Brian Wilson, the songwriter, producer, and founding genius of the Beach Boys, has died at age 82. A spokesperson for the Wilson family confirmed the news Wednesday in a statement that asked for privacy as they “share [their] grief with the world.”

As the creative architect behind some of the 20th century’s most ambitious music, Wilson’s legacy is etched as deeply in the studio as it is in the collective American memory.

Born in Hawthorne, California, in 1942, Wilson was the eldest of three brothers. What began as a backyard vocal group - Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, with cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine became the Beach Boys, a band that quickly redefined the idea of California not as a place, but a sound: clean harmonies, surfboards, high school innocence.

But Brian Wilson was never satisfied with the surfboard myth. By 1964, while his bandmates toured, Wilson began layering complex vocal arrangements and unexpected chord progressions, resulting in the breakthrough Pet Sounds (1966), a commercial risk that confused Capitol Records and some American fans but would go on to be hailed as a masterpiece by critics and artists alike. At the time, Wilson was 23. Inspired by Phil Spector’s “Wall of Sound” and challenged by the Beatles’ growing ambition, Wilson constructed as an emotional suite: teenage melancholy stretched into adult yearning. The record’s themes such as disillusionment, vulnerability, self-doubt were as revolutionary as its production.

The follow-up single, “Good Vibrations,” took six months to assemble and cost what was then a staggering $50,000 to produce. Spliced from multiple sessions and studios, it became a #1 hit and cemented Wilson’s reputation as a mad scientist of music.

But that vision came at a personal cost. The pressures of the industry, a complex relationship with his father and bandmates, and undiagnosed mental illness led Wilson into a long period of seclusion and creative silence. The mythical Smile album, his intended follow-up to Pet Sounds, was scrapped in 1967 amid internal tensions and Wilson’s spiraling health.

Wilson’s later years were marked by struggle and resurrection. Under the care of controversial therapist Eugene Landy, Wilson made erratic public appearances in the 1980s. It wasn’t until the late ’90s and early 2000s that he came back fully, touring again and finally completing Smile as a solo project in 2004. That version won a Grammy and helped restore his critical standing. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, but it took years for the industry to catch up to the full scope of his achievement. His influence is impossible to quantify. Artists as diverse as Paul McCartney, Elton John, Thom Yorke, and Frank Ocean have cited Wilson’s innovations as foundational.

In the hours after his death was announced, tributes poured in.

Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones mourned both Wilson and funk legend Sly Stone, who also passed this week: “Oh no Brian Wilson and Sly Stone in one week ~ my world is in mourning. So sad x.” Nancy Sinatra posted a photo from a recording session and wrote, “His cherished music will live forever as he travels through the Universe and beyond.” Sean Ono Lennon, who shared a deep admiration for Wilson, called him “our American Mozart” and added, “He was always very kind and generous. A one of a kind genius from another world.”

Fred Vail, Wilson’s longtime friend and former Beach Boys manager, described their 62-year friendship and recalled being in the room as Pet Sounds was mastered and “Good Vibrations” was recorded. “The three Wilsons are finally back together,” he said, referencing Dennis and Carl, who died in 1983 and 1998.