Country music superstar Kenny Rogers has been around the block a few times. The “Islands in the Stream” singer may have lived most of his life in the spotlight, but there are still some things that most people don’t know about him. With that in mind, here we present our list of 15 things you probably didn’t know about Kenny Rogers. Check out part one below, and stay tuned for part two, coming soon!
Number Fifteen: He Was a Jazz Musician and a Hippie Rocker. Before Rogers became a sensation in the country music industry, he was a stand-up bassist for a jazz group called The Bobby Doyle Trio. When the group broke up in 1965, Rogers became much more of a hippie and was also the frontman for a group called The First Edition, which later became Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. The group did a lot of psychedelic pop.
Number Fourteen: He Lived With Don Henley. In 1970, Rogers actually produced a record for the band Henley was in before the Eagles, called Shiloh. The members of Shiloh moved out to Los Angeles and stayed with Rogers for six months.
Number Thirteen: He Was a Professional Tennis Player. Rogers has said that, for a period of 10 years, he was playing tennis for eight hours a day, and he was even on the road with Wimbledon champions.
Number Twelve: He Is Also a Talented Interior Designer. Rogers founded Kenji Design Studio in 2003. The Atlanta-based interior design firm earned some major merit, especially when they were called on to design all of the model units, common spaces, graphics, and employee uniforms at Atlanta’s Trump Towers. Rogers is a self-taught designer.
Number Eleven: He Likes His Tribute Site. Have you ever been to the website menwholooklikekennyrogers.com? If not, you should go. The website is essentially a tribute to Rogers’ life and style. Rogers has said that he doesn’t care what the site’s creator does with the site as long as it is all in good taste.
Number Ten: He Used to Collect Harleys. Rogers no longer rides them, in 2004, he admitted that he used to buy Harleys because he was just that big of a fan. Today, he finds them more dangerous than fun.
Number Nine: He Had Cancer. Rogers had skin cancer in 2014; however, he has since recovered, thankfully.