History Music / PhilCollins

He is the father of actress Creator/LilyCollins, whose credits include ''Film/TheBlindSide'', ''Film/MirrorMirror'', and ''Film/TheMortalInstrumentsCityOfBones'' as well as that of Simon Collins, [[LikeFatherLikeSon himself drummer and singer.]]

Collins has also had a tremendously successful solo career, selling 33 million records in the US alone with one diamond album (''No Jacket Required'') there. His biggest hits include "In the Air Tonight," "Sussudio," "One More Night," and "Another Day in Paradise." He [[HeAlsoDid also]] [[PopStarComposer composed]] the songs for the [[Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon Disney]] animated films ''Disney/{{Tarzan}}'' and ''Disney/BrotherBear'', as well as three for ''Film/{{Buster}}'', in which he also starred. In addition to his production work for Eric Clapton, he also produced hits for Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad of {{Music/ABBA}} ("I Know There's Something Going On") and former Music/EarthWindAndFire singer Philip Bailey ("Easy Lover").

* ''Disney/{{Tarzan}}'' (1999)
* ''Disney/BrotherBear'' (2003)
* ''Disney/{{Tarzan}}: The Musical'' (2006)

* AwardBaitSong: "You'll Be In My Heart", a song he wrote for the Disney movie ''Disney/{{Tarzan}}'' which netted him an Academy Award.

** He was also on the wrong end of one from ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' after he beat them out for the 1999 Best Original Song Oscar. [[note]]Collins won with "You'll Be in My Heart" from ''Disney/{{Tarzan}}''; ''WesternAnimation/SouthParkBiggerLongerAndUncut'' was nominated for "Blame Canada".[[/note]]

* TranslatedCoverVersion: Collins translated many of his own songs into French and sang them. He also sings his own Disney songs in the German dubs of ''Tarzan'' and ''Brother Bear''.

* TranslatedCoverVersion: Collins translated many of his own songs into French and sang them.

* LeadDrummer: In {{Genesis}}, though the band employed a live drummer so Phil could concentrate on his vocals in concert.

Despite his commercial success, he is a singer that really divides critics and the general public. People either think he is an absolute genius for his hit singles and being a hell of a drummer/singer, or they think he embodied everything wrong with 80's pop music and deserves to be derided for being "the guy who ruined Genesis". His tremendous success and omnipresence of his music however meant that after peaking with ''...But Seriously'' (which reached #1 everywhere albums are sold), it was only little time before he faced some major HypeBacklash. Songs like "Tell Me Why" and "Another Day In Paradise" and his support for any and all cause legitimate or not up to and including the infamous "I'm talking nonce-sense" ''Series/BrassEye'' debacle cemented this image of the out of touch, PR friendly standing piece of foam and cardboard. Although generally respected as a musician, he was the butt of jokes through the '90s and the new millennium. He has been slowly rehabilitated however with endorsements by artists like Music/{{Ice T}}, Muisc/{{Bone Thugs N Harmony}} or, say, Music/{{Ozzy Osbourne}}.

Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, [[UsefulNotes/KnightFever LVO]] (born January 30, 1951) is an English singer-songwriter and occasional actor, best known as the drummer for Music/{{Genesis}} and as a successful solo artist. Collins has won seven Grammys, two Golden Globes, and an Oscar over his long career.

* {{Instrumentals}}: "Droned" and "Hand in Hand" on ''Face Value'', and "The West Side" on ''Hello, I Must Be Going!''. None are "proper" instrumentals, technically: "Droned" includes vocal percussion from violinist L. Shankar and wordless vocals by Phil, "Hand in Hand" has a children's choir chanting along with the main melody, and "The West Side" features {{Scatting}} by Phil.

** He contributed to many tribute albums, too: "[[Music/TheBeatles Golden Slumbers]]" for a George Martin tribute and "[[EltonJohn Burn Down The Mission]]" for the ''Two Rooms'' tribute stand out.

Despite his commercial success, he is a singer that really divides critics and the general public. People either think he is an absolute genius for his hit singles and being a hell of a drummer/singer, or they think he embodied everything wrong with 80's pop music and deserves to be derided for being "the guy who ruined Genesis". His tremendous success and omnipresence of his music however meant that after peaking with ''...But Seriously'' (which reached #1 everywhere albums are sold), it was only little time before he faced some major HypeBacklash. Songs like "Tell Me Why" and "Another Day In Paradise" and his support for any and all cause legitimate or not up to and including the infamous "I'm talking nonce-sense" BrassEye debacle cemented this image of the out of touch, PR friendly standing piece of foam and cardboard. Although generally respected as a musician, he was the butt of jokes through the '90s and the new millennium. He has been slowly rehabilitated however with endorsements by artists like Music/{{Ice T}}, Muisc/{{Bone Thugs N Harmony}} or, say, Music/{{Ozzy Osbourne}}.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[SouthPark Oim Phil Collins]]!]]

* OlderThanTheyLook: He is 64 but looks a decade younger. Additionally, unlike most singers who undergo VocalDecay as they age, his singing voice sounds '''''exactly''''' the same now as it did in his prime.

* SampledUp: The melody to "Take Me Home" was used as the melody for rap/R&B group Bone Thugz & Harmony's song "Home", which also included Collins' vocals on the chorus. Notably, Collins himself appears in the video with the band.

Despite his commercial success, he is a singer that really divides critics and the general public. People either think he is an absolute genius for his hit singles and being a hell of a drummer/singer, or they think he embodied everything wrong with 80's pop music and deserves to be derided for being "the guy who ruined Genesis". His tremendous success and omnipresence of his music however meant that after peaking with ''...But Seriously'' (which reached #1 everywhere albums are sold), it was only little time before he faced some major HypeBacklash. Songs like "Tell Me Why" and "Another Day In Paradise" and his support for any and all cause legitimate or not up to and including the infamous "I'm talking nonce-sense" BrassEye debacle cemented this image of the out of touch, PR friendly standing piece of foam and cardboard. Although generally respected as a musician, he was the butt of jokes through the 90's and the new millennium. He has been slowly rehabilitated however with endorsements by artists like Music/{{Ice T}}, Muisc/{{Bone Thugs N Harmony}} or, say, Music/{{Ozzy Osbourne}}.

* FormerChildStar: Averted. He was a somewhat well-known child actor and played TheArtfulDodger in a West End production of ''Theatre/{{Oliver}}''. He also had teeny tiny blink-and-you'll-miss-him roles in Film/ChittyChittyBangBang and AHardDaysNight, but he became much more popular in his adult years.
** He did some acting in the long break between ''But Seriously'' and ''Both Sides'': he starred in a little-known Australian movie called ''{{Frauds}}'' alongside a very young Hugo Weaving (he took the role that these days would be reserved for Weaving!) and had a cameo as a police inspector in ''Film/{{Hook}}''.

Collins joined Genesis before the sessions for their third album, ''Nursery Cryme''. At first, he was only the drummer, but became lead vocalist for the band after Music/PeterGabriel's departure. In the late 1970s he continued a busy career as a session drummer as well, working with former bandmate Gabriel and Music/BrianEno - among others - in rock as well as jazz-fusion (''Brand X''). Generally recognized as a pioneer of the drum machine, whose eerie tones propelled "In the Air Tonight" and "Mama", he was also instrumental in rebuilding EricClapton in the 1980's through his albums ''Behind The Sun'' and ''August'' (He would repay him later on "I Wish It Would Rain Down"). Although the changes started a while after he took over, Collins is credited with transforming Genesis from a prog band to a pop band, and his time as lead singer was the most commercially successful era for the band.

* MythologyGag: The elaborate music video for "I Wish It Would Rain Down" features a B&W scene where the singer for a band goes missing, and the manager can't find anybody to replace him. EricClapton ''(in character)'' suggests Phil because "He was in a good band before and when the singer left he took over" (Reference to his StepUpToTheMicrophone in Genesis). When the manager then asks who will do the drumming he suggests "Chester" (Thompson, the session drummer who accompanied Genesis on tour).

Collins has also had a tremendously successful solo career, selling 33 million records in the US alone with one diamond album (''No Jacket Required'') there. His biggest hits include "In the Air Tonight," "Sussudio," "One More Night," and "Another Day in Paradise." He [[HeAlsoDid also]] [[PopStarComposer composed]] the songs for the [[Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon Disney]] animated films ''Disney/{{Tarzan}}'' and ''Disney/BrotherBear'', as well as three for ''Film/{{Buster}}'', in which he also starred.

He retired from the music industry in 2011 to spend more time with his family and because nerve damage left him in constant pain and with limited dexterity in his hands. However, in late 2013 he indicated he was writing music again and in 2015, Collins confirmed that he will be returning to music. That year he released remastered versions of all his original studio albums, with recreations of their cover artwork with him at his older age. He has also announced his comeback tour titled ''Not Dead Yet'', which will run in Europe in 2017.

Despite his commercial success, he is a singer that really divides critics and the general public. People either think he is an absolute genius for his hit singles and being a hell of a drummer/singer, or they think he embodied everything wrong with 80's pop music and deserves to be derided for being "the guy who ruined Genesis". His tremendous success and omnipresence of his music however meant that after peaking with ''...But Seriously'' (which reached #1 everywhere albums are sold), it was only little time before he faced some major HypeBacklash. Songs like "Tell Me Why" and "Another Day In Paradise" and his support for any and all cause legitimate or not up to and including the infamous "I'm talking nonce-sense" BrassEye debacle cemented this image of the out of touch, PR friendly standing piece of foam and cardboard. Although generally respected as a musician, he was the butt of jokes through the 90's and the new millennium. He has been slowly rehabilitated however with endorsements by artists like Music/{{IceT}}, Muisc/{{BoneThugsNHarmony}} or, say, Music/{{OzzyOsbourne}}.

Despite his commercial success, he is a singer that really divides critics and the general public. People either think he is an absolute genius for his hit singles and being a hell of a drummer/singer, or they think he embodied everything wrong with 80's pop music and deserves to be derided for being "the guy who ruined Genesis". His tremendous success and omnipresence of his music however meant that after peaking with ''...But Seriously'' (which reached #1 everywhere albums are sold), it was only little time before he faced some major HypeBacklash. Songs like "Tell Me Why" and "Another Day In Paradise" and his support for any and all cause legitimate or not up to and including the infamous "I'm talking nonce-sense" BrassEye debacle cemented this image of the out of touch, PR friendly standing piece of foam and cardboard. Although generally respected as a musician, he was the butt of jokes through the 90's and the new millennium. He has been slowly rehabilitated however with endorsements by artists like IceT, BoneThugsNHarmony or, say, OzzyOsbourne.