Billy Idol Biography

Billy Idol (born William Michael Albert Broad on November 30, 1955 in Middlesex, England) is an English hard rock musician. Idol lived in Worthing before attending Sussex University for only a year before joining the Bromley Contingent of keen Sex Pistols fans. During this period, Idol decided to become a musician and formed a band called Generation X in 1976 (see 1976 in music).
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Generation X signed to Chrysalis Records and released three successful albums before breaking up. Idol moved to New York City and began working as a solo artist and working with Steve Stevens, soon becoming MTV staples with "White Wedding" (below right) and "Dancing with Myself". Idol's second LP, Rebel Yell (1984, 1984 in music) was a blockbuster success and established Idol's superstar status in the United States.

Idol did not release a new album until 1986 (see 1986 in music); Whiplash Smile sold very well and proved to be a smash-hit. Stevens soon left for a solo career and Idol continued. A cover of Tommy James' "Mony Mony" did well on MTV and Idol played Cousin Kevin in a performance of Tommy. Just before the release of Charmed Life in 1990 (see 1990 in music), Idol was in a motorcycle accident in which he almost lost his leg. The album sold extremely well, but Idol decided to take a break and acted in The Doors, directed by Oliver Stone. The follow-up to Charmed Life was 1993's Cyberpunk (see 1993 in music), which was a flop in the States, and Idol sank into drug addiction, nearly dying of an overdose in 1994.

The picture cover of the 1982 White Wedding singleIdol returned to the popular eye in 1998, when he played himself in The Wedding Singer, an Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore romantic comedy, where "White Wedding" was used as the title track. Idol appeared on VH1 Storytellers and issued a wildly successful Greatest Hits CD in 2001.

Idol was embarrassed when at the 2002 Australian Rugby League Grand Final, a power problem resulted in no one being able to hear him singing. This at least proved that he didn't lip-sync his performances.

In the 2004 PlayStation 2 game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, the song White Wedding was included in the lineup of classic rock radio station KDST.

Devil's Playground, which came out March 22, 2005, is his first new studio album in nearly 12 years.

BILLY IDOL PICTURES

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BILLY IDOL BIOGRAPHY