Rock singer Scott Weiland, known for his success as frontman of groups like Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, died in his sleep Thursday [December 3] night. He was 48.
Like too many great artists, Weiland was dogged by substance abuse problems throughout his illustrious career. Since he debuted Core with the Pilots in 1992 (winning a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance Grammy for the single “Plush”), Weiland had a long string of drug and alcohol related arrests and stints in rehab.
Monie Love took to her social media to pay tribute to her fellow talent, saying Weiland is now “forever carved into the tree of a changing time in rock music that ushered in a more risk taking generation.”
Love took the time to speak on the impact on Weiland’s music to The Source.
“[Weiland] will be missed by many for an array of reasons, and at the same time will live in the hearts of many, including me. After seeing the news of Scott’s passing roll across my Twitter feed, I sat in my car for 20 minutes at 5am this morning, posted something commemorative on my social network pages, played Creep three times, and reflected on how Scott among others encouraged a raw, undressed truth now missing from many music genres.
“I get it, Scott had years of battling drug addiction and many wonder how he made it this far, but one thing that appears universal is the appreciation of his unapologetic approach to performance as a Stone Temple Pilot, Velvet Revolver, and his newest group, The Wildabouts. I thank Scott personally for being one of my motivators, allowing me to feel comfortable in my creative truth. Rest well Scott Weiland.”
Weiland is survived by his wife, Jamie Wachtel, and children Noah and Lucy.
