NEED TO KNOW
Billy Idol wasn’t totally shocked when he learned he had a secret child.
During a conversation with iNews, the famed rocker, 69, talked about his career, family life and his new documentary, Billy Idol Should Be Dead, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this month. Idol, whose real name is William Michael Albert Broad, went deeper into what it felt like to find out that he unknowingly fathered a child during his 1985 tour “Rebel Yell,” which he touched on in the film.
When asked if it came as a shock to him due to his former rocker lifestyle, he replied, “Maybe a little bit, but the more I thought about it, I guessed there must be something like that.”
“We were going around in the ’80s and ’70s, just having knockdown, drag-out sex with a million people you didn’t know. A lot of people in the rock world got children beyond their usual relationships,” he said.
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Idol is the father to three children: sons Brant Broad and Willem Wolfe Broad and daughter Bonnie Blue Broad. He also has four grandchildren through Brant and Bonnie.
When asked if he ever considered the possibility that he may have more children out there in the world, the “White Wedding” singer said, “I think we would know about them now if there were.”
Now, the proud dad and grandfather is just soaking up his current phase in life. He shared with the outlet that he’s in a “better place in my life.”
“I’m all set up for that. I’m in a better place in my life. In lots of ways, I’ve done everything I wanted, at least to my own satisfaction,” he said. “And now I’m not a drug addict, I can really be there for them.”
Billy Idol/ Instagram
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The punk rocker first introduced his fans to son Brant in 2023, when he joined the star at his Hollywood Walk of Fame star ceremony. In the new documentary, Idol’s family revealed that Brant first came into their lives thanks to a DNA test.
“I really enjoyed being a dad. I always wanted a boy and a girl, and I finagled my way into a boy and a girl. In your own daft way, you’ve achieved what you set out to do,” Idol says in the film. “And I actually had a son that I didn’t realize, who I fathered on the ‘Rebel Yell’ tour without knowing it. So I somehow finagled this as well.”
The “Dancing with Myself” singer was quick to welcome Brant into the fold.
“Once I saw Brant with Bonnie and Willem, they’ve all got the same quirky sense of humor,” he said. “And once I saw that, I could see he’s my son, really.”
Brant added that as he’s gotten to know Idol better, he sees him as “a man who loves his family.”
