Earlier tonight, Billy Idol received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 52nd Annual American Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Idol's acceptance speech can be seen below, where he reminisces about his past and looks forward to future endeavors.
An excerpt has been transcribed as follows: “When I started out in punk rock, uh back in 1976, we thought it may only last about six months, let alone 50 years! But we were doing it for the love.
We were doing it for the love.
And because music was the only thing that gave us a sort of feeling of freedom, a sense of freedom.
We believed in what we were doing and we thought maybe if we just dreamed into this life and gave it everything we had, it would give it all back to us in spades.
And that’s exactly what happened.
So to any kid out there who loves rock and roll or any music of any kind as much as Leon and I do, and if you’re inspired to create that sense of freedom and pursue a life of art, then all I can say is pick an instrument, find out who you are, and be it.” Billy Idol chats with ET’s Denny Directo at the 52nd Annual American Music Awards about his journey over the past half-century.
The documentary film Billy Idol Should Be Dead, directed by Jonas Åkerlund and produced by Live Nation Studios, is streaming now on Hulu following a successful theatrical run.
The documentary traces the life and career of punk pioneer turned rock ‘n’ roll icon Billy Idol.
Through never-before-seen archival and personal interviews with Idol, his family, peers and collaborators, the documentary digs deep into his emergence as a prototypical punk rocker, his meteoric rise as a global superstar in the MTV era and the myriad of challenges Idol had to overcome to not just survive, but to remain one of the most beloved figures in rock ‘n’ roll.
Watch the film’s trailer, featuring Idol along with Billie Joe Armstrong, Miley Cyrus, Pete Townshend and more: Idol will embark on a new leg of his highly successful world tour this summer for It’s A Nice Day To…Tour Again!, which saw Idol sell out venues across the US, Europe and Latin America.
Produced by Live Nation, the run of arenas and amphitheatres kicks off at The Pavilion at Montage Mountain in Scranton, PA on August 7.
Additionally, Idol will perform a week-long residency at Las Vegas’ Fontainebleau from August 28-September 5.
A complete list of dates is below: July 10 – Prior Lake, MN – Lakefront Music Festival July 12 – Highland Park, IL – Ravinia August 7 – Scranton, PA – The Pavilion at Montage Mountain August 8 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Arena August 11 – Bangor, ME – Maine Savings Amphitheater August 14 – Darien Center, NY – Darien Lake Amphitheater August 15 – Syracuse, NY – Empower Federal Credit Union Amphitheater at Lakeview August 18 – Gilford, NH – BankNH Pavilion August 20 – Burgettstown, PA – The Pavilion at Star Lake August 22 – Virginia Beach, VA – Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach August 23 – Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek August 28 – Las Vegas, NV – Fontainebleau* September 2 – Las Vegas, NV – Fontainebleau* September 4 – Las Vegas, NV – Fontainebleau*