Oscar-winning Irish singer-songwriter Glen Hansard died in a motorcycle crash in Dublin early Wednesday, according to his management company. He was 56.
ATC Management said Hansard's family was "deeply shocked and heartbroken" by his death.
Irish police said a man in his 50s died in a single-vehicle motorcycle crash in Lucan, on the outskirts of Dublin, shortly before 4:30am on Wednesday. The victim was treated at the scene but was pronounced dead soon afterwards.
Hansard built an acclaimed career spanning both music and film. He first gained international recognition for his role as a member of a Dublin soul band in the 1991 film The Commitments.
In 2008, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Falling Slowly" from the film Once, in which he starred alongside Markéta Irglová.
He was the longtime frontman of the Irish rock band The Frames and also performed as part of the folk-rock duo The Swell Season. His solo album Didn't He Ramble received a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album in 2016.
Beyond his artistic career, Hansard was widely known for leading the annual Christmas Eve charity busking event outside Dublin's Gaiety Theatre, raising funds for the Dublin Simon Community.
At the 2023 funeral of The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan, Hansard performed Fairytale of New York with Irish singer Lisa O'Neill, a performance that moved mourners to sing and dance in tribute.
Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin expressed deep sorrow over Hansard's death, describing him as a gifted musician and actor whose work made a lasting contribution to Ireland's cultural life.
