Born in Middlesex, UK, Billy Idol was a child of punk, first fronting the band Generation X before becoming a worldwide, MTV-generation star in the 80s.
After packing in the English degree he was working towards at Sussex university, in 1976 Billy joined up with The Bromley Contingent, a group of Sex Pistols fans who went on to have an impact of their own after it formed Siouxsie and the Banshees and Generation X.
Billy became the lead singer of Generation X and made no attempt to hide the fact that they were going to do things a bit differently from other punk acts. Whilst peers such The Clash and The Sex Pistols wrote off the 60s pop of acts like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, Generation X embraced it as their primary influence. This pop influence allowed them to become the first punk act to be featured on Top of The Pops and the band released 3 albums before disbanding.
This freed up Billy to pack his bags, head to New York City and pursue a solo career. Fusing his punk image with a hint of glam, Billy soon began to pump out the hits with songs like ‘White Wedding’ becoming an MTV staple. Billy unintentionally found himself becoming a part of the ‘Second British Invasion of the United States’, a period where numerous British acts found great success overseas fueled by the relatively new platform of MTV.
With the release of his next album ‘Rebel Yell’, Billy’s transformation into international super star was complete. Today he still plays sold out arenas globally and is a testament to what a young punk from Middlesex can achieve.
Vince Staples
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