John Frieda, the British celebrity hairstylist behind the Frizz Ease brand, has died, according to a statement posted to his Instagram on Tuesday.
He was 75.
Frieda’s cause of death was not immediately clear.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that our dear John passed away peacefully …. surrounded by his family,” the statement said.
“John was more than a mentor to us; he was a true icon of the hair industry,” the statement continued.
“He was the person who taught us everything, believed in us, and made us better. His talent and passion touched so many, and his legacy will live on in every single one of us. We will continue to do him proud,” it added.
Throughout his career, Frieda worked with some of the biggest celebrity names, including Princess Diana, pop superstar Madonna, former first lady Jackie Kennedy Onassis, The Beatles, actors Sarah Jessica Parker and Scarlett Johansson, among several others.
Frieda was born in 1951 in London. At the time, his father owned a west London salon. Frieda told The Standard newspaper in 2012 that his dad had wanted him to become a doctor, but Frieda pursued a career in hair to get out of studying.
He worked his way up through the London hairstyling scene, working alongside other big names in the business and styling models for Vogue fashion shoots. More than 30 years ago, he opened his first salon in London and went on to open branches in Los Angeles and New York City.
In the 1990s, Frieda launched the Frizz Ease brand with a serum meant to tame frizzy hair. The brand has since grown in global popularity, with a whole line of products — sold in drug stores and salons across the world.
Frieda married Scottish pop singer and actor Lulu in 1976. The couple had one son together and later divorced.
He entered into a relationship with Avery Agnelli — the widow of Fiat heir Giovanni Agnelli — in the early 2000s, and the pair married in 2019. With Agnelli, Frieda shares two children and a stepdaughter.
“Today we lost the best man to ever exist,” his stepdaughter, Asia Agnelli Lagrange, said in a brief tribute online. “I share this because I know he touched the lives of so many.”
