Good Charlotte

Good Charlotte is an American rock band from Waldorf, Maryland, formed in 1996. Since 2005, the band's lineup has consisted of twin brothers Joel (lead vocals) and Benji Madden (guitar and vocals), Paul Thomas (bass), Billy Martin (guitar and keyboards), and Dean Butterworth (drums and percussion). The band released their self-titled debut album in 2000 to mostly positive reviews. In 2002, they achieved breakthrough success with their second album, The Young and the Hopeless. Featuring the hit singles "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous", "The Anthem" and "Girls & Boys", The Young and the Hopeless sold 3.5 million copies in the US and was certified triple platinum by the RIAA, for a total of almost 5 million copies sold worldwide. The band followed up with The Chronicles of Life and Death in 2004; a darker album, both musically and lyrically. Backed by the singles "Predictable" and "I Just Wanna Live", The Chronicles of Life and Death continued the band's success, and the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, selling over one million copies in the US alone. In 2007, they released the dance-punk inspired album Good Morning Revival before going back to their pop-punk-roots with the album Cardiology in 2010. After a four-year-long hiatus, the band announced its comeback on November 3, 2015. The band released Youth Authority to positive reviews in 2016, and in 2018 they released their latest album, Generation Rx. In addition, they released two compilations: Greatest Remixes in 2008 and Greatest Hits in 2010. History Early years (1995–1999) After watching a Beastie Boys show in 1995, twin brothers Joel and Benji Madden formed Good Charlotte in Waldorf, Maryland, with Joel on vocals and Benji on guitar. Following the brothers' graduation in 1997, instead of going to college they worked full-time on the band. The Madden brothers focused on getting the band signed, reading books and magazines that would aid them in achieving this goal. They made promotional packages which they sent to record labels. Joel Madden learned that the girl he took to homecoming was a sister of bassist Paul Thomas. Thomas met the brothers and was unimpressed with their performance skills. Soon afterwards, the brothers recruited their fellow high-school pupil Aaron Escolopio as a drummer and began playing clubs in the D.C. metro area. The Madden brothers moved to Annapolis, Maryland where they performed acoustic shows.