Dying for attention: How being a famous singer could shorten your lifespan

Do you hunger for fame? Do you crave to be a well-known singer? After a recent study, your choices may change as a new research reveals that being famous can be deadly, and we mean it quite literally.

Scientists from Germany have found that being in the limelight comes with a higher mortality risk compared to those who never quite ‘make it’. This can explain the early death of some of the most famous singers like Amy Winehouse, Kurt Cobain and Janis Joplin, among others.

Let’s take a closer look at the findings of this study.

How scientists found their data

Researchers from the University of Witten/Herdecke in Germany conducted a survey on 648 singers from Europe and the United States to understand the effect of limelight and popularity on the lifespan of a singer. Half of the singers surveyed achieved celebrity status, while the other half had not, the study reported. Some of the demographics on which they were observed included birth and death dates, gender, nationality, ethnicity, band status and musical genre.

The data was collected via online research, primarily through Google searches — reliable public sources such as artist websites, biographies and obituary records. To ensure a reasonable number of deaths, the study was conducted on musicians active between 1950 and 1990, the era that is defined by the evolution of rock and roll, punk, disco, grunge and hip-hop. Most of the singers were white male rock performers from the US, while 19 per cent were black and 16.5 per cent were female.

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Key takeaways from the study

When researchers began to collate the data, it was observed that on average, famous singers died four years earlier than their ‘not so famous’ counterparts. While the famous ones lived up to 75 years, the others survived until they were 79.

Being part of a band or group was linked to a 26 per cent lower risk of death compared to going solo. But, famous singers overall were still 33 per cent more likely to have died than their lesser famous peers.

As per The Guardian, a senior author of the study, Michael Dufner, said that the results were worrying because they indicated that famous musicians are indeed at risk of a premature death.

The researchers also clarified that several mechanisms could be at play for their early death. “Several mechanisms are possible,” author Johanna Hepp told the Daily Mail.

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The lifestyle itself takes a huge toll. The factors that contribute to the risk include constant judgement by the public, intense professional demands, and the fact that a private life essentially disappears. This environment normalises unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as heavy reliance on drugs or alcohol.

The researchers also stated that some underlying factors may also lead to early death, including childhood trauma and temperament contribute to a higher likelihood of becoming famous as well as to a higher risk of early mortality.

Researchers further added that being famous is so detrimental that it actually overrides any health benefits which may be linked to wealth.

Dufner stated that more work was needed to understand how fame could drive singers to an early death. But the study was successful in understanding that fame plays a key role in the death of musicians.

Notably, the results do not prove that fame causes people to die younger, only that the two factors are related.

But not all the famous singers die young

This study is similar to one that was conducted earlier to understand whether musicians are likely to die at the age of 27. They found that although pop musicians tend to die younger than other famous people, there is no evidence supporting the theory that the age of 27 carries an increased risk of death.

But the study also noted that those musicians who tend to die at the age of 27 garner more attention than those who passed away at other ages.

However, not all famous musicians die young. There’s 82-year-old Rolling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger, who notoriously indulged in illegal drugs early in his career but is still capable of commanding sold-out arenas.

Singing legend Tina Turner lived to 83, and Cher, who’s known as the ‘goddess of pop’ is going strong at the age of 79.

Steps to avoid a tragic fate

However, Dufner has advised young singers to first understand how unhealthy the touring lifestyle could be, especially with isolation from close friends and family.

He also urged musicians to take a step back regularly and interact with friends and family as much as possible. He further said that these people should critically evaluate their lifestyle.

With inputs from agencies