Born on October 31, 1961, Larry Mullen Jr. was the only son of 3 children, including older sister Cecilia and a younger sister Mary, who passed away in 1970. His parents, Larry Sr. and Maureen Mullen raised their children in Artane, a suburb of Dublin.
During his early years, Larry became interested in playing drums so his parents bought him a set. He began taking lessons, eventually entering into the Artane Boys Band, a drum and bugle corp. This didn’t last very long as the rules on hair length were very strict and Larry refused to cut his hair. He left the band after a very short stint.
After entering Mount Temple, Larry continued to aspire to be a drummer in a band, so his father encouraged him to begin one on his own. At age 15, Larry Jr. put up the now famous note that stated that he had wasted some money on a drum kit and was wondering if anyone else who had done the same with some band instruments wanted to start a band. From that note, history was made.
Once the band came together, it was realized that Larry was the only member that actually had any real musical experience and background. That turned out to be all right in the end, however, as the band more than made up for their inexperience with sheer enthusiasm.
At age 17, Larry’s life was turned upside down when his mother, who he was very close to, was killed suddenly in an auto accident. He was so saddened and depressed by his loss that he wanted to quit the band. Bono understood what Larry was going through due to his own experience of losing his own mother only a few years earlier. Bono wouldn’t allow Larry to give up all that he had worked so hard to achieve and helped Larry through what was probably one of the toughest periods in his life. This brought the two men very close together.
His music career includes 14 Grammy Awards, the Rory Gallagher Musician of the Year Award from Hot Press Magazine, 8 Brit Awards, as well as many others. He has also served as a judge for the Shortlist Music Prize.
Although he has been plagued with a battle with tendonitis it has been curbed by specially-designed drumsticks.
Besides U2, Larry has done some side projects with artists like: Nanci Griffith, Daniel Lanois, Emmylou Harris, Robbie Robertson, Paul Brady and B.B. King. In honor of the Irish National Football team's bid for the World Cup in 1990, Larry co-wrote and co-produced the anthem "Put 'Em Under Pressure." He also worked with fellow band mate Adam Clayton on the theme to Mission: Impossible for the film's release in 1996. Larry and Adam also teamed up with Mike Mills and Michael Stipe to form the group "Automatic Baby" for Bill Clinton's Inauguration in 1993 at MTV's Inaugural Ball.