Belinda Carlisle

Belinda Jo Carlisle (born August 17, 1958) is an American singer‑songwriter, actress and memoirist who rose to fame as the charismatic lead vocalist of the pioneering all‑female new‑wave band the Go‑Go’s. Born in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, she was the first of seven children and endured a turbulent childhood marked by poverty, her father’s abandonment and a volatile step‑father, experiences that later fueled her rebellious teenage years and artistic drive. After a brief stint as “Dottie Danger” on drums with the Germs in 1977, she co‑founded the Go‑Go’s in 1978, guiding the group from garage rehearsals to a Grammy‑nominated act whose 1981 debut Beauty and the Beat became the first No. 1 album by an all‑female band that wrote and played its own material. The band’s infectious hits “We Got the Beat” and “Our Lips Are Sealed” cemented their place in MTV‑driven pop culture and sold over seven million records worldwide. Following the Go‑Go’s breakup in 1985, Carlisle launched a solo career that yielded a string of international chart‑toppers, including the iconic anthem “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” the sultry “I Get Weak,” and the wistful “Circle in the Sand,” each showcasing her dynamic soprano and polished pop‑rock sensibility. Beyond music, she appeared in the 1984 film Swing Shift, authored the bestselling memoir Lips Unsealed (2010), and earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame with the Go‑Go’s in 2011. Her personal life includes a long‑standing marriage to producer Morgan Mason since 1986 and the birth of their son James Duke Mason in 1992. Overcoming a three‑decade battle with cocaine addiction, she embraced Nichiren Buddhism in 2002, achieving sobriety in 2005 and subsequently championing LGBT rights and animal welfare through activism and charitable foundations. Inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2021) and the California Hall of Fame (2024), Carlisle continues to record and perform, most recently releasing the EP Kismet (2023) and the album Once Upon a Time in California (2025), proving the enduring appeal of her pop‑princess‑to‑punk‑diva evolution.