Award-Winning Singer-Songwriter Dead at 56 Following Tragic Motorcycle Accident
Singer-songwriter Glen Hansard, best known as frontman of the rock band the Frames and star of the 2007 musical film Once, has died aged 56 following a motorcycle accident. Hansard won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Falling Slowly" from Once, and his death has been described by his management and family as a sudden, tragic loss that has shocked the music community.
According to his management company, ATC Management, emergency services were called to the scene of a collision on Wednesday and attempted to save Hansard, but he died from his injuries. His family confirmed the news in an Instagram post, asking for privacy at what they called an extremely difficult time, while thanking the emergency responders involved. The news comes just a month after Hansard released the second volume of his project Don't Settle – Transmissions East & West, with fans and fellow musicians paying tribute to him online as a "humble" and influential songwriter.
In short
- Singer-songwriter Glen Hansard has died, aged 56, in a motorcycle accident.
- He won an Oscar for "Falling Slowly" from the film Once.
- Family and management have asked for privacy following his sudden death.
Explained simply
Glen Hansard was an Irish singer-songwriter and frontman of the rock band The Frames, which he formed in the mid-1990s as part of Dublin's independent music scene. He gained international recognition through the 2007 musical film Once, in which he starred alongside actress Markéta Irglová as a Dublin street musician who writes and performs songs.
Hansard's song "Falling Slowly" from Once won him an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2008, one of the relatively few such honours achieved by Irish musicians. Beyond the film's success, he remained influential in independent and alternative music through his ongoing work with The Frames and solo projects, respected for his emotionally direct approach to songwriting and his collaborative work with other musicians.