Vocalist Keith Flint of the 1990s band Prodigy has passed away at the age 49, according to The Guardian . He was found at his home in Essex and pronounced dead on Monday.
An Essex police spokesman said that they were called in to do a welfare check on an unnamed male at the house and that a man there was found unconscious. After an ambulance service arrived, Flint was pronounced dead.
“We were called to concerns for the welfare of a man at an address in Brook Hill, North End, just after 8:10 a.m. on Monday,” he said. “We attended and, sadly, a 49-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene. His next of kin have been informed.”
Police added that the death is not being treated as suspicious.
Prodigy was originally founded by producer Liam Howlett in 1990, and shortly thereafter Flint along with Leeroy Thornhill joined as dancers. But despite being brought on board as a dancer at first, Flint went on to sing lead for two of the band’s most popular songs, “Firestarter” and “Breathe,” both of which dominated the U.K. charts and became fixtures on the burgeoning rave scene. The band skyrocketed to number one on the U.K. album charts with Music for a Jilted Generation in 1994 and continued their run of success with their subsequent five albums. Their 1997 album Fat of the Land has sold upwards of 10 million copies to date. The band also had a compilation album top the charts. Along with the Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim, Prodigy is widely credited with creating the “big beat” genre, which crossed over into mainstream popularity in the mid-1990s.
Howlett along with fellow Prodigy member Maxim Reality released a joint statement confirming Flint’s death.
“A true pioneer, innovator and legend,” they wrote. “He will be forever missed.”
Flint, who originally joined the group as a dancer and was known for his wild and raucous performance style, is remembered as much for his devil-horns coif as he was for his unique vocals. He was also known in the music industry as a kind person, and tributes have been pouring in attesting to him.
“Oh this is sad news. The death of Keith Flint,” tweeted DJ Jo Whiley. “Whenever our paths crossed he was an absolute sweetheart. Really lovely. Incredible iconic frontman with a soft centre. #RIPKeithFlint.”
“Oh gosh, so sad to hear about Keith Flint,” wrote Ed Simons of The Chemical Brothers. “He was always great fun to be around and very kind to Tom and I when we first started doing shows together. Great man.”
Flint was still performing into 2019, doing a tour in New Zealand as recently as last month.
