Janis Joplin

1943 – 1970

Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer-songwriter whose powerful, blues-rooted mezzo-soprano made her one of the most iconic rock performers of the late 1960s. She rose to prominence with Big Brother and the Holding Company at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival before forming the Kozmic Blues Band and the Full Tilt Boogie Band, recording the posthumous No. 1 album Pearl. She died of a heroin overdose in October 1970 at age 27 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.

Last checked: May 10, 2026, 1:06 PM