Motörhead Bassist and Singer Lemmy Kilmister Passes At 70

On December 28th, 2015, Rock and Roll lost one of its most influential and defining characters, Ian Fraser Kilmister, better known as Lemmy. He was best known for playing the bass and singing the lead vocals for the English band Motörhead.

Two days after his 70th birthday, Lemmy was taken to the hospital after not feeling well. A brain scan showed cancer in his brain and neck, which was diagnosed as terminal.

He was given two to six months to live, so Lemmy planned to let his fans know about his diagnosis. However, only two days after being diagnosed, Lemmy passed away at his apartment in Los Angeles.

On December 29th, the Motörhead facebook page notified their fans about Lemmy’s passing. Soon after posting, hundreds of fans began commenting about how Lemmy had influenced their lives and how great of a person he was to be around.

Numerous bands such as Anthrax and Metallica left condolences on their Facebook pages.

His funeral, held on January 9th, 2016 was streamed live on YouTube, with over 200,000 fans watching the event.

Attendees at his funeral consisted of family and friends. The eulogies praising him went on for over two hours.

Notable people in attendance were Dave Grohl, the lead singer of Foo Fighters and former drummer for Nirvana, guitarist Slash, Gene Simmons from KISS, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, Lars Ulrich, the drummer for Metallica, and Lemmy’s son Paul Inder.

Inder said during his eulogy that his father was “back out on the road for a longest tour to the great gig in the sky.”

The eulogies from the rockstars explained how Lemmy played a role in their life, as well as how they first met Lemmy.

Dave Grohl explained how he met Lemmy at a club, but he was too afraid to approach him. After he finally approached him, Lemmy praised Grohl’s drumming with Nirvana.

“In that moment he went from being whisky-drinking rock-star to being a whisky-drinking, rock-star with a heart,” Grohl said.

Slash commented on how he met Kilmister at a London recording studio.

“I walked in and was very graciously accepted by Lemmy and we have been friends ever since,” Slash commented.

Lars Ulrich in his eulogy showed how Lemmy was a major impact in his life.

“He made me want to be in a band, be a musician and be part of a crazy travelling rock ’n’ roll circus.” Lars said.

During his funeral, The Rainbow Bar and Grill, where Lemmy was found on most days, streamed his funeral to a crowd full of fans. Drinks were passed around and Motorhead could be heard playing.

The entire sunset strip was closed off for Lemmy’s funeral service.

The funeral concluded with a bass being plugged into an amp, where feedback could be heard in the entire room. Todd Singerman, Motorheads manager, concluded by saying:

“Lemmy has left the building.”