Music artist Kavinsky, one of the leading figures on the French electronic music scene, was found dead at his home in Paris on Tuesday evening.
The Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office announced the death on Wednesday in response to an enquiry from AFP, confirming a report in Le Parisien.
The public prosecutor’s office stated that "an inquest into the causes of death" had been opened, "to determine the cause of death, as no suspicious evidence was found at the scene by the emergency services" on Tuesday evening.
Kavinsky, whose real name was Vincent Belorgey, would have turned 51 on 31 July.
This iconic artist of the French Touch movement was particularly famous for his track Nightcall, which was covered by the pop-rock band Phoenix and the Belgian star Angèle during the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
"With the sudden passing of Kavinsky, France has lost one of its most distinctive voices. From the film ‘Drive’ to the Paris Olympics, the whole world was captivated by ‘Nightcall’," said the French Minister for Culture, Catherine Pégard, in a post on social media. "Both danceable and nostalgic, his music will continue to transcend generations and borders."
A self-taught pianist born in Seine-Saint-Denis, Kavinsky launched his career in the early 2000s, notably opening for Daft Punk and performing alongside other rising stars of the electronic music scene, such as SebastiAn.
The major turning point in his career remains Nightcall, that synthwave hit with its sombre atmosphere and slow tempo, which featured on the soundtrack to Drive, the hit thriller starring Ryan Gosling.
