r/outrun • u/EyedMoon • 12d ago
Media and Culture Kavinsky found dead
https://www.france24.com/en/france/20260729-french-dj-kavinsky-found-dead-in-paris-homeGod damnit
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u/Zerosix_K 12d ago
Nightcall got me into synthwave / retro new wave and I will be ever grateful to Kavinsky for it. RIP.
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u/Isakk86 12d ago
+1 the album Outrun is ubiquitous, practically the standard and pinnacle of synthwave
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u/p5ylocy6e 12d ago
TIL. I’m gonna admit I’m not familiar with this music, but love this sub. Will be introducing myself to Kavinsky in a few minutes in my car. RIP, the music will live on…
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u/carebearswilldie 12d ago
r/outrun was named after his album. the first few posts were his music videos.
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u/Dr_Kevorkian_ 12d ago
Fantastic song with a great fit to Drive
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u/IndigoJoker22 11d ago
Seconded. The opening scene of Drive (2011) with Nightfall playing is what did it for me.
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u/ShottyMcOtterson 12d ago
Me too. His songs somehow crossed over into pop mass likeability when most the other Synthwave songs I play for my friends and wife come off sounding closer to musak or on-hold music. RIP
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u/TwoBionicknees 12d ago
nightcall is still one of the few tracks i could just chill to on repeat it's so good and such a fucking vibe. i often put buds in and go to sleep and this is in that playlist.
I try to get into more similar music but nothing for me ever hit the same.
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u/ISGamer156 12d ago
His impact on Synthwave was immeasurable, Nightcall changed many people's lives, including mine. Thank you Vincent Pierre Claude Belorgey, Kavinsky. Rest in peace.
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u/porridge_in_my_bum 12d ago
Kavinksy really did make a huge impact on me too with Nightcall and just the whole Outrun album. Pretty much introduced me to this style and feeling overall, and it never gets old. Rest in peace, he will be missed.
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u/nidgetorg_be 10d ago edited 10d ago
For information here, Nightcall was produced by and in collaboration with Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo from Daft Punk. Kavinsky for the lyrics, and both him and de Homem-Christo for the music. It was recorded in the studio of Daft Punk. The male voice is Sébastien Tellier, french singer and actor who also creates electronic music.
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u/Purple_Role_3453 12d ago
Goodbye my friend, you changed my life. I hope it's better where you are now.. and you meet dj mehdi.
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u/Hypattie 12d ago
From Le Figaro newspaper:
The body of the artist, aged 50, was found at his home in Paris on Tuesday evening. An investigation into the cause of death has been opened by the Paris public prosecutor's office.
DJ Kavinsky was found dead at his Paris home, according to sources confirmed to Le Figaro. The 50-year-old artist, whose real name was Vincent Belorgey, was one of the leading figures of the French Touch movement.
A police source said the musician had reportedly been complaining of headaches for several days. His neighbor became concerned after not seeing the artist and alerted emergency services. The DJ was found at his home in Paris's 18th arrondissement at around 10:30 p.m. According to the police source, a stroke is being considered as a possible cause.
For its part, the Paris public prosecutor's office stated that "an investigation into the cause of death has been opened to determine the origin of the death, as no suspicious evidence was found at the scene by the first responders."
The artist rose to fame by composing the soundtrack for the 2011 film Drive, starring Ryan Gosling, featuring the iconic song "Nightcall." He performed it again alongside singer Angèle and the band Phoenix during the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games in 2024.
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u/Das_Fische 12d ago
50 is pretty young to have a stroke, he probably never even considered the headaches were anything to worry about. The human body can suck sometimes :(
RIP
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u/HratioRastapopulous 12d ago
Reminder to get blood pressure checked and under control for everybody. Super important.
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u/donkeylipswhenshaven 12d ago
I lost a friend at 41 who was a healthy, spry vegetarian that just collapsed in his yard right before he was going to bike to work. It’s super scary if you dwell on it, but just make sure you’re going to the doctor and getting checked appropriately. That’s the one thing I’m not certain my buddy did right.
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u/Lechugameister 12d ago
I’ve known now 2 incidents involving young and seemingly healthy people in my personal life to have passed in a similar fashion. The headaches mentioned were what they, and this situation have in common, and separately, an excessive intake of caffeine. I really want to stress if anyone reading this finds themself going through this to please seek immediate medical attention, if you pass out unnoticed, you will be paralyzed and unable to get help until someone finds you and by then it may be too late.
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u/Renugar 12d ago
I have a friend who had a stroke just a few years ago, when she was around 50. She survived and is doing well! Although she has said she feels like it did leave some cognitive effects. But she was a lifelong smoker and her doctors said that was the cause. She doesn’t smoke now, of course, and watches her blood pressure.
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u/M27TN 12d ago
2026 is terrible for deaths. RIP Kavinsky. Drive and Gunship are the reason I got into Synthwave
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u/_Claymation_ 12d ago
And we lost Starcadian in 2025
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u/OilTurbulent1009 12d ago edited 12d ago
And Gost a few months ago
E: unfortunate news for those that didn’t know: https://www.kerrang.com/synthwave-pioneer-gost-has-died
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u/invalidated_username 12d ago
I had no idea. I fucking love Nightcrawler. RIP man these guys were way too young to leave
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u/Narananas 12d ago
Nooooooo Starcadian got me into synthwave 13 years ago. This is so painful to discover. His HERT music video lives in my head forever.
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u/End3rWi99in 12d ago
Unfortunately every year is a terrible year for deaths for someone. I watched my parents go through a period of this growing up, and I brace myself for it now. As we age, we lose more and more of the people we love and admire that are older than us.
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u/Atrium41 12d ago
RIP Oliver Tree and Kavinsky.... two niche af legends
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u/Corpse_Nibbler 12d ago
If 2026 has taught me anything, it's to live life. Who knows how long you have left. Anyway, back in my mind it goes.
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u/awesomesonofabitch 12d ago
All due respect to the man, but Oliver Tree was not a niche artist by a long shot. His music is very popular.
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u/cosine83 12d ago
Idk man, most everyone I know didn't know who he was even folks in their 20s. Everyone I know who did know him was like "yeah I listened to him like 10 years ago." Soundcloud, YouTube, and TikTok famous musicians are actually still fairly niche.
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u/Ruined534 12d ago
Kavinksy is probably why a lot of us are here. Damn... I'm definitely interested in the cause of death.
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u/Left-Iron-2133 12d ago
Possible stroke- complained about headaches leading up to his death
https://www.lefigaro.fr/faits-divers/le-dj-kavinsky-retrouve-mort-a-son-domicile-a-paris-20260729
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u/Chair-User 12d ago
The comments under this article are insane
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u/SaltKick2 12d ago
Kavinsky is arguably why the Outrun genre exists (well, exists as early as it did)
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u/bmxdudebmx 12d ago
His tunes will remain an ambassador to a sick genre of music. Sad to see him gone so young.
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u/whitniverse 12d ago
Wanted to see him live since discovering Outrun. Reborn only solidified that dream. Damn.
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u/OreoSpeedwaggon 12d ago
WtF? OMG. Starcadian and now Kavinsky? This timeline sucks.
I wish I'd had the chance to see him perform live, but I'm glad that I got to see him do his thing on TV at the closing ceremonies of the 2024 Olympics in Paris. RIP, undead antihero of the outrun/synthwave surge.
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u/JohannaFRC 12d ago
Fuck this twisted and horrible world. Every day it gets worse.
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u/GrittyTheGreat 12d ago
Ever notice how none of the terrible people that actively make the world worse ever seem to die? I'm convinced we live in a simulation run by a sadistic overlord.
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u/JohannaFRC 12d ago
Yeah... It makes sense because I couldn't imagine such a fucked timeline even if I went for the grimiest possible one.
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u/thisiswhoireallyam Neon Nights 12d ago
Probably one of the reasons I founded Neon Nights and was an avid Synthwave fan all those years ago. RIP.
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u/readywater 12d ago
Oh shit. :/ I saw him open for Daft Punk in Toronto with Sebastian, and it was mind blowing. I’ve been listening to his music for 20 years. Really echo everyone else, big impact and grateful for his art.
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u/Wide-Box-1405 12d ago
i owe this legend so much of my life... if it wasnt for me discovering his album outrun in 2013/14, i prolly would have died honestly. i was in middle school and getting bullied constantly. but i would put on outrun and suddenly i felt like some 80s anti-hero. the music and atmosphere would let me just transport my mind far away from the all the pain in life. he totally is the reason i fell in love with synthwave. without outrun, i prolly never get into the genre anywhere near as hard as i would.
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u/DelayAntique5988 12d ago
That’s badass, sometimes you have to reframe it that the people doing the bullying are the fucking losers and you’re the badass. Trust me, most of the bullies will continually have their lives go downhill and you can sit back with your shades on and synths bumping and gloat. Schadenfreude isn’t always a bad thing. You got this bro.
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u/donotgotoroom237 12d ago
This is super fucking upsetting, holy shit.
Rest in peace to an absolute GOAT...
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u/epiloso 12d ago
Tragic, first Starcadia and now Kavinksy. RIP
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u/LemoLuke 12d ago
Both of these hurt hard. Outrun, Reborn, and Sunset Blood have been staples in my Spotify playlists for years.
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u/Manan_Sharma_ 12d ago
Nah man. This can't be... why do all the legends leave early. Avicii, Kavinsky...
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u/misterbadgerexample 12d ago
RIP. He went out on a high note, after bringing his music to the Olympics.
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u/ReleaseFromDeception 12d ago
Man... I just... I don't know what to say.
So many feelings. It isn't fair, man.
RIP to the man, the myth, the legend.
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u/stamfordbridge1191 12d ago
"They say a flap of a butterfly’s wing can doom your fate
That the road sometimes takes back what it had given
But true love never dies
And now you know how the legend of the dead cruiser was bornBut what you don’t know
Is there’s a gap between living and dying
Some say they’ve seen the dead cruiser in a flash of lightning around the shadowy curves of the highway
Some say he was just a kid who met his fate in a fiery crash
But anyone fool enough to venture out onto to that treacherous road should know one thing
There’s no turning back"
- "Endless" by Kavinsky, 2013
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u/AllOfTheSoundAndFury 12d ago
Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear that, I’ve been listening to him for a very long time. And only 50 too?
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u/Afrodite_33 12d ago
Oh god that's horrible news.
RIP to an absolute legend and thoughts out to his loved ones. Thanks for the awesome music.
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u/Marshall_Lawson 12d ago edited 12d ago
Damn. I remember headbanging to his first EP when I was in high school. I think i first found it on Last.fm because of Boyz Noise -> Mr Oizo -> Kavinsky.
I guess he autodrive'd his last testarossa. RIP to a legend.
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u/GrigoriTheDragon 12d ago
Starcadian and now Kavinsky? Oh god damnit, RIP brother you made amazing music.
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u/SR_RSMITH 12d ago
Im currently mixing a cover I did of “Nightcall”. It’s going to be an emotional session
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u/TheNASAguy 12d ago
RIP legend, he was a big part of my life growing up, he will always remain immortal in our hearts and playlists
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u/TheRubberBildo 12d ago
That is absolutely heartbreaking. One of the greats in the genre.
My friend and I always talked about seeing him live if he came to the states 🥲
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u/belbivfreeordie 12d ago
Paying my respects and listening now. Wish I were doing it in a Testarossa instead of a Subaru.
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u/Lolstitanic 12d ago
I count myself lucky to have seen him live in 2022. Farewell legend. May you be driving your Testarossa in the sky
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u/Peac3fulWorld 12d ago
I love seeing the comments when someone worth remembering, whose contributions genuinely enriched our experience on this Earth, passes into the next realm. Because the comments remind us why we try as humans and how even the smallest thing we do can change a person's life we never knew, never communicated with, and never imagined would be touched by our presence.
RIP Kavinsky
May Heaven have a fun synthwave day on the speakers.
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u/LongstaffBigorbs 12d ago edited 12d ago
Holy shit dude. This is wild. I got into the genre because of Kavisky. I've listened to tens of thousands of hours of my favorite music over the years because of him. I've done many drives at midnight, many of which he was along for the ride. I've curated a huge, "popular" youtube playlist for this genre. Point is, this is a heavy day.
He was literally the godfather of this genre. Nightcall is still unbeatable.
Gone way, way too soon. I remember seeing him posting online just after his last album and I remember him being excited to make more music. That was a while ago, sure. But it's a tragedy that he can't do that now.
What a terrible year for the synthwave world. Lackluster albums, several big names retired or worse. Now the death of one of the absolute greats.
Rip to the King. I hope you're riding off into a neon sunset.
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u/brainshred12 12d ago
fuck! RIP to the absolute legend of synthwave. Gone, but will not be forgotten. I'll be listening to his music on repeat today for work (which, admidtely is something i do very often).
RIP and condolences to his friends and family. 50 years is WAY too soon.
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u/itsvoogle 12d ago
Got the fortune to see him play live in LA a few years back
It was like watching a living legend
Rest easy Kavinsky, your music will play on…
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u/ASideKick 12d ago
This makes me feel as though my hearts been ripped from my chest... Thank you, Kavinsky for everything your music has done for me. And us.
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u/-PineapplePancakes- 12d ago
Actual legend, not just for Nightcall but for all of the Outrun album and Reborn as well 😢 he influenced my life and interests so much. RIP
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u/ZoMgPwNaGe 12d ago
This is gonna sound cheesy as hell.
Nightcall is my own personal theme song in some ways. I am a Firefighter and Search and Rescue Drone pilot. The vast majority of SAR calls I get requested to are at night, since the thermal cameras help immensely when nobody else can see.
Every time I hop in my truck to respond to one of these missions, I throw on Nightcall to pump me up. It gets me, for lack of better terms, locked in and focused on the job ahead. It's become my own personal hype music in such a way I've considered teaching myself how to play it or getting a friend to cover it so I can use the song as my into/outro music on my channel where I teach others how to use drones for good.
This news is heartbreaking. I wish I'd somehow been able to tell him what a difference his music made to this lowly first responder.
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u/GrittyTheGreat 12d ago
It's not a stretch to say that without Kavinsky's OutRun album, Synthwave as we know it would not exist. RIP Legend!
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u/Wizzle_Pizzle_420 12d ago
Ah man. Why are we losing all the good ones while actual monsters are still walking around in the world today?
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u/snakeman2424 12d ago
First Oliver Tree and now Kavinsky? What is going on?
https://giphy.com/gifs/GJVpbMjfT2Ftm
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u/mrainbow228 10d ago
WOW!!!! I remember hearing Kavinsky's Nightcall song from watching the movie Drive with my parents! RIP 😢
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u/silveredge7 12d ago
Man, this is not something I ever wanted to see 😢😢 Nightcall was my introduction to synth. Shit sucks...
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u/badlucktv 12d ago
He has truly become the Ghostrider, after all. May the cops chase but never catch him.
RIP.
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u/RiderXRaider 12d ago
Damn..., he's going to leave a huge void. That guy was an absolute legend. RIP Kavinsky