manchester, England | John Martin | Head trauma, strangulation | Classical pianist | [24] |
Christina Grimmie | Christina Grimmie | 10 June 2016 | 22 | Orlando, Florida, US | Kevin James Loibl | Shooting | Pop singer | |
Amjad Sabri | Amjad Sabri | 22 June 2016 | 39 | Karachi, Pakistan | Pakistani Taliban | Shooting | Qawwali singer | [25] |
Jahseh Onfroy | XXXTentacion | 18 June 2018 | 20 | Deerfield Beach, Florida, US | Four men indicted[26][27] | Shooting | Rapper and singer | [28] |
Andrea Meyer | Nebelhexe | 13 October 2021 | 52 | Kongsberg, Norway | Espen Andersen Bråthen | Stabbing | Rock and electronic singer | [29] |
Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu | Sidhu Moose Wala | 29 May 2022 | 28 | Punjab, India | Unknown | Shooting | Rapper and singer | [30] |
Yurii Kerpatenko | Yurii Kerpatenko | 16 October 2022 | 46 | Kherson Oblast, Ukraine | Russian soldiers | Shooting | Classical conductor, accordionist | [31] |
See also
[edit]- List of murdered hip hop musicians
- List of deaths in rock and roll
- List of pop musicians who died of drug overdose
- 27 Club
- Curse of the ninth
References
[edit]- ^ Gianturco, Carolyn. "Alessandro Stradella (1639–1682)". Hyperion Records. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
- ^ Sadler, Graham, Leclair, Jean-Marie, in Sadie, Stanley (ed.), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, New York, Grove (Oxford University Press), 1997, II, pp. 1118–1119 (ISBN 978-0-19-522186-2)
- ^ Pinetop Smith
- ^ "Alejandro García Caturla".
- ^ Moldenhauer, Hans (1961). The Death of Anton Webern: A Drama in Documents. New York: Philosophical Library. OCLC 512111.
- ^ "Sonny Boy Williamson". Biography.com.
- ^ Shewey, Don (16 July 1989). "'Moonlight' and Marxism". The New York Times Book Review.
- ^ Kernfield, Barry Dean. New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Grove's Dictionaries. p. 544.
- ^ "Stringbean Akeman's killer free on parole". The Tennessean. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ Lisle, Andria (25 November 2015). "Memphis sunset: The Mysterious death of Stax heartbeat Al Jackson, Jr". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ "Eddie Jefferson, 60, Jazz Lyricist, Slain After Leaving Detroit Club". The New York Times. 10 May 1979.
- ^ Hickey, Andrew (25 November 2019). "Episode 58: "Mr. Lee" by the Bobbettes". A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- ^ Gilmore, Bob (2014). Claude Vivier. A Composer's Life. University of Rochester Press. ISBN 978-1580464857.
- ^ Katel, Jacob (14 September 2010). "Top 10 Murdered Musicians You've Never Heard Of". Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ Forbes-Robert, Ron. (2006). "One Long Tune: the life and music of Lenny Breau". Denton, TX. University of North Texas Press. ISBN 1-57441-210-8.
- ^ "Blaze Foley: Killing of a Songwriter". 7 October 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ Thompson, Dave (2002) Reggae & Caribbean Music, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-655-6, pp. 138–141
- ^ POV (17 January 2006). "El Valiente: Chalino Sánchez - Al Otro Lado". PBS. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ Avis Thomas-Lester (16 October 1992). "SLAIN GO-GO DRUMMER EULOGIZED". Washington Post. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
- ^ Tizon, Alex (23 August 1998). "Who Murdered Mia Zapata? No Arrests, Few Clues 5 Years After Slaying". Seattle Times.
- ^ Chazanov, Mathis (15 August 1993). "Questions Cloud Life, Death of Saxophonist". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ Katel, Jacob (14 September 2010). "Top 10 Murdered Musicians You've Never Heard Of". Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ "Mexico: Musician killed for his drug related lyrics". 18 March 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ "Natalia Strelchenko murder: 'Jealous' husband John Martin jailed", BBC News, 21 March 2016, retrieved 22 March 2016
- ^ Ali, Imtiaz (22 June 2016). "Famed qawwal Amjad Sabri gunned down in Karachi". Dawn.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
- ^ "Four men indicted in murder of Florida rapper XXXTentacion". Reuters. 19 July 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
- ^ Neal, David J.; Teproff, Carli (19 July 2018). "Rapper XXXTentacion had $50,000. Four men have been indicted for killing him to get it". Miami Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
- ^ Margol, Andrea Torres, Amanda Batchelor, Ian (19 June 2018). "Rapper XXXTentacion killed in Deerfield Beach shooting". local10.com. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Meyer, Andrea. "Metal Musician Andrea Meyer Dies in Bow-and-Arrow Attack: What We Know". popculture. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
- ^ Moose Wala, Sidhu. "Sidhu Moose Wala: Murder of popular Indian singer sparks anger". BBC. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ "Russian troops kill Ukrainian musician for refusing role in Kherson concert". the Guardian. 16 October 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.