List of Famous people who died in 2001

George Harrison was an English musician, singer, songwriter, and music and film producer who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian culture and helped broaden the scope of popular music through his incorporation of Indian instrumentation and Hindu-aligned spirituality in the Beatles' work. Although the majority of the band's songs were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, most Beatles albums from 1965 onwards contained at least two Harrison compositions. His songs for the group include "Taxman", "Within You Without You", "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", "Here Comes the Sun" and "Something".

Aaliyah Dana Haughton was an American singer, actress and model. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and "Queen of Urban Pop".

Kamal Ranadive, née Kamal Jayasing Ranadive was an Indian biomedical researcher who is known for her research in cancer about the links between cancers and viruses. She was a founder member of the Indian Women Scientists' Association (IWSA).

Carlos Hank González (1927–2001), nicknamed El Profesor, was a Mexican politician and influential businessman. Originally a teacher, he was an entrepreneur who built political contacts along with a business empire, leading to various government and political positions at the state and national level. He was prevented from seeking the presidency due to laws requiring both parents to be Mexicans by birth; his father was German. He has been involved in drug trafficking, money laundering, corruption, and criminal threats.

Harshad Shantilal Mehta was an Indian stockbroker. Mehta’s involvement in the 1992 Indian securities scam made him infamous as a market manipulator. Although, as reported by the Economic Times, some financial experts believe that Harshad Mehta did not commit any fraud, he had "simply exploited loop holes in the system".

Jennifer Maria Syme was an American actress and personal assistant. She was in a relationship with Keanu Reeves from 1998 until their break-up in 2000, following the stillbirth of their daughter.

Villupuram Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy, better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, was an Indian actor and producer. He was active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th century. He was known for his versatility and the variety of roles he depicted on screen, which gave him also the Tamil nickname Nadigar Thilagam. In a career that spanned close to five decades, he had acted in 288 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi.

Todd Morgan Beamer was an American man aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked and crashed as part of the September 11 attacks in 2001. He was one of the passengers who attempted to regain control of the aircraft from the hijackers. During the struggle, the Boeing 757 lost control and crashed into a field in Stonycreek Township near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing everyone on board, but saving the hijackers' intended target and additional victims.

Thomas Brasch was a German author, poet and film director.

Melanie Janene Thornton was an American pop and dance music singer. She was the lead singer of the Eurodance group La Bouche from 1994 to 2000, alongside American rapper Lane McCray. Their two most successful singles, "Sweet Dreams" and "Be My Lover", were released in 1994 and 1995 respectively. After leaving the band, Thornton began a solo career and found success primarily in European countries before her death in 2001. Her solo hits include "Love How You Love Me", "Heartbeat", "Makin' Oooh Oooh " and "Wonderful Dream ".