5 Rock Stars You Didn't Know Got Their Start In Punk Bands

Punk rock has a smaller following than many other genres of rock music, and while there were eras when first-wave punk music hit the pop charts and pop-punk flooded MTV, it's generally the exception rather than the rule. It's why very few punk rockers are household names and why we know the rock stars on this list from their rock bands instead of their time on the punk scene. But let's get one thing clear: Each of these rock stars got their start in punk bands.

It was always more likely that these rock stars were going to become famous for the hard and pop rock they made later in their careers than from their early punk bands. Punk isn't dead, but most people can name fewer famous punk rockers than they have fingers on one hand. And, honestly, we're glad these musicians moved on to other genres; punk rock already has its stars.

Had the rockers on this list stayed in those first bands, we wouldn't have the Foo Fighters, "Heaven is a Place on Earth" wouldn't have hit No. 1, and Duran Duran may not have become MTV icons. So, let's be grateful these rockers found the music they were meant to play, because the pop and rock charts wouldn't have looked the same otherwise.

Dave Grohl is a rock legend who traversed multiple rock subgenres and stayed relevant for over 30 years. As the drummer for the iconic grunge band Nirvana, the music he played rocked millions and touched the hearts of counterculture movements through the '90s and into the present day. After Kurt Cobain's death — a tragedy Grohl didn't take well — Grohl started the alternative rock band Foo Fighters, which was originally a solo project and later a full ensemble that smashed its way into the Top 20 on the Billboard 100. But before the Foo Fighters and even earlier than Nirvana, Dave Grohl was the drummer of the hardcore punk band Scream.

A 17-year-old Grohl lied about being a legal adult in order to join Scream in 1986 and stayed with the band for roughly four years; he played drums, wrote music for the band, and occasionally provided vocals. Scream is nowhere near as famous as Grohl's other two bands, but they're not a garage band playing at basement house parties either. They grew out of the D.C. punk scene and were influential on the hardcore subgenre. Of course, hardcore punk music is, by nature, underground music, so it's not something you're likely to hear on the radio or see on the pop charts.

Grohl reunited with Scream in 2023 for a guest appearance on their album "DC Special." Unfortunately, he didn't join them on their album tour.

Looking at Billy Idol might lead you to believe he was a punk musician, though to those on the punk scene, Idol appears more fashion-forward than what you'd find in punk culture. Some of his music is a lot harder than you'd expect on a pop radio station, but Idol was a pop rock legend of the '80s. He's had multiple Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and 12 albums on the Billboard album chart. His rise to fame didn't start on the pop charts, though — it began with the punk band Generation X.

Billy Idol formed this British punk band with former bandmates from another band in 1976. It was the first time Idol was the frontman of a band, and this change would propel his career forward. Generation X hit the U.K. pop charts multiple times — unusual for a punk band — with six singles and two albums. 

Although none of those releases reached the Top 10, if you're familiar with Idol at all, you've probably heard at least one Generation X song: Both the punk band and Idol as a solo artist released "Dancing With Myself" around the same time, with Idol singing both. And even before Generation X, Idol was the guitarist for Chelsea, a less famous punk band that helped contribute to the first wave of British punk.

Simon Le Bon undoubtedly helped shape the sound of '80s pop rock as the frontman of Duran Duran. Anyone with access to a television during the first years of the MTV era saw Le Bon and his band rocking the screen and heard them dominating the airwaves with their 11 Top 10 hits. But long before Le Bon became an MTV heartthrob, he played in a small punk band called Dog Days.

Le Bon's time as a punk rock frontman was very short, only lasting from 1977 to 1978. He did it as a side project while attending Harrow School of Art in Middlesex, England, and the band only played one show. That show, of course, went horribly wrong, as things often do for musicians who haven't figured out what they're doing yet.

Dog Days performed in a gymnasium on campus as a supporting act, and the headliners of the tiny event wouldn't even let them play from the stage. So, they performed at ground level, and the gig ended with the plug being pulled and the host heckling them over the speakers. As Le Bon said in a 2021 interview with Big Issue: "But you had to start somewhere."

With Belinda Carlisle at the helm, the Go-Go's were one of the top pop rock groups of the early '80s and hit the Billboard 200 with their 1981 debut album "Beauty and the Beat." During her solo career, Carlisle would reach even greater heights of stardom when her hit single "Heaven is a Place on Earth" reached No. 1 on the U.S. pop charts. If you're only familiar with Carlisle's solo work, then you'll likely be surprised to learn she was in a punk band called the Germs before the Go-Go's.

In 1977, Carlisle signed up as the punk band's drummer, though she lacked the ability to actually play the drums, and took on the fictional persona of "Dottie Danger." Unfortunately, Dottie Danger never did make it to the stage due to health issues right before the Germs' first gig. And that was that. Carlisle never went back to the Germs and instead went on to form the Go-Go's in 1978 with other members of the LA punk and rock scene.

To be fair, even the Go-Gos originally started out as a punk band before transitioning into pop-rock and new wave, and many of the band's members considered themselves punk. Musically speaking, they seem to have let go of the punk sound before they cut an album, but the roots are there. You can even hear those punk beginnings in songs like "Skidmarks On My Heart."

Moby is best known for his electronic hits like "Porcelain," "South Side," and "18," but this wasn't how the DJ, electronica, and electronic rock artist (he's a difficult musician to classify) got his start. Even as a teenager, Moby was obsessed with music. He found punk around 14 years old, and by 16, he was already playing in a punk band called Vatican Commandos.

He continued to play in punk bands through the '80s on the Connecticut hardcore punk scene, though he left Vatican Commandos in 1983. The band later gained some regional recognition in punk circles — likely much more after Moby's fame pointed a spotlight on them — but they never really reached fame.

Moby also did a short stint with the hardcore punk band Flipper sometime in the early '80s. This gig only lasted two shows, but it was always meant to be temporary anyway. Later, he was part of a punk band called the Pork Guys from 1997 to 1998, after he'd already broken into the mainstream. The full list of punk bands Moby played in is a mystery — he's talked often about it, yet rarely names names. But even though Moby's career was mostly built around electronic musical styles, punk seems to be an integral part of who Moby is, though his time playing in punk bands is probably over.