S T I N G . M E D I A . W E B . M A I N
BIOGRAPHY
Sting was born Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner on October 2, 1951 to parents Audrey Cowell and Ernest Sumner near Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Sting is the eldest of four children, with one brother and two sisters. He was raised in the Roman Catholic faith, an upbringing that heavily influences his songwriting. He attended St. Cuthbert's Grammar School and then the University of Warwick in Coventry. After leaving the University of Warwick after one term, Sting held several odd jobs before attending Northern Counties Teachers' Training College to become a teacher.
During his stint as educator, Sting gigged in local jazz bands including the Phoenix Jazzmen (where Sting reportedly received his famous nickname), the Newcastle Big Band, and jazz fusion group Last Exit. Sting moved to London in 1977, hoping to kick-start his music career. There he joined Stewart Copeland and Henry Padovani (soon replaced by Stewart Copeland) to form The Police. The Police blended punk, pop, rock, reggae, and jazz sounds fearlessly, a musical style that would continue into Sting solo career. After the release of their Synchronicity album, Sting, Copeland and Summers decided to focus on solo projects, essentially breaking up the successful new wave group.
Although initially hounded by the media for answers regarding the break-up of The Police, Sting's solo career has been tremendously successful. So much so that many consider his work to be better post-Police. To be sure, Sting's solo work has proven to be much more introspective, political and literate. With each album, Sting explores new musical genres, ideologies and personal experiences. His initial solo work infused jazz sounds with soft rock and pop on albums Dream of the Blue Turtles and ...Nothing Like the Sun. Later albums see Sting experimenting with the sounds of Middle Eastern music and with dance beats. In 2006, Sting released Songs from the Labyrinth, an album of music by Elizabethan-era "singer-songwriter" John Dowland featuring Sting's vocals and Edin Karamazov's expert lute playing.
Aside from making music, Sting has also dabbled in acting in film, television and on stage. He has been in several films including Dune, The Bride and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. He has also appeared on television hosting and performing on Saturday Night Live and has also lent his voice talents to The Simpsons. Sting also contributes his time, celebrity and money to various humanitarian and environmental causes, such as Amnesty International and the Rainforerst Foundation, an organization he founded with wife Trudie Styler.
Sting has been married two times. First to Irish actress Frances Tomelty. The couple had two children together and were divorced in 1984. In 1982, Sting seperated from Tomely and began living with Trudie Styler. Sting and Trudie married in 1992 and have four children together.
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