Billie Joe Armstrong Is Worth $15 Million More Than His Green Day Bandmates
Green Day was one of the most successful classic rock bands of the ’90s. Through the years, Green Day has sold millions of records and performed in sold-out concerts worldwide. Naturally, the band has managed to amass quite a significant amount of wealth over the years.
While members Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool have done well for themselves, their bandmate Billie Joe Armstrong is worth $15 million more than them.
Green Day was initially called Sweet Children
Before Green Day was Green Day, they had a sweet name, and the band had more than three people. Green Day began in 1987 with Dirnt and Armstrong as its heads. The duo, 15 at the time, formed a band along with Raj Punjabi and Sean Hughes and named the act Sweet Children.
Punjabi left Sweet Children the following year and was replaced by John Kiffmeyer. Hughes also let the band, and Dirnt had to drop the guitar for bass. Larry Livermore, who owned Lookout! Records discovered the band after seeing them play in a show and signed them to the label.
Green Day released their EP 1,000 hours in 1989 after dropping the name Sweet Children. The band reportedly had to give up its original name to avoid confusing audiences with another band called Sweet Baby.
The name Green Day came from a slang term used in the Bay Area, where Armstrong and Dirnt are from, meaning a day of smoking cannabis.
Green Day released their debut studio album 39/ Smooth in 1990. Shortly after the band toured for the first time, Kiffmeyer left for college, and Cool began filling in before becoming the group’s permanent drummer. The band then left Lookout! Records and signed with Reprise Records.
Under Reprise, Green Day had its breakthrough success and won their first Grammy award with the third album Dookie. Green Day has a total of 13 studio albums and has sold over 75 million records worldwide. The group has earned 20 Grammy nominations and won five.
Billy Joe Armstrong is richer than his Green Day bandmates
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Dirnt is worth an impressive $60 million while Cool is worth $55 million. Both of them have been with Green Day since its early beginnings and were present when Dookie broke the mold and made them a mainstream act.
The duo has had other side projects and participated in other endeavors, including playing with other bands. Dirnt and Armstrong have been involved with Foxboro Hot Tubs, The Frustrators, The Network, and the Screeching Weasels.
Dirnt and Cool have also had some work outside of singing, lending their voices to popular animations like King of the Hill and The Simpsons. As great as Cool and Dirnt’s financial health has been, their net worth is nowhere near their Green Day bandmate.
Celebrity Net Worth estimates that Armstrong is worth $75 million. Armstrong was involved in several side projects like Cool and Dirnt and even pursued a solo career. He has also done a lot of acting in Drunk History, Live Freaky! Die Freaky!, and This Is 40. He also did voice acting in Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland.
Green Day’s success has dwindled in recent years
According to critics, Green Day began losing relevance in 2000 when they released Warning. The album didn’t do as well as its predecessors, and a decline in popularity followed. They had a resurgence in 2004 with the release of American Idiot, which charted at number one on the Billboard charts and won a Grammy.
They released a trilogy of albums in 2012, but those didn’t perform well commercially. The band hasn’t been as successful in recent years partly because they’ve focused on several side projects.
