David Johansen, frontman of iconic punk band New York Dolls, has died
By Silke Sullivan
New York, New York - David Johansen, the lead singer of influential glam-punk band New York Dolls, has died.
The musician died at home in New York on Friday at the age of 75, as his daughter Leah Hennessey has confirmed to the media.
It was only in February that Hennessey asked Johansen's fans for help on Instagram, as her father had been suffering from cancer for years and had also been diagnosed with a brain tumor five years ago.
She launched a fundraising campaign on the Sweet Relief page.
After Thanksgiving, Johansen fell down a flight of stairs and suffered two fractures in his back, Hennessey revealed.
In a statement to People, Hennessey shared, "David Johansen passed away peacefully at home, holding the hands of his wife, Mara Hennessey, and daughter Leah, in the sunlight surrounded by music and flowers.
"After a decade of profoundly compromised health, he died of natural causes."
Johansen founded the New York Dolls with punk forefather Johnny Thunders in 1972, and it's often regarded as one of the first US punk bands.
The band broke up in 1976, but there was a reunion in 2004. Director Martin Scorsese shed light on the singer in the documentary Personality Crisis: One Night Only.
Cover photo: TEH ENG KOON / AFP