Celebrities are known to live extravagant and sometimes even dangerous lives. With million dollar contracts from their movies, music and even sports, they have the ability to do virtually everything they want. It isn’t surprising to see them indulge in the rock and roll lifestyle among with their high profile friends and peers. Unfortunately, this could also lead to a higher mortality rate. Over the years, we’ve lost a lot of stars. And most often, we lose them too early. Who are the top celebrities who died before 30? Here are some of those celebrities that left us too early.
10. Aaliyah
First in our list of celebrities who died before 30 is Aaliyah. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Alliyah started her career early. She later became an actress and starred in movies like Romeo Must Die and Queen of the Damned. She was the definition of a cool artist in the late 1990s. Aaliyah was able to release three albums that solidified her name in the R&B scene.
What made her career stunning is the fact that she was able to sell millions of her albums. She was able to collaborate with the likes of R Kelly and Timbaland.
Unfortunately, Aalliyah’s private life wasn’t exactly smooth. She was married to R. Kelly before she hits legal age. This was when her marriage with the R&B star was annulled a year after. She died in 2001 after shooting a video. The pilot decided to get all the equipment into the plane making the plane overweight. It was also discovered later that there was cocaine and alcohol in the pilot’s system.
9. James Dean
James Dean was the Rebel Without a Cause. He was the personification of youth rebellion during the 50s. He starred as troubled teen Jim Stark. He died in 1955 in a car crash which cemented his legacy as one of Hollywood’s great.
He started his career in a Pepsi Commercial. After realizing his potential, he quit college and later entered full time acting.
Before even Heath Ledger received his posthumous Academy Award , it was James Dean who first received a posthumous nomination for Best Actor. He was even ranked by American Film Institute as 18th in the list of best male movie stars. He was also known for his roles in East of Eden and Giant.
8. Heath Ledger
Heath Ledger is an Australian actor known for his roles in Brokeback Mountain and the iconic Joker in Nolan’s The Dark Knight in 2008. Heath Ledger first made it in Hollywood in the 1999 hit 10 Things I Hate About You. Together with Jake Gyllenhall, he was also able to act as a gay cowboy in Brokeback Mountain.
By January of 2008, Health Ledger died of overdose. What made Heath Ledger in our top 10 list of celebrities who died before 30 is his ability to absorb roles and even step beyond what is required of him. He even decided to create a diary in order to get into the psyche of the Joker.
He was considered by many hardcore fans as the most effective Joker character. His death occurred during the editing phase of the Dark Knight. He was among the few actors who received posthumous awards including an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
7. Amy Winehouse
Another talent who made it in our list of celebrities who died before 30 is Amy Winehouse. Amy Winehouse was known for her deep expressive voice that has been later defined as neo soul. Her style was a combination of blues, Jazz and even R&B wrapped in one. She first experienced success in UK. In 2006, she experienced her mainstream success when she made her 2006 album Back to Black. Back to Black gave her 5 Grammy Awards. She tied the record for a female artist winning the most awards in a single night.
Her song Rehab gave Winehouse the mainstream success not only in the UK but all over the world. In 2011, she died of alcohol poisoning. After her death, Back to Black became the UK’s best-selling album of the 21st century. She was also mentioned by VH1 as part of the top 100 Greatest Women in Music.
6. Tupac Shakur
Tupac Shakur was an American Rapper known for his incredible lyrics which mirrored society problems. Tupac Shakur lived during a time when there was a strong rivalry between East Coast and West Coast rappers. Tupac represented the best of the West Coast rappers together with Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube.
Tupac wasn’t always a rapper. He started his career in the music industry as a roadie and even a backup dancer. He was killed in a drive-by shooting in 1996. After his death, he is remembered as one of the greatest rappers. He was mentioned by The Rolling Stones as 86th of the 100 Best Musicians of All Time.
5. Biggie Smalls
Also known as Notorious B.I.G, Biggie was able to redefine East Coast hip-hop. He was a former drug dealer who was later known for some of the best rhymes in hip hop. What made him on the list of top celebrities who died before 30 was his significance to the hip hop scene. After releasing Ready to Die and Life After Death, he was able to raise East Coast hip hop to another level during the 1990s.
He died after a party. He attended the Soul Trains awards prior to that. Just like Tupac, there were many conspiracy theories regarding his death. According to fans online, there is a possibility that it was the LAPD that caused his death. There are also other fans who believed that it was due to gang related violence or even because of East Coast-West Coast Rivalry that was then present during the 90s.
4. Selena
Born in Texas, Selena was considered the Queen of Tejano Music. Before Jennifer Lopez made it big, there was Selena. She was able to build a following not only in the US but also among Mexicans. Her charisma, she was able to enjoy a crossover to different cultures. Thanks to Selena, the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Shakira are enjoying the acceptance of US audience today.
Selena died after she was shot by Yolanda Saldivar, the president of her fans club. After getting some tax documents, Saldivar pulled a gun and shot Selena.
3. Jimi Hendrix
Another guitarist in our list of celebrities who died before 30 was Jimi Hendrix. If there is anyone who epitomizes the guitar legend status during the 1960s, that would be Jimi Hendrix. He is remembered for his fiery and electric performances that was way ahead of his time. He was able to reinvent guitar solos for generations of guitarists after his time.
He was able to record hundreds of songs. However, he was just able to release a few albums. Jimi Hendrix made an impact in his generation by performing in Woodstock 69. Yes, he was the epitome of the wild youth of the 60s. He was known for his memorable performance of Star Spangled Banner in Woodstock 69.
One of the biggest myths is that he was a heavy drug abuser. This is the complete opposite of who Jimi Hendrix was. In fact, he died after taking wine and some sleeping pills. He died choking on those pills and his own vomit. However, even after his death, there are many guitarists who find him as an inspiration. Lenny Kravitz is one of those artists who patterned his style after Hendrix.
2. Sid Vicious
Born John Simion Ritchie or better known as Sid Vicious, he is the famous bassist of the famous punk band, Sex Pistols. Sid Vicious wasn’t the original bassist for the iconic punk band. He came in as a replacement in 1977 for Glen Matlock.
His life was colorful and represented the Rock and Roll lifestyle of the UK punk scene during the 70s. He was hospitalized because of IV drug use during the time they were recording Never Mind the Bollocks. He had a relationship with Nancy Spungen, who was the band’s manager. Together, they developed a codependency to drug use. He died at age 21 after an overdose.
See also; 10 Celebs who Faced Sexual Assaults.
1. Kurt Cobain
Kurt Cobain was the frontman of Nirvana together with Kris Novoselic and Dave Grohl. They were the flagship of Generation X then. The iconic grunge rockstar Kurt Cobain redefined the 1990s along with other bands such as Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains. With his honest and raw lyrics, not to mention energetic performances, he was able to define a generation of rebels.
Nirvana revolutionized grunge Seattle scene from an underground music movement into the mainstream. Unfortunately, Kurt Cobain was part of the dreaded Club 27 of musicians who died at age 27. In April 5, 1994, he decided to kill himself. There were so many theories floating around the internet regarding his demise even pointing towards his then wife Courtney Love.
There are many celebrities who died early because of so many reasons. There are those celebrities who died because of unfortunate circumstances, while there are those who died because of their lifestyle. Who should’ve been included in our list? Do you agree with the list?
Top 10 Celebrities Who Died Before 30
- Kurt Cobain
- Sid Vicious
- Jimi Hendrix
- Selena
- Biggie Smalls
- Tupac Shakur
- Amy Winehouse
- Heath Ledger
- James Dean
- Alliyah