Some mean-spirited pranksters tried to dupe readers into believing we'd lost Axl Rose during the same week that's seen the deaths of Bobby Keys and Ian McLagan, but not to worry -- the Guns N' Roses frontman is still very much alive.

A fake Rose obituary made the rounds Dec. 3, with a headline reading "Sources: Guns N' Roses Frontman Axl Rose Found Dead in West Hollywood Home at Age 52" citing "sources" behind "unconfirmed reports" and containing a "quote" from a fake LAPD spokesperson. The offending site, designed to look like MSNBC, has done this kind of thing before -- Macaulay Culkin is a recent victim -- but it still raised enough of a hubbub to warrant a response from Rose, who debunked it with a little good-natured humor.

Through his Twitter account, Rose asked followers, "If I'm dead do I still have to pay taxes?," while on Facebook, the GNR account shared a photo from the Paradise City fan community making fun of the whole thing. Meanwhile, in even better news for fans who feared Rose was dead, he followed that joking tweet with the following photo:

Obviously, that's far from official confirmation that there's actually a real Guns N' Roses record in the works, but for the long-suffering faithful patiently waiting for a follow-up to 'Chinese Democracy,' Rose seated behind a mixing board has to be taken as an encouraging sign.

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