# List of 2016 deaths in popular music

This is a list of notable performers of rock music and other forms of popular music, and others directly associated with the music as producers, songwriters, or in other closely related roles, who died in 2016.

## 2016 deaths in popular music

| Preceded by 2015 | List of deaths in popular music 2016 | Succeeded by 2017 |
| Name | Age | Date | Location | Cause of death |
| Long John Hunter | 84 | January 4, 2016 | Phoenix, Arizona | |
| Robert Stigwood Manager for The Bee Gees, Cream | 81 | January 4, 2016 | London, England | |
| Otis Clay | 73 | January 8, 2016 | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | Heart attack |
| David Bowie Arnold Corns, The Riot Squad, Tin Machine | 69 | January 10, 2016 | Manhattan, New York City, U.S. | Liver cancer |
| Giorgio Gomelsky Manager for The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Paramounts | 81 | January 13, 2016 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Cancer |
| Pete Huttlinger The John Denver Band | 54 | January 15, 2016 | Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | Stroke |
| Gary Loizzo The American Breed | 70 | January 16, 2016 | Orland Park, Illinois, U.S. | Pancreatic cancer |
| Blowfly | 76 | January 17, 2016 | Lauderdale Lakes, Florida, U.S. | Liver cancer |
| Mic Gillette Tower of Power | 64 | January 17, 2016 | Concord, California, U.S. | Heart attack |
| Dale Griffin Mott the Hoople, British Lions | 67 | January 17, 2016 | | Alzheimer's disease |
| Glenn Frey Eagles | 67 | January 18, 2016 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia while recovering from intestinal surgery |
| Jimmy Bain Rainbow, Wild Horses, Dio, Last in Line | 68 | January 23, 2016 | MSC Divina, Atlantic Ocean | Lung cancer |
| Black | 53 | January 26, 2016 | Cork, Ireland | Traffic accident |
| T.J. Tindall MFSB | 65 | January 26, 2016 | | Cancer |
| Paul Kantner Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, KBC Band | 74 | January 28, 2016 | San Francisco, California, U.S. | Multiple organ failure |
| Signe Toly Anderson Jefferson Airplane | 74 | January 28, 2016 | Beaverton, Oregon, U.S. | COPD |
| Billy Faier | 85 | January 29, 2016 | Alpine, Texas, U.S. | |
| Jon Bunch Further Seems Forever, Sense Field | 45 | February 1, 2016 | Long Beach, California, U.S. | Suicidal overdose |
| Maurice White Earth, Wind & Fire | 74 | February 4, 2016 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Parkinson's disease |
| Joe Dowell | 76 | February 4, 2016 | Bloomington, Illinois, U.S. | Heart attack |
| Dan Hicks The Charlatans | 74 | February 6, 2016 | Mill Valley, California, U.S. | Liver cancer |
| Kipišas Member of Kastaneda | 37 | February 12, 2016 | Vilnius, Lithuania | Cardiac arrest |
| L. C. Ulmer | 87 | February 14, 2016 | Ellisville, Mississippi, U.S. | Natural causes |
| Vanity Vanity 6 | 57 | February 15, 2016 | Fremont, California, U.S. | Kidney failure |
| Paul Gordon The B-52's | 52 | February 18, 2016 | Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | Heart disease |
| Vi Subversa Poison Girls | 80 | February 19, 2016 | | |
| Piotr Grudziński Riverside | 40 | February 21, 2016 | Warsaw, Poland | Pulmonary embolism |
| Hans Reffert Guru Guru | 69 | February 21, 2016 | Mannheim, Germany | |
| Lennie Baker Sha Na Na | 69 | February 24, 2016 | Weymouth, Massachusetts, U.S. | Infection |
| Josefin Nilsson | 46 | February 29, 2016 | Själsö, Gotland, Sweden | |
| Aron Burton | 77 | February 29, 2016 | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | Heart failure and diabetes |
| Gayle McCormick Smith | 67 | March 1, 2016 | St. Louis, Missouri | Cancer |
| Chip Hooper Phish, Dave Matthews Band | 53 | March 5, 2016 | Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, U.S. | Cancer |
| Ross Hannaford Daddy Cool, Mighty Kong | 65 | March 8, 2016 | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | Cancer |
| George Martin The Beatles, America | 90 | March 8, 2016 | Highbury, London, England | |
| Naná Vasconcelos Pat Metheny Group | 71 | March 9, 2016 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | Lung cancer |
| Keith Emerson Emerson, Lake & Palmer | 71 | March 10, 2016 | Santa Monica, California, U.S. | Suicide |
| Tommy Brown | 84 | March 12, 2016 | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | |
| Phife Dawg A Tribe Called Quest | 45 | March 22, 2016 | Oakley, California, U.S. | Complications related to diabetes |
| Jimmy Riley | 68 | March 22, 2016 | New York, U.S. | |
| Jelena Marjanović Serbian singer | 32 | April 3, 2016 | Belgrade, Serbia | Murder |
| Carlo Mastrangelo The Belmonts | 78 | April 4, 2016 | | |
| Leon Haywood | 74 | April 5, 2016 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| Merle Haggard | 79 | April 6, 2016 | Palo Cedro, California, U.S. | Pneumonia |
| Jade Lemons Guitarist for Injected | 43 | April 6, 2016 | ?, U.S. | Drug overdose |
| Dennis Davis | 66 | April 6, 2016 | | Cancer |
| Jimmie Van Zant | 59 | April 7, 2016 | Florida, U.S. | Liver cancer |
| Emile Ford | 78 | April 11, 2016 | London, England | |
| Gib Guilbeau Flying Burrito Brothers | 78 | April 12, 2016 | | |
| Lonnie Mack | 74 | April 21, 2016 | Smithville, Tennessee, U.S | Natural causes |
| Prince Prince and The Revolution, New Power Generation | 57 | April 21, 2016 | Chanhassen, Minnesota, U.S. | Accidental fentanyl toxicity |
| Billy Paul | 81 | April 24, 2016 | Gloucester Township, New Jersey, U.S. | Pancreatic cancer |
| Harrison Calloway Muscle Shoals Horns | 75 | April 30, 2016 | Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. | Stroke |
| Phil Ryan Man, Pete Brown, Neutrons | 69 | April 30, 2016 | Denmark | |
| Isao Tomita | 84 | May 5, 2016 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Candye Kane | 54 | May 6, 2016 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Complications from pancreatic cancer |
| John Stabb Government Issue | 54 | May 7, 2016 | Rockville, Maryland, U.S. | Stomach cancer |
| Luther Simmons The Main Ingredient | 74 | May 9, 2016 | | Cancer |
| Peter Behrens Trio | 68 | May 11, 2016 | Wilhelmshaven, Lower Saxony, Germany | Multiple organ failure |
| Julius La Rosa | 86 | May 12, 2016 | Crivitz, Wisconsin, U.S. | Natural causes |
| Emilio Navaira | 53 | May 16, 2016 | New Braunfels, Texas, U.S. | |
| Guy Clark | 74 | May 17, 2016 | Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | |
| John Berry Beastie Boys | 52 | May 19, 2016 | Danvers, Massachusetts, U.S. | Frontotemporal dementia |
| Nick Menza Megadeth, OMH | 51 | May 21, 2016 | Studio City, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Heart failure |
| Marshall "Rock" Jones Ohio Players | 75 | May 27, 2016 | Houston, Texas, U.S. | Cancer |
| Reshad Feild The Springfields | 82 | May 31, 2016 | Devon, England | |
| Dave Swarbrick Fairport Convention | 75 | June 3, 2016 | Aberystwyth, Wales | Emphysema |
| Habib | 68 | June 10, 2016 | Ramsar, Mazandaran, Iran | Cardiac arrest |
| Christina Grimmie | 22 | June 10, 2016 | Orlando, Florida, U.S. | Gunshot |
| Chips Moman | 79 | June 12, 2016 | LaGrange, Georgia, U.S. | Lung disease |
| Chris Warren | 49 | June 12, 2016 | | |
| Henry McCullough Wings | 72 | June 14, 2016 | Ballywindelland, Ballymoney, Northern Ireland | Stroke |
| Attrell Cordes P.M. Dawn | 46 | June 17, 2016 | Neptune City, New Jersey, U.S. | Renal disease |
| Sverre Kjelsberg The Pussycats | 69 | June 19, 2016 | Tromsø, Norway | |
| Wayne Jackson The Mar-Keys | 74 | June 21, 2016 | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | Heart failure |
| Bill Ham Manager for ZZ Top | 79 | June 22, 2016 | Austin, Texas, U.S. | |
| Jim Boyd The Jim Boyd Band | 60 | June 22, 2016 | | |
| Bernie Worrell Parliament, Funkadelic, Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains | 72 | June 24, 2016 | Everson, Washington, U.S. | Lung cancer |
| Mack Rice The Falcons | 82 | June 27, 2016 | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | Complications resulting from Alzheimer's disease |
| Scotty Moore | 84 | June 28, 2016 | Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | |
| Rob Wasserman RatDog | 64 | June 29, 2016 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Undisclosed |
| William Hawkins | 76 | July 4, 2016 | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | |
| Danny Smythe The Box Tops | 67 | July 6, 2016 | | |
| Geneviève Castrée | 35 | July 9, 2016 | Anacortes, Washington | Pancreatic cancer |
| El Lebrijano | 75 | July 13, 2016 | Seville, Spain | |
| Roland Prince | 69 | July 15, 2016 | | |
| Alan Vega Suicide | 78 | July 16, 2016 | New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| Gary S. Paxton Record producer for Skip & Flip, The Hollywood Argyles | 77 | July 17, 2016 | Branson, Missouri, U.S. | Complications of heart surgery and liver disease |
| Lewis Steinberg Booker T. & the M.G.'s | 82 | July 21, 2016 | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | Cancer |
| Keith Gemmell Audience | 68 | July 24, 2016 | | Throat cancer |
| Allan Barnes The Blackbyrds | 67 | July 26, 2016 | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | Heart attack |
| Einojuhani Rautavaara | 87 | July 26, 2016 | Helsinki, Finland | |
| Sandy Pearlman Blue Öyster Cult, The Clash, Black Sabbath | 72 | July 26, 2016 | Marin County, California, U.S. | Pneumonia and complication from a stroke |
| Lucille Dumont | 97 | July 29, 2016 | Canada | |
| Ricci Martin Dean Martin's son | 62 | August 3, 2016 | Salt Lake City, Utah | Unknown |
| Snaffu Rigor Music group from Cinderella | 69 | August 4, 2016 | Manila, Philippines | Lung cancer |
| Pete Fountain | 86 | August 6, 2016 | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | Heart failure |
| B.E. Taylor | 65 | August 7, 2016 | Wheeling, West Virginia, U.S. | Brain tumor |
| Glenn Yarbrough The Limeliters | 86 | August 11, 2016 | Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | Dementia |
| Ruby Wilson | 68 | August 12, 2016 | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | Heart attack |
| Bobby Hutcherson | 75 | August 15, 2016 | Montara, California, U.S. | Emphysema |
| James Woolley 2wo, Nine Inch Nails | 49 | August 17, 2016 | | Fell off a ladder |
| Horacio Salgán | 100 | August 19, 2016 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| Lou Pearlman Record producer and manager for NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, O-Town | 62 | August 19, 2016 | Miami, Florida, U.S. | Cardiac arrest |
| Matt Roberts 3 Doors Down | 38 | August 20, 2016 | West Bend, Wisconsin | Prescription drug overdose |
| Louis Stewart | 72 | August 20, 2016 | Harold's Cross, Dublin, Ireland | Cancer |
| Toots Thielemans | 94 | August 22, 2016 | Brussels, Belgium | |
| Gilli Smyth Gong | 83 | August 22, 2016 | Byron Bay, Australia | Pulmonary pneumonia |
| Rudy Van Gelder | 91 | August 25, 2016 | Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, U.S. | Natural causes |
| Juan Gabriel | 66 | August 28, 2016 | Santa Monica, California, U.S. | Heart attack |
| Fred Hellerman | 89 | September 1, 2016 | Weston, Connecticut, U.S. | |
| Jerry Heller Music manager for N.W.A | 75 | September 2, 2016 | Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. | Heart attack |
| Lewis Merenstein Record producer | 81 | September 6, 2016 | New York City, New York | Pneumonia |
| Clifford Curry | 79 | September 7, 2016 | Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. | Stroke |
| Prince Buster | 78 | September 8, 2016 | Miami, Florida, U.S. | Stroke |
| Jerry Corbetta Sugarloaf | 68 | September 16, 2016 | Denver, Colorado, U.S. | Pick's disease |
| John D. Loudermilk | 82 | September 21, 2016 | Christiana, Tennessee, U.S. | Bone cancer |
| Kashif B. T. Express | 59 | September 25, 2016 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| Jean Shepard | 82 | September 25, 2016 | Gallatin, Tennessee, U.S. | |
| Hagen Liebing Die Ärzte | 55 | September 25, 2016 | Berlin, Germany | Brain tumor |
| Joe Clay | 78 | September 26, 2016 | | |
| Jonathan David Brown Record producer & audio engineer | 60 | September 27, 2016 | Ozark, Missouri, U.S. | |
| Nora Dean | 72 | September 29, 2016 | Connecticut, U.S. | |
| Michael Casswell | 53 | September 30, 2016 | Níjar, Spain | Drowning |
| Oscar Brand | 96 | September 30, 2016 | Great Neck, New York, U.S. | Pneumonia |
| Steve Byrd | 61 | October 2, 2016 | Munich, Germany | Heart attack |
| Caroline Crawley | 53 | October 4, 2016 | | |
| Rod Temperton Heatwave | 66 | October 5, 2016 | London, England | Cancer |
| Don Ciccone The Four Seasons, Tommy James and the Shondells, The Critters | 70 | October 8, 2016 | | |
| Bored Nothing | 26 | October 9, 2016 | | Suicide |
| Robert Bateman Record producer | 80 | October 12, 2016 | | Heart attack |
| Sonny Sanders | 77 | October 12, 2016 | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | |
| Werner Lämmerhirt | 67 | October 14, 2016 | Bodenwerder, Germany | |
| Bobby Ellis | 84 | October 18, 2016 | Kingston, Jamaica | Pneumonia related |
| Pete Burns Dead or Alive | 57 | October 23, 2016 | London, England | Cardiac arrest |
| Bobby Vee | 73 | October 24, 2016 | Rogers, Minnesota, U.S. | Alzheimer's disease |
| John Zacherle | 98 | October 27, 2016 | New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| Norman Brokaw American talent agent | 89 | October 29, 2016 | Beverly Hills, California, U.S. | |
| Bap Kennedy | 54 | November 1, 2016 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | Pancreatic and bowel cancer |
| Bob Cranshaw | 83 | November 2, 2016 | Manhattan, New York, U.S. | Cancer |
| Kay Starr | 94 | November 3, 2016 | Bel Air, Los Angeles, U.S. | Complications from Alzheimer's disease |
| Eddie Harsch The Black Crowes | 59 | November 4, 2016 | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | |
| Jean-Jacques Perrey | 87 | November 4, 2016 | Lausanne, Switzerland | Lung cancer |
| Leonard Cohen | 82 | November 7, 2016 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Cancer |
| Jimmy Young | 95 | November 7, 2016 | London, England | |
| Al Caiola | 96 | November 9, 2016 | Allendale, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| Victor Bailey Weather Report | 56 | November 11, 2016 | Stafford, Virginia, U.S. | Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease |
| Doug Edwards Skylark, Chilliwack | 70 | November 11, 2016 | Vancouver, British Columbia, U.S. | |
| Leon Russell | 74 | November 13, 2016 | Mount Juliet, Tennessee, U.S. | Heart surgery |
| David Mancuso Known from The Loft | 72 | November 14, 2016 | New York, New York, U.S. | |
| Mose Allison | 89 | November 15, 2016 | Hilton Head, South Carolina, U.S. | Natural causes |
| Cliff Barrows Music director from Billy Graham Evangelistic Association | 93 | November 15, 2016 | Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. | |
| Milt Okun American arranger, record producer and co-founder of the Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company | 92 | November 15, 2016 | Beverly Hills, California, U.S. | |
| Mentor Williams | 70 | November 16, 2016 | Taos, New Mexico, U.S. | Lung cancer |
| Saki Kaskas Best known from his soundtracks in the Need for Speed Series | 45 | November 17, 2016 | Greece | Drug overdose |
| Sharon Jones Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings | 60 | November 18, 2016 | Cooperstown, New York, U.S. | Pancreatic cancer |
| Hugh McDonald Redgum | 62 | November 18, 2016 | Australia | Prostate cancer |
| Blakdyak | 46 | November 21, 2016 | Sampaloc, Manila, Philippines | |
| Craig Gill Inspiral Carpets | 44 | November 22, 2016 | | Suicide |
| Colonel Abrams | 67 | November 24, 2016 | | Diabetes |
| Tony Martell American music industry and senior executive | 90 | November 27, 2016 | Madison, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| Carlton Kitto | 74 | November 28, 2016 | | |
| Ray Columbus Ray Columbus and the Invaders | 74 | November 29, 2016 | Snells Beach, North Auckland, New Zealand | Heart attack |
| Mark Gray Exile | 64 | December 2, 2016 | Lebanon, Tennessee, U.S. | |
| Harry Balk Record producer and record company executive | 91 | December 3, 2016 | Oak Park, Michigan, U.S. | |
| Herbert Hardesty | 91 | December 3, 2016 | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | Cancer |
| Wayne Duncan Daddy Cool | 72 | December 4, 2016 | Melbourne, Australia | Stroke |
| Radim Hladik Blue Effect | 69 | December 4, 2016 | | Pulmonary fibrosis |
| Junaid Jamshed Vital Signs | 52 | December 7, 2016 | Havelian, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan | Plane accident |
| Greg Lake Emerson, Lake & Palmer, King Crimson | 69 | December 7, 2016 | London, England | Cancer |
| Bob Krasnow Record producer and music executive from Elektra Records | 82 | December 11, 2016 | Wellington, Florida, U.S. | Organ dysfunction |
| Barrelhouse Chuck | 58 | December 12, 2016 | Libertyville, Illinois, U.S. | Prostate cancer |
| Jim Lowe | 93 | December 12, 2016 | East Hampton, Long Island, New York, U.S. | |
| Bunny Walters | 63 | December 14, 2016 | Hamilton, New Zealand | |
| Gordie Tapp Host of the hit TV show Hee Haw | 94 | December 18, 2016 | Burlington, Ontario, Canada | |
| Mick Zane Malice | 57 | December 23, 2016 | Los Angeles, California | Brain cancer |
| Rick Parfitt Status Quo | 68 | December 24, 2016 | Marbella, Spain | Septicaemia and following complications to a shoulder injury |
| George Michael Wham! | 53 | December 25, 2016 | Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England | Heart failure |
| Alphonse Mouzon Weather Report, The Eleventh House | 68 | December 25, 2016 | Granada Hills, California, U.S. | Neuroendocrine carcinoma |
| Allan Williams Businessman and talent manager from the Beatles | 86 | December 30, 2016 | Liverpool, England | |