Throwback: Happy 62nd Birthday, Duff McKagan!

2026 has gotten off to a terrible and uneasy start for most of us. But we’re here in February. Of course, February is a super busy month: It’s Black History Month, which I’ve made sure to celebrate in some way on this site for much of its history. But there are also a number of important birthdays in music history that we must celebrate. So let’s get to it. 

• Big Boi celebrated his 51st birthday on February 1
•  Rick James was born 78 years ago on February 1
• Stan Getz was born 99 years ago on February 2
• Stone Temple Pilots‘ Robert DeLeo celebrated his 60th — yes, 60th y’all! –birthday on February 2
• LCD Soundsystem frontman and DFA Records founder James Murphy celebrated his 56th birthday on February 2
• The legendary Graham Nash, known for his work with Crosby Stills and Nash, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, The Hollies and as a solo artist, celebrated his 84th birthday on February 2
• The Temptations‘ second and longest tenured lead vocalist Dennis Edwards was born 83 years ago on February 3
• The Offspring‘s guitarist Noodles — born, Kevin John Wasserman — celebrated his 63rd birthday on February 4

If you’re a child of the 80s, as I am, Guns N’ Roses were one of the biggest bands on the earth. And you likely owned at least one or maybe even two copies of Appetite for Destruction in different formats. You’ll also probably remember the Terminator 2 soundtrack quite fondly, as well. Duff McKagan played an instrumental role in those songs — and he celebrates his 62nd birthday today.

McKagan was also a member of the rock supergroup Velvet Revolver, along with his GNR bandmate Slash, Stone Temple Pilots‘ frontman Scott Weiland, The Cult and Guns ‘N’ Roses’ Matt Sorum and Wasted Youth‘s Dave Kushner.

Through his involvement with both bands, McKagan has been a part of some of the biggest rock hits of the past 30 years or so.

Happy birthday, Duff!

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