Steven Tyler

Steven Victor Tallarico (born March 26, 1948), known professionally as Steven Tyler , is an American singer, songwriter , musician , and occasional actor, most notable as the lead vocalist, harmonica player, and co-founder of the hard rock band Aerosmith , formed in 1970. With Aerosmith , Tyler co-wrote many of the band's signature songs, contributing to their bluesy hard rock style and achieving substantial commercial success, including over 66 million certified album units in the United States and four Grammy Awards . His flamboyant stage presence, characterized by high-energy performances, raspy vocals, and props like flowing scarves, has defined him as a rock icon, while solo endeavors and television appearances, such as judging on American Idol , expanded his profile. Tyler's life has included well-documented struggles with substance abuse , involving multiple relapses and rehab treatments, culminating in long-term sobriety achieved through interventions starting in the late 1980s . He has faced civil lawsuits alleging sexual assault of minors in the 1970s , claims which courts dismissed on grounds including expired statutes of limitations.

Steven Victor Tallarico was born on March 26, 1948, in Manhattan, New York City, to parents Victor A. Tallarico and Susan Ray Tallarico (née Blancha).

His father, Victor A. Tallarico (May 14, 1916 – September 10, 2011), was a classically trained musician who worked as a pianist, percussionist, and music teacher, including at Cardinal Spellman High School in the Bronx; Victor began performing piano at age 7, played in ballrooms and with ensembles, and came from a musical family where his mother taught piano and his father played saxophone and cello. His mother, Susan (June 2, 1925 – July 4, 2008), worked as a secretary and provided a stabilizing influence amid the family's artistic pursuits.

The Tallarico family, of Italian descent on Victor's side, relocated from Manhattan to the Bronx when Steven was three years old and later settled in Yonkers, New York , where he grew up immersed in a household shaped by music and working-class roots.

Steven Tyler, born Steven Victor Tallarico on March 26, 1948, in Manhattan , New York, spent his early childhood in the Bronx before his family relocated to Yonkers during his adolescence. His father, Victor Tallarico, was a classically trained pianist and musician who taught music at Cardinal Spellman High School in the Bronx , providing Tyler with direct immersion in music from a young age; Tyler often sat beneath the piano as his father practiced, fostering an initial appreciation for classical forms that contrasted with his later rock inclinations.

Tyler began playing drums as a child and performed with his father's society band at events such as dinner dances and weddings, marking his entry into live performance. He attended Roosevelt High School in Yonkers, where he formed his first band, The Strangeurs, reflecting an early shift toward rock music amid teenage experimentation. However, he was expelled from Roosevelt High School due to marijuana use, after which he enrolled at the Leonard Quintano School for Young Professionals, an institution geared toward aspiring performers that allowed flexibility for musical pursuits.

Tyler's early musical influences blended his father's classical background with emerging rock and blues elements; while the structured piano sessions instilled discipline, Tyler gravitated toward rhythm sections and band dynamics, playing drums before transitioning to lead vocals. This foundation, untainted by formal conservatory training beyond family exposure, emphasized self-taught energy over technical precision, setting the stage for his raw, blues-infused style in subsequent bands.

Steven Tyler, born Steven Victor Tallarico, initially played drums in local bands during his teenage years in New Hampshire before transitioning to lead vocals.