William Michael Albert Broad, better known by his stage name Billy Idol, is an English musician and rock artist who originally gained notoriety in the 1970s by bursting onto the British punk rock scene. Initially a part of the well-liked Generation X, Idol gained more notoriety as a solo performer, which enabled him to achieve success abroad with the aid of the so-called “second British Invasion.”
Early Life
William Michael Albert Broad, better known as Billy Idol, was born on November 30, 1955, in Stanmore, London, England. When Billy was two years old, his parents, Joan and Bill, relocated the family to Patchogue, New York.
During the four years, the Broads resided in America, Idol’s younger sister, Jane, was born, and the family also spent some time residing in Rockville Centre, New York. The family returned to England after leaving New York, first residing in Dorking, Surrey, and later relocating to Bromley (southeastern London).
After the family relocated to Goring-by-Sea in West Sussex, Billy attended Worthing High School for Boys while still attending Ravensbourne School for Boys. Idol enrolled at the University of Sussex in 1975 to study English, but he left after a year and joined a gang of Sex Pistols followers called the Bromley Contingent.
Around this time, he started using the stage name Billy Idol, which he adopted because a teacher apparently wrote “Billy is Idle” on his report card. He allegedly modified the spelling from “Idle” to “Idol” in order to prevent confusion with Eric Idle from Monty Python.
What is Billy Idol’s Net Worth?
English rock musician, singer-songwriter, and actor Billy Idol have a $60 million dollar fortune. Idol gained notoriety in the 1980s, first as a member of the punk rock band Generation X and later as a solo performer.
Billy is best known for the songs “Eyes Without a Face,” “Rebel Yell,” “White Wedding,” “Dancing with Myself,” “Cradle of Love,” and his cover of Tommy James & the Shondells’ “Mony Mony.” Billy is regarded as a member of the MTV-defined “Second British Invasion.” He became one of the first MTV stars thanks to the music videos for these songs, which also established him as a part of the 1980s glam rock subculture.
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Career
Billy started playing guitar for the retro-rock group Chelsea in 1976. A few weeks later, he left the group and joined up with Chelsea bassist Tony James to form a new one, Generation X. In addition to making an appearance on “Top of the Pops,” Generation X released three albums under Chrysalis Records: “Generation X” (1978), “Valley of the Dolls” (1979), and “Kiss Me Deadly.”
Idol served as the band’s singer (1981). Billy relocated to New York City in 1981 and started working as a solo artist with Bill Aucoin, the former manager of Kiss. With the assistance of guitarist Steve Stevens, bassist Phil Feit, and drummer Gregg Gerson, he put out the EP “Don’t Stop” in 1981, which featured the songs “Dancing with Myself” and “Mony Mony.”
Billy Idol, Idol’s first solo album, was released on July 16, 1982. It was given the Gold and Platinum certifications in the United States and Canada, respectively. The single “White Wedding” peaked at #4 on the “Billboard” Top Tracks list. “
Rebel Yell,” Billy’s follow-up album from 1983, debuted at number six on the “Billboard” 200 charts and reached 2 platinum in the United States and 5 platinum in Canada. In the United States, Germany, and New Zealand, the song “Eyes Without a Face” reached the top 10 charts.
Whiplash Smile, Idol’s third solo studio album, was released in 1986 and achieved Platinum status in the United States, 3x Platinum status in Canada, and Gold status in the United Kingdom and Finland. His 1987 remix album “Vital Idol” came after “Whiplash Smile,” and his live performance of “Mony Mony” peaked at the top of the “Billboard” Hot 100 chart.
Billy relocated to Los Angeles in the late 1980s, and filmmaker James Cameron had intended for him to play the part of T-1000 in “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” However, after Idol was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in 1990, a new actor had to be found for the part. He released the album “Charmed Life” later that year, which featured the hit song “Cradle of Love” and a rendition of The Doors’ “L.A. Woman.”
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Billy participated in a Generation X reunion concert in 1993 and released the experimental album “Cyberpunk” at the same time. He played himself in the 1998 Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore movie “The Wedding Singer,” which had “White Wedding” on the soundtrack.
In the animated movie “Heavy Metal 2000,” he provided the voice of an extraterrestrial named Odin. The following year, he made appearances on “Billy Idol – Behind the Music” and “VH1 Storytellers.”
Idol took part in a few Vans Warped Tour concerts and released his first studio album in almost ten years, “Devil’s Playground,” in 2005. In addition to the original songs “Christmas Love” and “Happy Holiday,” he also includes renditions of popular Christmas tunes like “Frosty the Snowman” and “Jingle Bell Rock” on his 2006 album “Happy Holidays.”
In 2008, “Guitar Hero World Tour” includes “Rebel Yell” as a playable track, and “White Wedding” was featured in “Rock Band 2.” (and later added “Rebel Yell” and “Mony Mony”). In 2009, Billy gave a performance for the American television program “Soundstage,” which was captured on the DVD “In Super Overdrive Live.”
2014 saw the release of his eighth studio album, “Kings & Queens of the Underground,” and in 2018, former Generation X bandmates Tony James, Billy Idol, Steve Jones, and Paul Cook gave a performance at the Roxy in Hollywood.
Billy participated in the 2020 public service campaign “Billy Never Idles,” which features Billy Idol saying things like “If you’re not driving, shut your damn engine off!” and “Don’t clog our lungs with your car fuels.” The campaign aims to increase awareness of the pollution caused by unnecessarily leaving vehicle engines running. Additionally, in 2020, he contributed to the Miley Cyrus album “Plastic Hearts” with the song “Night Crawling.”
Awards and Nominations
For the songs “Rebel Yell” in 1985, “To Be a Lover” in 1987, and “Cradle of Love” in 1991, Idol received Grammy nominations for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.
For “Cradle of Love,” which incorporated excerpts from “The Adventures of Ford Fairlane,” he earned an ASCAP Film and Television Music Award for Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures in 1991.
He has also been nominated for 10 MTV Video Music Awards and won Best Video from a Film for that song. Billy was nominated for a Brit Award for Best British Video for “Cradle of Love.”
Personal Life
Billy started dating singer and dancer Perri Lister in 1980. The couple gave birth to a son, Willem Wolf Broad, on June 15, 1988, and then ended their relationship in 1989.
On August 21, 1989, Idol and Linda Mathis had a daughter, Bonnie Blue Broad, and in 2020, Bonnie gave birth to Poppy Rebel, making Idol a grandfather. Willem became a musician in the same way as his father, and he has played with the bands FIM and Juggs. Billy holds dual citizenship with both England and the United States after becoming an American citizen in 2018.
Idol was riding his motorcycle when he was struck by a truck in 1990, suffering internal wounds, numerous broken bones, and compound fractures in his leg. Four years later, he came dangerously close to passing away from a drug overdose.
After the experience, Billy made the decision to stop using drugs, saying, “Eventually there was a bit of a wake-up call. I had young kids, and eventually, you start to wonder if they want a dad who is a little crazy. And they oppose that.
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