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List of murdered musicians

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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.
Darrel Wayne Caldwell;[1] Drakeo The Ruler.; Mr. Mosley ; Big Bank Buddah ; Mr. Pops On My Knots; The Foreign Whip Crasher 19 December 2021 28 Los Angeles, California, US Unknown Stabbing Rapper [2] [3]
Airmiess Joseph Asghedom Nipsey Hussle.; Naybahood Nip ; Lil Thundercat ; 30 March 2019 33 Los Angeles, California, US Eric Holder Shooting Rapper [4] [5]
Alessandro Stradella 25 February 1682 38 Genoa, Italy Unknown Stabbing Classical composer [6]
Jean-Marie Leclair 22 October 1764 67 Paris, France Classical composer and violinist [7]
Clarence Smith Pinetop Smith 15 March 1929 24 Chicago, Illinois, US Shooting Boogie-woogie pianist [8]
Alejandro García Caturla 12 November 1940 34 Havana, Cuba Unknown Classical composer [9][circular reference]
Anton Webern 15 September 1945 61 Vienna, Austria Pfc. Raymond Norwood Bell Shooting [10]
John Williamson Sonny Boy Williamson 1 June 1948 34 Chicago, Illinois, US Unknown Blues singer [11]
Francis Blackwell Scrapper Blackwell 7 October 1962 59 Indianapolis, Indiana, US Blues guitarist, composer
Marc Blitzstein 22 January 1964 58 Martinique Three men Beating Classical/musical theatre composer [12]
Sam Cooke 11 December 1964 33 Los Angeles, US Bertha Franklin Shooting Soul singer-songwriter
Darrell Banks 24 February, 1970 32 Detroit, Michigan, US Aaron Bullock Soul singer
Curtis Ousley King Curtis 13 August 1971 37 New York City, US Juan Montanez Stabbing Jazz saxophonist [13]
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 [14]
Al Jackson Jr. 1 October 1975 39 Memphis, Tennessee, US Unknown R&B, funk and soul drummer [15]
Eddie Jefferson 9 May 1979 60 Detroit, Michigan, US Vocalese [16]
Jannie Pought September 1980 34 New Jersey Stabbing R&B singer [17]
John Lennon 8 December 1980 40 New York City, US Mark David Chapman Shooting Rock and pop artist
Claude Vivier 7 March 1983 34 Paris, France Pascal Dolzan Stabbing Classical composer [18]
Felix Pappalardi 17 April 1983 43 New York City, US Gail Pappalardi Shooting Rock artist [19]
Hugh Mundell 14 October 1983 21 Kingston, Jamaica Ricardo Codrington Reggae singer
Walter Notheis Jr. Walter Scott 27 December 1983 40 St. Peters, Missouri, US James H. Williams Sr. Rock and roll singer
Marvin Gaye 1 April 1984 44 Los Angeles, California, US Marvin Gay Sr. Shooting R&B singer
Lenny Breau 12 August 1984 43 Los Angeles, California, US Unknown Strangling Guitarist [20]
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 Country, folk singer-songwriter [21]
Osbourne Ruddock King Tubby 6 February 1989 48 Kingston, Jamaica Unknown Reggae sound engineer [22]
Prince Far I/King Cry Cry King Curtis 15 September 1983 39 Kingston, Jamaica Unknown Stabbing Reggae vocalist [23]
Belgin Sarılmışer Bergen 14 August 1989 31 Pozantı,Turkey Halis Serbest Arabseque Singer,actress [24]
Cornell Gunter 26 February 1990 53 Las Vegas, Nevada, US Unknown R&B singer
Andrzej Zaucha 10 October 1991 42 Kraków, Poland Yves Goulais R&B singer, saxophonist
Chris Bender 3 November 1991 19 Brockton, Massachusetts, US Eroy Kindell R&B singer [25]
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 Shooting Narcocorrido singer [26]
Willie Irving Gaston Junior Heavy One 29 September 1992 24 Eaton Road Barry Farms Southeast DC Bass, drummer, of the Junk Yard Band [27]
Mia Zapata 7 July 1993 27 Seattle, Washington, US Jesus Mezquia Strangling Rock singer [28]
Don Myrick 30 July 1993 53 Los Angeles, California, US Police Officer Gary Barbaro Shooting Jazz saxophonist [29]
Øystein Aarseth Euronymous 10 August 1993 25 Oslo, Norway Varg Vikernes Stabbing Black metal guitarist
Rhett Forrester 22 January 1994 37 Atlanta, Georgia, US Unknown Shooting Heavy metal musician [30]
Hasni Chakroun Cheb Hasni 29 September 1994 26 Oran, Algeria Armed Islamic Group of Algeria Raï singer
Selena Quintanilla-Pérez Selena 31 March 1995 23 Corpus Christi, Texas, US Yolanda Saldívar 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 25 June 1998 42 Aït Aissi, Tizi Ouzou, Algeria Armed Islamic Group of Algeria Shooting Kabyle music singer
Jaki Byard 11 February 1999 76 New York City, US Unknown Jazz pianist
Roger Troutman 25 April 1999 47 Dayton, Ohio, US Larry Troutman Funk musician
Darrell Abbott Diamond Darrell; Dimebag Darrell 8 December 2004 38 Columbus, Ohio, US Nathan Gale Shooting Heavy metal guitarist
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 25 November 2006 27 Reynosa, Mexico Unknown Shooting Banda singer [31]
Winston Riley 19 January 2012 68 Kingston, Jamaica Rocksteady/reggae singer and producer
Natalia Strelchenko Natalia Strelle 30 August 2015 38 Manchester, England John Martin Head trauma, strangulation Classical pianist [32]
Christina Grimmie 10 June 2016 22 Orlando, Florida, US Kevin James Loibl Shooting Pop singer
Amjad Sabri 22 June 2016 39 Karachi, Pakistan Pakistani Taliban Qawwali singer [33]
Jahseh Onfroy XXXTentacion 18 June 2018 20 Deerfield Beach, Florida, US Four men indicted[34][35] Shooting Rapper and singer [36]
Andrea Meyer Nebelhexe 13 October 2021 52 Kongsberg, Norway Espen Andersen Bråthen Stabbing Rock and electronic singer [37]
Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu Sidhu Moose Wala 29 May 2022 28 Punjab, India Unknown Shooting Rapper and singer [38]
Yurii Kerpatenko 16 October 2022 46 Kherson Oblast, Ukraine Russian soldiers Shooting Classical conductor, accordionist [39]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Drakeo the Ruler, People's Champion". complex.com. 21 December 2021. Retrieved 4 May 2025.
  2. ^ "The Assassination of Drakeo the Ruler". 13 January 2022.
  3. ^ "Essay: Three years later, rapper Drakeo's killing leaves behind more questions than answers". Los Angeles Times. 25 February 2025.
  4. ^ "Nipsey Hussle gunned down in a South L.A. He helped build up. 'It's a sad day in L.A.'". Los Angeles Times. April 2019.
  5. ^ Diaz, Johnny (22 February 2023). "Nipsey Hussle's Killer Sentenced to 60 Years to Life in Prison". The New York Times.
  6. ^ Gianturco, Carolyn. "Alessandro Stradella (1639–1682)". Hyperion Records. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  7. ^ 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)
  8. ^ Pinetop Smith
  9. ^ "Alejandro García Caturla".
  10. ^ Moldenhauer, Hans (1961). The Death of Anton Webern: A Drama in Documents. New York: Philosophical Library. OCLC 512111.
  11. ^ "Sonny Boy Williamson". Biography.com.
  12. ^ Shewey, Don (16 July 1989). "'Moonlight' and Marxism". The New York Times Book Review.
  13. ^ Kernfield, Barry Dean. New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Grove's Dictionaries. p. 544.
  14. ^ "Stringbean Akeman's killer free on parole". The Tennessean. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  15. ^ Lisle, Andria (25 November 2015). "Memphis sunset: The Mysterious death of Stax heartbeat Al Jackson, Jr". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  16. ^ "Eddie Jefferson, 60, Jazz Lyricist, Slain After Leaving Detroit Club". The New York Times. 10 May 1979.
  17. ^ Hickey, Andrew (25 November 2019). "Episode 58: "Mr. Lee" by the Bobbettes". A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  18. ^ Gilmore, Bob (2014). Claude Vivier. A Composer's Life. University of Rochester Press. ISBN 978-1580464857.
  19. ^ Katel, Jacob (14 September 2010). "Top 10 Murdered Musicians You've Never Heard Of". Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  20. ^ 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.
  21. ^ "Blaze Foley: Killing of a Songwriter". 7 October 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  22. ^ Thompson, Dave (2002) Reggae & Caribbean Music, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-655-6, pp. 138–141
  23. ^ http://reggaelicious.pbworks.com
  24. ^ "Acıların Kadını: Bergen – CafeMedyam – Haber Platformu". 5 March 2022. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  25. ^ Sandy Coleman (9 November 1991). "500 mourn slain Brockton singer In eulogy, minister urges youth to shun drugs, violence". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  26. ^ POV (17 January 2006). "El Valiente: Chalino Sánchez - Al Otro Lado". PBS. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  27. ^ Avis Thomas-Lester (16 October 1992). "SLAIN GO-GO DRUMMER EULOGIZED". Washington Post. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  28. ^ Tizon, Alex (23 August 1998). "Who Murdered Mia Zapata? No Arrests, Few Clues 5 Years After Slaying". Seattle Times.
  29. ^ Chazanov, Mathis (15 August 1993). "Questions Cloud Life, Death of Saxophonist". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  30. ^ Katel, Jacob (14 September 2010). "Top 10 Murdered Musicians You've Never Heard Of". Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  31. ^ "Mexico: Musician killed for his drug related lyrics". 18 March 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  32. ^ "Natalia Strelchenko murder: 'Jealous' husband John Martin jailed", BBC News, 21 March 2016, retrieved 22 March 2016
  33. ^ Ali, Imtiaz (22 June 2016). "Famed qawwal Amjad Sabri gunned down in Karachi". Dawn.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  34. ^ "Four men indicted in murder of Florida rapper XXXTentacion". Reuters. 19 July 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  35. ^ 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.
  36. ^ 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)
  37. ^ Meyer, Andrea (20 November 2021). "Metal Musician Andrea Meyer Dies in Bow-and-Arrow Attack: What We Know". popculture. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  38. ^ Moose Wala, Sidhu. "Sidhu Moose Wala: Murder of popular Indian singer sparks anger". BBC. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  39. ^ "Russian troops kill Ukrainian musician for refusing role in Kherson concert". the Guardian. 16 October 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
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