Marianne Faithfull, the British singer, songwriter, and actress whose tumultuous career spanned more than six decades, has died at the age of 78. A spokesperson confirmed her passing on Thursday, stating that she died peacefully in London, surrounded by family. Faithfull, whose life and artistry were deeply intertwined with the evolution of rock music, leaves behind a legacy that defies categorization.

Faithfull emerged in the 1960s as a fresh-faced teenager with a hauntingly delicate voice, propelled to fame by the Rolling Stones-penned hit As Tears Go By. Discovered at a party in London by the band’s manager, Andrew Loog Oldham, she was 16 when she recorded the song, which climbed the UK charts and secured her place among Britain’s rising pop stars. Other hits followed, including Come and Stay with Me and This Little Bird, but her association with the Rolling Stones—and her high-profile relationship with Mick Jagger—soon overshadowed her own artistic achievements.

Born in London in 1946, Faithfull was descended from Austrian nobility on her mother’s side, yet her early years were spent in relatively modest surroundings in Reading. A foray into acting led to roles in Hamlet and Made in U.S.A., and by the late 1960s, she was a fixture in the Swinging London scene. Her romance with Jagger became the subject of tabloid fascination, but it was also during this period that she co-wrote Sister Morphine, later recorded by the Rolling Stones on Sticky Fingers.

Her public image took a dramatic turn in 1967 when a police raid on Keith Richards’ Sussex estate revealed Faithfull wrapped in a fur rug, an incident that fueled lurid speculation. “It destroyed me,” she said years later. “To be a male drug addict and to act like that is always enhancing and glamorizing. A woman in that situation becomes a slut and a bad mother.” Her descent into addiction deepened, and by 1970, she had lost custody of her son, separated from Jagger, and found herself homeless in London’s Soho district.

Faithfull’s resurgence in the late 1970s marked one of rock’s most unlikely comebacks. After nearly a decade away from music, she returned with Dreamin’ My Dreams, a modest success, before redefining her career with Broken English in 1979. The album’s raw, world-weary vocals and dark, post-punk sound shocked audiences who still associated her with the ethereal innocence of her early recordings. The title track, along with Why D’Ya Do It?, established her as an artist who had not only survived rock’s excesses but had found a new creative voice in their aftermath.

Her career, once derailed by addiction, flourished as she collaborated with artists across generations, including Nick Cave, Metallica, Beck, and Damon Albarn. Across 21 studio albums, she explored blues, jazz, punk, and experimental rock, refusing to be confined to a single genre.

Faithfull was married three times, first to artist John Dunbar, with whom she had her son, Nicholas, then to musician Ben Brierly, and later to actor Giorgio Della Terza. “I’ve had a wonderful life with all my lovers and husbands,” she said in 2011, though she made an exception for Della Terza, describing him as a “nightmare.”

In addition to music, she continued acting, making memorable appearances as God in Absolutely Fabulous, the devil in The Black Rider, and Empress Maria Theresa in Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette. She remained culturally relevant, admired not only for her contributions to music but also for her unvarnished honesty about addiction, survival, and reinvention.

Health issues followed her throughout her life. In 2006, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent successful surgery. A decade later, she revealed she had been living with hepatitis C for more than a decade. In 2020, she was hospitalized with COVID-19, an illness that left lasting effects on her health. Despite these challenges, she continued to work, releasing She Walks in Beauty in 2021, an album of spoken-word poetry set to music by Warren Ellis.

Mick Jagger, her former partner, paid tribute, saying, “I am so saddened to hear of the death of Marianne Faithfull. She was so much part of my life for so long. She was a wonderful friend, a beautiful singer, and a great actress. She will always be remembered.”

Faithfull’s influence extended beyond music. She was a muse, a survivor, and a cultural icon who defied expectations at every turn. Her memoir, Faithfull, published in 1994, remains a candid account of a life lived without apology. “Never apologize, never explain,” she wrote. “Didn’t we always say that?”

She is survived by her son, Nicholas Dunbar.