Jon Bon Jovi is known as the rock star in the clean slate. On March 2nd he will be 60 years old. Is his life really that scandal-free?
Sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll – what applies to almost every rock star does not apply to Jon Bon Jovi. The singer and actor celebrates his 60th birthday on March 2nd. In addition to his music, he is known for one thing in particular: his clean slate. He leads the perfect family life on the outside, still looks great – and celebrates success with his band Bon Jovi as ever. But has the rocker, whose real name is John Francis Bongiovi Jr., really spent his whole life scandal-free?
Botox and dyed hair? Jon Bon Jovi is not a “sham”
Jon Bon Jovi has many traits that make him likeable. Among other things, this also means that he stands by his age and his gray hair. The 60-year-old has consciously “decided not to” dye his hair like he did in 2020 explained in an interview with the portal “klatsch-tratsch.de”.. “I like being a silver fox,” the rocker clarified. “Ever since I was 25 I made a promise to myself that I would never become one of those men and never become a cliche rock star. If I did any of that now, I would feel like a liar. And I’m anything but a liar.”
He also emphasized that he “accepts” the fact that he has gotten older. “Because if I came in here with botox on and my hair dyed, I’d feel like a sham.”
Rock star and family man
Jon Bon Jovi leads a family life like in a picture book: he has been married to his childhood sweetheart, Dorothea (59), since 1989. The two have four children: Stephanie (28), Jesse (27), Jacob (19) and Romeo (17). Was everything always perfect in his marriage? After all, as a rock star, he is often on the road for months on tours all over the world.
“I’m not a saint and I wasn’t a saint,” he once said in an interview with “Men’s Health”. Bon Jovi “missed tons of birthdays and school plays”. However, his wife Dorothea was “there for the whole game”. She understands what life means by his side: “It’s my life and it is what it is.” Still, he explained, “I don’t have a lover by my side or any other family across town. You’ll never read that story about me. I don’t believe in this whole lifestyle.”
Jon Bon Jovi is apparently the strict parent when it comes to raising his children. “I’m the one with the daddy voice. If you need the daddy voice, I can pull it out,” he said. Bon Jovi has “a certain temperament”, but he is “not an angry father”. His own childhood was not the easiest: “I was often spanked myself. I was beaten up properly. I often felt the belt.”
Happy marriage to Dorothea
Jon Bon Jovi told the “klatsch-tratsch.de” portal about his marriage to his wife Dorothea that the relationship was “great” and “getting better, more intense and more intimate”. “My wife Dorothea is fabulous. We’re on this journey of life together and we’ve been through everything imaginable. We have children together and are still healthy. At the end of the day, that’s all that matters. With that in mind, our bond ever closer.”
There has never been a crisis that was “deep enough” to “believe that it is not worth fighting for our relationship”. Jon Bon Jovi was “really blessed” and “did everything right in this regard (…)”.
Charity work is close to his heart
Jon Bon Jovi donates part of his fortune to charity. For his 50th birthday, the rock star had a modest wish: he started a call for donations for his aid organization to provide people in need with food and housing. With his Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, he also runs several restaurants where guests can decide for themselves whether and how much they pay for the food on offer. He is also involved in numerous other projects, organizations and institutions in the health and environmental sectors.
Is Jon Bon Jovi living the big life?
Starry airs are foreign to Jon Bon Jovi. He lives a secluded life with his family. When he’s not on stage, he shies away from the limelight. He is also modest in other ways: in recent years there has been more and more news that he has sold houses or apartments, such as his huge house in New Jersey. He explained the reason for this in an interview with “klatsch-tratsch.de”: “We have continuously reduced in size in recent years. I haven’t lived in New Jersey for a few years. I’m just far too rarely there – maybe just seven days a year.”
The house is “simply too beautiful and too big to leave it empty. It deserves that a family lives in it.” Now “an apartment” is enough for them. “New York was just an option for us at first, but I convinced my family to come with me. It was time for me to make a change,” he continued. Meanwhile, Jon Bon Jovi is said to have sold his home in New York, as the “Wall Street Journal” reported in mid-February. He is said to be asking $22 million for his luxurious apartment.
Apparently there has to be a little star life: According to the “Wall Street Journal”, he still has a waterfront property in Palm Beach, as well as houses in his home country, the US state of New Jersey, and in the Hamptons.
Jon Bon Jovi and his experience with drugs
Is Jon Bon Jovi really the scandal-free rocker? In an interview with “Men’s Health” many years ago, he admitted that he started using drugs “at a very young age”. Jon Bon Jovi even dealt: “I was already doing business back then, I bought a quarter of a pound of dope and I was trying to make a few bucks,” he said. He spent a “damn terrible” summer hallucinating. Soon after, he stopped using drugs.
Bon Jovi came to his senses because I was a little too involved with drugs. He was “never the drug guy”. “I’ve always felt like I don’t have the mental stability to handle drugs.” His luck!
His daughter also had problems with drugs: when Stephanie was 19, she overdosed on heroin. “That was my worst moment as a father,” said the 60-year-old in 2013 in an interview with the “Mirror”. Still, he said: “I think it was a terrible, tragic life lesson, but I thank God every day because she’s healthy. It happened and it’s over.”
Jon Bon Jovi’s weaknesses
If Jon Bon Jovi has a weakness, it’s good wine: “Not a day goes by that I don’t want to drink a bottle of wine,” he told Men’s Health. Bon Jovi doesn’t drink it at lunchtime – “but when I’m done after a day’s work, I like to sit down in a bar with a bottle. And I don’t share it.” Of course, he particularly likes to drink his own wine, the Hampton Water Rosé: “It’s just good wine, we drink it often,” he confirmed in an interview with the “klatsch-tratsch.de” portal. He’s also said to be a big fan of cookies, according to Men’s Health: “Give me a box and I’ll eat them.”
No more big world tours
Jon Bon Jovi hasn’t said goodbye to the stage at the age of 60. In 2022 he will be on tour again with his band Bon Jovi. In April he rocks 15 US cities. The rocker is a bit age-appropriate: As early as 2020 he announced in an interview with “klatsch-tratsch.de” that he could “guarantee” “that these big, endlessly long world tours will no longer exist”. He lacks “the drive” for this.
He doesn’t know how long Bon Jovi will be around: “I don’t have an expiration date for Bon Jovi in my head yet. I’ve always considered the Rolling Stones my heroes. When they stop, I know when the right age for the Retired. The guys are almost 80 now and they’re still rocking the stadiums. With so much energy, it’s amazing! I don’t think I’ll do it at that age though.” But Jon Bon Jovi is only 60 years old.