Gavin Rossdale

Gavin Rossdale (born Gavin McGregor Rossdale on 30 October 1965 in Marylebone, London) is an English musician, songwriter and actor best known as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the post‑grunge band Bush. Raised by parents Douglas Rossdale, a man of Russian‑Jewish descent, and Barbara Stephan, who was Scottish, Rossdale did not speak until age four and endured a turbulent childhood marked by his parents' divorce when he was eleven. Immersed in the 1970s British punk scene through his older sister Lorraine, he cites the Sex Pistols and X‑Ray Spex as formative influences, and later attended the independent Westminster School where he faced bullying. His early musical ventures included the pop band Midnight and the group The Little Dukes, which toured Ireland and opened for acts such as Big Country and Cyndi Lauper before dissolving in 1991.

In 1992 Rossdale founded Bush (initially called Future Primitive) with guitarist Nigel Pulsford, and the band’s debut album Sixteen Stone (1994) propelled them to international stardom, especially in the United States where singles like “Glycerine” and “Comedown” dominated rock radio. After Bush’s 2002 split, he formed Institute and released Distort Yourself in 2005, a project he later described as essentially a solo effort. Rossdale’s solo album Wanderlust (2008) featured guest vocals from Gwen Stefani, Shirley Manson and Katy Perry, and his collaborations extended to Apocalyptica, Blue Man Group and Linkin Park. An actor as well, he appeared in films such as Constantine (2005) and Zoolander (2001) and guest‑starred on TV series including Criminal Minds. Awarded the Ivor Novello International Achievement Award in 2013, Rossdale continues to record and tour with Bush, whose discography now spans more than a decade of releases.