Lemmy Kilmister, English rock band Motorhead frontman, dead at 70

Lemmy Kilmister, Motorhead frontman performs during the Fortarock Festival in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, on June 1, 2013. (Xinhua/Robin Utrecht)

Lemmy Kilmister, founding member and frontman of Motörhead. has died at the age of 70.

News of his death was first reported by American radio and TV host Eddie Trunk, a longtime friend of Lemmy, and has since been confirmed by several others.

Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne wrote on Twitter, “Lost one of my best friends, Lemmy, today. He will be sadly missed. He was a warrior and a legend. I will see you on the other side.”

The cause of Lemmy’s death is unknown, though he had been suffering from a number of health issues, including hematoma. In 2013, he was fitted with an implantable defibrillator to correct an irregular heartbeat.

Ian Fraser “Lemmy” Kilmister was born in Staffordshire, England in 1945. Inspired to become a musician after seeing The Beatles perform in concert, Lemmy spent his 20s playing in a variety of bands, and also served as a roadie in the Jimi Hendrix Experience.

Lemmy was lead vocalist, bassist, principal songwriter and the founding, and the only constant member of Motörhead since the band’s formation in 1975. To date, Motörhead have released twenty studio albums and achieved 30 million in sales worldwide.

The band’s powerful hard-rock style reinvigorated the metal genre in the late 1970s and inspired everyone from Metallica to Guns N’ Roses to Dave Grohl.

Lemmy’s eccentric and wild behavior, in addition to his talent and success, created his icon status in the world.

RIP Lemmy!