Lou Reed dies at 71

Rock legend and Velvet Underground front man Lou Reed died this morning at the age of 71 ... according to reports.

Details surrounding Reed's death are unclear, but he underwent a liver transplant back in May. As TMZ first reported ... complications from the surgery landed him in the ER in late June.

Lou wrote a majority of the Velvet Underground hits, and went on to have success in his solo career -- with 1972's "Walk on the Wild Side" being his most commercial hit.

Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed (March 2, 1942 – October 27, 2013) was an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He was best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his solo career, which spanned several decades. Though the Velvet Underground was a commercial failure in the late 1960s, the group has gained a considerable cult following in the years since its demise and has gone on to become one of the most widely cited and influential bands of the era. As the Velvet Underground's vocalist and principal songwriter, Reed wrote about subjects of personal experience that rarely had been examined so openly in rock and roll, including sexuality and drug culture.