On December 17, 2023, Jim Ladd, the renowned rock DJ and host of SiriusXM’s classic rock channel, Deep Tracks, is said to have passed away at the age of 75. On Monday, December 18, his coworker DJ Meg Griffin announced his passing. She disclosed that Ladd passed away after a heart attack at his Los Angeles home.
Ladd started his career in radio in the 1960s. His wife, Helene Lodge-Ladd, is an actress and writer in the entertainment sector. As the host of the late rock DJ’s show Deep Tracks on Monday, Jim Ladd’s coworker DJ Meg Griffin disclosed that Helene Lodge-Ladd had asked her to break the news of Jim’s passing at the beginning of his show.
Many rock musicians held Jim Ladd in high regard for his intense passion and profound understanding of everything related to rock and roll. At the age of 20, Ladd started his radio career in 1967 at the Long Beach station KNAC-FM. He later worked at KLOS and KMET-FM.
What Happened To Jim Ladd?
SiriusXM reported on Monday that renowned radio DJ Jim Ladd passed away on Sunday. His age was 75. Ladd, who served as the basis for Tom Petty’s 2002 song “The Last DJ,” passed away at home in Los Angeles from a heart attack. At Ladd’s wife’s request, fellow SiriusXM DJ Meg Griffin announced Ladd’s passing, according to Deadline.
Griffin, who filled in for Ladd as a guest presenter of SiriusXM’s “Deep Tracks” on Monday, expressed her regret to the audience, saying, “I am so sorry for the shock that just hit you as you are listening right now.” He was always concerned. He told it like it was. The music was his life.
On January 17, 1948, Ladd was born in Lynnwood, California. In 1969, he started his radio career as an intern on the Los Angeles-based program KNAC before moving on to 95.5 KLOS. Ladd eventually relocated to KMET-FM, another popular Los Angeles program, where he helped the station become one of the city’s highest-rated. He was on staff at KMET until 1987.
He developed, produced, and hosted the radio show Innerview while he was employed at KMET. On the show, he spoke with well-known musicians through interviews. After that, the show ran on more than 160 stations each week before ending its 12-year run.
In 1997, Ladd went back to work at KLOS for a further 14 years. In 2012, he moved on to broadcast his “Deep Tracks” show on SiriusXM. Music from obscure bands can be heard on the channel.
Throughout his career, Ladd also appeared in a few films, such as Say Anything and Tequila Sunrise. His radio career up to that moment was detailed in his biography, Radio Waves: Life And Revolution On The FM Dial, published in 1991.
Ten years later, Tom Petty used Ladd as inspiration for the title tune of his 2002 album with The Heartbreakers, “The Last DJ.” According to Billboard, the vocalist of “Free Fallin’” revealed to journalist Jim DeRogatis that the song is about “a DJ who moves to Mexico and gets his freedom back because he becomes so frustrated with his inability to play what he wants.”
Ladd was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005 in recognition of his contributions to the radio and music industries. Several musicians paid homage to Ladd.
The Doors family is extremely grieved to hear of the departure of Jim Ladd, a cherished rock DJ, who passed away quietly at home at the age of 58 from an unexpected heart attack while his wife Helene was by his side. According to a statement on The Doors’ X page, Jim was a vital component of the rock and roll culture with his electrifying demeanor and cool voice.
“May Jim Ladd, the final DJ, rest in peace. My sympathies go out to Helene, Jim’s entire family, and his devoted followers. Stephen Sills posted a video of himself performing for Ladd on X along with the statement, “It was always a pleasure.”
We are devastated to learn that Jim Ladd died quietly at home from a sudden heart attack, with his wife Helene by his side, as Grace Slick recalled the DJ in another X tribute. Jim’s broadcasts were infused with a sense of interest and concern. Helene Hodge-Ladd, his wife, survives Ladd.