David Johansen Passes Away At 75

Feature Photo: Bruce Alan Bennett/ Shutterstock

David Johansen, the legendary frontman of the New York Dolls and a defining figure in glam rock and punk, died on February 28, 2025, at the age of 75. He passed away at his home on Staten Island, his stepdaughter Leah Hennessey confirmed.

In February 2025, Johansen publicly disclosed that he was battling stage 4 cancer, a brain tumor, and a broken back. His family said he had been in intensive treatment for cancer for most of the previous decade, and in 2020 they learned that the cancer had progressed and that he had developed a brain tumor. A fall the day after Thanksgiving in 2024 left him with a broken back in two places and required surgery. On February 10, 2025, the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund launched a fundraising campaign to help cover his medical and living expenses. Johansen acknowledged the severity of his condition by stating, “I’ve never been one to ask for help, but this is an emergency.”

A statement from his family said that Johansen had endured “a decade of profoundly compromised health” and that he died “peacefully at home, holding the hands of his wife, Mara Hennessey, and daughter Leah, in the sunlight, surrounded by music and flowers.”

Johansen was the last surviving member of the New York Dolls, the groundbreaking band that helped shape the sound and attitude of punk rock. After the band’s breakup, he reinvented himself under the persona of Buster Poindexter, bringing a flamboyant lounge act to mainstream audiences and scoring a hit with “Hot Hot Hot.” His talents extended beyond music, as he also built a career in film, appearing in movies like Scrooged and Let It Ride.

His family expressed deep appreciation for the outpouring of love and support they had received in the weeks before his death, noting that Johansen was grateful for the chance to reconnect with many friends and loved ones. “He knew he was ecstatically loved,” the statement read.

Following his death, the Sweet Relief effort continued as the David Johansen Memorial Fund. Tributes included a March 27, 2025 benefit at New York City’s Parkside Lounge, while later fundraising projects continued to support the memorial fund and honor Johansen’s music and legacy.