Famed Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland has died at age 48.
The singer was found dead in his tour bus at a stop in Bloomington, Minnesota where he was on tour with his band, The Wildabouts. According to an official Instagram post shared on Weiland’s account, the singer died in his sleep.
Weiland’s wife Jamie confirmed the news of his death to the LA times in a brief interview late Thursday.
Though no official cause of death has been reported at this time, the frontman had spent much of his life battling addiction, including a conviction for purchasing crack cocaine in 1995. The singer’s trouble with substance abuse helped to fuel many breakups and reformations with STP, and was a major factor in the group’s parting of ways.
The dept said it has “no information at this time relating to the cause of Weiland’s death.”
Born Scott Richard Kline, Weiland eventually adopted the last name of his step father. He joined his first band at the age of 16. In the late 1980s, Weiland formed Stone Temple Pilots with his brother Robert, and two friends he met at a Black Flag show in Long Beach. The band was originally called Mighty Joe Young, changing their name for 1992’s Core, a heavy rock record that drew comparisons (undesired by the band) to Seattle’s Pearl Jam.
Stone Temple Pilots went on to chart five records on Billboard’s top 10 list, most of which were certified platinum multiple times over. A classic group of the ’90s grunge era, Weiland’s gravelly voice, and riveting stage presence was considered by critics to be the glue that held the band’s sound together. Below is a Spotify playlist highlighting some of Weiland’s best musical moments.
In between touring and recording stints with his original band, Weiland worked with members of Guns N’ Roses Slash, Matt Sorum, and Duff McKagen, in rock supergroup Velvet Revolver. The band released two albums and earned a Grammy for their song Slither.
Stone Temple Pilots broke up in 2002, but Weiland continued to play the band’s songs live, and released two of his own solo records in the intervening years. Most recently, he had released his first record with his new project The Wildabouts. The singer was touring with the band to promote the album at the time of his death.
Friends of the singer have taken to social media to voice their sadness for his death.
Extremely saddened to have read Scott Weiland passed. Such a gifted performer. My thoughts are with your loved ones,friends & fans.
— Joe Perry (@JoePerry) December 4, 2015
RIP Scott Weiland
Universe, please take care of him. https://t.co/sNXVIPl2jA
— Ryan Adams (@TheRyanAdams) December 4, 2015
Take a spin through our playlist above to hear some of our best-loved hits from the singer, in remembrance of a great talent taken away too soon.
Updated 12/4/2015 by Ryan Waniata: Variety has reported that Weiland’s bandmate from The Wildabouts, bassist Tommy Black, has been arrested for possession of cocaine on the group’s tour bus. According to the report, police found a small baggy in Weiland’s room that “field tested positive” for cocaine, and the same powder was found in Black’s area of the tour bus. Black is being held at the Bloomington Police Department, pending charges.
