In new just in, rock music legend and overall music icon Jerry Lee Lewis has passed away at the age of 87.
Lewis' passing was announced by his publicist, Zach Farnum. According to Consequence, an accompanying obituary was written by Rick Bragg.
In the obituary, Lewis allegedly "suffered through the last years of his life from various illnesses and injuries that, his physicians have often said, should have taken him decades ago." Prior to his passing, Lewis' wife Judith said: "He is ready to leave."
Lewis was a pioneer in rock music, having helped to popularize the style of rockabilly with a string of successful singles in the late '50s. Some of his most notable songs, include: "Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On,” “Breathless,” “High School Confidential,” and the classic "Great Balls of Fire."
Over the course of his decades long career, Lewis would record a slew of albums and, in 1986, he would go on to be one of the first-ever people inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Upon his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the organization had this to say about him: "He pounded the piano with such abandon that it’s a wonder it didn’t come apart. He is a defiant, reckless, indefatigable wild man that can rock you into oblivion."
Outside of his achievements in the field of rock music, Lewis would go on to be a recipient of the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award and a Country Music Hall of Fame inductee.