Nikki Sixx

Nikki Sixx was married to Playboy Playmate Brandi Brandt from 1989 to 1996, and they had three children: Gunner Nicholas, Storm Brieann, and Decker Nilsson. One month after their divorce, he married actress Donna D'Errico. They had a daughter, Frankie-Jean Mary, and divorced in 2007 after separations and reconciliations.

Sixx married Courtney Bingham on March 15, 2014. They have a daughter, Ruby Sixx, who was born in 2019.

After playing in Sister and forming London with Lizzie Grey, Sixx founded Mötley Crüe with Tommy Lee in 1981. Guitarist Mick Mars and singer Vince Neil later joined the group. Mötley Crüe released its debut album, Too Fast for Love, on the band’s own Leathür Records label before signing with Elektra Records and issuing the album again.

The band reached national prominence with Shout at the Devil and followed it with Theatre of Pain, Girls, Girls, Girls, and Dr. Feelgood. The 1989 album Dr. Feelgood remained on the charts for 114 weeks. Sixx wrote or co-wrote songs including “Live Wire,” “Home Sweet Home,” “Kickstart My Heart,” “Wild Side,” and “Dr. Feelgood.”

Sixx’s heroin addiction became a major part of Mötley Crüe’s history. He overdosed on December 23, 1987, was revived by paramedics, and later entered rehabilitation with the band. Mötley Crüe reunited with its original lineup for a 2006 tour, announced a legally binding final tour in 2014, and became the subject of the 2019 Netflix film The Dirt, based on the band’s autobiography.

In 2000, Sixx formed the internet-based project 58 with Dave Darling, Steve Gibb, and Bucket Baker. The group released one album, Diet for a New America, through Sixx’s Americoma label and Beyond Records.

Sixx and Tracii Guns formed Brides of Destruction in Los Angeles in 2002. The group released Here Come the Brides in 2004, then went on hiatus while Sixx reunited with Mötley Crüe. Three songs co-written by Sixx during the band’s sessions appeared on the 2005 album Runaway Brides.

Sixx formed Sixx:A.M. in 2006 with songwriter and producer James Michael and guitarist DJ Ashba. The band’s first album, The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack, accompanied Sixx’s memoir and produced the single “Life Is Beautiful,” which reached number two on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. Sixx:A.M. later released This Is Gonna Hurt, Modern Vintage, Prayers for the Damned, and Prayers for the Blessed.

Premiere Radio Networks launched Sixx Sense with Nikki Sixx in 2010. The nationally syndicated program combined music and lifestyle discussions with Sixx’s perspective on the rock world, and Jenn Marino later joined him as co-host. Sixx also hosted The Side Show with Nikki Sixx, a weekend program featuring charting songs, emerging artists, and entertainment guests.

Sixx announced that he would leave Sixx Sense at the end of 2017. His radio work established a second public role alongside his career as a bassist and songwriter.

Sixx collaborated with writer Neil Strauss and his Mötley Crüe bandmates on The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band. The 2001 autobiography spent 10 weeks in the top ten of The New York Times best-seller list and was later adapted into the film The Dirt.

In 2007, Sixx published The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star, based on journal entries from 1986 and 1987. The book reached number seven on The New York Times best-seller list and inspired the first Sixx:A.M. album.

Sixx partnered with Covenant House to create Running Wild in the Night, an initiative supporting homeless and runaway youth through creative arts and music programs. He has also worked as a photographer and presented his street photography in the 2017 Leica Gallery Los Angeles exhibition Conversation with Angels.

Beyond Mötley Crüe and Sixx:A.M., Sixx has written, performed, or produced music for artists including Steve Jones, Lita Ford, Alice Cooper, Meat Loaf, Marion Raven, Drowning Pool, Saliva, and The Last Vegas. He co-wrote “Die for You” with Alice Cooper and Mick Mars and played bass on Cooper’s “Feed My Frankenstein.”

In 2006, Sixx launched the clothing line Royal Underground with Kelly Gray. In 2021, he joined Rob Zombie, John 5, and Tommy Clufetos in the supergroup L.A. Rats. He played bass on Dolly Parton’s song “Bygones” from the 2023 album Rockstar.