He is best known as the lead singer ofВ Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, but he was also involved in other bands such asВ Mudcrutch andВ theВ Traveling Wilburys. Petty sold more than 80 million records worldwide over his nearly five decades in the music business. PettyвЂ™s longtime manager confirmed his death Monday night. According to reports, Petty was not showing any signs of brain activity and was taken off life support. The musician was found unconscious in his Malibu home Monday morning and was rushed to UCLA Santa Monica Hospital, where he was put on life support. This was based on erroneous reports.Tom Petty, the Grammy-winning rock legend and frontman for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, has died at 66 after suffering cardiac arrest. вЂњItвЂ™s a funny disease because it takes you a long time to really come to terms with the fact that youвЂ™re sick вЂ“ medically sick, youвЂ™re not just suddenly going out of your mind,вЂќ he said at the time.ДЄn initial version of this story said Tom Petty had died, before this was officially confirmed. In 2002, he married Dana York and said he had been in therapy for six years to deal with depression.

Petty also suffered from depression, channelling his pain into 1999вЂ™s Echo, during which he was also dealing with a divorce. вЂњYouвЂ™d go over and talk and heвЂ™d say, вЂIвЂ™ve got a drum set.вЂ™ вЂYou do? Great!вЂ™ That was my whole life.вЂќДЄmid his successes, Petty also suffered dark periods during a career spanning five decades.ДЄ 2015 biography of the singer, Petty: The Biography, revealed his heroin addiction in the 1990s.ДЄuthor Warren Zanes said in an interview with the Washington Post Petty succumbed to the drug because he вЂњhad encounters with people who did heroin, and he hit a point in his life when he did not know what to do with the pain he was feelingвЂќ. вЂњYouвЂ™d go and see some other kid whose hair was long, this was around 65, and go, вЂWow, thereвЂ™s one like me,вЂ™вЂќ he said in 1989. Legendary artist Tom Petty has died aged 66, his family has confirmed.

He would speak of being consumed by rock music since childhood, to the point where his father, whom Petty would later say beat him savagely, thought he was вЂњmentalвЂќ.ДЄwed by the chiming guitars of the Byrds, the melodic genius of the Beatles and the snarling lyrics of Dylan, he was amazed to find that other kids were feeling the same way. He said he began working on music in earnest after seeing the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964. Throughout his career, he sold more than 80m records worldwide.ДЇlorida-born Petty caught the rockвЂ™nвЂ™roll bug after he was introduced by his uncle to Elvis Presley, who was shooting the picture Follow That Dream on location in Florida in 1960. Earlier this year he was named MusiCares person of the year for his вЂњcareer-long interest in defending artistsвЂ™ rightsвЂќ as well as for his charitable work with homeless people in Los Angeles. TOM Petty tragically died following a cardiac arrest on October 2 at his Malibu home. Petty was outspoken in his protection of the rights of artists, taking issue with record companies on a number of occasions about what he believed to be unjust practices.

Tom petty died