David Johansen, the frontman and last surviving member of the New York Dolls, has died at the age of 75.
The news was announced by his daughter Leah Hennessey, who confirmed that he passed away on Friday (February 28) at his home in New York. He had been diagnosed with stage four cancer in 2020.
As the singer in the New York Dolls, Johansen was fundamental in the shaping of the aesthetic that would go on to define punk rock, merging elements of glam and hard rock with a distinctively anti-establishment attitude and resonating with an emerging generation of music fans.
Born on January 9, 1950, the Staten Island native began his music career with the band The Vagabond Missionaries in the late ‘60s, before forming the Dolls in 1971 with Johnny Thunders, Sylvain Sylvain and Arthur Kane.
They released two highly influential studio albums together – ‘New York Dolls’ (1973) and ‘Too Much Too Soon’ (1974) – before splitting in 1976 and not performing together again until 2004.
Johansen went on to lead a successful solo career, opening for The Who, before swerving in the late ‘80s into the alter ego Buster Poindexter, a louche lounge singer that performed regularly with the Saturday Night Live band. He had a hit under that name with ‘Hot Hot Hot’ in 1987.
He also embarked on a semi-regular acting career, appearing most notably alongside Bill Murray in 1988’s festival classic Scrooged. Other credits included Let It Ride, Mr. Nanny and The Adventures of Pete and Pete.
Several figures from the music industry have been paying tribute to Johansen, including Stevie Van Zandt, who described him as, “One of the most unique legends of our business and a very good friend. One of a kind.” Morrissey, an early fan of the New York Dolls and later a friend of Johansen’s, posted an image of the late singer on his website under the headline, ‘ALL HOLLOW’.
RIP David Johansen. One of the most unique legends of our business and a very good friend. One of a kind.
— 🇺🇸🕉🇺🇦🟦Stevie Van Zandt☮️💙 (@StevieVanZandt) March 1, 2025
Safe travels, David Johansen
— Tim Burgess (@Tim_Burgess) March 1, 2025
The great David Johansen has left the building. It’s difficult to convey how central he was for those of us of a certain age and mindset. But maybe this rockin’ tune he recorded during his eponymous solo career in the late ’70s will give you a sense of it.https://t.co/hxg005cLZA
— Michael Azerrad (@michaelazerrad) March 1, 2025
Just weeks ago, Johansen thanked his fans for their fundraising support following him publicly sharing his cancer diagnosis. “Hello everybody. I just wanted to thank you all for giving us a big boost here with our fundraising campaign, I guess you would call it,” he said.
“I’ve never asked for help in my life and lately Mara’s been teaching me the beauty of, when your chips are down, asking for help,” he continues. “That’s what I’m doing, and it seems to be working out really marvellously.”
He is survived by his wife Mara and daughter Leah.
