Billy Idol

William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English rock singer. He achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X. He later embarked on a solo career which led to international recognition and made him a lead artist during the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" in America. Idol began his music career in 1976 as a guitarist in the punk rock band Chelsea, but left the group after a few weeks and formed Generation X with his former Chelsea bandmate Tony James. With Idol as lead singer, the band achieved success in the UK and released three studio albums on Chrysalis Records before disbanding. In 1981, Idol moved to New York City to pursue his solo career in collaboration with guitarist Steve Stevens. His debut studio album Billy Idol (1982) was a commercial success, and Idol became a staple of the then-new television channel MTV with the music videos for his singles "Dancing with Myself" and "White Wedding". Idol's second studio album Rebel Yell (1983) was a major commercial success, featuring hit singles "Rebel Yell" and "Eyes Without a Face". The album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for selling 2 million copies in America, and he then released Whiplash Smile (1986). He released the greatest hits album Idol Songs: 11 of the Best (1988), which went platinum in the UK, and then released Charmed Life (1990) and the concept album Cyberpunk (1993). Idol spent the second half of the 1990s focusing on his personal life out of the public eye. In 1990, he broke his leg in a motorcycle accident, and later said in his biography Dancing With Myself (2014) that "by the time the motorcycle accident happened, [he] had been living by the credo 'live every day as if it's your last, and one day you're sure to be right'". He made a musical comeback with the release of Devil's Playground (2005) and later released Kings & Queens of the Underground (2014) and Dream Into It (2025). Idol is a three time Grammy Award nominee in the now defunct Best Male Rock Vocal Performance category. In 2023, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Idol and Steve Stevens were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2026.