Phil Collins

Philip David Charles Collins is an English singer, drummer, songwriter, record producer, and actor born on 30 January 1951. He is best known as the drummer and later lead vocalist of the rock band Genesis, as well as for his career as a solo artist. Between 1982 and 1990, Collins achieved three UK and seven US number-one singles as a solo performer. Through his work with Genesis, solo material, and collaborations, he earned more US top-40 singles during the 1980s than any other artist.

Raised in West London by an insurance agent father and a theatrical agent mother, Collins began playing drums at age five. His early musical influences included The Beatles, the Action, and jazz drummer Buddy Rich. He studied drum rudiments under Lloyd Ryan and Frank King, though he never learned standard musical notation. Collins attended Chiswick County Grammar School before leaving at age 14 to attend the Barbara Speake Stage School full-time.

As a youth, Collins balanced acting with music. He appeared in the film A Hard Day's Night (1964) and performed as the Artful Dodger in West End productions of the musical Oliver!. He also starred in the film Calamity the Cow (1967) before shifting his focus primarily to music. After playing in several local groups, including the Cliff Charles Blues Band and the Gladiators, he joined Flaming Youth in 1969, recording the concept album Ark 2 prior to the group's split in 1970.

In July 1970, Collins joined Genesis as their drummer and backing vocalist, occasionally singing lead on select songs. Following the departure of original frontman Peter Gabriel in 1975, Collins assumed lead vocal duties starting with the album A Trick of the Tail. He fronted Genesis through its transition from progressive rock into mainstream pop rock until leaving in 1996. Concurrently, he played drums for the jazz fusion group Brand X between 1975 and 1979, and formed the Phil Collins Big Band in 1996.

Collins launched a solo career with his 1981 debut album, Face Value, which was influenced by his first marital breakdown and soul music. He followed with multi-platinum releases including Hello, I Must Be Going! (1982), No Jacket Required (1985), and ...But Seriously (1989). His solo work produced international hit singles such as "In the Air Tonight", "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)", "Sussudio", and "Another Day in Paradise". He also became widely recognized for introducing a distinctive "gated reverb" drum sound into pop and rock production.

With an estimated 150 million records sold worldwide, Collins is one of three recording artists to sell over 100 million albums both as a solo entity and as a principal band member. His honors include eight Grammy Awards, six Brit Awards, six Ivor Novello Awards, two Golden Globes, and an Academy Award for Disney's Tarzan (1999). He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Genesis in 2010 and the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2012. Following a hiatus, he published his memoir and completed the Not Dead Yet Tour starting in 2016, later reuniting with Genesis for their final tour in 2021–2022.