Claim: Freddie Mercury was in a band.

Farrokh `` Freddie '' Mercury -LRB- née Bulsara ; 5 September 1946 -- 24 November 1991 -RRB- was a British singer , songwriter and record producer , known as the lead vocalist and co-principal songwriter of the rock band Queen . He also became known for his flamboyant stage persona and four-octave vocal range . Mercury wrote and composed numerous hits for Queen -LRB- including `` Bohemian Rhapsody '' , `` Killer Queen '' , `` Somebody to Love '' , `` Do n't Stop Me Now '' , `` Crazy Little Thing Called Love '' , and `` We Are the Champions '' -RRB- ; occasionally served as a producer and guest musician -LRB- piano or vocals -RRB- for other artists ; and concurrently led a solo career while performing with Queen .   Mercury was born of Parsi descent in the Sultanate of Zanzibar and grew up there and in India until his mid-teens , before moving with his family to Middlesex , England -- ultimately forming the band Queen in 1970 with Brian May and Roger Taylor . Mercury died in 1991 at age 45 due to complications from AIDS , having confirmed the day before his death that he had contracted the disease .   In 1992 , Mercury was posthumously awarded the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music , and had a tribute concert held at Wembley Stadium , London . As a member of Queen , he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 , the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003 , the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004 , and the band received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2002 . In 2002 , he was placed at number 58 in the BBC 's poll of the 100 Greatest Britons . Consistently voted one of the greatest singers in the history of popular music , Mercury was voted best male singer of all time in a 2005 poll organised by Blender and MTV2 ; was elected in 2009 as the best rock singer of all time by Classic Rock readers ; was ranked at 18 on the 2008 Rolling Stone list of the 100 greatest singers ever ; -- and was described by Greg Prato of AllMusic as `` one of rock 's greatest all-time entertainers , '' with `` one of the greatest voices in all of music . ''