John Mellencamp

Biography: John Mellencamp was born October 7, 1951, in Seymour, Indiana. John was born with a neural tube defect called spina bifida that necessitated a lengthy hospitalization as a baby. As a teenager, he was rebellious, often getting in trouble with the law. He formed his first band, "Crepe Soul," at the age of 14, and continued to play throughout his teens. When he was 17, he eloped with Pricilla Esterline, his pregnant girlfriend, and proceeded to try to support his family by working a series of blue-collar jobs. His first child, a daughter, named Michelle Mellencamp, was born December 4, 1970. He entered Vincennes University in 1973 and graduated in 1975. After graduation, John started working for the phone company in Seymour, but by the time he was 24, he had decided to move to New York City to attempt to break into the music industry. In New York, John signed with Tony DeFries, a music agent. DeFries, insisted on calling Mellencamp's first album Chestnut Street Incident under MCA Records, and DeFries also gave him the stage name, Johnny Cougar. The album was a failure, thus he lost his contract with MCA Records. In 1978, Mellencamp signs with Riva Records and soon puts out two records, A Biography and John Cougar (which included the smash song, "I Need a Lover"). In the late 1970's Mellencamp divorced from his wife, Pricilla Esterline. In 1981 he marries Victoria Granucci, in Seymour, Indiana, and becomes a father again to Teddy Jo, a son. One year later, John signs with Mercury Records and soon produces the smash record, American Fool, which included the hit songs"Hurt So Good" and "Jack and Diane." He changes his stage name from Johnny Cougar to John Cougar Mellencamp in 1983 before releasing his next record, "Uh-Huh", which iscluded the world-wide hit "Pink Houses." 1985 was a busy year for John Mellencamp. In that year he and his wife, Victoria, had their second child, Justice, another son. In that same year he also released an album entitled, "Scarecrow." John Mellencmamp and rocker Willie Nelson founded Farm Aid, which is an organization that works to increase awareness of the importance of family farms, and puts on an annual concert of country, blues and rock music with a variety of stars. There was also some controversy surounding Mellencamp when he refused to allow alcohol or tobacco companies to sponsor his tours. Due to his nationwide success, Mellencamp changed his stage name to John Mellencamp, his actual birth name. Lastly, he divorced from his second wife, Victoria Granucci. In 1987, Mellencamp recorded the album, The Lonesome Jubilee, which included the hit songs, "Paper in Fire" and "Cherry Bomb." Mellencamp took a break from music in 1990 to direct and star in a movie, "Falling From Grace," which was filmed in his hometown, Seymour, Indiana. In 1992, John married his third wife, Elaine Irwin, a model. "Human Wheels" was released in 1993, followed by 1994's "Dance Naked," which included his biggest hit, "Wild Night." As a tribute to his hometown, he filmed the videos for his 1993 and 1994 records. In 1994, Mellencamp suffered a massive heart attack while on tour and was forced to cancel the rest of the dates. While recovering from his heart attack, John and Elaine became the proud parents of two sons, Hud in 1994 and Spec in 1995. John returned soon after his heart attck with the record, Mr. Happy Go Lucky, which was his last record for Mecury Records because he then signed with Columbia Records. However, due to the contract with Mercury Records, he was forced to put out two more records. He recorded "Rough Harvest" and "The Best That I Could Do," which was a collection of his hit songs. John Mellencamp released his first record for Columbia, which was a self-titled album. The self-titled album included the hits, "Your Life is Now" and "I'm Not Running Anymore." "Cuttin' Heads" was released in 2001, which included the hit, "Peaceful World." In 2003, Mellencamp released "Trouble No More," which included the moderate hits, "Teardrops Will Fall" and "To Washington." John released "Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits" in 2004. John Mellencamp is involved in VH1's "Save the Music." He is an acomplished artist, in fact he has some of his artwork displayed in the Governor's mansion in Indiana. He also has penned some art books, some of which include "Mellencamp: Paintings and Reflections" and "Mellencamp." John Mellencamp is currently on tour throughout the United States promoting his latest record, "Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits." He will be on tour until the end of summer 2005. A country band, Little Big Town, will be his opening act. Mellencamp sang his new song, "Our Country" live during Game 2 of the World Series in Detriot, Michigan with the country band, Little Big Town, as back up singers. During the same game, his new commerical for Cheverlot trucks featuring his song, Our Country, was played for the first time. John Mellencamp's new record titled "Freedom's Road" will be released on January 23, 2007. … Expand