Born: November 12, 1917

Died: July 16, 2008

Classical-trained singer who chose traditional, breezy pop and sultry jazz for a career that ran from the 30s to the 80s, "You Belong To Me" (#1, 1952) also the first song by a female artist to reach #1 in the UK, occasional film acting and parody records, died from congestive heart failure on 7/16/2008, age 90

Born: August 30, 1919

Died: July 16, 2012

Pioneering country music singer and the first female country star for her barrier-breaking hit "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels (#27, Country #1, 1952), recorded 27 other Country Top 10 hits and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement award for her 30 year recording career, died from complications of a stroke on 7/16/2012, age 92

Born: October 21, 1925

Died: July 16, 2003

Cuban singer, actress, the "Queen of Latin Music" and most popular Latin artist of the 20th century with eight Grammy Awards, twenty-three gold albums, and a National Medal of the Arts, performed with every major Latin bandleader and in every major city in Central and South America, died from complications following surgery for a brain tumor on 7/16/2003, age 77

Born: June 23, 1938

Died: July 16, 2016

Singer and guitarist with Martin Rev in highly influential, confrontational, proto-punk/minimalist duo Suicide, their eponymous debut album (1977) is considered a landmark of electronic music and a precursor to post-punk industrial rock, died in his sleep on 7/16/2016, age 78

Born: July 31, 1938

Died: July 16, 2016

Vocals for 50s-60s country-folk smooth harmony sibling trio The Browns ("The Three Bells," #1, Country #1, 1959), retired from the music business in 1967 and died from lung cancer on 7/16/2016, age 77

Born: December 12, 1937

Died: July 16, 2025

Hugely successful 50s and 60s pop singer, one of the top selling female pop artists of all time and the first to have a #1 hit in the U.S. (“Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool,” #1, 1960), released 22 US Top 20 hits from 1957-1966, including the movie title song "Where The Boys Are" (#4, 1961), issued singles in multiple foreign language and scored thirteen Top 10 hits in Germany alone, sang voice-over in three 50s feature films and starred in four others in the mid-60s, went into seclusion after a 1974 rape incident and the 1981 murder of her brother but returned to recording after 1989, issued several more albums and performed on stage in Las Vegas and elsewhere in the 00s and 10s, suffered a hip fracture in early 2025 and was in recovery but contracted pneumonia and died on 7/16/2025, age 87.

Born: June 09, 1941

Died: July 16, 2012

Classically-trained keyboardist and session player, co-founded hard rock/prog rock Deep Purple, "Smoke On The Water" (#4, 1973), solo and Whitesnake, "Here I Go Again" (#1, 1987), age 71

Born: December 07, 1942

Died: July 16, 1981

Folk-pop singer, songwriter and guitarist, composed many narrative-based "story songs" including "Taxi" (#24, CAN #5, 1972) and "Cat's In The Cradle" (#1, CAN #3, 1974), died in a car collision on the Long Island Expressway on 7/16/1981, age 38

Born: February 23, 1944

Died: July 16, 2014

Respected blues-rock guitarist (Rolling Stone magazine #74), first in the Rick Derringer band, then his brother's Edgar Winter Blues Band and solo, "Johnny B. Goode" (#92, 1970), produced three Grammy-winning blues albums for Muddy Waters in the late 70s, died from emphysema-related pneumonia in a Swiss hotel room while on tour on 7/16/2014, age 70

Born: December 14, 1946

Died: July 16, 2023

English-born ingénue, film actress and pop singer, appeared in minor roles in several 60s French films, then started a 12-year romantic and musical partnership with actor/director Serge Gainsbourg, including their steamy, spoken-word duet "Je T'Aime...Moi Non Plus" (#69, UK #1, 1970), left Gainsbourg in 1980 to resume acting career and issue solo albums through 2020, appeared in over 30 French films through 2021, in the 80s lent her name to the distinctive and sought-after Birkin handbag by fashion designer/retailer Hermès, suffered a stroke in 2021 during a years-long battle with cancer and died at home from the disease on 7/16/2023, age 76.

Born: September 20, 1948

Died: July 16, 1996

With fraternal twin brother Chuck and neighborhood pal Dennis De Young, co-founding member and drummer in the teenage rock band that eventually became prototypical arena rockers Styx, "Too Much Time On My Hands" (#9, 1981) and seven other Top 10 singles plus five Top 10 albums, died from a gastrointestinal hemorrhage and cirrhosis of the liver after years of alcohol abuse on 7/16/1996, age 47.

Born: June 07, 1953

Died: July 16, 2019

British-born, South African guitarist and songwriter known as the "White Zulu" for his writings against the white minority rule of apartheid, co-founder and frontman for multiracial Afro-Euro-dance pop band Juluka and Zulu-dance-pop Savuka, his song "Scatterlings Of Africa" was his only entry on the UK Singles Chart (UK #44, 1983 with Juluka and UK #75, 1987 as Johnny Clegg & Savuka) and was featured on the soundtrack to the Oscar-winning film Rain Man (1988), continued to perform with his bands and release solo albums through 2018, died from pancreatic cancer on 7/16/2019, age 66.

Born: April 08, 1964

Died: July 16, 2021

The "Clown Price of Hip-Hop," jovial freestyle rhymer/rapper best known for his hit "Just A Friend" (#9, Rap #5, 1989) and three other Rap Top 10 singles in the 90s, suffered from diabetes in later years and died following a stroke on 7/16/2021, age 57.