Sad news today as it has been recently announced that the award-winning singer-songwriter Adam Schlesinger, best known for his work with US rock band Fountains of Wayne, has reportedly died at the age of 52 after being diagnosed with coronavirus. He passed away on Wednesday morning.

A recent statement from his family on Tuesday said that the singer was currently in a New York hospital fighting the illness caused by coronavirus, COVID-19, the same illness that is currently affecting the world at large.

Schlesinger grew up in Manhattan and Montclair, New Jersey. He attended Montclair High School and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Williams College in philosophy. Adam Schlesinger's lawyer, Josh Grier, confirmed the musician's death and stated that Schlesinger had been hospitalized in March and whilst there had tested positive for the illness. Following this, he had been placed on a ventilator and was under heavy sedation.

Over the years Schlesinger has had one of the most unique careers in pop, a career that has kept him extremely busy. With the band Fountains of Wayne he released five albums between 1996 and 2011. Fountains of Wayne were a group that managed to blend the stylistic tropes of power-pop with indie and alternative rock sensibilities, with the band being best known for their 2003 Grammy-nominated single Stacy's Mom. Part of the song's inspiration was a friend Schlesinger had growing up who thought Schlesinger's grandmother was hot.

During this period of his highly successful career, Schlesinger also released six albums with his other group Ivy, as well as branching out into television and movies. His first big-screen hit came in 1996 with the song That Thing You Do!. Crafted to sound like a hit song from the 1960s, the track served as the sole hit for the Wonders, the fake band at the center of Tom Hanks' music comedy movie That Thing You Do!. The song charted well in real life, even earning Schlesinger an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.

Tom Hanks, who himself has recently gotten over the same strain of coronavirus, took to social media to pay tribute to his friend and colleague.

"There would be no Playtone without Adam Schlesinger, without his That Thing You Do! He was a One-der. Lost him to Covid-19. Terribly sad today. Hanx."

In his career Schlesinger earned nominations for a Golden Globe, Tonys, Grammys and Emmys, winning the latter two, as well as the Oscar nomination for That Thing You Do". In 2019, Schlesinger won the Emmy for outstanding original music and lyrics for Antidepressants Are So Not a Big Deal from the TV musical drama Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Schlesinger also won a Grammy in 2009 for his work on A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All!.

Tributes have been pouring in from the likes of Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba, singer-songwriter Nicole Atkins, and critically acclaimed songwriter Diane Warren. Schlesinger was divorced and is survived by his two daughters. May he rest in peace. This tragic news comes to us from Variety.