Janis Joplin Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970), nicknamed "Pearl", was an American rock, soul and blues singer and songwriter, and one of the most successful and widely known female rock stars of her era. After releasing three albums, she died of a heroin overdose at the age of 27. A fourth album, "Pearl", was released in January 1971, just over three months after her death. It reached number one on the "Billboard" charts. In 1967, Joplin rose to fame during an appearance at Monterey Pop Festival, where she was the lead singer of the then
Janis Joplin "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die" (1967). At the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival, Nina Simone, whom Joplin admired greatly, commented on Joplin and referred to the documentary "Janis" (1975) that evidently was screened at the festival: The film "The Rose" (1979) is loosely based on Joplin's life. Originally planned to be titled "Pearl"—Joplin's nickname and the title of her last album—the film was fictionalized after her family declined to allow the producers the rights to her story. Bette Midler earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the film. In 1988, on what would have been Joplin's 45th birthday,