27 Club: The Astrological Reason Why Some Celebrities Die So Young
Our fate has already been written.
Natata/Shutterstock.com The story of the famed rock star succumbing to addiction is an age old story-but did you know that there’s an astrological reason why certain celebrities die at 27?
Actually, what happens at age 27 affects all of us, celebs are just the ones who get it broadcasted in the public eye and become part of what's called 'the 27 Club'.
The 27 Club
The 27 Club membership became a popular phrase after certain celebrities seemed to die at the same age.
Because it happens so frequently with the first recorded being the great blues musician Robert Johnson back all the way in 1938 the media has literally coined the phrase “The 27 Club” to refer to the collection of musicians and actors who succumb to this fate.
This list includes Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, and even Amy Winehouse who even three years prior sang about her fear of dying at 27.
While it’s been hypothesized that it’s because they're nearing thirty and the impending real adulthood that many feel takes place around this age-but there’s actually a greater reason why many of us don’t make it to thirty.
Most of us are aware of our sun zodiac sign, but there are actually greater secrets the deeper we go into our birth charts.
These secrets are the placements of our planets and moon which then are called ‘returns’ once they return to the sign that they were in when we were born.
The Real Reason For The 27 Club
Around this age, we experienced both our Saturn and our Progressed Lunar Return which signify that it’s time for us to take stock in our lives, to learn (or not) some of our karmic lessons and to move to the next level of living in this lifetime.
But for many, it’s so big, too terrifying, and too scary.
Our Saturn Return means that Saturn returns to the sign that it was in at the time of our birth, while our Progressed Lunar Return means that the moon returns to the sign and house that it was in at the time of our birth.
Both occur between 27 and 30 years of age which is why we often see celebs and even those friends and family around us not be able to live long enough to make it into their thirties.
There is a debate between some astrologers about which is the true culprit behind The 27 Club; Saturn or the Moon. But like everything in life, it’s never just one thing.
While it’s true that the Progressed Lunar Return occurs first and clears the way for the first Saturn Return, both are equally important in being that catalyst into self-reflection and growth.
Many of those that end up joining The 27 Club do so because of a tie to substance abuse which often occurs because they are trying to block themselves from learning the lessons that these planets bring into our lives.
Saturn is known as the Lord of Time and Karma and it is often connected to an important parental figure in our life. Saturn brings lessons on the foundation of our lives, where we are living too recklessly and where we aren’t doing the work that we need to.
Saturn is the planet that brings painful lessons that are often associated with our childhood wounds, especially those of rejection, abandonment, and even not feeling loved for who we truly are.
While many might see the celebrity status of those in The 27 Club and wonder what they could possibly have dealing with, what we often don’t see is that the greatest art is inspired by the deepest pain.
Saturn delivers some hard truths and reality checks on the choices that we’ve made and the people that we’ve become. But whether we’re a celebrity or not, it doesn’t mean that it ends in death.
When we are experiencing our Saturn Return, we all have a choice; to retreat back or to cross the threshold in front of us.
For many to venture ahead means acknowledging and healing wounds that are much too painful to deal with, so instead, they retreat and end up being just another member of The 27 Club.
But Saturn isn’t the only factor at play here.
The moon is often thought of as being a loving and warm presence in our lives but during our Progressed Lunar Return we often encounter many of the same lessons that Saturn brings into our life.
To find out when your Saturn and Progressed Lunar Return is, run a free birth chart here (insert link) and then look to see what sign Saturn is in and what sign and house your moon is in. Next, do a search for the next time those planets will be in your birth signs — that is when your return will be happening.
27 Club members
—Brian Jones, Rolling Stones
—Jimi Hendrix
—Janis Joplin
—Jim Morrison
—Kurt Cobain
—Amy Winehouse
—Mac Miller almost made the 27 Club. He was 26 1/2 years old at the time of his overdose.
Lessons Of The 27 Club
This is the time that we’re not just dealing with lessons or past life karma but we’re suddenly seeing ourselves more clearly.
While being able to see ourselves clearly is a gift of growth, it also isn’t always pretty. To see who we’ve been living as means that we also have to confront the darker and likely the more painful truths of our lives.
For many, especially celebrities, it can be lonely at the top which is why it’s believed when confronted with these astrological reality checkpoints they often crumble under the pressure unable to grow beyond their trauma and pain.
There is also the stigma of youth that we all have plenty of time.
Coupling this with loneliness, addiction, and fear of looking at our wounds means that for many they think that they have time.
They have time to get it together, to get clean, to do the work, to contact those they love-when in truth youth isn’t a preventative for death.
While The 27 Club is made up of celebrities, it is important to remember that this life phase affects us all.
Some more than others, but the lessons are always the same which is why it’s important to be aware of what is happening when you or your friends are moving through the years 26-31.
If you find yourself struggling then remember that you can always reach out, if not to someone around you, then to a counselor, therapist, or even an astrologer who may be able to help point the way towards the specific lessons that you are meant to be working through during this time.
No matter how dark or difficult this transition from youth to maturity may be, it’s one that is always given to us with our best interest at heart.
Both Saturn and Progressed Lunar Return are about helping us heal and become the people that we were meant to be in this life so that in another thirty years we can look back and be proud of just how far we’ve come.
Kate Rose is an artist, writer, passionate yogi, spiritual astrologist, relationship and life coach, and motivational speaker. As a spiritual intuitive, she practices the religion of astrology and love. For more of her work, visit her website.