B.B. King, legendary blues guitarist, dies at 89

Legendary blues guitarist B.B. King died Thursday in Las Vegas. He was 89. According to the New York Times, Mr. King, who had diabetes and “other health problems,” had been placed in hospice care.

King’s death was reported on his official website, which said he died in his sleep. “Mr. King passed peacefully in his sleep at 9:40 pm Pacific time May 14 2015,” the website reads.

The NY Times writes:

“In addition to winning more than a dozen Grammy Awards (including a lifetime achievement award), having a star on Hollywood Boulevard and being inducted in both the Rock and Roll and Blues Halls of Fame, Mr. King was among the recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors in 1995 and was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2006, awards rarely associated with the blues. In 1999, in a public conversation with William Ferris, chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Mr. King recounted how he came to sing the blues.”

Mr. King released over 40 studio albums in his lifetime. B.B. stood for Blues Boy. Rest in peace.

Read the Times’ full obituary.