# What famous musicians have even more famous musician children? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [April 7, 2026, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092 "2026-04-07T13:42:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/121 "2026-04-08T22:03:02Z")
> [@GESancMan](#): > > My memory of Billie Ray is that he was a one-hit wonder in the early 90s, who came out of nowhere and quickly faded away. Whereas I’ve been hearing about Miley since she was a child. It seems to me that there’s no question that she is the more famous of the pair - by a long shot. **Making her the clear winner of this thread.** (emphasis mine) Um, except you missed a post just before these… > [@saucywench](#): > > Georgia Holt was an American singer-songwriter. She sang and played guitar. > > “She was best known for being the mother of [Cher](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cher).” Yeah, I think that one beats Billy and Miley. ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/122 "2026-04-08T22:13:17Z")
How about Cissy and Whitney Houston? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/123 "2026-04-08T22:33:21Z")
I don’t think Georgia Holt counts as famous by any reasonable standard. ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/124 "2026-04-08T22:38:38Z")
> [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](#): > > Yeah, I think that one beats Billy and Miley. Not by total fame of the pair. One can argue that Cher is more famous than Miley, but the fame disparity between Cher and Miley is dwarfed by the fame disparity between Billie Ray and Georgia. ETA: Or what he said. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/125 "2026-04-08T22:39:26Z")
> [@Author\_Balk](#): > > Cissy and Whitney Houston? Mentioned several times upthread, in fact. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/126 "2026-04-08T22:40:58Z")
The birth dates are not typos. Georgia’s mother married at age 12 and Georgia was born about a year later. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/127 "2026-04-08T22:47:51Z")
And they both lived well into their 90s. Cher has some good longevity genes. ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/128 "2026-04-08T22:50:36Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > And they both lived well into their 90s. Cher has some good longevity genes She’s 79, but I think some parts aren’t even 21 yet… [![](https://media.glamour.com/photos/6980bd581bca1a072324e9ba/1:1/w_1080,h_1080,c_limit/CHER%20GRAMMYS%20020226%20GettyImages-2259500587.jpg) ](https://media.glamour.com/photos/6980bd581bca1a072324e9ba/1:1/w_1080,h_1080,c_limit/CHER%20GRAMMYS%20020226%20GettyImages-2259500587.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/129 "2026-04-08T22:55:21Z")
Elvis Costello’s dad was a professional musician who played in the Joe Loss Orchestra. Dad seems to have a Wikipedia page but I suspect he’s only got it because of who his son is: > **[Ross MacManus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ross_MacManus)** > > Ronald Patrick Ross McManus (20 October 1927 – 24 November 2011), known as Ross MacManus, was an English musician, singer and trumpet player of Irish descent. He performed with Joe Loss and his orchestra. He was the father of Elvis Costello (born Declan MacManus). > McManus was born on Conway Street, Birkenhead, to Mabel and Pat McManus. He began singing at the age of nine as a chorister at St Thomas' Roman Catholic Church. He attended St Anselm's College. He later adapted his surname to MacMan... TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/130 "2026-04-08T23:08:17Z")
There are a lot of good finds in this thread. Any candidates in Hip Hop? My takeaway is that genetics and connections don’t lead to success in mainstream music (pop, rock, country). Maybe these fields are much more style and image oriented that it comes down to who can catch the zeitgeist. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/131 "2026-04-08T23:19:23Z")
> [@eburacum45](#): > > He later became Worzel Gummidge for a generation of children. You mean nightmare food. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/132 "2026-04-08T23:26:32Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > My takeaway is that genetics and connections don’t lead to success in mainstream music (pop, rock, country). I disagree, at least for country. There are a large number of children who have had good careers, even if they haven’t eclipsed the parent. Carlene Carter was mentioned, but also Roseanne Cash, Pam Tillis, Hank Williams Jr.: all achieved a pretty good success, and I’m sure there are more. Crystal Gayle wasn’t the child of a musician, but her 20-years-elder sister paved the way. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/133 "2026-04-08T23:34:38Z")
Paul McCartney’s dad James was a bandleader in the 1920s (Jim Mac’s Jazz Band). He doesn’t have his own Wikipedia page, but was reasonably famous in Liverpool at the time. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/134 "2026-04-08T23:38:10Z")
I thought I posted this the other day but it either got misdirected or lost. My blunder either way. ANYWAY, for anyone who might be interested, getting back to John Sebastian (Junior and Senior), here’s a example of just how good John Sebastian Jr. is on harmonica. ![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ADYFJhdrR2Q/maxresdefault.jpg)https://www.youtube.com/embed/ADYFJhdrR2Q?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&list=RDADYFJhdrR2Q ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/135 "2026-04-09T00:04:57Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Mentioned several times upthread, in fact. Oops… I did a search but must have done it wrong. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/136 "2026-04-09T00:07:08Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > Any candidates in Hip Hop? Not quite an example, but Redfoo of LMFAO is the sone of Berry Gordy. ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/137 "2026-04-09T00:42:33Z")
like Rockwell? ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/138 "2026-04-09T01:59:21Z")
Given that **Will Smith** was originally a rapper, sticking strictly to music, his daughter **Willow** may be more famous than him (it is arguable, but check out her [Wiki page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willow_Smith) before you scoff) ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/139 "2026-04-09T20:00:37Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > There are a lot of good finds in this thread. Any candidates in Hip Hop? Drake’s uncle was Larry Graham, bassist for Sly and the Family Stone. While not a superstar in his own right, Larry did lead a successful band (Graham Central Station) – and, of course, both Drake and SFS as a band were/are megastars (and bass is arguably the lead instrument in funk music). I doubt Drake’s success had much to do with connections – IIRC, his father (and by extension his uncle) wasn’t much involved in his childhood or career. ---
**Author:** ![Tzigone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Tzigone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzigone)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092/140 "2026-04-09T22:09:45Z")
For country, I was thinking Mel Tillis and Pam Tillis, but I’m really not sure if it’s accurate, because I don’t know famous Mel was in heyday, and he may have been more famous (the famous parent being more famous being more typical). The other duo I would think of is Rhett Akins and son Thomas Rhett, but I’m not sure the if the elder ever qualified as properly famous back then - I mean, I listened to country and could still have only named a couple of his songs (but did remember his name enough to recognize who it was years later when his son came on the scene). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-musicians-have-even-more-famous-musician-children/1029092.md?page=8)