Historical Events  People
Iggy Pop

Alternate:
Iggy Pop died in 2016

Current:
Iggy Pop did not die in 2016

A lust for life like no other

Some people are surprised to hear Iggy Pop is alive and well today, because they are sure he died in 2016.

This was the "terrible year" for celebrity deaths, and in particular David Bowie which may have some connection people are bringing to mind.

With his well-documented crazy lifestyle, Iggy is always the first to point out there's no way he should have made it this far, but made it he has and in fact is still performing at the age of 70. On March 5, 2017, Iggy Pop performed the song "T.V. Eye" with Metallica on their Hardwired Tour stop at Foro Sol in Mexico City, Mexico and toured in 2020 at the age of 73.

The Godfather of Punk

Born James Newell Osterberg Jr. in 1947, Iggy Pop cemented his legendary mark forever on the face of rock with his wild stage antics and world famous songs, including Lust for Life, The Passenger and Real Wild Child.

His first band was called The Iguanas, which his where he took his name from when he moved on. He was a long friend of David Bowie, and his wild antics go back to the late 1960's, where he performed wit The Stooges with whom he's left and rejoined many times since. In those early days the band wasn't successful, and he gained a reputation for being very confrontational following some bizarre stage antics, such as self-mutilation. He's been known to roll around in broken glass on stage, and expose himself.

He also invented the stage-dive :-)

2016 was the "terrible year" for celebrity deaths, including David Bowie. Many people were shocked by Bowie's passing in particular, because he's deliberately kept quiet about the liver cancer he was diagnosed with in 2014. Many people will associate Bowie with Iggy Pop, and, combined with the many other celebrity deaths that year, conflated them to include Iggy's too.