- Dec 2 Dave Mount, English rock drummer (Mud), dies in apparent suicide at 59
- Dec 2 Mariska Veres [Ender], Dutch rock singer (Shocking Blue), dies of gallbladder cancer at 59
- Dec 3 Logan Whitehurst, American musician, singer-songwriter (Tin Drum; The Velvet Teen), graphic artist, and album cover designer, dies of brain cancer at 29
- Dec 7 Jay McShann, American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader, dies at 90
- Dec 8 Martha Tilton, American big band singer (Benny Goodman; Jimmy Dorsey), dies at 91 [1]
- Dec 9 Freddie Marsden, British rock drummer (Gerry & Pacemakers - "How Do You Do It?"; "Ferry Cross The Mersey"), dies at 66
- Dec 9 Georgia Gibbs [Frieda Lipschitz], American jazz and pop singer ("Kiss of Fire"; "If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a Cake"), dies at 88 [1]
- Dec 12 Kenny Davern, American jazz clarinetist (b. 1935)
- Dec 12 Lucien Goethals, Belgian composer, dies at 75
- Dec 13 Homesick James [Williamson], American blues slide guitarist and singer (Elmore James band, 1955-62), dies at 96 [or 101, or 92 - date of birth disputed]
- Dec 13 Robert Long [Jan Leverman], Dutch pop singer (Vroeger of Later (Sooner or Later); Unit Gloria), actor, and television presenter, dies of cancer at 63
- Dec 14 Ahmet Ertegun, Turkish-American, songwriter, businessman (co-founder of Atlantic Records), and philanthropist, dies from complications after tripping during a Rolling Stones concert at 83
- Dec 14 Otmar Macha, Czech composer (Quattro Group), dies at 84
- Dec 16 Pnina Salzman, Israeli pianist (b. 1922)
- Dec 16 Taliep Petersen, South African singer and composer (b. 1950)
- Dec 17 Denis Payton, British rock saxophonist (Dave Clark Five - "Glad All Over"), dies of cancer at 63
- Dec 17 Timmie Rogers [Ancrum], American comedian (The Jackie Gleason Show), actor and singer-songwriter ("Back to School Again"; "I Love Ya, I Love Ya, I Love Ya"), dies at 91
- Dec 18 Daniel Pinkham, American organist, composer (Signs of the Zodiac) and educator (New England Conservatory), dies at 83
- Dec 22 Dennis Linde, American songwriter ("Burning Love"; "Goodbye Earl"), dies of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis at 63
- Dec 22 Galina Ustvolskaya, Russian composer, dies at 87
- Dec 23 Timothy J. Tobias, American composer and musician, dies at 54
- Dec 24 Braguinha [Carlos Alberto Ferreira Braga], Brazilian songwriter, dies at 99
- Dec 24 Kenneth Sivertsen, Norwegian singer, poet, comedian, and composer, dies of complications from epilepsy at 66
James Brown (1933-2006)
Dec 25 American R&B, gospel, soul and funk singer-songwriter known as 'The Godfather of Soul' ("Sex Machine"; "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag"; "Hot Pants"), dies of heart failure at 73
- Dec 28 Gracie Cole, British jazz trumpeter (Ivy Benson's All-Girl Band), and bandleader, dies of complications from Alzheimer's disease at 82
- Dec 28 Komei Abe, Japanese composer, dies at 95
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Eminem
XXXTentacion
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Nicki Minaj
Coolio