Paul Di'Anno, best known as the former frontman for Iron Maiden, passed away at 66 at his home in Salisbury. His label, Conquest Music, confirmed the same.
Di'Anno, who stuck with the band from 1978 through 1981, was replaced by Bruce Dickinson after its world tour for Killers due to his struggles with substance abuse. He told Metal Hammer in September 2022,
"In the end, [he] couldn’t give 100 percent to Maiden anymore and it wasn’t fair to the band, the fans or to myself.”
A statement released by his label on Facebook reads:
“Despite being troubled by severe health issues in recent years that restricted him to performing in a wheelchair, Paul continued to entertain his fans around the world, racking up well over 100 shows since 2023.”
Paul Di'Anno said Iron Maiden was "a very small part and not even the most important part" of his life
Paul Di'Anno, albeit born on May 17, 1958, to a Brazilian father and British mother, claimed he was of Italian descent. Three years before he joined Iron Maiden, Steve Harris, the bassist, formed the band.
By then, Di'Anno was third in line to be the frontman when he gave the audition in November 1978. According to The Guardian, in speaking about his first impression of the band, he said,
"Their old singer had this silly sword and fake blood dripping from his mouth and me and my mate were pissing ourselves laughing, but when we started playing together it just seemed to gel.”
In another interview, he touched on what his bandmates were like, saying,
“The Maiden boys were lovely young people you could have introduced to your nan. She would have loved them. But if she’d met me, she’d have died of a heart attack within a minute … I brought them madness and an over-the-top aspect.”
Paul Di'Anno delivered his last performance for the show on September 10, 1981, at the Odd Fellow's Mansion in Copenhagen, Denmark. The following year, the band with their manager, Rod Smallwood, had a meeting that would later see him leave.
In reflecting on the impact Iron Maiden had on his career, he said in an interview with Heart of Steel,
"Iron Maiden? Well, obviously it's quite a big part because at 16 years old it made me very rich! (laughs)... No, obviously it really helped because I hadn't been in Iron Maiden and I had put a record out, it might not sell as many as it does. So obviously Iron Maiden has had a little bit to do with that I'm sure. I'd like to believe that I can do it on my own. I think I could have."
Paul Di'Anno continued,
"It was an important part but not a big part because I was in Iron Maiden for about five years and I have been doing all the other stuff a hell of a lot longer. So it's a very small part and not even the most important part but it is quite an important part if ya know what I mean."
In the same interview, he likened Smallwood and Harris to Mussolini and Adolf Hitler, noting that his "character" was "too strong" for them. He also revealed that he and "Steve was always fighting."
Smallwood paid him out at the time of his departure, giving him what he was owed in terms of royalties for songwriting credits.
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Following his departure from Iron Maiden, Paul Di'Anno flew solo for a while, having released albums under his name, and even as a member of bands like Gogmagog, Di'Anno's Battlezone, Killers, Rockfellas, and more recently, Warhorse.
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