By Megan Riedlinger
5:21am PDT, Apr 10, 2023
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The apple doesn't fall far from the tree… or should we say the pick doesn't fall far from the guitar? After growing up with rock stars for parents, these celebrity scions opted to follow in their mom or pop's musical footsteps. We're rounding up some of the rock 'n' roll nepo babies who are now making music of their own…
Both of John Lennon's sons, Julian Lennon and Sean Lennon, make music like their late father. Julian, whose mom is John's first wife, Cynthia Powell, got his first taste of the music industry at 11 when he played drums on his dad's album "Walls and Bridges." He went on to release his debut album, "Valotte," in 1994 at 21 and scored a best new artist Grammy nod in 1985. The Beatle's younger son, Sean — whose mom is John's second wife, Yoko Ono — also makes music like his mom dad. Sean's released two solo albums, "Into the Sun" in 1998 and "Friendly Fire" in 2006, and has been a member of various bands including one with his mom — the Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band from 2009 to 2015.
Keep reading to meet more musicians with rock stars for parents…
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Elijah Hewson — the son of U2 singer Bono and wife Ali Hewson — plays guitar and sings in Inhaler, which he and some schoolmates formed in 2012. The Dublin-based group released a slew of singles before dropping their first full-length album, "It Won't Always Be Like This" — which debuted at No. 1 on the U.K. and Ireland music charts — in 2021. They've been touring ever since, performing at festivals including Lollapalooza and Glastonbury in 2022.
MORE: Rock stars when they were young
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Is it any surprise that Metallica's James Hetfield spawned another rock star? His son with estranged wife Francesca, Castor Hetfield, is the drummer for the band Bastardane, a hard-rock trio with a heavy-metal influence like his pop's band. He's seen here performing at the 2022 BottleRock Festival in Napa, California.
MORE: The most iconic rock couples through the years
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Legendary Mexican American rock musician Carlos Santana's middle child, daughter Stella Santana, inherited her father's passion for music. (Perhaps her grandfather's too: Her mother is Carlos's ex-wife Deborah King, whose father was blues musician Saunders King.) The singer-songwriter chose a different genre than her dad — R&B — and released her debut album, "Selfish," in 2016.
MORE: '80s rockers: Where are they now?
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Kaya Stewart auditioned on "American Idol" (her episode aired in March 2023) with an original song called "This Tattoo," delivering a killer performance that led judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan to send her on to Hollywood. Kaya's father, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Dave Stewart — who's best known for his work as one-half of the Eurythmics — accompanied his daughter on guitar as she sang her heart out. But during Hollywood Week, which aired in April 2023, Kaya got sick. "I have been trying to push myself and keep going … [but] I realized that I wasn't able to give 100%," she explained before announcing she was dropping out of the competition.
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At just 15, Wolfgang Van Halen scored a pretty cool gig: He played bass for dad Eddie Van Halen's rock band Van Halen. Wolf, whose mother is actress Valerie Bertinelli, played with the group thorough 2020, the year his father passed away from cancer. He also performed with the heavy metal group Tremonti from 2012 to 2016 and more recently started up a solo project, Mammoth WVH, in 2021.
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Lola Lennox is a singer-songwriter with an impressive pedigree: Her mom is Eurythmics singer Annie Lennox. One listen to her music and you'll note a resemblance in their strong voices. The talented singer, who's one of Annie's two daughters with second husband Uri Fruchtmann, released her debut single in 2020 and has since put out a duet with her mom.
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Creedence Clearwater Revival founder John Fogerty passed his love of music down to his sons. Tyler Fogerty and Shane Fogerty, from John's second marriage to Julie Kramer, have a band called Hearty Har. In 2022, they hit the road with their dad on the "Travelin' Band Family Tour."
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You couldn't escape Wilson Phillips in the '90s. The group consists of pure rock royalty: Chynna Phillips, who's the daughter of John Phillips and Michelle Phillips of the Mamas & the Papas; and Carnie Wilson and Wendy Wilson, the daughters of Beach Boys legend Brian Wilson and his first wife, singer Marilyn Rovell of The Honeys. The trio dominated the airwaves in the wake of their 1990 debut album with hits like "Hold On" and scored five Grammy nominations.
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Zak Starkey counts The Beatles drummer Ringo Starr as his dad — but instead of using the shortened version of their given last name like his famous father does, he opted to use the full surname. Like Ringo, Zak — whose mother was Ringo's first wife, hairdresser Maureen Cox — Zak has found success as a drummer: He's performed and recorded with The Who since 1996 and has worked with other major acts like Oasis, Johnny Marr and the Waterboys.
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Jakob Dylan made a name for himself as the frontman of the Wallflowers, who put out their first album in 1992 and blew up in 1996 with the release of hits like "One Headlight." They won two Grammys and have continued to make music over the years, releasing their most recent album, "Exit Wounds," in 2021. Jakob is music icon Bob Dylan's youngest child with his first wife, Sara Lownds.
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You can probably guess who James McCartney's wildly famous father is just by looking at him! James bares a striking resemblance to dad Paul McCartney. He's the only son from the Beatle's union with late wife Linda McCartney, a photographer and Paul's bandmate in Wings. James has released two EPs and two albums since his first offering came out in 2013 and also contributed to some of his parents' solo albums.
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Nicholas Collins' dad is the one and only Phil Collins and his mom is the Genesis drummer-vocalist's third ex-wife, Orianne Cevey. Nicholas got his professional start on the drums when he filled in for his dad during one of Phil's tours and went on to start his own band, Better Strangers. Though his vibe is more alt-rock than Genesis's work or Phil's solo stuff, it's obvious where he got his talent!
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Layla Brooklyn Allman has music in her blood — her dad is the late Gregg Allman of the Allman Brothers Band and her mother is former radio journalist Shelby Blackburn. Instead of following in her dad's blues-rock style, Layla opted to go a more metal route. Her band, Picture Me Broken, formed in 2005 and had one of their songs featured in the popular video game "Rock Band 2."
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If your dad is a Beatle, it's only natural to gravitate toward music. Dhani Harrison — the only child of George Harrison and second wife Olivia Arias, who worked for A&M Records in the '70s — was even named after the sixth and seventh notes of the Indian music scale! He's been a part of multiple music groups — including indie rockers thenewno2 and the rock trio Fistful of Mercy — and has collaborated with a wide range of artists. He was featured on a Wu-Tang Clan track, "The Heart Gently Weeps," Perry Farrell's solo album "Kind Heaven" and collaborated with Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Prince for a performance at the 2004 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
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Lucy Walsh's father is none other than Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh. Joe had Lucy with his third wife, Jody Boyer. Lucy, whose focus is singing, songwriting and playing piano, released her first solo album in 2007. She went on to play piano for Ry Cuming, which led her to tour with big groups like Maroon 5 and One Republic.
