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Grammy Award-winning country artist and actor Kris Kristofferson has died at the age of 88, his family has confirmed.
Tributes poured in after the American entertainer, who starred in films including the Blade trilogy and Planet of the Apes, was announced to have died “peacefully” at his home in Maui on Saturday (September 28) surrounded by his family.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that our husband/father/grandfather, Kris Kristofferson, passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, September 28,” Kristofferson’s family said in a statement shared with US outlets.
“We are all so blessed for the time we spent with him. Thank you for loving him all these years. When you see a rainbow, know that he is smiling down on us.
Beginning in the late 1960s, the Brownsville, Texas native wrote such classics as “Sunday Morning Comin’ Town,” “Help Me Make It Through the Night,” “For the Good Times” and “Me and Bobby McGee.”
Kristofferson was a singer, but many of his songs were known to be performed by others, whether it was Ray Price belting out “For the Good Times” or Janis Joplin belting out “Me and Bobby McGee.”
With his long hair and bell-bottom slacks and counterculture songs influenced by Bob Dylan, he represented the new generation of country songwriters alongside peers such as Willie Nelson, John Brain and Tom de Hall.
As Nelson himself declared at an event in 2009, he was well-respected in the industry: “There is no better songwriter alive than Kris Kristofferson. Everything he writes is a standard we all have to live with.
Kristofferson is the recipient of numerous awards, including four Grammy Awards. He won Best Country Song in 1971 for “Help Me Make It Through the Night” and Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Rita Coolidge in 1973 and 1975, respectively.
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In 2014, he was also awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for his long-standing contributions to the music industry.
He retired from performing and recording in 2021, making only occasional guest appearances on stage.
Aside from his successful music career, Kristofferson was also a prolific Hollywood star, appearing alongside other A-list names on the big and small screen.
She starred opposite Ellen Burstyn in director Martin Scorsese’s 1974 film Alice no longer lives hereBarbra Streisand in the 1976 film A star is bornand co-starred with Wesley Snipes in Marvels knife In 1998. He later reprized his role as Abraham Whistler.
In a 2006 interview Associated PressKristofferson revealed that he owes much of his musical career to fellow legendary singer Johnny Cash.
“His handshake when I was still on the military stage at the Grand Ole Opry was the moment I decided I was going to come back,” Christopherson said.
“It was electric. He took me under his wing before I cut any of my songs. He cut my first record, which was the record of the year. He put me on stage for the first time.
Christopherson, his wife Lisa; his eight children, Tracy, Chris Jr., Casey, Jesse, Jody, John, Kelly and Blake; and his seven grandchildren.
