Ronnie James Dio (July 10, 1942 - May 16, 2010) was an American (People of the United States) heavy metal (heavy metal music) vocalist and songwriter (singer-songwriter) of Italian (Italy) descent. He performed with, amongst others, Elf (Elf (band)), Rainbow (Rainbow (band)), Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell (Heaven & Hell (band)), and his own band Dio (Dio (band)). Other musical projects include the collective fundraiser Hear n Aid. He was widely hailed as one of the most powerful singers in heavy metal, renowned for his consistently powerful voice and for popularizing the "devil horns (Corna#Heavy metal subculture)" hand gesture in metal culture. Prior to his death, he was collaborating on a project with former Black Sabbath bandmates Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Vinny Appice, under the moniker Heaven & Hell, whose first studio album, The Devil You Know (The Devil You Know (Heaven & Hell album)), was released on April 28, 2009. Dio died of stomach cancer on May 16, 2010. One of the last songs he had a chance to record was titled "Metal Will Never Die".