2016: Not a good year to be in the music business

Anyone find it weird how many musicians we’ve lost this year? Let’s see:  
-David Bowie  
-Glenn Frey from the Eagles  
-Paul Kantner from Jefferson Airplane/Starship  
-Maurice White from Earth, Wind and Fire  
-Sir George Martin, famed Beatles producer  
And that’s not counting last year’s deaths of Scott Weiland from Stone Temple Pilots and Lemmy from Motorhead. And it’s not even April yet!
 
Discuss.

Old people die, people with cancer die.
 
We haven’t had a proper band-destroying plane crash in decades.

@AaronMk
 
Our last one was about 20 years ago, as far as i remember.

@Mildgyth
 
And the biggest tragedy in this thread is we also forgot the band that all died in a car accident in Sweden this year.
 
Indieband Violoa Beach and producer dies in car accident in Sweden
 
Old age and disease is expected. While sad, dying when you’ve forged a legacy isn’t something to be missed but praised as part of a full life and capturing the closest one gets to immortality.
 
But being cut down before primacy is realized - plane crash, car accident, joining the Forever 27 Club, etc - is the only tragedy. More so when you’re totally forgotten or otherwise unknown.

@AaronMk  
You know, this is why I created this thread, so we can have a repository of musicians/people in the music field who died this year. If you know of any others, feel free to mention them.

@Kirb  
For example, let’s not forget about blues legend Otis Clay, and manager of Cream and the Bee Gees Robert Stigwood.

All of the good ones are getting up there in age, so we can expect to lose more and more (sadly they probably won’t be replaced). Glad I got to see Black Sabbath’s “The End” tour last month.

Although these individuals may die, their music will live on

 
And now Keith Emerson too…
 
@lonewolf  
I doubt they will be replaced, since we’re getting less of them and more people like Kanye West…
 
@neutralgrey  
But why all at once? It’s like 2016 can’t go two weeks without killing off another rock musician.

And now Merle Haggard too…

ITS THE CURSE OF AARON RAMSEY!

And now Prince…
 
I wish I could link one of his songs, but you know how he was about copyright, so… here, have this cover version.

@Kirb
 
No fucking way…
 
Also, nice profile picture.

@Dirty Bit  
Hah, thanks. I love that movie.
 
Also, he did at least let one of his songs be avaialble on YouTube. Oddly fitting too…

I’m still quite stunned by the news: like Bowie, the music world will take time to heal this wound.
 
The death I’ve mourned the most was Maurice White’s. It was expected, but when the leader of one’s fav band dies…  
About George Martin: The Beatles are my second fav band and the one that fascinates me the most. Not a shock like George Harrison’s death, but it hurt inside.  
I didn’t knew about Katner, and I love all the incarnations of Jefferson Airplane. YES, even Starship without Katner and with “We Build This City” (“Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” is one of my fav songs ever”. “White Rabbit” is mesmerizing.

@bigladiesman  
It’s kind of surreal in the few days after a music artist you love–or even one you only kind of like–dies. It’s hard to explain it.

Just learned of another death several days ago: Billy Paul. Despite being considered a one-hit wonder with his erotic Me And Mrs. Jones, he was in fact considered one of the finest soul and jazz vocalists in the world.

More sad news: Sinead O’Connor has dissapeared, very likely killed herself. Police is searching to see if they can get to her on time. She was nuts, but, man, only 49 years old…

@bigladiesman  
Oh jeez… And she’s fairly young too, isn’t she?

@Kirb
 
@bigladiesman
 
According to BBC, they found her.

@Mildgyth  
Great news! Thanks!
 
In my country they even said she left what seemed to be a farewell letter to one of her children.

Well, looks like John Berry, of the Beastie Boys, is dead as well.

@EPPony
 
He was a member when they were still a punk band, right?

@Mildgyth  
Yup
 
Edit: Also, as a little addition, there was actually some confusion as to WHICH John Berry died due to AOL’s article on him.

christina grimmie was shot dead at age 22