A legendary rock star from the 1970s and 80s who was just recently inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame was found dead in his New York City home on Sunday.

Ric Ocasek, former frontman of The Cars, reportedly died naturally from heart disease at the age of 75.

Reportedly suffered from heart disease

According to the city’s Medical Examiner’s Office, Ocasek is believed to have been suffering from heart disease, but it is not known when he was first diagnosed.

The ME’s office noted that another contributing factor to his death was a lung condition known as pulmonary emphysema.

The famous singer was discovered unresponsive in his Gramercy Park home on Sunday by his recently estranged wife, former supermodel Paulina Porizkova, and was ultimately pronounced dead at the scene.

Ocasek and Porizkova split in May 2018 after 28 years of marriage.The home in which he was found had been listed for sale prior to his death.

The couple had two sons together, Oliver and Jonathan, and Ocasek leaves them behind along with four other sons from previous marriages.

Hall of Fame status

The Daily Caller noted that Ocasek gained fame as the lead singer of The Cars, a Boston-based “New Wave” rock group that skyrocketed to stardom the late 1970s and early 1980s with hits such as “My Best Friend’s Girl,” “Just What I Needed,” and “Shake It Up,” among many others.

The band dissolved in 1988, but Ocasek continued to enjoy a solo career.

The Cars were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018, with the Cleveland music institution calling the band “…the ultimate New Wave dream machine: a hook-savvy super-charged quintet that fused 60s pop, 70s glam and avant-rock minimalism into a decade of dashboard-radio nirvana.”

Family and friends in mourning

The loss of yet another rock legend this year has undoubtedly shaken the music industry to its core.

Hopefully, Ocasek’s family and friends will find solace and comfort in his substantial artistic legacy as they grieve his passing.