--- title: Celebrities Mourn B.B. King On Social Media description: King influenced a generation of musicians and won 15 Grammy awards canonical: https://time.com/3859914/bb-king-celebrities-tribute/ author: Naina Bajekal article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-05-15T10:22:21.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:03:57.996Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Celebrities Mourn B.B. King On Social Media og:description: King influenced a generation of musicians and won 15 Grammy awards og:url: https://time.com/3859914/bb-king-celebrities-tribute/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33eb4ecdf4d6c78f/6987ee10524fc02998df0880/bb-king.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: File photo dated June 24, 2011 of US blues musician BB King, who is being treated in hospital for dehydration, his family have said. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Celebrities Mourn B.B. King On Social Media twitter:description: King influenced a generation of musicians and won 15 Grammy awards twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33eb4ecdf4d6c78f/6987ee10524fc02998df0880/bb-king.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Celebrities Mourn B.B. King On Social Media ## Video: B.B. King Passes Away at 89 [Watch (HLS stream): B.B. King Passes Away at 89](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/wbb1hKeu.m3u8) (1:22)  _Published 2015-05-15. Blues icon B.B. King has died at the age of 89, following a 20-year battle with diabetes._  by [Naina Bajekal](https://time.com/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. May 15, 2015 10:22 AM UTC  File photo dated June 24, 2011 of US blues musician BB King, who is being treated in hospital for dehydration, his family have said. File photo dated June 24, 2011 of US blues musician BB King, who is being treated in hospital for dehydration, his family have said.Yui Mok—PA Wire  by [Naina Bajekal](https://time.com/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. May 15, 2015 10:22 AM UTC B.B. King, the iconic blues guitarist, [died](http://time.com/3859842/bb-king-dead-obituary-blues-legend-gibson-guitar-las-vegas-89/) Thursday in Las Vegas. He was 89. Many of his fellow musicians and celebrities paid tribute to his death on social media, including Snoop Dogg, Ringo Starr, Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora and blues guitarist Buddy Guy who often played with him. > [](https://twitter.com/ringostarrmusic/status/599089328149532672) > [](https://twitter.com/LennyKravitz/status/599103555841040384) > [](https://twitter.com/TheRealSambora/status/599104826740383744) > [](https://twitter.com/MylesKennedy/status/599099390830243841) > [](https://twitter.com/hughlaurie/status/599109297063223296) ### Look Back at B.B. King's Life and Career  B.B. King a local DJ at WDIA Radio poses for a portrait circa 1948 in Memphis, Tenn. Michael Ochs Archives/ Getty images  B.B. King poses for a portrait in 1950. Gilles Petard/Redferns  From Left: Musicians B.B. King, Eric Clapton and Elvin Bishop perform together in 1967 in New York City. Don Paulsen—Michael Ochs Archives  B.B. King performs on a TV show in Los Angeles in the early 1970's . Michael Ochs Archives/ Getty images  B.B. King performs at the Farm Aid concert in Champaign, Ill. on Sept. 22, 1985. Bettmann/Corbis  From Left: U2 and B.B. King perform onstage during The Lovetown tour on Sept. 1, 1989 in Australia. Bob King—Redferns  From Left: B.B. King and John Lee Hooker pose for a portrait on Jan. 1, 1997. Bill Reitzel—Corbis  From Left: President Bill Clinton plays the sax with B.B. King at 'A Family Celebration 2001' at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. on April 1, 2001 Kevin Winter—Getty Images  B.B. King performs during the funeral for legendary singer and musician Ray Charles at the First AME Church in Los Angeles on June 18, 2004. Genaro Molina—Reuters/Corbis  B.B. King smiles while President George W. Bush presents King with the Medal of Freedom on Dec. 15, 2006 in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC. Tim Sloan—AFP/Getty Images  From Left: B.B. King watches as President Barack Obama waves during the National Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony on the Ellipse near the White House in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 9, 2010. Saul Loeb—AFP/Getty Images  B.B. King performs at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre on Aug. 13, 2013 in Atlanta. John Davidson—Corbis > [](https://twitter.com/will%5Fyoung31/status/599108088982044672) > [](https://twitter.com/Alyssa%5FMilano/status/599088013725962240) > [](https://twitter.com/AlexAllTimeLow/status/599099137355698177) > [](https://twitter.com/MeghanMcCain/status/599093207499018240) > [](https://twitter.com/BradPaisley/status/599102115332661248) > [](https://twitter.com/leebrice/status/599096508982677504) > [](https://twitter.com/genesimmons/status/599098837026738176) > [](https://twitter.com/TheOrlandoJones/status/599098207096872960) > [](https://twitter.com/SamuelLJackson/status/599122451163918336) > [](https://twitter.com/CharlesEsten/status/599100083196399616) ### Remembering B.B. King, an Icon of the Blues  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Portrait of musician B.B. King in 1972. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3859914/bb-king-celebrities-tribute/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3859914/bb-king-celebrities-tribute/"},"headline":"Celebrities Mourn B.B. 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