Sting Biography

Fast Facts

• Worked as an English teacher at St
• Paul's Primary School in Newcastle, England, in the mid-1970s
• While he was playing bass with the Phoenix Jazzmen, a fellow band member reportedly nicknamed him Sting because of a yellow-and-black striped sweater he often wore
• Before forming the Police, played bass in a number of bands, including the Ronnie Pierson Trio, the Newcastle Big Band, the Phoenix Jazzmen and Last Exit
• First major film role was in 1982's Brimstone & Treacle
• Cofounded the Rainforest Foundation in 1987 with wife-to-be Trudie Styler after visiting the Amazon rain forest
• Has received several Brit Awards: for his work with the Police, Best Group (1982) and Outstanding Contribution to British Music (1985); for his solo work, Best Male Solo Artist (1991) and Outstanding Contribution to British Music (2002)
• Was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (as a member of the Police) in 2003
• Holds honorary degrees from Northumbria University, Newcastle, England (Music, 1992), Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA (1994), and Newcastle University, Newcastle (Music, 2006)