Billie Joe Armstrong
Billie Joe Armstrong (born
February 17,
1972) is the main songwriter, lead
vocalist, and
guitarist for the Rock band
Green Day.
Armstrong is the youngest of six children born in
Oakland, California, and raised in
Rodeo, California. His father, Andy, was a jazz musician and truck driver who died of cancer when Armstrong was ten. His mother was a waitress at Rod's Hickory Pit, where Billie and his friend
Mike Dirnt worked during their teen years. Armstrong's father was of
English and
Italian descent, while his mother has
Scottish,
Dutch,
Irish and
Cherokee ancestry.[
1] Rod's Hickory Pit was where Armstrong and his band
Sweet Children performed their first show. He insists that his name is spelled with an 'ie'. He is the only member of Green Day who uses his given name, as the other two members, Michael Ryan Pritchard (
Mike Dirnt) and Frank Edwin Wright III (
Tré Cool), have switched to shorter nicknames.
During his stay in school, he was nicknamed "Two Dollar Bill", because he was supplying the school with
joints for two dollars. In
1988, Armstrong formed a band called
Sweet Children with childhood friend Mike Dirnt, and
Al Sobrante (b. John Kiffmeyer). They changed their name to "Green Day" in March 1989, prior to the release of their first EP,
1,000 Hours, on
Lookout! Records. The name was their slang expression for a pot filled wasted day - they watched TV while being stoned and
Ernie (from Sesame Street) used the term "green day", and it became an inside joke. In
1990, Sobrante left Green Day for college and was eventually replaced by
Tré Cool (born Frank Edwin Wright III), who made his debut on Green Day's second album,
Kerplunk!, playing all but 3 songs.
Apart from working with Green Day, 'The Network' and
Pinhead Gunpowder, Armstrong has proved himself busy in the music world, collaborating with many artists over the years. He has co-written for the
Go-gos ("Unforgiven"), former
Avengers singer
Penelope Houston ("The Angel and The Jerk" and "New Day"), written a song for
Rancid ("Radio"), sung backing vocals with
Melissa Auf Der Maur on
Ryan Adams' "Do Miss America" and recorded lead guitar with Green Day for two tracks, where they acted as the backing band for
Iggy Pop on his "Skull Ring" album ("Private Hell" and "Supermarket").He has recently played a duet with
Elvis Costello on a
VH1 Special including versions of "Basket Case", "Good Riddance" and "Wake Me Up When September Ends".
As of 2006, Billie Joe Armstrong is 34 years of age and has been in his band for 18 years-- most of his life. Armstrong married
Adrienne Nesser (Natalie) on
July 2,
1994. The ceremony itself lasted just five minutes. The day after their wedding Adrienne found out she was pregnant with her first son, Joseph Marciano (born
March 1995). Three years later they had their second son, Jakob Danger (born
September 1998).
Adrienne was born
October 6, 1969 in
Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her brother, Steve Nesser, is a professional skateboarder. While studying
Sociology in Minnesota State University, Nesser met Armstrong and asked him where she could buy a copy of their album. Armstrong has remarked that he had spotted Nesser as he peered into the crowd from the stage during the gig and he was immediately taken by her beautiful long, black hair. The two kept in touch over the phone; often discussing Nesser's human sexuality class. Their first kiss inspired an old Green Day classic,
2,000 Light Years Away. The song
80 is also about Adrienne. Armstrong arranged two tours around Minnesota, simply for the purpose of seeing Nesser, but, after dating for a year-and-a-half, they resigned themselves to the fact that they couldn't be together due to distance.
During the next year, Nesser got engaged to Billy Bisson, the front man of a Minnesota band,
The Libido Boyz. However, their relationship deteriorated, and, when Nesser finished college, Armstrong asked her to move out to California and marry him. She agreed, and Bisson claims that Armstrong stole her from him, saying "I helped that guy, and what does he do? He steals my fiancée." Armstrong and Nesser became engaged soon after, and planned their wedding in about two weeks.
In the documentary
Behind the Music, Nesser says "We didn't think about it, we just did it." The ceremony took place in Armstrong's back yard and lasted five minutes; they wrote their own vows: one Protestant, one Catholic and one Jewish, because they were of no particular religion. The couple spent a week in the Claremont Hotel for their honeymoon (a ten minute walk away from their house). The day after the wedding, Adrienne discovered that she was pregnant.
With these problems resolved, Adrienne is often seen backstage at Green Day's shows. She works at Adeline Records and co-owns Adeline clothing.
In a January
1995 interview with
The Advocate, Armstrong stated that he is
bisexual:
"I think I've always been bisexual. I mean, it's something that I've always been interested in. I think everybody kind of fantasizes about the same sex. I think people are born bisexual, and it's just that our parents and society kind of veer us off into this feeling of 'Oh, I can't'. They say it's taboo. It's ingrained in our heads that it's bad, when it's not bad at all. It's a very beautiful thing."
In
2002 rumors had been circling that Armstrong had died in a tragic car accident, until a statement on Green Day.net cleared things up. Ironically the next year he was pulled over for drunk driving.
Armstrong and Green Day actively promoted the candidacy of
John Kerry in the
2004 U.S. Presidential Election, co-headlining the
Vote For Change tour and lending a track to the
Rock Against Bush benefit album.
Billie Joe has used a modified Marshall Superlead as his amp, but has also used Hiwatt amplifiers in the past. His guitars are mostly
Stratocasters, most notably "Blue", but he has been using mostly
Les Paul Juniors since the recording of Warning. His first guitar was the last present from his dad, which was the infamous Blue. He still has this Blue to this day, as well as several replicas of it. As well as these he also has a custom guitar constructed of pieces of other guitars, it has been known as "Frankenstein"
* Armstrong was given an "Esky" for Best Frontman in
Esquire's 2006 Esky Music Awards in the April issue.
*In
2005 Kerrang! magazine awarded him the Best Dressed Star and Hero of the Year.
* Billie Joe Armstrong once aided Rancid on their album
Let's Go.
*
Green Day*
Mike Dirnt*
Tré Cool*
Green Day.com*
Billie Joe Biography, as well as information on his stint in Common Rider*
Green Day Online*
Billie Joe Armstrong - Friend of Liberty
