Not only is Billy Joel the piano man, but he’s also a dedicated family man.
Two years after parting ways with his first wife, Elizabeth Weber, Joel tied the knot with actress and model Christie Brinkley in 1985. That same year, the duo became parents with the birth of their daughter, Alexa. Joel and Brinkley called it quits after nine years of marriage in 1994.
Joel later welcomed two more kids with his fourth wife, Alexis Roderick. The couple married in 2015, six years after his divorce from chef and cookbook author third wife Katie Lee. Joel’s second youngest daughter, Della, arrived in August 2015, followed by Remy in October 2017.
Joel has been candid about his experiences as an older father, telling Rolling Stone in May 2019 that people sometimes assume he is Della and Remy’s grandfather. “Oh, your granddaughter’s so cute,’” he shared at the time. “I just say, ‘OK, thank you.’ It’s not that different.”
Regardless of his age, Joel noted that he still loves being a dad. “I didn’t know that I would be a father again at this age, but I’m glad I am,” he added. “They keep you young.”
Scroll down to get to know Joel’s family of girls:
Joel and Roderick met the same year he and Lee ended their five-year marriage. In an October 2014 profile for The New Yorker, Joel recalled meeting Roderick, whom he nicknamed “A-Rod,” at a New York restaurant. He got her number and asked for a ride home. Upon arriving at his house, Roderick denied the musician’s offer to play a song on his piano, though he went ahead and played one anyway.
“It was like he couldn’t not be ‘Billy Joel’ at that moment,” Roderick told the outlet, to which Joel responded, “I may have got a little fresh.”
The couple revealed in April 2015 that they were expecting their first child together and followed up the announcement with a surprise Long Island wedding that July. “[They] surprised guests at their annual July 4th party by exchanging [vows] in front of their family and close friends,” a rep for Joel shared with Us Weekly at the time.
Several years and two daughters later, the couple are just as in love as ever. “My Dearest William, We love you so much and we want you to feel how much we appreciate you!” Roderick wrote via her husband’s Instagram in honor of Father’s Day in June 2023. “We can’t wait to celebrate the great father you are to the girls. I am lucky to have you as my other half. ❤️❤️Happy Father’s Day ❤️❤️.”
In February 2024, they stepped out at the Grammys together as Joel performed at the awards show for the first time in 22 years.
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Joel’s eldest daughter not only bears a strong resemblance to him but has also followed in his musical footsteps.
“I definitely believe that music is something that is in my blood, something that I was born to do, simply because it’s the one thing that has come the most naturally to me for as long as I can remember,” she shared in a June 2006 interview with Chorus & Verse. “I grew up listening to my dad write songs at the piano for hours, and watching him put the pieces of his ideas together for so many years gave me a unique inside-peek into the songwriting process.”
She released her first single, “For All My Days,” in 2008 and has released several more over the years, including a cover of her dad’s 1977 track “Just the Way You Are.”
Alexa has been engaged to restauranter Ryan J. Gleason since January 2018. “So I was completely taken off-guard, dumbstruck, and shell-shocked- and FOR ONCE in my life, I had absolutely no words, and I couldn’t speak,” Alexa captioned a pic of the couple’s beach proposal via Instagram. “I just kept staring at this ridiculously exquisite ring- and he was just hysterically laughing at me!!! 🕊💎🕊.”
Although the pair’s wedding plans were halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, they continue to show their love for each other via social media. “Happy Birthday Baby!!! I love you so much!,” Gleason captioned Instagram pics of himself and Alexa in December 2023.
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Joel and Roderick’s first daughter also shares her dad’s passion for singing on stage and has performed with him at several of his concerts. Della joined Joel to sing “Don’t Ask Me” at two of his Madison Square Garden concerts in December 2018 and October 2023. She and Remy also performed a duet to “Jingle Bells” with their father at the piano at another MSG show in December 2023.
Joel posted a sweet Instagram tribute for Della’s eighth birthday in August 2023, writing, “Eight years have gone by so quickly. You have such a sweet soul and are such a special part of our family. We love you more than words.”
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“Happy Birthday to our Remy Roo. We love the person you have become. You definitely broke the mold💕💕,” Joel captioned Instagram pics of his youngest daughter in October 2023. “Happy 6th Birthday, sweet girl!”
Remy looked grown up while walking the 2024 Grammys red carpet with her parents and Della. She and her older sister rocked matching black off-the-shoulder dresses featuring sequin tops and tulle skirts.
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