
Google has released its “Year in Search 2020” report, and placing sixth on its “loss” list – which chronicles the most-searched deaths of the year – is Eddie Van Halen.
The guitar icon placed ahead of King Von (7th), Kelly Preston (8th), Pop Smoke (9th) and Ahmaud Arbery (10th), but behind Ruth Bader Ginsburg (5th), George Floyd (4th), Chadwick Boseman (3rd), Naya Rivera (2nd) and Kobe Bryant (1st).
Van Halen – the band – were also among the most-searched music acts in the United States in 2020, coming in sixth on Google's Musicians and Bands list. They placed ahead of Lizzo (7th), Tamar Braxton (8th), Quando Rondo (9th) and Tory Lanez (10th), but behind Grimes (5th), Doja Cat (4th), Adele (3rd), August Alsina (2nd) and Shakira (1st).
Eddie Van Halen tragically died in October 2020 aged 64 due to complications with throat cancer. His passing prompted a widespread outpouring of grief from the guitar community.
For a full rundown of the Year in Search report, head over to Google.
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Sam was Staff Writer at GuitarWorld.com from 2019 to 2023, and also created content for Total Guitar, Guitarist and Guitar Player. He has well over 15 years of guitar playing under his belt, as well as a degree in Music Technology (Mixing and Mastering). He's a metalhead through and through, but has a thorough appreciation for all genres of music. In his spare time, Sam creates point-of-view guitar lesson videos on YouTube under the name Sightline Guitar.
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