Henry Rollins Biography

Fast Facts

• Became involved in the punk scene as a teen through his friend Ian MacKaye, the pioneering frontman of Minor Threat and Fugazi, and the cofounder of Dischord Records
• Jumped on stage to sing with Black Flag during a 1981 New York City show
• Soon after, the band asked him to become their singer, a position he held until their 1986 breakup
• In 1984, he founded the publishing company/record label 2
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• 61, which went on to release his spoken-word albums
• In December 1991, he and his best friend, musician Joe Cole, were held up by gunmen outside Rollins' Los Angeles home
• Cole was shot and killed
• Was voted Details' Man of the Year in 1994 and later became a contributing columnist to the magazine
• After recording several albums with hard-rock unit Rollins Band, he disbanded the group in the late '90s, only to reform it with members of Mother Superior
• Has toured with the USO and has championed human rights, including same-sex marriage