Joel Ryan Reuben Madden (born March 11, 1979 as
Joel Ryan Reuben Combs) is the
lead vocalist for the band
Good Charlotte, a
record producer,
actor, and a
DJ.
Biography
Early life
Joel Madden was born
Joel Reuben Combs in
Waldorf, Maryland. He has an identical twin brother,
Benji Madden, who plays lead guitar in their band Good Charlotte. He also has an older brother named Josh and a younger sister named Sarah. Madden attended
La Plata High School in
La Plata, Maryland.
When Madden was sixteen years old his father left the family, causing them financial hardships. Madden took up various odd jobs as a teenager to help his mother with the family's bills. One job he and his brother, Benji, took up was washing hair at a salon. While in his early twenties, Madden, along with his siblings, changed his last name from Combs, his father's last name, to his mother's maiden name, Madden. He did so to distance himself from his father.
Good Charlotte
In 1995, at the age of 16, Madden attended the
Beastie Boys Ill Communication Tour with his brother Benji. Drawing from music introduced to them by their older brother Josh, such as
Rancid and
Social Distortion, as well as the influence of the Beastie Boys concert, the two started their own band with a friend. The band was short lived and the Maddens eventually recruited fellow high schoolers Paul Thomas and Aaron Escolopio to form Good Charlotte.
Other projects
In the 2001 film
Not Another Teen Movie, Joel and the other
Good Charlotte members made a cameo as the band at the school's prom. He later had a cameo role in the 2004 film
Fat Albert and in the 2006 film
Material Girls with his brother Benji.
Madden started a clothing line called
MADE Clothing along with his brothers Benji and Josh. The line is now defunct. In early 2006 MADE Clothing became
DCMA Collective. The line is owned by himself, his brothers
Benji Madden, Josh Madden, and friend Tal Cooperman. The Madden brothers also front a production team called
Dead Executives.
In November 2007,
Nicole Richie and Madden created The Richie Madden Children's Foundation. The charity will create and promote an online registry to inspire the purchases of items for moms and their families in need.
He is also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador....
Personal life
Joel started dating
Hilary Duff in 2004, when she was 16 years old and he 25.
In November 2006, after two and a half years, Madden and Duff broke up.
Madden started dating
Nicole Richie soon after he and Hilary Duff broke up.
[www.timeslive.co.za/entertainment/celebrity/article154370.ece] They have two children: daughter Harlow Winter Kate Madden (born January 11, 2008)
and son Sparrow James Midnight Madden (born September 9,
2009).
[nicolerichie.celebuzz.com/2009/09/excited-to-announce/]
Guest appearances
Discography
Main article: Good Charlotte discography
