Sting

Emerging amid the surge of new wave, Sting attained worldwide superstardom before circling back to the progressive fusion foundations he had set aside, channeling them into the Police's edgy fusion of reggae, punk, and pop. After the trio's 1983 release Synchronicity and its breakout track "Every Breath You Take" elevated the band to universal recognition, he launched a solo path. His 1985 debut The Dream of the Blue Turtles built on that momentum, while the 1987 follow-up Nothing Like the Sun solidified it, together establishing an expansive trajectory that wove through jazz, classical, worldbeat, and theatrical scores. Accolades accumulated steadily even as chart-topping singles grew scarce—his final major success arrived with the 2000 release "Desert Rose," featuring Algerian singer Cheb Mami—owing to ongoing partnerships with global artists. Pairings with Rod Stewart, Bryan Adams, Eric Clapton, Toby Keith, Aswad, Craig David, Mylene Farmer, and Mary J. Blige underscored both his eclectic preferences, many preserved on the 2021 collection Duets, and his broad influence. Though Sting never fully abandoned mainstream territory—he focused his 2016 effort 57th & 9th on concise, polished pop numbers, teamed with reggae vocalist Shaggy for a complete 2018 project, and revisited pop structures on 2021's The Bridge—that remained merely one dimension of a path resistant to easy classification.

Born Gordon Sumner near the shipyards of Wallsend, Northumberland, England, as the oldest child of a milkman and a hairdresser, he developed an early passion for music yet delayed committing to it professionally. After holding various temporary positions and obtaining a teaching qualification, he instructed at Cramlington's St. Paul's First School while performing jazz bass at night in Newcastle with the Newcastle Big Band and the Phoenix Jazzmen. During his time with the latter ensemble, the yellow-and-black sweater he favored prompted bandleader Gordon Solomon to bestow the nickname "Sting."

Sumner adopted Sting as his performance identity around 1975 upon joining the jazz fusion group Last Exit, where he refined his songwriting craft and ventured further into rock territory. The band issued the single "Whispering Voices" that year—not penned by Sting but by keyboardist Gerry Richardson—via the independent Wudwink label; it drew the notice of Carol Wilson from Virgin Records' publishing arm under Richard Branson. Encouraged by this interest, the musicians relocated to London, only to disband soon after arrival. While several members returned to Newcastle, Sting remained and sought out Curved Air drummer Stewart Copeland for a possible joint venture. With Curved Air having recently dissolved, the two united to penetrate London's active punk environment.

Guitarist Henri Padovani joined them to create an early incarnation of the Police. Their debut performance occurred on March 1, 1977, followed in May by the Illegal Records single "Fall Out"/"Nothing Achieving," an imprint established by Copeland's brother Miles, with both tracks composed by Stewart. Around the single's appearance, former Gong bassist Mike Howlett recruited Sting for Strontium 90 alongside guitarist Andy Summers. Although Howlett intended to include drummer Chris Cutler from Henry Cow, prior obligations led Sting to enlist Copeland instead. Strontium 90 captured a demo and staged two shows during summer 1977, one at a Gong reunion in Paris, yet dissolved rapidly, after which Sting invited Summers into the Police. The band operated briefly as a quartet featuring both Summers and Padovani until August, when Summers demanded sole guitar duties, resulting in Padovani's departure and the Police settling into trio formation.

Late 1977 saw the Police performing regularly, though audiences proved elusive. Financial pressures prompted them to appear in a Wrigley's gum advertisement, bleaching their hair as stipulated. The spot never broadcast, but the resulting platinum-blond aesthetic became their signature image. Copeland's brother Miles soon financed the recording of their first album, Outlandos d'Amour. Recognizing promise in "Roxanne," Miles assumed management and secured an A&M Records contract.

Controversy surrounded the single launches of "Roxanne" and its follow-up "Can't Stand Losing You." The April 1978 "Roxanne" release bypassed BBC airplay, which Copeland framed as a "Banned from the BBC" designation—a slight exaggeration applied to early pressings. The track still failed to chart. "Can't Stand Losing You" faced a genuine BBC prohibition over its cover art depicting a satirical hanging scene, which the band leveraged into a modest U.K. peak of 42 during late summer 1978. Third single "So Lonely" registered no chart impact.

While Britain overlooked the group, traction built across North America. "Roxanne" entered the Top 40 in both the U.S. and Canada by early 1979, uncommon for punk acts then. Domestic momentum prompted a U.K. reissue that climbed to 12, with the "Can't Stand Losing You" re-release reaching number two. Buoyed by this progress—including a reissued "Fall Out" scraping the U.K. chart—the Police mounted an extensive American tour while finishing a new album. Reggatta de Blanc arrived in October 1979, topping the U.K. chart and featuring number-one singles "Message in a Bottle" and "Walking on the Moon." Neither single breached the U.S. Top 40—the latter peaking at 74—yet the album reached number 25 on the Billboard Top 200, and its title track earned the band's first Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

February 1980 brought another U.K. success when "So Lonely" re-entered at number six, but the year marked broader international breakthrough via Zenyatta Mondatta. Released that October, it hit number one in the U.K. and number five stateside. Lead single "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" became their first U.S. Top 10, while in Britain it arrived second and peaked at five. "Don't Stand So Close to Me," issued first in the U.K. and second in the U.S., outperformed it by claiming the U.K. summit and securing a Grammy for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal. Album track "Behind My Camel" also captured that year's Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

Flush with chart triumphs, the Police traveled to Montserrat to cut their fourth album under producer Hugh Padgham. Ghost in the Machine emerged in fall 1981, leading the U.K. chart and reaching number two in the U.S. Its ascent drew fuel from "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," a worldwide Top Ten and MTV staple. "Spirits in the Material World" registered further international success at 11 in the U.S. and 12 in the U.K., while "Invisible Sun" hit number two domestically. Album-rock airplay strengthened as well, evidenced by "Secret Journey" reaching 46 in the U.S.

Amid Ghost in the Machine's dominance, each Police member pursued side avenues opened by fame. Sting revived an acting career begun in 1979 with Franc Roddam's cinematic take on the Who's Quadrophenia, appearing in Brimstone and Treacle—whose soundtrack included three new Police songs, among them "I Burn for You"—and taking a prominent part in David Lynch's 1984 Dune adaptation. Copeland gravitated toward film scoring, composing for Francis Ford Coppola's Rumble Fish. Summers partnered with Robert Fripp on the 1982 album I Advance Masked.

All prior achievements were eclipsed by 1983's Synchronicity, a multi-million blockbuster driven largely by the brooding ballad "Every Breath You Take," which topped both U.S. and U.K. charts. The track rapidly became a standard, earning Grammys for Song of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal; BMI later designated it the most-played song in its catalog after surpassing 15 million broadcasts. Additional hits included "Wrapped Around Your Finger" and "King of Pain," both U.S. Top 10 though the former only reached 17 in Britain, plus "Synchronicity II," an MTV and radio favorite that peaked at 16 and won Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group. Synchronicity ruled 1983, holding the U.S. number-one spot for 17 weeks while contending with Michael Jackson's Thriller. A stadium tour extended into 1984, yet Sting grew impatient with the trio format. After the trek concluded in March 1984, the band entered hiatus. Sting directed focus toward his solo debut The Dream of the Blue Turtles. Enlisting Branford Marsalis, Kenny Kirkland, and Omar Hakim signaled a partial return to earlier roots, though jazz leanings highlighted his breadth. Stateside, "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" and "Fortress Around Your Heart" delivered two Top Ten hits, with "Love Is the Seventh Wave" and "Russians" landing at 17 and 16 on Billboard's Top 40. British performance lagged: "Russians" proved strongest at 12, "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" at 26, and the remaining singles missed the Top 40. Nevertheless, Sting remained ubiquitous throughout 1985, contributing the "I want my MTV" line to Dire Straits' "Money for Nothing," guesting on releases by Phil Collins, Miles Davis, and Arcadia, appearing on Hal Willner's Lost in the Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill tribute, and touring The Dream of the Blue Turtles, documented in Michael Apted's Bring on the Night film released late that year. Its soundtrack followed in 1986, with the video earning the 1987 Grammy for Best Music Video, Long Form.

The Police regrouped in June 1986 for three Amnesty International: A Conspiracy of Hope concerts, prompting an attempt to record fresh material that July. Copeland's collarbone fracture from a horseback-riding mishap intensified existing frictions, yielding only one completed track—a reworking of "Don't Stand So Close to Me." Added to the Every Breath You Take: The Singles compilation, it achieved modest chart traction. Thereafter the trio parted permanently.

Sting promptly resumed solo work, finishing his second album Nothing Like the Sun. This double-length set, unusual for fitting an entire CD, expanded his scope through collaboration with jazz arranger Gil Evans and deeper worldbeat explorations. Its opening single "We'll Be Together" nevertheless offered funk, climbing to seven in the U.S. "Be Still My Beating Heart" reached 15 domestically, yet no U.K. singles entered the Top 40 until a Ben Liebrand remix of "Englishman in New York" belatedly hit 15 in 1990. Despite sparse hits, Nothing Like the Sun claimed Best British Album at the 1988 Brit Awards and attained multi-platinum status across Europe and the U.S.

Sting reimagined five tracks from Nothing Like the Sun for the 1988 EP Nada Como el Sol, performed entirely in Spanish and Portuguese. Fresh partnerships continued unabated: Gil Evans assembled an album of Sting compositions, with the songwriter participating; Sting appeared on Frank Zappa's 1988 Broadway the Hard Way, delivering "Murder by Numbers"; and he joined a 1988 recording of Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale alongside Ian McKellen. Theatrical pursuits advanced in 1989 with a Broadway revival of The Threepenny Opera.

The 1991 release The Soul Cages offered a reflective statement honoring Sting's late father—paralleling Nothing Like the Sun's partial tribute to his mother. "All This Time" climbed to five on Billboard's Hot 100, though follow-up singles missed the Top 40; in Britain it reached 15. The 1992 track "It's Probably Me," drawn from the Lethal Weapon 3 soundtrack with Eric Clapton on guitar, peaked at 20 in the U.S. and 30 in the U.K., yet drew less attention than Sting's marriage to actress and producer Trudie Styler, with whom he would raise four children.

Ten Summoner's Tales arrived in 1993 bearing a playful title and achieving steady transatlantic success. It yielded two major hits—"If I Ever Lose My Faith in You" at 14 in Britain and 17 in America, "Fields of Gold" at 16 and 23—while shifting Sting's audience toward adult contemporary, where both singles reached the Top Ten and "Fields of Gold" held number two for five weeks. This evolution crystallized with "All for Love," recorded with Bryan Adams and Rod Stewart for The Three Musketeers soundtrack. The track dominated globally at the close of 1993, topping charts in the U.S., Australia, and numerous European nations while reaching two in Britain.

The momentum from Ten Summoner's Tales paved the way for 1994's greatest-hits package Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting 1984-1994. New addition "When We Dance" hit nine in the U.K.—Sting's strongest solo placement there—while charting at 38 stateside and 12 on Adult Contemporary. "This Cowboy Song" added another U.K. hit at 15 in 1995.

Mercury Falling in 1996 underperformed commercially in the U.S., with singles stalling beyond 60, but Britain responded more favorably: "Let Your Soul Be Your Pilot" reached 15, and "You Still Touch Me" plus "I Was Brought to My Senses" entered the Top 20. The final single, "I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying," appeared in 1997 in two editions—one album version, another a duet with emerging country artist Toby Keith. Neither cracked the Billboard Top 40, though the original version placed 28 on Adult Contemporary and the Keith pairing hit number two on Country. An additional 1996 collaboration found Sting on Tina Turner's "On Silent Wings," a U.K. number 13.

"Roxanne 97," a Puff Daddy remix of the original Police hit, reached 17 in Britain that year and featured on The Very Best of Sting & The Police. In 1998 Sting made a cameo in Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, executive-produced by Trudie Styler.

Brand New Day's title track charted at 13 in the U.K. in 1999, yet "Desert Rose" with Cheb Mami proved the global standout, entering Top Ten lists across many European markets in 2000, 15 in Britain, and 17 in the U.S. The album secured Grammys for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance in 2000 and ultimately sold eight million copies worldwide, becoming his commercial pinnacle.

"My Funny Friend and Me," contributed to The Emperor's New Groove soundtrack in 2000, earned Sting his inaugural Oscar nomination for Best Song, though it did not win. The ensuing decade featured fewer hits yet relentless activity, including partnerships ranging from Yo-Yo Ma to Black Eyed Peas alongside lower-profile solo releases. All This Time, a 2001 live album captured on September 11 and issued that November, peaked at three in Britain and 32 in the U.S. Memoir Broken Music appeared in 2003 alongside studio album Sacred Love, which reached three in both markets. Lead single "Send Your Love" charted at 30 in Britain and 29 on U.S. Adult Contemporary but was surpassed by collaborations: Craig David's "Rise & Fall" hit number two in Britain, while Mary J. Blige's "Whenever I Saw Your Name," added to a reissued Sacred Love, won Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals at the 2004 Grammys.

The Police reunited in 2007 for a lengthy tour extending into 2008; their final concert featured original guitarist Henri Padovani on "Next to You." Sting concluded the reunion period with 2009's holiday collection If on a Winter's Night…, centered on traditional folk songs, hymns, and madrigals. He spent 2010 performing catalog highlights alongside the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, unveiling fresh arrangements on the July release Symphonicities before touring with the ensemble; the trek yielded Live in Berlin, documented in November 2010. Career retrospective 25 Years, accompanied by a single-disc sampler, arrived in 2011.

Sting completed his musical The Last Ship in 2013. Initially presented as a solo album issued that September, the stage production—centered on an 1980s shipyard in decline—premiered on Broadway in 2014. He toured extensively over the next two years, occasionally co-headlining with Paul Simon, before returning in late 2016 with 57th & 9th, his first collection of pop material in thirteen years. Recorded swiftly with longtime associates guitarist Dominic Miller and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta plus drummer Josh Freese and guitarist Lyle Workman, the album coincided with Sting receiving the 2017 Polar Music Prize alongside Wayne Shorter and Metallica.

An unexpected alliance materialized in 2018 with the joint reggae project 44/876 alongside Jamaican vocalist Shaggy. Titled after the musicians' respective country codes, it marked Sting's first collaborative duo album and restored him to the U.K. Top Ten, also achieving gold certification in France. It captured the Grammy for Best Reggae Album in 2019.

My Songs in 2019 reworked several established standards from his repertoire, supported by a dedicated tour. Early 2021 brought the previously released collaborations anthology Duets, followed later that year by The Bridge, an album shaped by the upheavals of the COVID-19 pandemic.