Tom Petty

American musician

Audience1M
Fame81.2
Momentum15.7

Source-basedRising

1M youtube followers

Audience1M
Fame81.2
Momentum15.7
United States rank#207
Musicians rank#193
Wikipedia144.9K

Lived 1950–2017, aged 67United States

United States MusiciansSinger / Musician

Biggest on YouTube
1M
@@tompetty
Wikipedia
50 languages
Cross-language footprint
Rank in United States
#207
Musicians
Era
1950–2017
Aged 67
Known for
The Postman
1997

Summary

Updated 2026-08-03

He wrote songs that sounded like they'd always existed — straightforward, defiant, built to outlast the decade that made them. "Free Fallin'," "I Won't Back Down," "American Girl": the kind of tracks that fill arenas and car radios in equal measure, forty years on.

Biography

About

Thomas Earl Petty was born October 20, 1950, and grew up to front Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, later joining the Traveling Wilburys and recording solo work that moved more than 80 million records worldwide. The hits came in waves: "American Girl" in 1976, "Refugee" in 1980, "Don't Come Around Here No More" in 1985, then the solo run with "Free Fallin'" and "I Won't Back Down" in 1989. The Heartbreakers entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002; fifteen years later, MusiCares named him Person of the Year for his music and philanthropy. He also voiced Lucky Kleinschmidt on King of the H…

Voice

In their own words

Sourced, dated quotes from Tom Petty

Tom Petty

said23 Oct 2002

You don't hear any more of, 'Hey, we did something creative and we turned a profit, how about that?' Everywhere we look, we want to make the most money possible.

— "Tom Petty Is Pissed" in Rolling Stone (23 October 2002)

Tom Petty

said23 Oct 2002

I don't think it's a good attitude in your life to feel that you have to be rich to have self-esteem. You know, I saw a billboard in New York I wish I had photographed.

— "Tom Petty Is Pissed" in Rolling Stone (23 October 2002)

Tom Petty

said23 Oct 2002

It's funny how the music industry is enraged about the Internet and the way things are copied without being paid for. But you know why people steal the music?

— "Tom Petty Is Pissed" in Rolling Stone (23 October 2002)

Tom Petty

said23 Oct 2002