RIP

Motörhead guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke has died at the age of 67. His death was announced on Motörhead’s Facebook page. According to the post, Clarke died peacefully in hospital after suffering from pneumonia. After six albums with Motörhead and as part of the band's classic line up with Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister and Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor, Clarke left the band in 1982. Clarke subsequently formed the rock band Fastway with UFO bassist Pete Way. The band released seven albums and toured with AC/DC. The social media statement also contained tributes from later band members including guitarist Phil Campbell. He said: "Just heard the sad news that Fast Eddie Clarke has passed away. He will be remembered for his iconic riffs and was a true rock and roller, RIP Eddie." 

Girlschool bassist Enid Williams posted a picture of her and Clarke and tweeted: “Goodbye Eddie and thank you for the memories. No words can do justice. Great guitarist, great man.” Saxon tweeted "We've just heard our good friend Fast Eddie Clarke has died. 
Our thoughts go out to his loved ones and family. He will be greatly missed, but he's gone to join Phil and Lemmy. We have great memories of our times with him."

Metallica's Lars Ulrich tweeted:

Thank you for the riffs.
Thank you for the solos.
Thank you for the attitude.
Thank you for being in the coolest band.

Thank you for inspiring me to go down the same path.

We have lost a legend.

William Ray “Bill” Hearn, who led the Nashville-based market-leading Capitol Christian Music Group (CCMG) as its Chairman & CEO, has passed away earlier this week aged 58 in Nashville, Tennessee. 

Jack Boyle, who built a small club in Washington D.C.’s Georgetown neighborhood into a regional promotions empire that became a key cog in the construction of Live Nation’s US success, has passed away at age 83 in California. According to his son, he passed due to complications from dementia.

French musician Johnny Hallyday has died, following a diagnosis of lung cancer. He was 74. Hallyday had a career spanning more than 50 years, and he was planning a new record and tour at the time of his death. In a statement Hallyday's wife Laeticia said: "Johnny Hallyday has left us. I write these words without believing them. But yet, it's true. My man is no longer with us". Selling over 100 milllion records, he made a knight of the French Legion of Honor by President Jacques Chirac in 1998. Current French president Emmanuel Macron said in a statement that "for more than 50 years, he was a vibrant icon", while Macron tweeted that "we all have a bit of Johnny Hallyday in us".

DJ Kaleb Freitas has been killed during the Atmosphere festival in Brazil after strong winds blew over part of the stage at the electronic music party in Rio Grande. An estimated 5,000 people attended the event which was in its fifth year, according to Colombian news outlet Publimetro, taking place in the city of Esteio, Metropolitan Region of Porto Alegre. The Festival issued a statement saying "“We're sorry, we lost a friend, an artist. Our priority is to assist the wounded and their families. We thank the military brigade and the fire department for all assistance.” 


Brooklyn-based entertainment attorney Ed Woods has died. Social media tributes began pouring in for Woods, who has worked with some of the biggest names in the industry, including Diddy, Usher, Allen Iverson, DMX, Stephanie Mills, JAY-Z and Kelly Price. Woods left private practice in 2005 to become executive vice president of black music at Casablanca Records.

Richard Cousins, the chief executive of Compass Group, the world’s largest catering firm, was one of the five people who lost their lives in a plane crash in Sydney on new year’s eve. Cousins, 58, was killed along with his fiancée Emma Bowden, 48, her daughter Heather Bowden, 11, and his two sons Edward (23) and William Cousins (25) when their seaplane crashed into the Hawkesbury river on 31st December. The pilot, 44-year-old Gareth Morgan, also died. Cousins had led UK-headquartered Compass Group – which provides catering services to some of the world’s leading arenas, including The O2, Staples Center and SSE Arena Wembley, and has also held a 49% stake in AEG Facilities since 2011 – for the past 11 years.

Babymetal have paid tribute to their guitarist Mikio Fujioka, who has died after falling from an observation deck while stargazing on  the 30th December. In a statement on Fujioka's Twitter profile, his wife said that the musician's condition had deteriorated on 5 Jan, and he had died with his two daughters beside him. He was just 36  Babymetal also confirmed the death of Fukioka, who had performed in their backing band since 2013, saying that he has "passed away in the metal galaxies" and was now "enjoying an epic guitar session" with his guitar hero Allan Holdsworth.