Tune into the king’s very surprising playlist
The greatest legends in music have a habit of dying too young. Thankfully, their music lives one. When an album is released after an artist's death, it gives the world a chance to connect with them again and for their message to live on.
Let's take a look at some of the most influential posthumous albums of all time. Click through the gallery to get started.
Mac Miller’s estate has released a second album from the rapper, who died in 2018. 'Balloonerism' is an experimental album that has been released alongside a short film on Amazon Prime.
The legendary Bob Marley was tragically lost to skin cancer when he was 36 years old. His songs of peace, freedom, and strength have remained just as relevant since his death in 1981.
After his death, his loved ones compiled all of his unreleased songs into the beautiful album 'Confrontation,' which gave us the classic hit 'Buffalo Soldier.'
John Lennon and Yoko Ono were working on this album before he was shot by a crazed fan in 1980. Sadly, Yoko was left to finish it by herself.
Selena Quintanilla-Perez's life was cut short when she was murdered in 1995 at the age of 23. In April 2022, 27 years later, a new Selena album was released. In an interview with Latin Groove News, the late singer's father Abraham Quintanilla said that the album, which was produced by Warner Music, contains 13 songs and that Selena's brother, A.B. Quintanilla, worked on the album. He told the outlet that the public's hold on his daughter nearly three decades later amazes him and his family. "They're waiting for a project like this to come out, and I know it will be well received by the public," he said. One of the songs on the album was recorded when she was just 13, and her brother reportedly digitally altered her voice to sound as she did before her death in 1995.
Rapper Mac Miller sadly died of an overdose in 2018 at the age of 26. He produced five studio albums while he was alive, and two have been released since his death, 'Circles' (2020) and 'Ballonerism' (2025).
Pop Smoke was a rising star in the rap world before his life was cut short. He started to receive recognition for his work in 2018 and had two years of success before he was killed in a home invasion in 2020. He was 20 years old. The many collaborations and projects the talented young rapper was working on before his death have been completed and compiled into posthumous albums. The second album, called 'Faith,' features other stars such as Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Pharrell, Dua Lipa, Future, and many more.
Jim Morrison tragically died of an overdose in Paris in 1971. In the years prior, he had been working on some spoken word that had never been published.
Amy Winehouse was one of the most unique vocalists of our time. But she was known to have a wild lifestyle, and was tragically lost to alc**** poisoning at the age of 27.
An acoustic album of live recordings and covers was released a year after his death. His heartfelt and somewhat devastating cover of David Bowie’s 'The Man Who Sold the World' made the biggest impact.
The Notorious B.I.G., also known as Biggie Smalls, was killed in a drive-by shooting at the age of 24. By this time, he was already huge in the East Coast hip-hop scene, collaborating with the likes of P. Diddy (then known as Puff Daddy).
There's speculation that he knew he was going to die, as his two albums were named 'Ready to Die' and 'Life After Death.' The latter was in fact released after his death.
Johnny Cash is one of the only stars on this list who didn't die young. Yet he still had an incredible body of work left behind.
Janis Joplin is another member of the '27 club.' The incredible vocalist died of a substance overdose in 1970.
Her final album, 'Pearl,' was released after her death, and stayed at the top of the Billboard charts for more than two months.
His family and team have assembled an album of his remaining work with the fitting title 'Legends Never Die.' It went straight to the number one spot on the Billboard charts.
He died in 1991, and his bandmates finished the album. It was finally released four years later.
Marvin Gaye was shot by his own father just before his 45th birthday in 1984. He's well known for his seductive ballads like 'S***** Healing' and 'Let's Get It On,' but his posthumous album 'Vulnerable' was something different.
The album recording began in 1968, but had never been released before. There's a personal depth in these songs that gives an insight into his heart.
Widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time, Tupac was violently gunned down in Las Vegas in 1996. He had just finished recording his final album.
It was intended to be an underground album, which he recorded using the stage name 'Makavelli.' The controversial album included some of his big hits like 'Hail Mary' and 'To Live and Die in L.A.'
Otis Redding was a defining voice in 1960s soul music. He died at the age of 26 in a shocking plane crash.
The album he had been working on was released after his death, and his famous hit '(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay' was the first posthumous chart topper in US history.
Legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix met his untimely death the same year as Janis Joplin, shocking the world. His record label released this album of songs he had been working on before his death.
Iconic punk band Joy Division's front man Ian Curtis took his own life when he was only 23. Many believe that their final album 'Closer' gave a dark look into his troubled mind.
See also: The best girl groups of all time
The most iconic posthumous albums of all time
Luckily, their music continues
MUSIC Death
The greatest legends in music have a habit of dying too young. Thankfully, their music lives one. When an album is released after an artist's death, it gives the world a chance to connect with them again and for their message to live on.
Let's take a look at some of the most influential posthumous albums of all time. Click through the gallery to get started.