His family announced the news via Instagram, stating: “We are heartbroken to announce that our beloved father Brian Wilson has passed away. We are at a loss for words right now. Please respect our privacy at this time as our family is grieving. We realize that we are sharing our grief with the world. Love & Mercy.”

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A post shared by Brian Wilson (@brianwilsonlive)

Born in Inglewood, California, in 1942, Wilson founded The Beach Boys alongside his younger brothers Carl and Dennis, cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. The band would go on to become one of the most influential acts in American music history, selling over 100 million records worldwide with iconic hits like ‘Good Vibrations’, ‘Kokomo’, and ‘God Only Knows’.

As the band’s primary creative force, Wilson helped shape the group’s distinctive sound, blending sonic harmonies with experimental studio techniques. The critically acclaimed 1966 album ‘Pet Sounds’, widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, was written and produced almost entirely by Wilson.

Wilson’s life, however, was marked by personal struggles. He battled mental health issues from an early age, which were intensified by substance use during the height of his fame. Diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and mild manic depression, Wilson spent time in psychiatric hospitals throughout the late 1960s. His condition contributed to the shelving of ‘Smile’, the intended follow-up to ‘Pet Sounds’, and led to greater involvement from other band members in the creative process.

In 1988, Wilson released his debut solo album and went on to enjoy a solo career, touring and releasing new music. He reunited with The Beach Boys in 2011 for a 50th-anniversary world tour and the release of their 29th studio album, ‘That’s Why God Made the Radio’, in 2012. He performed his final concert in 2022 during a co-headlining tour with Chicago.

In 2024, it was publicly revealed that Wilson had been diagnosed with dementia and placed under conservatorship. His wife, Melinda Ledbetter – who had also served as his manager – passed away that same year. The couple had adopted five children and remained together from their marriage in 1995 until her death. Wilson was previously married to singer Marilyn Rovell, with whom he had two daughters, Carnie and Wendy, who later formed the pop group Wilson Phillips.

Wilson chronicled his life in memoirs published in 1991 and 2016, and his story was portrayed in the 2014 biopic ‘Love and Mercy’ and the 2021 documentary ‘Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road’.

Tributes poured in from across the music world. Bob Dylan reflected, “Heard the sad news about Brian today and thought about all the years I’ve been listening to him and admiring his genius. Rest in peace dear Brian.” Carole King called him her “friend and brother in songwriting,” adding, “We are so lucky to have his music.” Sir Elton John described Wilson as the “biggest influence” on his songwriting, while John Cale of The Velvet Underground hailed him as a “true musical genius.” Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood added, “The world is in mourning.”

For more on Elton John’s tribute, read our latest coverage here.

Following the news, British pop icon Elton John took to Instagram to post a throwback picture of him and Brian in a recording studio. The caption read: “Brian Wilson was always so kind to me from the day I met him. He sang ‘Someone Saved My Life Tonight’ at a tribute concert in 2003, and it was an extraordinary moment for me. I played on his solo records, he sang on my album, The Union, and even performed for my AIDS Foundation. I grew to love him as a person, and for me, he was the biggest influence on my songwriting ever; he was a musical genius and revolutionary. He changed the goalposts when it came to writing songs and shaped music forever. A true giant.”

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Among the many names that spoke about Wilson and his genius, kindness and love, folk singer Bob Dylan also shared a statement that read: “Heard the sad news about Brian today and thought about all the years I’ve been listening to him and admiring his genius. Rest in peace dear Brian.”

Brian’s band also shared a statement, talking about the musician as well as his time and input within the iconic band The Beach Boys: “The world mourns a genius today, and we grieve for the loss of our cousin, our friend, and our partner in a great musical adventure. Brian Wilson wasn’t just the heart of The Beach Boys – he was the soul of our sound. Together, we gave the world the American dream of optimism, joy, and a sense of freedom – music that made people feel good, made them believe in summer and endless possibilities. We will continue to cherish the timeless music we made together and the joy he brought to millions over the decades,” they wrote. “And while we will miss him deeply, his legacy will live on through his songs and in our memories.”

Brian to co-headline 25-city 2022 U.S. Summer Tour with Chicago! Tickets on sale this Friday. Presale available for Citi credit card holders Wednesday at 10:00am. See dates for a show coming to you at https://t.co/5TrxjN8DIS@chicagotheband#SummerTour#goodvibrations pic.twitter.com/qZMyVkAJIU

— Brian Wilson (@BrianWilsonLive) November 30, 2021

In a statement released by the band, Wilson states, “We are SO sad that we have to once again push our tour due to the constantly changing and challenging issues overseas surrounding the Covid 19 pandemic. Me and the guys were looking forward to seeing everyone, eating great food and performing.”, continuing, “But with routing impossible and needing to keep our touring group safe we need to postpone. Such a bummer. I miss Europe I MISS London and all of the UK…. My second home. Send good vibes that we will be out of this soon. Stay safe everyone.”. See the full dates for the US tour and Wilson’s message here.

Wilson’s inability to tour over the last few years has not left him bored however, last month we were introduced to a new documentary called “Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road”. The feature-length documentary sees the likes of Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, and even Nick Jonas offer their takes on the sprawling career of the famed Beach Boys frontman. The same day, Wilson shared his 11^th solo outing At My Piano. The LP is essentially an acoustic album, taking Beach Boys classics like “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”, “In My Room”, and “God Only Knows” and performing them solo on the piano. Concerning Wilson’s love of the instrument, he said in a press release speaking of the project, “I can’t express how much the piano has played such an important part in my life. It has bought me comfort, joy and security. It has fuelled my creativity as well as my competitive nature.”. See below the stripped back version of the definitive Beach Boys track “Good Vibrations” below.

The album itself drops on Friday April 27, and will be Monae’s first project since 2013’s The Electric Lady. The singer recently explained the the five year wait between albums was greatly influenced by the death of her close friend Prince in 2016.

“This was the person that I would literally call and talk to about sounds or: ‘How should I say this? Is this saying too much?’ I just never could imagine a time where I couldn’t pick up the phone or email him, and he’d contact me right back and we’d talk about all these things that I was unsure of” Monae said of the Purple One.

The 14 track album can be seen listed below, and features the likes of Pharrell Williams, Zoe Kravtiz, Grimes, and the Beach Boys’ head  honcho Brian Wilson on the album’s title track.

1 Dirty Computer [feat. Brian Wilson]
2 Crazy, Classic, Life
3 Take a Byte
4 Jane’s Dream
5 Screwed [feat. Zoë Kravitz]
6 Django Jane
7 PYNK [feat. Grimes]
8 Make Me Feel
9 I Got the Juice [feat. Pharrell Williams]
10 I Like That
11 Stevie’s Dream
12 Don’t Judge Me
13 So Afraid
14 Americans
Three wildly differing singles and videos have already been released in the build to Dirty Computer’s release, in the Prince-heavy ‘Make Me Feel’, the hip-hop influenced ‘Django Jane’, and the dreamy pop song ‘PYNK’ most recently. You can check out the video for that above.