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Who is Deryck Whibley?
Canadian singer-songwriter Deryck Jason Whibley, also known as Bizzy D. was born in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, on 21 March 1980, making Aries his zodiac sign. He’s perhaps known best for being the lead vocalist of the rock ‘n’ roll band Sum 41, while he’s also their main songwriter, keyboardist and rhythm guitarist.
Deryck’s also known for being the former husband of famous Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Ramona Lavigne; her debut album “Let Go”, released in 2002 still remains the best-selling album of the century by a Canadian artist.
Education and early life
Deryck was raised in Ajax, Ontario solely by his mother Michelle Gordon; no details have been shared about his father, and it’s widely believed that he abandoned Michelle while she was pregnant. Deryck’s an only child.
He studied at Southwood Park Public School and grew up being interested in architecture, wanting to design houses; he’s stated that he would’ve become an architect if he hadn’t worked out for him in the music industry. He enrolled at Exeter High School in 1994, and there founded his band Sum 41; they began attracting attention after competing in the War of the Bands.
Deryck was also passionate about basketball as a teenager, and was the captain of the school’s team; he matriculated in 1998 but then didn’t enroll at college, wanting to focus on his career.
Sum 41
Deryck formed Sum 41 together with vocalist Jon Marshall, bassist Richard Roy and drummer Steve Jocz; they were originally a NOFX cover band and were called Kaspid.
They signed a contract with Island Records in 1999, and their debut extended play (EP) “Half Hour of Power” was released in 2000; it was followed by their debut studio album “All Killer No Filler” on 8 May 2001. The album’s single “Fat Lip” became a hit, topping the chart Billboard Modern Rock Tracks, and it’s still today their most successful song; the album was certified platinum in the UK, Canada and the USA.
Sum 41 released their second studio album “Does This Look Infected?” on 26 November 2002, and it was followed by their third “Chuck” on 12 October 2004; their fourth album “Underclass Hero” came out 18 July 2007, and all were certified platinum.
The band’s released three more albums: “Screaming Bloody Murder” on 29 March 2011, “13 Voices” on 7 October 2016 and “Order in Decline” on 19 July 2019. They’ve won two of their seven Juno Award nominations, and they spend most of the year performing and touring (over 300 days).
Solo career
Deryck’s also a solo singer, producer and manager. He was once part of the music management and production company Bunk Rock Music, while he then also worked as a producer for the Canadian hardcore punk band No Warning; after Deryck and Canadian producer and musician Greig Andrew Nori parted ways, Deryck sold his shares in Bunk Rock Music.
When Sum 41 were taking a break from performing in 2005 and 2006, Deryck worked on Tommy Lee’s second solo album “Tommyland: The Ride” and Iggy Pop’s greatest hits collection “A Million in Prizes: The Anthology”.
He helped his Sum 41 colleague Jason McCaslin release his debut solo album “We Have an Emergency”; Deryck then also worked on his former wife Avril’s third album “The Best Damn Thing”, and pop punk band Permanent Me’s debut album.
While on a tour with Sum 41 and Finger Eleven in November 2007, Derryck suffered a herniated disc and the remainder of the tour was thus cancelled; Finger Eleven still went on to perform in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
We're super excited to share that our brand new song "Ruin My Life" will be released on Feb 18th! It features our good friend Deryck Whibley from @sum41 & we can't wait for you to hear it! 🤘⚡️🤘You can pre-save #RuinMyLife now at https://t.co/G5z7du9uU2 #newmusic #SPAlbum6 pic.twitter.com/DEzQk1VVjL
— Simple Plan (@simpleplan) February 8, 2022
He mixed the song “Sick + Twisted” for the 2010 album “Birds + Bee Stings” by Operation M. D, and he can also be heard playing the piano and the keyboard on the song. Deryck then played the guitar on the album “A Public Disservice Announcement” by Methods of Mayhem, which came out on 21 September 2010.
Deryck co-wrote three songs for the Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer: “Lost in Reality”, “Over and Out” and “Broken Pieces”.
Most recently, on 18 February 2022, he and American rock ‘n’ roll band Simple Plan released their song “Ruin My Life”.
Love life and marriage
Deryck met Avril Lavigne in 2001 when she was 17, and they were good friends for two years prior to going out on their first date, before which Deryck spent a couple of months dating American social media star, businesswoman, actress and model Paris Whitney Hilton.
Deryck and Avril married in a private ceremony on 15 July 2006, with only 110 people attending; Avril filed for divorce on 9 October 2009, and it was finalized on 16 November 2010.
Deryck married his second wife, American model Ariana Cooper on 30 August 2015 in Los Angeles, California; she gave birth to their first child in March 2020, and their second child followed in March 2023.
There are no other women whom Deryck’s perhaps been with, that we know about; he’s married to his second wife Ariana Cooper as of July 2023, and they have two children together.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Deryck has chronic back pain; he was attacked by three unidentified individuals in Japan on 5 August 2010, and an MRI scan showed that he had herniated a disc for the 14th time.
He was once addicted to alcohol, and on 17 May 2014 revealed that his kidneys and liver were severely damaged by it.
Close to 150,000 people are following Deryck on Instagram today, and he’s posted nearly 400 pictures and videos; most of his content is about music.
Deryck’s also a bit of an actor, having portrayed Tony in the 2005 romantic comedy movie “Dirty Love” and voiced himself in the animated sitcom “King of the Hill”.
Joaquin Phoenix is one of his favorite actors, and some of his favorite movies include “Joker”, “Walk the Line” and “The Master”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Deryck’s age is 43. His hair’s blonde and eyes are brown, he’s 5ft 7ins (1.71m) tall and weighs around 160lbs (73kgs).
Deryck’s net worth’s been estimated at over $6 million, as of July 2023.
