Rest In Peace! Celebs Who Sadly Passed Away In 2025

Voletta Wallace, the mama of Notorious B.I.G., passed away at 78. TMZ broke the news first, with the Monroe County Coroner confirming she passed away peacefully on Friday, February 21, from natural causes while in hospice care at her Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania home.

Born in Jamaica and a dedicated preschool teacher, Voletta single-handedly raised her son, watching him rise from Bed-Stuy streets to rap royalty with hits like ‘Juicy’ and ‘Hypnotize.’ After Biggie’s tragic, unsolved drive-by murder in 1997 at 24, Voletta became the guardian of his empire, dropping her 2005 memoir ‘Biggie,’ producing the 2009 biopic ‘Notorious’ (shoutout to Angela Bassett’s portrayal), and exec-producing the 2021 Netflix doc ‘Biggie: I Got All the Names.’

Michelle Trachtenberg, most known as Georgina Sparks from ‘Gossip Girl’ and Dawn Summers on ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer,’ passed away in February at 39, leaving fans devastated.

The NYC native was found unresponsive in her Hell’s Kitchen apartment on Wednesday, February 26, by her mom after a 911 call around 8 a.m. Paramedics pronounced her dead on the scene with no foul play suspected. Her Orthodox Jewish family objected to an autopsy for religious reasons. But toxicology later revealed the cause as natural: complications from diabetes, following a recent liver transplant that may have added to her struggles.

From child star in ‘Harriet the Spy’ and ‘The Adventures of Pete & Pete’ to slaying as the chaotic Georgina opposite Blake Lively and Leighton Meester, or joining Buffy on a world of adventures. Her co-star, Sarah Michelle Gellar, paid tribute to Michelle in an IG post along with a quote from the TV series, writing,

“Michelle, listen to me. Listen. I love you. I will always love you. The hardest thing in this world, is to live in it. I will be brave. I will live… for you.”

Angie Stone passed away at 63 after a fatal car crash that many still can’t wrap their heads around. The R&B singer was riding in a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van heading back to Atlanta from a Mobile performance when disaster struck around 4 a.m. on Saturday, March 1, on I-65 near Montgomery, Alabama. The vehicle she was in reportedly flipped over and was hit by a big rig semi-truck, killing Angie on the scene while injuring others, including bandmates. No other fatalities, thank God. But Angie’s passing definitely left a hole in many people’s hearts, including her loved ones. She’d just announced a UK tour and was set for a CIAA halftime show, but now tributes flood in. Jamie Foxx described the news as “this one hurts.” Tyler Perry said her music inspired his films, and Jill Scott mourned her “soulful artistry.”

Ananda Lewis, the former host who lit up our screens and connected us to the stars, passed away at just 52 after a complicated fight with breast cancer. She slipped away peacefully in hospice care at her Los Angeles home on June 11, surrounded by family, as confirmed by her sister Dr. Lakshmi Emory in a touching Facebook post: “She’s free, and in His heavenly arms. Lord, rest her soul.”

Diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer in 2019 (advancing to Stage 4), Ananda bravely shared her journey on CNN, opting for alternative treatments like high-dose vitamin C IVs, hyperbaric sessions, and qigong over a recommended double mastectomy. But she later regretted skipping early mammograms due to her radiation fears. In a January 2025 Essence op-ed, she urged women: “Do everything in your power to avoid my story becoming yours. Prevention is the real cure.”

Ananda rose from Howard University roots to BET’s ‘Teen Summit’ (earning an NAACP Image Award for interviewing Hillary Clinton), then exploded on MTV in 1997 as a VJ for ‘Total Request Live,’ ‘Hot Zone,’ and ‘MTV Live,’ dubbing her the “hip-hop generation’s reigning It Girl.” She interviewed icons like Destiny’s Child, Britney Spears, and NSYNC, covered heavy hits like Aaliyah’s death, and launched her own syndicated ‘The Ananda Lewis Show’ in 2001, snagging another Image Award for ‘True Life: I Am Driving While Black.’

Later gigs included ‘The Insider’ and Hallmark’s ‘Home & Family.’

Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who played Theo Huxtable and stole hearts on ‘The Cosby Show’ from 1984 to 1992, tragically passed away at just 54 in a heartbreaking drowning accident in July. While learning to surf with a group, Warner got caught in a powerful ocean current, leading to accidental asphyxia by submersion. He was pulled from the water by bystanders, but pronounced dead at the scene despite Red Cross efforts. Autopsy confirmed no foul play was involved, just a cruel twist of nature, leaving fans and family members devastated.

From his Emmy-nominated role as Cliff’s lovable son to directing episodes of ‘Kenan & Kel,’ starring in ‘The Resident’ as surgeon AJ Austin, and voicing in ‘American Horror Story,’ Malcolm was a multi-talented king who loved acting and even won a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Performance for the song ‘Jesus Children.’ May he rest in peace.

Heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne passed away at 76 over the summer. The Birmingham-born singer died at his Buckinghamshire, England home on Tuesday, July 22, just weeks after his farewell concert with his Black Sabbath band, surrounded by family amid his long battles with Parkinson’s and health issues. A death certificate later confirmed the cause as a heart attack, complicated by coronary artery disease.

From pioneering heavy metal with Sabbath songs including ‘Paranoid’ and ‘Iron Man’, to solo hits like ‘Crazy Train’ and five Grammy awards. Not to mention, the reality TV chaos on ‘The Osbournes’ with his wife Sharon, and kids, Kelly and Jack. Meanwhile, the family dropped a heartfelt joint statement following Ozzy’s death, writing:

“It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family’s privacy at this time.”

Kelly poured out her soul on IG Stories, writing: “I feel unhappy, I am so sad. I lost the best friend I ever had,” quoting her dad’s song ‘Changes.’ Nearly two months later, Sharon broke her silence on IG, thanking fans: “Your comments, posts, and tributes have brought me more comfort than you know,” while admitting she’s “finding my footing” after an emotional family trip.

Hulk Hogan passed away at 71 in July, leaving wrestling fans reeling from the sudden loss. Real name Terry Gene Bollea, the former Florida resident collapsed during post-hospital therapy at his Clearwater Beach home on Thursday, July 24, around 9:51 a.m., suffering cardiac arrest. Paramedics rushed him to Morton Plant Hospital, but he was pronounced dead at 11:17 a.m. from acute myocardial infarction, complicated by chronic lymphocytic leukemia and recent neck surgery distress. No foul play was found, but investigations into possible medical negligence linger, with widow Sky Daily eyeing a lawsuit over a compromised phrenic nerve.

Meanwhile, his estranged daughter Brooke Hogan broke her silence in an IG post, clearing up their two-year rift sparked by his 2023 marriage to Sky and health battles:

“We shared a quiet, sacred bond… It feels like part of my spirit left with him. I know in my heart I did everything I could. He knew I would run through a burning building for him… I am at peace knowing this.”

She skipped the funeral to grieve privately at the beach with hubby Steven Oleksy and twins, saying “people grieve in many ways,” and even offered to fund an autopsy amid suspicions, later confirming no foul play after viewing his body. Additionally, she’s unfazed by being cut from his $5M will, focusing on their “eternal bond” instead.

Rolling Ray, the social media sensation known for his sassy one-liners and that iconic “Purr” catchphrase, passed away at just 28. The TV personality, whose real name is Raymond Harper, passed away on Tuesday, September 3, just two days shy of turning 29, as confirmed by Maryland’s chief medical examiner and his mother, Sazola Nay, in a Facebook post.

“It is with a heavy heavy heart that I let you know that my son Ray Ray iamrollingray has gone home to be with the Lord…I thank everyone who has called or texted, this is going to be a long road,” she wrote.

Details on the cause remain undisclosed, but Ray had bravely battled Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 3 since childhood, relying on a wheelchair due to progressive muscle weakness. Additionally, recent scares like severe burns from a 2021 apartment fire, COVID and pneumonia in 2022, and another bout of pneumonia with a blood infection in August 2024.

From going viral after ‘Catfish: Trolls’ in 2018 and ‘Divorce Court’ in 2019, to exec-producing and starring on Zeus Network’s ‘Bobby I Love You Purrr’ with Bobby Lytes, Ray was a reality TV legend for the LGBTQ+ and disabled communities, dropping hilarious commentary on pop culture, relationships, and BLM protests from his wheelchair. Ray, you will be missed!

RELATED: Tenisha Warner, Widow Of Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Shares First Public Message Since His Passing (PHOTO)