Philip David Charles “Phil” Collins LVO, is a famous English singer, lyricist, instrumentalist, music producer and actor, best known for his role as the lead singer and drummer of ‘Genesis’, a world famous rock band. In his more than 4 decades long career, Collins has scored three UK number one singles and seven singles that topped US Music charts. Apart from being the lead singer of Genesis, Collins also established himself as a successful solo-artist and has produced 40 singles that were named on various Music lists in USA throughout the 1980s.
Phil Collins – Awards and Records
One of the highest selling musicians worldwide, Collins has sold more than 150 million records across the world and has been felicitated with 8 Grammy Awards, 1 Academy Award, 2 Golden Globe Awards,1 Disney Legend Award, and 6 Brit Awards. He received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the year 1999 and on various musical halls of fame including Rock and Roll, Modern and Classical Drummer hall of fame. Phil Collins along with Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney are the only 3 recording artists who have sold more than 100 million records as a solo artist and as a band.
Early Life and Education
Collins was born in Chiswick, West London, England on 30 January 1951 to insurance agent Greville Philip Austin Collins and theatrical agent Winifred M. “June” (née Strange). He has two siblings; a brother and a sister. Collins was gifted drums as a child, which he loved and played all the time until he received his first real set of drums at age 12.
Collins attended the eponymous stage school and began his acting career when he was 14, after became a student of the Barbara Speake Stage School. He learnt how to play the drums professionally but never learnt how to write musical notes which he later said, he regretted.
Career Rise
Collins joined the rock band ‘Genesis’ in 1970 and along with the band, produced five studio albums and even went on live concert tours in the US. By 1975, Collins became the face of the band and by 1978, the band consisted of only 3 members, Collins; the lead singer and drummer, Tony Banks; the keyboardist and Mike Rutherford the guitarist and released the album ‘And Then There Were Three’, which was certified gold and featured the hit number “Follow You Follow Me.” Their next album ‘Duke’ released in 1980 was an even bigger commercial success. Collins also performed with the jazz band Brand X regularly.
In 1981, Collins released his first solo record titled ‘Face Value’ featuring the blockbuster hit single “In the Air Tonight” and in the following year released ‘Hello, I Must Be Going’, his second solo album which featured the popular tracks “I Don’t Care Anymore” and “You Can’t Hurry Love”.
I984, Collins got Academy and Golden Globe Award nominations for writing the title song of the film ‘Against All Odds’. His third solo album titled ‘No Jacket Required’ was released in 1985 and was also named a chart topper.
Collins made his feature film debut in 1988 with the film ‘Buster’ in which he both, acted and wrote the song “Two Hearts”, earning Academy and Golden Globe Nominations for ‘Best Original Score’ once again.
Phil Collins – Best Songs
Phil Collins’s popular and top-rated singles include ‘A Groovy Kind of Love’, ‘ Another Day in Paradise’, ‘I don’t care Anymore’, ‘Against All Odds’, ‘One More Night’, Two Hearts, Sussudio, In the Air Tonight’ and ‘I wish I would Rain Down’, and ‘Jesus, He knows me’ as a part of Genesis.
Phil Collins – Wife and Relationships
Collins has been married thrice. The 1.68 meter tall entertainer was first married to Andrea Bertorelli. The couple got married at age 24. The marriage produced one son named Simon Collins, a drummer and vocalist of the band ‘Sound of Contact’.
He also adopted Bertorelli’s daughter named Joely, who is an actress and film producer. Their marriage lasted from 1975 to 1980.
In 1984, Collins married Jill Tavelman, an American who gave birth to their daughter, actress Lily Collins in 1989. Collins and Tavelman divorced in 1996.
Collins’ third marriage was with Swiss national Orianne Cevey in 1999 and the couple became parents to Nicholas and Matthew. They divorced in 2008.
Collins paid £25 million to Cevey, which became the biggest settlement in a British celebrity divorce.
From 2007 through 2016, Collins dated US news anchor Dana Tyler. In 2016, he reunited with his wife Cevey, as she had gone to his Miami home with their two sons. But when he came to know his wife was in a relationship with another man, he initiated eviction proceedings against her, in 2020. He also sold his Miami home.
Phil Collins – Book
Phill Collins has published his autobiography called ‘Not Dead Yet‘ in 2016, which has a lot of content on his personal life. In 2016, his first wife Bertorelli sued Collins for talking about their personal life in the autobiography.
Phil Collins – House
The famous singer has homes in Féchy, Switzerland, Dersingham, Norfolk and New York City. He sold his Miami Home for $39 million in 2021.
Phil Collins – Young Pictures
Phil Collins – Net Worth
Collins has an estimated net worth of approximately $260 Million. He is among the top 20 richest people in the British music industry. He is the second richest drummer in the world, second to Ringo Starr, the drummer for Beatles.
Where is Phil Collins now?
He temporarily lost hearing due to an ear infection in 2000, but the condition was cured. In September 2009, it became evident that Collins wouldn’t play drums anymore because of a surgery for a dislocated vertebrae for his neck, when he was drumming at the 2007 Genesis Tour.
Sadly, the operation led to him losing sensation in his fingers, due to which he could only hold drums sticks, if they were taped to his hands.
Though Collins said that he looked at his health conditions as not distressing; in a 2010 interview he stated that he had contemplated suicide but refrained because of love for his children.
In a 2016 interview, he said that he was still not able to play drums, primarily due to a nerve condition and not arthritis, as it was stated in the media He did add that after a major back surgery, he would be able to play drums again but it would require slow and steady practicing. He had to cancel two music tour stops scheduled for June 8 and 9, 2017 because of ‘drop foot’ falls that resulted due to back operation. Due to a fall while going to the toilet in his hotel room, he injured his head resulting in a gash near the eye, and had to be taken to hospital for treatment.
In his autobiography, Phil Collins revealed that he had struggled with alcoholism following his third divorce and retirement. In January 2017, Collins stated that he was a type 2 diabetic and that he had diabetic abscess and subsequent infection on his foot.
At age 70, Collins had to be seated on a chair while performing and could walk with a cane.