Ace Frehley, the legendary lead guitarist and co-founder of Kiss, died on Thursday, October 16, 2025, in Morristown, New Jersey, at age 74. The musician, whose “Spaceman” persona helped define arena rock and inspired generations of guitarists, passed away following complications from a fall at his home studio several weeks earlier that resulted in a brain bleed.
His family released a statement expressing their devastation. “We are completely devastated and heartbroken,” the family stated. “In his last moments, we were fortunate enough to have been able to surround him with loving, caring, peaceful words, thoughts, prayers and intentions as he left this earth.”
The initial fall occurred in late September, first publicly mentioned on September 25 when a Facebook post informed fans that Frehley had experienced a minor fall in his studio requiring hospitalization. At the time, doctors advised against travel, forcing him to cancel an appearance at the Antelope Valley Fair in Lancaster, California. The post maintained an optimistic tone, noting Frehley looked forward to continuing his tour and finishing work on his album Origins Vol. 3. The post said Vol. 4 but was later corrected to Vol. 3 on his official Facebook page.
His tour manager (John Ostrosky) wrote: “Ace just called to inform me that I made a mistake on the announcement by calling his next album ‘Origins Vol. 4’ instead of ‘Origins Vol. 3’ … LOL! The corrected version is below!”
However, Ace’s condition deteriorated. On October 6, his official Instagram account announced the cancellation of all remaining 2025 tour dates due to ongoing medical issues. According to TMZ, citing anonymous sources, Frehley had been on life support for some time before his death.
Born Paul Daniel Frehley in New York City in 1951, he co-founded Kiss in 1973 alongside singer Paul Stanley, bassist Gene Simmons and drummer Peter Criss. The band quickly became famous for their theatrical live performances featuring elaborate face paint, leather costumes and pyrotechnics. Each member adopted a distinct persona, with Frehley embodying the Spaceman, also known as Space Ace.
Frehley joined the band after responding to a Village Voice advertisement seeking a lead guitarist with flash and ability. Unable to afford cab fare, his mother drove him to the audition in Queens. Despite initial laughter from the other members about his bell-bottom trousers and multicolored shoes, Frehley impressed them by improvising a solo through their new song “Deuce.”
His guitar work and rock star attitude proved essential to Kiss’s success. While Simmons and Stanley handled most songwriting duties, Frehley contributed fan favorites including “Cold Gin,” “Parasite,” “Shock Me” and “Talk to Me.” His trademark modified Les Paul guitar, designed to fill stages with smoke during solos, became iconic in rock history.
The band achieved mainstream breakthrough with their 1975 live album Alive! When all four members released solo albums simultaneously in 1978, Frehley’s sold best, driven by his cover of Russ Ballard’s “New York Groove,” which became his signature song and peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Despite his success, Frehley struggled with substance abuse issues that strained relationships within the band. By 1982, conflicts over his drug and alcohol use, combined with the band’s increasingly family-friendly direction and use of session guitarists on some tracks, led to his departure. Reflecting on that period, he later indicated he felt staying with the group could have driven him to suicide.
Frehley formed Frehley’s Comet in 1984, which released two studio albums before he returned to solo work. He rejoined Kiss for their highly successful 1996 reunion tour and remained until 2002. However, he did not participate in the band’s final farewell tour in 2022 and 2023. In later years, his relationship with Simmons became contentious, particularly after Simmons made public comments about Frehley’s past substance abuse.
In 2019, when Simmons claimed Frehley had been fired due to drug use, Frehley responded publicly, stating he had been sober for 12 years and quit of his own free will because Simmons and Stanley were control freaks and too difficult to work with.
Stanley and Simmons issued a joint statement following news of Frehley’s death, describing themselves as devastated. They characterized him as an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier during the band’s most formative chapters, adding that he would always remain part of Kiss’ legacy. Criss expressed shock on social media, writing that he loved his friend.
Tributes poured in from across the music world. Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready recalled how learning about Frehley at age 11 changed his life, leading him to pick up a guitar in 1978. He described studying Frehley’s solos endlessly over the years and called playing with him at Madison Square Garden a dream come true. Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello described Frehley as his first guitar hero, whose timeless riffs and solos inspired generations. Poison frontman Bret Michaels thanked Frehley for years of great music and festival performances together.
The original Kiss lineup was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. Kiss had been scheduled to receive Kennedy Center Honors in December, but Frehley did not live to attend the ceremony. Frehley is survived by his wife Jeanette and daughter Monique.