Childfree Classic Rock Musicians

Why Childfree?

Having children seems to be part of the life script, and especially for women, it’s seen as an eventuality and as someone who is childfree I’m tired of it. Why are people always seen as less mature because they choose not to have children? Why do people think that your life is lonely and less complete when you don’t have children? Happiness means different things to different people. People get fulfilment from different things. For me, starting a family doesn’t bring me happiness. I’d rather be the best writer I can be. I’d rather travel. I’d rather go to concerts. I’d rather spend my money on things that I enjoy collecting. Heck, I’d like to have uninterrupted sleep. Insert that “silence and money” Mr Krabs meme:

This is why I’m not having kids… that and my history of eating disorders, depression, autism, and anxiety. And I had endometriosis and I had to have a hysterectomy.

Why is it that women say they are happy being childfree are always asked “are you sure?”, while if a woman really wants kids, she never gets the same pushback? When I was seeking my hysterectomy, for chronic pain and sterilisation, I told the gynaecologist that you wouldn’t say “Aren’t you too young? Are you sure you want this? Why not have an abortion?” to an 18 year old pregnant woman – you would accept her decision. Meanwhile, I’m in my late 20s and because I don’t want children and I want a hysterectomy, suddenly I’m not mature enough to make that decision? That doesn’t make sense! Why is it that people (especially women) always have to justify their decision to be childfree? No one asks people who want kids to justify their decision. Why is a nonexistent baby or a hypothetical man’s feelings prioritised over a woman’s bodily autonomy?

This is why I think it’s important to talk about being childfree. I think that more and more Millennials and Gen Z are realising that being childfree is an option and it’s a valid choice. Part of it is because of financial, personal, and practical reasons like kids are expensive, you don’t have your own place, or not wanting kids because you don’t want to pass down a mental illness or medical condition. Another part of that is political and environmental reasons: I think we’re all feeling the effects of climate change, no matter how far away we live from the equator. Like that Simpsons meme goes with Bart saying “This is the hottest summer of my life” and Homer responding “This is the hottest summer of your life, so far” (the original was “worst day of my life”).

When I look at the news or doomscroll on social media, I feel disgusted, but I’m glad that I won’t be having a baby. But I think a more positive side of it is that people think about what they really want in life and they live life for themselves, as they should. I believe that being childfree is a smart and responsible choice, especially for those who know they don’t want kids. Having kids is a permanent decision and you can’t return the baby back to the store. Babies are human beings. They’re a big responsibility. It’s mature and responsible that we recognise this and realise that parenting isn’t for us, if that’s the case. Regardless, being childfree doesn’t need a justification. Your reasons for being childfree are no one else’s business. It’s your choice if you want to share your reasons.

Childfree people don’t have much representation in media. How many movies and TV shows can you think of that have childfree characters who are seen as happy and fulfilled? Now let’s talk about real life people. There are some childfree celebrities, but the majority have kids. In classic rock, it’s difficult to find childfree classic rockers. Part of it is because they lived in a time before birth control was available and easily accessible to unmarried women and another part of it, let’s be honest, rock stars are often promiscuous and accidents happen and all it takes is one accident and you got a woman pregnant.

It took a lot of researching, but I’ve finally put together a list of classic rock musicians who did not have children. Now, who’s considered childfree sounds like something straightforward, but it really isn’t sometimes. Are those who get married to someone who has children from a previous relationship and therefore adopts those stepchildren, but doesn’t have children of their own childfree? What if they got pregnant by accident, didn’t have access to abortion, and gave up the baby for adoption and had no contact with them? What if they died young? Is it possible they could have had kids later? Did they want kids? These are all difficult questions.

For our purposes, I am not including those who had children who died young (and then never had any other children), and I am not including those who died in their 20s/30s because there is a possibility that they could have had kids later on. If I missed any childfree classic rockers, please do share in the comments section!

Why would a classic rocker be childfree?

Well, I think about this story that my theatre professor in university told us. He was childfree and worked as an actor and because his job was so busy, he chose not to have children because he knew that he wouldn’t have time to raise them and he didn’t think it was fair to dump the kids onto his wife, who would have to do everything. Some possible reasons are that being a touring musician is a busy job, the musician is so dedicated to their work that they decide to focus on that instead of having a family, and in some cases they never married or found “the one”. Being an entertainer or working in any creative field for that matter is a hectic job and it’s no 9-5, you don’t clock in or clock out – you’re always working even if you’re not performing on stage. You’re writing songs. You’re practicing.

Anyway, If I can find any specific quotes where the musician talks about being childfree, I’ll share them – other than that, just some quick background information about the person and their childfree status.

Childfree classic rockers:

Angus Young: Guitarist of AC/DC, younger brother of Alexander (of Grapefruit fame), George (of Easybeats fame), and Malcolm Young. While Angus grew up in a family of eight kids, he decided not to have kids. He married his Dutch wife Ellen in 1980. The couple have no children.

Ann-Margret: Swedish-American singer and actress who appeared in movies with Elvis and The Who. While she never had children of her own, when she married Roger Smith, he had children from another marriage. She found out she is infertile and never gave birth even though she wanted to. Some childfree people say that she doesn’t fit the definition, but I think her story is worth mentioning.

Barbara McNair: Singer and theatre, film, and TV actress who famously toured with Nat King Cole. She made history in 1969 by hosting The Barbara McNair Show, making her one of the first black women to host her own musical variety show. She married five times: to Earl Wright from 1953-1955, Jack Rafferty from 1963-1971, Rick Manzie from 1972-1976 (he was murdered), Ben Strahan from 1979-1986, and Charles Blecka from 2006 to her death in 2007. She never had children.

Billy Fury: Pre-British Invasion rock star who started his career in the late 50s as part of Larry Parnes’ stable of singers, he was christened Billy Fury for his stage presence, very provocative for the time. He was really big back then, having almost as many hits as The Beatles. Like them, he was also from Liverpool. Because he had rheumatic fever as a child, it affected his health for the rest of his life and he had to take long breaks from performing. He was married to Judith Hall, but left her for Lisa Voice. He never had children. He died in 1983 of a heart attack. He was only 42.

Bob Welch: Former guitarist of Fleetwood Mac. He was in the band from 1971 until 1974 when he resigned from the group because of personal stuff going on in his life and feeling exhausted with the band. Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks replaced him and Fleetwood Mac became more successful than ever, leaving Bob Welch feeling bitter decades later. He sued the band for underpayment of royalties in the 90s. He was married twice. He was with his wife Wendy from 1985 until his death in 2012. He never had children.

Bonnie Raitt: Roots/blues/folk/country/Americana singer-songwriter. She was married to actor Michael O’Keefe in 1991, but they divorced in 1999 because their careers caused them to spend so much time apart. She never remarried. Bonnie Raitt told The New York Times this about why she decided not to have children:

“Having children is an incredible commitment. That’s why I chose not to. I feel that my job is to mother the causes that I’m involved in. And with me it’s already so hard to say no. No matter if I say yes to 5 organisations and benefits there are still 30 that I have to say no to. And that’s what I go to bed with at night, thinking, ‘What’s going to happen to that woman who said her Native American art department was going to close if I don’t do this show?’”

– Bonnie Raitt

Burton Cummings: Lead singer of The Guess Who. He married his wife Cheryl DeLuca in 1981 and they have been married ever since. Of being childfree he said:

“I’m the last Cummings now [he’s an only child]. All the family stuff has ended up with me [referring to his mother who passed away in 2017], and it’s been very heavy, the past few months.”

– Burton Cummings

Christine McVie: She was the keyboard player and one of the songwriters and singers of Fleetwood Mac. She was married to her bandmate John McVie from 1968 to 1976 (once again, another one of those breakups that inspired Rumours). She later dated Dennis Wilson and married a Portuguese musician named Eddy Quintela, but they never had children. She told The Guardian in 2013 this about why she never had kids:

“There were never any children [for me]. There was always a career in the way. It was a case of one or the other, and Stevie would say the same. The lads went off and had children but for Stevie and I it was a bit difficult to do that. So that was never able to happen. And I never found the right man. Not through want of trying.”

– Christine McVie

She died in 2022.

Cliff Richard: OG British rock and roll singer who started his career at just 17 years old in the late 1950s. He never married and never had children. He was in a relationship with Delia Wicks in the 60s, but broke up with her saying:

“Being a pop singer I have to give up one priceless thing – the right to any lasting relationship with any special girl. I’ve just had to make, probably, one of the biggest decisions I’m ever going to make and I’m hoping that it won’t hurt you too much.”

– Cliff Richard

I can see why he said that. In the early 60s if you were a pop star/teen idol and you got married, your career was basically over. Look at Cliff Richard’s contemporary Marty Wilde – when he married his wife Joyce, one of the Vernons Girls, his career as a pop idol was over and he moved behind the scenes into songwriting, writing songs like “Jesamine”, “Ice in the Sun”, and “Kids in America”.

Cliff Richard dated Una Stubbs, Jackie Irving, and Sue Barker. He also had a big crush on Olivia Newton-John. He never ended up finding “the one”. Of being childfree, Cliff Richard said he had no regrets:

“Being completely honest, it has never bothered me. My three sisters have children, and it’s been wonderful to watch them grow up, get married and start families of their own. I’ve made sure I’ve always played a part in their lives. So while I think I would have been a good father, I’ve given myself to my family and I wouldn’t have it any other way. My ‘freedom’ allows me to continue my career. Had I been married, with children, I wouldn’t be able to do what I do now – I wouldn’t want to do what I do now.”

– Cliff Richard

Dana Gillespie: Pop and folk singer and friend of David Bowie. She is an incredibly prolific musician and has recorded 72 albums, and how did she manage that? She’s very focused on her career and she never married or had children. Of her life in the swinging 60s, she said:

“I lived with my parents until I was 30. I was on the pill and, while you heard about the clap back then, I never got it. It was a more innocent era and I was learning all the time.”

– Dana Gillespie

Dave Van Ronk: Greenwich Village folk musician and friend of Bob Dylan. Like Velvet Goldmine was to David Bowie, the Coen Brothers film Inside Llewyn Davis was based on Dave Van Ronk. He was married to Terri Thal in the 60s, had a long term relationship with Joanne Grace, and then married Andrea Vuocolo – he stayed with her until his death in 2002. He had no children.

Debbie Harry: Lead singer of Blondie. She was in a relationship with her bandmate Chris Stein, but they broke up in 1987. The two remained friends and she is the godmother of his two daughters. However, in her book Face It, she says that she wishes to be a mother, but her reasoning as to why she never had kids was:

“Honestly, I was so self-centred, it never crossed my mind. I was amazed that anyone would want to have a child. I was so traumatised in a way by the things that happened to us, I don’t know if I could have taken a child through it.”

– Debbie Harry

Rather than having kids, she has dogs.

Dolly Parton: Country music icon, philanthropist, and businesswoman. She grew up in a large working class family in Tennessee, one of 12 children! She married her husband, Carl Dean in 1966 and they’ve been together ever since. Carl Dean shunned the spotlight and liked to live a normal life, running an asphalt business. While she doesn’t have any children, Miley Cyrus is her goddaughter and she considers herself a mother figure to many in her family with her nieces and nephews calling her Aunt Granny and her husband Uncle PeePaw. As well, she started the Imagination Library, which gives children a free book every month from birth up until their fifth birthday, to encourage a lifelong love of reading.

Originally, she and her husband wanted to have children, but it wasn’t meant to be because it turned out that Dolly Parton had endometriosis, which can result in infertility. She had a hysterectomy in 1984 to relieve her symptoms, but it led her into a deep depression. There were other factors that led to her staying childfree and not adopting like prioritising her music career. She understands how much of a sacrifice it is to be a parent and said:

“I would have been a great mother, I think. I would probably have given up everything else because I would’ve felt guilty about that, if I’d have left them [to work, to tour]. Everything would have changed. I probably wouldn’t have been a star.”

– Dolly Parton

As a Christian, she saw it as God’s plan for her to not have children:

“I didn’t have children because I believed that God didn’t mean for me to have kids so everybody’s kids could be mine, so I could do things like Imagination Library because if I hadn’t had the freedom to work, I wouldn’t have done all the things I’ve done. wouldn’t be in a position to do all of the things I’m doing now.”

– Dolly Parton

Dusty Springfield: Blue eyed soul singer from the 60s. She was never in a heterosexual relationship. She came out as bisexual in 1970 and later said that she never dated men because they frightened her, but in reality she was lesbian. In the 60s, she was dating “Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog” singer Norma Tanega. She later dated an actress named Teda Bracci. She never had children. She died in 1999.

Edgar and Johnny Winter: These two albino rock star brothers never had kids. Edgar Winter and his wife, Monique do not have any children. They have been married since 1979. In a Pop Matters interview, he opened up about why he decided not to have children:

“We never had children. On one hand, I can see how that would be a wonderful rewarding thing, but I think there are enough people in the world. I think we have a great relationship and it’s enough for us. It might have been more problematical if I had children with a career and all of it. I tour all the time. If I were to have children, I would want to be home all the time. Maybe I’m too selfish.”

– Edgar Winter

Johnny Winter also did not have children. He had multiple girlfriends throughout his life, but later married his longtime girlfriend Susan in 1993. He died in 2014.

Enya: Celtic/world/new age musician known for being a private person. She never married or had kids, but she is an aunt to many nieces and nephews. She lives in a castle in Dublin with her cats. Now that’s what I call living the dream!

Freddie Mercury: Lead singer and pianist of Queen. After breaking up with Mary Austin in 1976, he had multiple relationships with men including Winnie Kirchberger and Jim Hutton. Instead of having kids, he had 10 cats. He died in 1991.

While I can’t find the exact source of the quote, so this might be an urban legend, people say he once said when asked about kids, “I think I’d rather have a cat.”

However, Jim Hutton said of Freddie that he treated his cats like children and “would constantly fuss over them”. He dedicated his solo album Mr Bad Guy to his cats: “to my cat Jerry—also Tom, Oscar, and Tiffany, and all the cat lovers across the universe—screw everybody else!”. He even wrote a song for his favourite cat, “Delilah”. Freddie was a dad, but to his cats!

Gloria Gaynor: Disco singer best known for “I Will Survive”. She was married to her manager Linwood Simon from 1979-2005. She never had children, even though she wanted them, her ex-husband didn’t want them. She told The Guardian:

“Having children was always something I wanted, but my ex-husband was just never interested. It’s funny, I was the only one of my siblings who always wanted kids, yet I’m the only one who didn’t have them. I’ve come to terms with it now, plus I wouldn’t have wanted to raise them in a broken marriage.”

– Gloria Gaynor

Jackie Fox: One of the original members of The Runaways who left the music industry to be an entertainment lawyer. She appeared on Jeopardy and won four times. As far as I can tell, she has never married and does not have any children. She likes spending time with her cats.

Jane Wiedlin: One of the members of all girl group The Go-Gos. She’s been married three times: to Ged Malone from 1987-1999, David Trotter from 2004-2005, and recently married Terence Lundy in February 2023. As far as I know, she has no children from any of those marriages.

Janis Ian: Singer-songwriter who got famous at the age of 17 with the song “Society’s Child”. She was married at a Portuguese filmmaker named Tino Sargo from 1978-1983. He was abusive. In 1989 she met her wife Patricia Snyder and publicly came out as lesbian four years later. They got married in Canada in 2003. The two have no children together, but Patricia Snyder had a daughter from another marriage.

Jeff Beck: Guitar legend. Former member of The Yardbird and founder of The Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert, and Appice. He married twice: to Patricia Brown from 1963-1967 and to Sandra Cash from 2005 till his death in 2023. He had no children.

Joan Jett: Former member of The Runaways who went on to have a successful solo career. She is private about her personal life and will not explicitly say she is lesbian or bi, but she doesn’t feel the need to say it. She never married or had children.

Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee, Tommy, and Marky Ramone: The original lineup of The Ramones were 100% childfree. There was drama in the band with a love triangle involving Joey, Johnny, and Linda. They both liked her, but in the end Johnny married Linda and Joey was upset. The two didn’t get along well. Meanwhile, Joey Ramone never married and he was apparently sterile. He also struggled with OCD his entire life. Dee Dee Ramone married twice. First marriage was to Vera Boldis from 1978 until their divorce in the 90s and the second was to Barbara Zampini he met in Argentina who was a fan of his work – the creepy part is when he met her, he was in his 40s and she was only 16. Tommy Ramone had a longtime partner named Claudia, but no children. Marky Ramone is married to Marion Flynn. The couple have no children.

Joey died in 2001. Dee Dee died in 2002. Johnny remained married to Linda until he died in 2004. Tommy Ramone died in 2014.

Joni Mitchell: While Joni Mitchell was pregnant at a young age, she gave up the baby for adoption, a very traumatising experience for her. She would have ended up a broke single mother so that’s why she gave up the baby for adoption. She wrote “Moon At The Window” about this experience, saying this about the lyrics:

“My daughter’s father left me three months pregnant in an attic room with no money and winter coming on and only a fireplace for heat. The spindles of the banister were gap-toothed- fuel for last winter’s occupants. He left behind a doodle of a pregnant woman seated at a window, looking at a crescent moon and on it he wrote, “The thief left it behind, the moon at the window.” The song, other than this Zen saying, has nothing to do with that incident.”

– Joni Mitchell

She did not have any other children. She had a miscarriage in the 80s and in the 90s she tried to search for the daughter she gave up for adoption. She was finally reunited with her daughter in 1997.

June Millington: One of the founding members of 70s all girl rock band Fanny. She and her longtime partner Ann Hackler have been together since 1984. They do not have children. However, the two founded the Institute for the Musical Arts, which supports women and girls who want to be musicians or work in the industry.

Kiki Dee: Blue eyed soul singer and first British female singer to be signed to Motown. She never married and never had children. She was diagnosed with uterine cancer in her 40s, with the treatment leaving her sterile. She wrote an article in the Daily Mail about having no regrets being childfree – no rugrats, no regrets:

When she was hanging out with Elton John, he showed her some photos of his adopted sons and her reaction was that she was “so glad” those children weren’t hers, even though she thought the two boys were adorable. She said:

“I’m a childless woman, yet I felt no maternal urges whatsoever. The prospect of years of broken nights and nappy changes holds no appeal for me. Of course, at 66, I’d be far more likely to be showing off photos of beloved grandchildren than kids of my own, but there’s no regret there either. This is where I break one last taboo: I’m incredibly glad I’m not a granny.”

– Kiki Dee

She continued:

“I am perfectly happy with the delights and challenges of my career (this is my 50th year in the music business), not to mention my friends and relatives. There really are some of us who don’t need any more to feel fulfilled.”

– Kiki Dee

For her, it wasn’t so much a conscious decision that she wasn’t having kids, she just never found the one and having kids never happened for her. She had many short term relationships, but not really any long term ones because most of the men she was with were afraid of commitment. Her longest relationship was with Elton John’s guitarist Davey Johnstone – they were together four years.

She ended the article with this positive message about being a single, childfree woman:

“There’s a certain freedom to being on your own. So don’t feel sorry for us non-grannies – I’ve never felt so complete.”

– Kiki Dee

Labi Siffre: Singer-songwriter and poet. He was with his longtime boyfriend Peter Lloyd from 1964 until he died in 2013. The three had a ménage à trois with Rudolf van Baardwijk – living in Wales, who later died in 2015. Labi Siffre never had any kids.

Laura Branigan: Singer who got famous in 1982 with a cover of Umberto Tozzi’s “Gloria”. Before that, she was a backing vocalist for Leonard Cohen’s 1976 European tour. She was not a one hit wonder. Her other hits included an English language cover of Martine Clémenceau’s “Solitaire”, and “Self Control”. She married Larry Krutek in 1978. He died in 1996 of colon cancer. She quit the music industry in the 90s to take care of her husband. She died in 2004 at the age of 52. She had no children.

Lesley Gore: Singer who got famous as a teenager in the 60s with songs like “It’s My Party” and the feminist anthem “You Don’t Own Me”. She was in a relationship with luxury jewellery designer Lois Sassoon from 1982 until she died in 2015. She had plans to marry her longtime girlfriend. The couple had no children.

Liza Minnelli: Actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. The daughter of Judy Garland and director Vincente Minnelli. She had three miscarriages and that made her very sad. When she was pregnant and doctors tried to save the baby, she ended up with a hiatal hernia, which affects eating and singing. She told The Guardian:

“I have a hiatal hernia, which I got when I was pregnant and they put me upside down trying to hold the baby – and the baby passed away anyway – but I got a hernia, so if I eat and sing like that, and all that muscle, it hurts!”

– Liza Minnelli

Long John Baldry: British R&B singer and voiceover actor. He came out publicly as gay in the 70s even though it was an open secret that he was gay in the 60s. He never had children. He died in 2005.

Lou Reed: Former lead singer of influential proto-punk band The Velvet Underground who went on to have a successful solo career. He married three times, but never had children. He left his $30 million fortune to his wife, Laurie Anderson, and his sister, Merrill. He died in 2013.

Lucinda Williams: Americana/folk singer-songwriter and guitarist who has recorded music since the late 70s. She married twice, but never had children. In a People Magazine article she opened up about her decision to stay childfree and why she mentioned it in her book:

“I thought about that and I thought, ‘Oh, I don’t know if I wanted to put that there.’ Because when I see a baby now, I just go crazy. That’s why I was worried about what I put in the book about it, because I felt both ways. I’m sure other women have experienced that too, though.”

– Lucinda Williams

In her book she wrote:

“I had no desire to have my own kids. Never. It wasn’t a gut-wrenching decision for me at all and I don’t regret it today. I went on birth control at age eighteen and it never occurred to me to become a mother. Not once. When I was growing up, I never saw any families really enjoying their children. I remember thinking as a teenager, ‘Wow, nobody seems to like having kids. Nobody seems happy having kids. It’s a burden, not a joy.’ It seemed like everybody would rather be partying and f—ing each other freely. Family obligations and responsibilities didn’t seem to be the most important thing to anyone, so why should they have been important to me? Nowadays I look around and sometimes I get depressed when I see pregnant women or parents with young kids because I think, ‘Is this kid going to have a proper upbringing? Are these kids going to have a good education? Are these kids going to have good parents?’ I don’t know. I’m not judgmental about it. It’s just a feeling about the challenges of parenthood that I first started having in my late teens, based on my own upbringing.”

– Lucinda Williams

Mariska Veres: Lead singer of Shocking Blue. She was in a relationship with her bandmate André van Geldorp, but she never married or had children. She preferred cats and said that back in the 60s she was a “painted doll” that no one could reach. She died in 2006.

Mary Weiss: One of The Shangri-Las. Married twice, but has no children.

Mavis Staples: R&B/gospel singer and civil rights activist. She was briefly married to a man named Spencer Leak in the 60s, and Bob Dylan once proposed to her, but she turned him down. She never remarried and decided to never have children because she prioritised being a singer. According to The Not Mom, she said this to Time magazine about being childfree:

“I love children. When I got ready to have my family, my husband – you know how it goes – he wanted me to come off the road. I said, ‘Why would you ask me to do that?’ I decided I’d rather him go than stop singing.”

– Mavis Staples

Nicky Hopkins: Famous session pianist who worked with countless British rock groups in the 60s. You name them, he’s probably played on their songs. He worked with the big four British Invasion groups: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, and The Kinks. The reason for him being a session musician was he had Crohn’s disease, making it difficult for him to tour, and that came with downsides, mainly him being treated as a hired hand. He was married twice – he divorced his first wife Linda in 1986. He later married a woman named Moira Buchanan. He and Moira remained married until his death in 1994 at the age of 50. He had no children.

Morrissey: Lead singer and one of the main songwriters of The Smiths. He claims that he didn’t get into a relationship until the age of 35, when he dated a photographer named Jake Walters. After that, he dated Tina Dehghani. He considered having a child with her, but didn’t and described it as an “unthinkable act of producing a mewling miniature monster.” He is otherwise very private about his personal life.

Nona Hendryx: Singer-songwriter and former member of Labelle. She is openly bisexual and childfree. She and her longtime girlfriend Vicki Wickham have no children.

Pete Burns: Lead singer of Dead or Alive. Well known for his androgynous, genderbending appearance. He had relationships with both men and women. He married Lynne Corlett in 1978 and divorced her in 2006. They did not have children. He later entered into a civil partnership with Michael Simpson, who had a daughter from another relationship. Pete Burns died in 2016.

Robert Fripp: Former guitarist of King Crimson as well as a session musician and record producer. He married actress/singer Toyah Willcox in 1986 and they are still married to this day. Fripp said that the essence of a happy marriage is commitment to that person. “It’s not a question of what can my wife do for me, but how can I be what my wife really needs?” Toyah Willcox said the secret to their happy marriage is that they have separate houses and while they spend a lot of time together, they have space when they need it. Toyah Willcox was sterilised shortly after marrying Robert Fripp because she had multiple conditions in childhood that made it unsafe for her to have kids, but she and her husband didn’t want kids anyway, as she said in this Evening Standard article:

“Neither Robert nor I pine for the company of a child. I don’t have any contact with children. I have one nephew who I probably see about once every five years.”

– Toyah Willcox

She also said that her mother encouraged her to stay childfree because she was sad to give up her career as a dancer when she became a mother. The couple’s plans for their will since they have no children is to establish a musical education trust for children.

Robert Smith: Lead singer, main songwriter, and founding member of The Cure. He married his wife, Mary in 1988 and they have no children because he said he felt like he didn’t feel responsible enough to bring a child into the world. Not only is he childfree, he’s also an antinatalist. He told The Guardian in 2011:

“I’ve never regretted not having children. My mindset in that regard has been constant. I objected to being born, and I refuse to impose life on someone else. Living, it’s awful for me. I can’t on one hand argue the futility of life and the pointlessness of existence and have a family. It doesn’t sit comfortably. I enjoy myself hugely, but you know, it’s despite myself, really.”

– Robert Smith

Rory Gallagher: Irish blues rock guitarist, often considered one of the best guitarists in rock and roll. Never married, and as far as I’m aware he had no serious long term relationships, and definitely no children. Some describe him as being “married to his guitar”, as he was a very busy touring musician who always gave 110% at his live shows. He died in 1995.

Scott Gorham: One of the lead guitarists of Thin Lizzy. He emigrated from California to London, following his friend and brother-in-law, Bob Siebenberg of Supertramp. They were both from Glendale and Bob married Scott’s younger sister Vicki, and Scott was hoping to join Supertramp, but instead he joined Thin Lizzy. He and his longtime wife Christine have no children.

Siouxsie Sioux: Goth icon and lead singer of post-punk band Siouxsie and the Banshees. She was married to her bandmate Budgie from 1991-2007. She did not have children and as far as I’m aware she never remarried.

Steve Miller: Founder and only remaining original member of the Steve Miller Band. He married four times, but never had children.

Stevie Nicks: One of the singers of Fleetwood Mac. She was in a relationship with Lindsey Buckingham until that went sour and she cheated on him with Mick Fleetwood and the band released arguably the best breakup album Rumours. She later dated Don Henley of The Eagles and was pregnant with his baby, but she decided to have an abortion. She is strongly pro-choice and said this about her decision to have an abortion:

“If I had not had that abortion, I’m pretty sure there would have been no Fleetwood Mac. There’s just no way that I could have had a child then, working as hard as we worked constantly. And there were a lot of drugs, I was doing a lot of drugs … I would have had to walk away. And I knew that the music we were going to bring to the world was going to heal so many people’s hearts and make people so happy. And I thought: You know what? That’s really important. There’s not another band in the world that has two lead women singers, two lead women writers. That was my world’s mission.”

– Stevie Nicks

She said this to ABC News in 2001 on her decision to prioritise her music career over being a mother:

“I couldn’t have really done both. Now, many women can do both. I’m not saying it can’t be done. But for me, I knew that if I had a baby, I would have to take care of that baby, and I wouldn’t have been happy with a nanny taking care of my baby and walking into the room and having my child run across the room to another woman. I am very jealous and I would have hated that. So under those circumstances, if I couldn’t be a great mom, then I decided it would be better not to, and to go ahead and do what I do, write my songs, try to help people that way.”

– Stevie Nicks

Syd Barrett: Pink Floyd founding member and original singer, guitarist, and leader of the band. He left Pink Floyd in 1968 and recorded two solo albums and collaborated with other musicians a couple of times before leaving music all together for a reclusive life in his hometown of Cambridge. He had a few girlfriends in the 60s, but never married or had children. He died in 2006.

In conclusion:

If you’re childfree, you’re in good company! It’s definitely a responsible choice to make, especially in this day and age. I’ve noticed a trend where female celebrities are more likely to speak up about being childfree and I think it’s because they’re always asked about having a family and when they’re going to start a family, yet men don’t get those same questions to nearly the same extent. How about we just respect people who want to be childfree and happy.

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