Tommy Lee is an American musician and drummer born on October 3, 1962. He’s famous for being one of the founding members and the drummer of the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. Besides that, he started another band called Methods of Mayhem, blending rap and metal genres. He’s also worked on his music outside of these bands.
| Full Name | Tommy Lee |
| Date of Birth | October 3, 1962 |
| Place of Birth | Athens, Greece |
| Occupation | Musician, Drummer |
| Height | 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm) |
| Spouse | Brittany Furlan Pamela Anderson Heather Locklear Elaine Starchuk |
| Children | 2 (Brandon Thomas Lee, Dylan Jagger Lee) |
| Net Worth | $70 million |
Tommy Lee’s Early Life
Tommy Lee whose full name is Thomas Lee Bass was born in Athens Greece on October 3, 1962. His dad David Lee Thomas Bass was in the American army and his mom Vassiliki “Voula” Papadimitriou was a contestant in the 1957 Miss Greece beauty pageant. Lee has a younger sister named Athena who also plays the drums. When Lee was about two his family moved back to the United States and settled in California.
Lee got his first drumsticks when he was four and got his first real drum set when he was a teenager. He decided to leave high school early to chase his dream of making music and he started off playing with a band called Suite 19 in Los Angeles. When he was a teenager Lee was really into bands like Led Zeppelin Van Halen Cheap Trick Kiss AC/DC and Sweet. His drumming heroes are John Bonham Tommy Aldridge Alex Van Halen and Terry Bozzio.
Career
Back in the late 1970s, there was this cool band called Suite 19 and they played a lot in clubs on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles where lots of other new bands were also playing like Van Halen and Quiet Riot. One of the guys in Suite 19 was Tommy Lee. He got to know Nikki Sixx who played bass in bands like Sister and London also on the same club circuit.
Nikki Sixx wanted to start a new band that mixed spooky stuff with wild heavy metal music and he liked Tommy’s drumming a lot. So when their old bands broke up Tommy and Nikki decided to make a band together. They asked Mick Mars a guitarist to join them. Then they needed a singer. Tommy remembered a guy from high school named Vince Neil who he thought would be perfect. Vince joined the band and that’s how Mötley Crüe started.
Mötley Crüe became popular, especially in the 1980s. They released a bunch of albums that were big hits like “Too Fast for Love” “Shout at the Devil” “Theatre of Pain” “Girls Girls Girls” and “Dr. Feelgood”. Tommy Lee was known for doing some crazy stuff during his drum solos at their concerts like spinning his drum kit around or even floating above the crowd while playing!
But Mötley Crüe wasn’t just about the music. They were also famous for partying hard both on and off the stage doing a lot of drugs and stuff like that. Tommy and Nikki were even called the “Terror Twins” because of their wild antics.
In 2004, Tommy Lee and the original members of Mötley Crüe got back together to release a big album called “Red White & Crüe”. It was a huge success and they went on a big tour to support it. They played lots of shows and made a ton of money. It was a big comeback for them after not touring for six years.
Lee had a busy journey in the music world! He started with Mötley Crüe back in ’99 for their Greatest Hits tour. Then feeling the vibes of rap metal he kicked off Methods of Mayhem. Their first album came out in ’99 too and they hit the road to promote it. Even though he moved on from Mötley Crüe he chipped in for their autobiography in 2001.
Besides Mötley Crüe and Methods of Mayhem, he popped up on albums by other artists like Stuart Hamm Nine Inch Nails, and Rob Zombie. He even tossed in a tune “Planet Boom” for Pamela Anderson’s movie “Barb Wire” and produced an album for Electric Love Hogs.
After parting ways with his Methods of Mayhem pal he teamed up with some Incubus members and released his first solo album “Never a Dull Moment” in 2002. This album was a mix of rap metal and electronica. He even rocked the main stage at Ozzfest in August 2002.
Then came Rock Star Supernova in 2006 a band he formed with Jason Newsted and Gilby Clarke. They picked Lukas Rossi as their lead singer through the TV show “Rock Star.” Their first album dropped in November 2006.
In 2005, he published his autobiography “Tommyland” and released his second solo album “Tommyland: The Ride.” He also got into DJing hitting clubs all over North America with DJ Aero.
He had a bit of drama with Mötley Crüe in 2007 but they patched things up for their 2008 tour. Since then Tommy’s been busy with DJ gigs joining other artists on stage and even collaborating with the Smashing Pumpkins in 2014.
In a sad turn, he had a phone chat with Taylor Hawkins just before Taylor’s passing in 2022. Tommy later honored him with a tribute concert alongside Nikki Sixx.
What is Tommy Lee’s Net Worth?
Tommy Lee’s Net Worth is estimated to be $70 Million as of 2024, according to Celebrity Net Worth. The main source of Tommy Lee’s net worth is through his music career. Motley Crue was hugely successful, selling millions of albums worldwide, which brought in substantial income from album sales, tours, and merchandise.
Additionally, Tommy Lee has been involved in solo projects, collaborations, and other business ventures related to music. His net worth also includes earnings from endorsements and appearances. Overall, his long-standing career in the music industry has been the main source of his wealth.
Personal Life
Tommy Lee has had a lot of marriages! First, he married Elaine Starchuk in 1984 but they divorced after just a year. Then in 1986, he married actress Heather Locklear but they split up in 1993. You can see their relationship in a movie called “The Dirt” on Netflix.
Before Tommy Lee met Pamela Anderson he was engaged to a model named Bobbie Brown. But after just four days of knowing each other Lee and Anderson got married in 1995. They had two sons together Brandon and Dylan. Even though they divorced in 1998 they had a custody battle over their kids until 2002. They briefly got back together when Lee got out of jail but split again in 2001.
After that Lee got engaged to dancer Mayte Garcia from 2002 to 2003. Later in 2008 Lee and Anderson tried living together again but it didn’t work out. From 2014 to 2017 Lee was engaged to a singer named Sofia Toufa.
Finally, on Valentine’s Day in 2018, Lee proposed to Brittany Furlan a social media star. They got married a year later in 2019.
There’s also a story about a sex tape Lee and Anderson made on a houseboat which got stolen and leaked online. They tried to sue the company but it didn’t work out. The whole ordeal inspired a TV series called “Pam & Tommy” that came out in 2022.
Tommy Lee has had quite a journey with some rough patches along the way. Back in 1998, he got into trouble for kicking Pamela Anderson while she was holding their son Dylan. Then during an argument about Pamela’s parents coming over he hurt her badly leaving bruises and making her fear for their son’s safety. He even spent time in jail for these incidents.
In 2000, he ended up in jail again because he wasn’t following the rules of his probation; he was caught drinking alcohol.
There was also a lawsuit in 1998 over a tattoo on Tommy’s arm that looked like a Nazi symbol. It caused quite a stir especially because he had a history of violence like when he attacked a photographer in 1996.
Tommy’s legal troubles didn’t stop there. In 1997 he and Nikki Sixx were arrested for starting a riot during a concert in North Carolina. They allegedly poured beer over a security guard’s head and made racist comments.
Then in 2001, tragedy struck when a child drowned in Tommy’s swimming pool during a birthday party for his son. The child’s parents sued Tommy but he was cleared of any wrongdoing by a jury.
Tommy Lee has also been in the spotlight for his clashes with other celebrities. He got into a fight with Kid Rock at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2007 which got him kicked out of the ceremony.
Despite his turbulent past, Tommy is passionate about animal rights. He’s been involved with PETA and has spoken out against the mistreatment of animals at places like SeaWorld and the Calgary Stampede. He believes in setting animals free and treating them with respect not using them for entertainment.
Diverse Appearances
In 2004, Tommy Lee was on a TV show called Tommy Lee Goes to College where cameras followed him around as he experienced university life. He helped make the show too. Then in spring 2008, he was on another reality show called Battleground Earth with rapper Ludacris. This one was all about being eco-friendly. In 2019 he made a guest appearance on a show called The Goldbergs as Professor Lee.
In October 2020, Lee acted as the Devil in a spooky podcast called Halloween in Hell. It had lots of famous people in it like Iann Dior 24kGoldn and Machine Gun Kelly.
In 2022, Lee was in a scary movie called The Retaliators. He played a DJ in a strip club in the movie.
