Born in Liverpool, England, 84 years ago, the musician Paul McCartney is perhaps one of the best-known names in music. Member of the histories Beatleshis career transcended more than five generations and reached the hearts of even the nobility, having been knighted by Queen Elizabeth IIin 1997. The octogenarian has just launched “The Boys of Dungeon Lane”his latest studio album, proving that his passion for music does not retire.
His contact with instruments occurred during his childhood: his father was a self-taught musician and used to gather the family around a piano to relax. “I have beautiful memories of my childhood lying on the floor, listening to my father play ‘Lullaby of the Leaves’ [e outras] old songs like ‘Stairway to Paradise’ [de George Gershwin]”, said Paul in an interview published in the “Beatles Anthology”.
He was also part of the church choir and, from there, a relationship with music that the boy from Liverpool could never imagine began. Paul managed to convince his father to buy a guitar and learned hits from artists like Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly.
Meeting the Beatles and the beginning of a phenomenon
It was at the Liverpool Institute that Paul met his friend George Harrison and, later, John Lennonwith whom he wrote many of his most successful lyrics in music history. “You saw him, but you didn’t know him,” Paul once said of John. “He grew his sideburns, wore a long jacket, skinny pants and beige-soled shoes.”
The friendship between the two grew and Paul joined Lennon’s already formed band, The Quarrymen, bringing George with him. Artists began to write lyrics and compose, without knowing that their songs would conquer the world.
Later, in 1960, then-drummer Pete Best left the group and the new drummer Ringo Starr completed the formation of the band that would achieve stardom. The Beatles won the award for New Artist in the 7th edition of Grammy Awards and conquered the world. On screen, they had great repercussion with the recently released films “Help!” e “A Hard Day’s Night”based on some musical works of the same name.
In the midst of success, Paul meets Love
In 1969, the musician made his romance with the American photographer official Linda Eastman. He adopted Heatherdaughter of Linda’s first marriage, and together they had three more children: Stella (now a renowned fashion designer), Mary (activist and photographer) and James (who followed in his father’s footsteps in music).
In the following years, after the end of the Beatles, the couple extended their partnership to the stage: they formed the band Wingswhich also featured former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine. The group is responsible for great hits still performed by Paul in his shows, such as “Live and Let Die”electrifying theme song composed for the James Bond film of the same name.
The marriage lasted until 1998, when Linda lost her battle to breast cancer, which devastated Paul. In an interview with the BBC, he opened up about how his life was affected by his wife’s early grief: “I think I cried on and off for about a year… it seemed like the only thing to do,” he lamented. “You wait to see them come in, this person you love, because you’re so used to them.”
In 2002, Paul remarried the model Heather Millsa union that resulted in the birth of their daughter Beatricebut ended in a turbulent divorce in 2006, with a nearly $50 million lawsuit settlement (around R$260 million), in 2008. In October 2011, when he married businesswoman Nancy Shevellwith whom he remains to this day.
The legacy does not age
As only living membersPaul and Ringo Starr got together a few times to perform and keep the band’s legacy alive. One of the most iconic performances was a show at the O2 Arena in London in late 2024.
More than 50 years after the band’s dissolution, the debut of “Beatles ’64”in November 2024, proved the Beatles’ still very large influence on the music industry. At the premiere of the production, Paul was accompanied by George Harrison’s widow, Olivia Harrisonand John Lennon’s son, Sean Ono Lennonas well as the film’s director, David Tedeschiand of Martin Scorsesewho served as producer.
Recently, the artist released his 20th solo studio album, “”, followed by the confirmation of tour dates around the world. Official dates in Brazil have not yet been announced, but the musician should stop by here to promote the new project. Paul has already performed around 40 shows in the country and, in 2025, visited São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília, Belo Horizonte and Curitiba with the “” tour.
