List of Famous people who died in 2015

Andal "Andy" Ampatuan Sr. was a main suspect in the Maguindanao massacre. He was the patriarch of the Ampatuan political family in Maguindanao province, on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. He was elected Governor of Maguindanao in 2001, defeating incumbent Governor Zacaria Candao in the gubernatorial election on May 14, 2001.

Ambros Seelos was a German music composer, singer, arranger, conductor, whose career lasted from the 1950s to the 2000s.

Takamasa Sakurai was a Japanese pop culture and anime expert. Sakurai was a strong proponent for the promotion of Japanese popular culture internationally as a means of cultural exchange and cultural diplomacy. His projects promoted Japanese anime, fashion and music to a global audience. In 2009, Sakurai co-founded the Ministry of Foreign Affairs's "Kawaii Ambassador" program. He also authored several books on the country's aesthetics and pop culture, including "Sekai Kawaii Kakumei" and Anime Bunka Gaiko.

Edida Nageswara Rao was an Indian film producer in Telugu cinema. He owned the film production house Poornodaya Movie Creations in Tollywood. He produced Sankarabharanam, Swayam Krushi, Siri Siri Muvva and Swati Mutyam, which were showcased at the Moscow Film Festival.

Irwin Allen Schiff was an American libertarian and tax resistance advocate known for writing and promoting literature in which he argued that the income tax in the United States is illegal and unconstitutional. Judges in several civil and criminal cases ruled in favor of the federal government and against Schiff. As a result of these judicial rulings Schiff was in a hospital prison serving a sentence of 162 months at the time of his death at the age of 87. The Federal Bureau of Prisons reported that Schiff died on October 16, 2015.

Andraé Edward Crouch was an American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, record producer and pastor. Referred to as "the father of modern gospel music" by contemporary Christian and gospel music professionals, Crouch was known for his compositions "The Blood Will Never Lose Its Power", "My Tribute " and "Soon and Very Soon". He collaborated on some of his recordings with artists, such as Stevie Wonder, El DeBarge, Philip Bailey, Chaka Khan, Sheila E. and vocal group Take 6, and many recording artists covered his material, including, Bob Dylan, Barbara Mandrell, Paul Simon, Elvis Presley and Little Richard. In the 1980s and 1990s, he was known as the "go to" producer for superstars who sought a gospel choir sound in their recordings, appearing on a number of recordings, including Michael Jackson's "Man In the Mirror", Madonna's "Like a Prayer", and "The Power", a duet between Elton John and Little Richard. Crouch was noted for his talent of incorporating contemporary secular music styles into the gospel music he grew up with. His efforts in this area helped pave the way for early American contemporary Christian music during the 1960s and 1970s.

M. S. Narayana was an Indian actor and comedian who worked in Telugu cinema. Narayana was a highly respected and popular comedian in Telugu films.

Angad Paul was a British businessman and film producer.

Jack Chakrin, known by his stage name Jack Carter, was an American comedian, actor and television presenter. Brooklyn-born Carter had a long-running comedy act similar to fellow rapid-paced contemporaries Milton Berle and Morey Amsterdam.

Masaru Okunishi was a convicted murderer who was on death row in Japan for 46 years.