Richard Paul Astley (born 6 February 1966) is a British singer, songwriter and radio personality. He rose to fame through his association with the production trio Stock Aitken Waterman; his 1987 recording of their song “Never Gonna Give You Up” was a number 1 hit single in 25 countries, winning the 1988 Brit Award for Best British Single.[1][2] His 1988 single “Together Forever” became his second single to top the US Billboard Hot 100, and was one of his eight songs to reach the top ten on the UK Singles Chart. By the time of his retirement in 1993, Astley had sold approximately 40 million records worldwide.[3][4][5]
Astley made a comeback in 2007, becoming an Internet phenomenon when the music video for “Never Gonna Give You Up” became integral to the meme known as “rickrolling”.[6] Astley was voted “Best Act Ever” by Internet users at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008,[7] and his 2016 album 50 debuted in the UK at No. 1.[8
Astley was born on 6 February 1966 in Newton-le-Willows in Lancashire, the fourth child of his family. His parents divorced when he was five and Astley was brought up by his father.[9] Astley remained in very close contact with his mother, who lived a few streets away from his father. After finding out that his father was the one who kicked his mother out of the house, Astley distanced himself from his father.[10] His musical career started when he was 10, singing in the local church choir.[11]
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