Elliott Smith has died of an apparent suicide at the age of 34, according to the LA County coroner's office.
The singer-songwriter's body was found in his apartment in Silverlake, LA, reports MTV.com.
He was found by a female friend who took him to a local hospital but he was pronounced dead within an hour.
The Los Angeles County Department of the Coroner's office said the cause of death appeared to be a self-inflicted knife wound.
However, police detectives were investigating the case and other possibilities, including foul play, had not yet been ruled out.
Smith, real name Steven Paul Smith, had battled drug and alcohol addiction throughout his career.
In the mid-1990s, he gained critical acclaim with 1997's Either/Or and 1998's XO, albums.
Miss Misery, his contribution to the film Good Will Hunting that earned him an Academy Award nomination in 1997, brought mainstream recognition.
Smith had been working on his sixth album, provisionally titled From A Basement On the Hill, which was due to be completed later this year.