Joel Saget—AFP
Canadian musician released his final album just last month.
Leonard Cohen, the storied musician and poet hailed as one of the most visionary artists of his generation, has died at age 82, his publicist announced on Thursday.
“It is with profound sorrow we report that legendary poet, songwriter and artist, Leonard Cohen has passed away. We have lost one of music’s most revered and prolific visionaries,” read a statement on Cohen’s Facebook page.
Cohen, who was brought up in Montreal but lived in California late in his life, will have a private memorial service at a later date, the statement said. “Leonard Cohen was an unparalleled artist whose stunning body of original work has been embraced by generations of fans and artists alike,” his label Sony Music said in a statement.
Cohen began as a poet before branching out into music—reluctantly at first—writing some of his generation’s most reflective songs, including the oft-covered spiritual “Hallelujah.”
He released his final album, You Want It Darker, just last month, featuring Cohen reflecting at length on his own mortality. Cohen was preceded in death in July by Marianne Ihlen, the Norwegian woman with whom he lived on the Greek island of Hydra and who inspired his song “So Long, Marianne.”
In a final letter to Ihlen revealed by a friend, Cohen declared his “endless love” for her, writing, “I think I will follow you very soon.”