Biography: Bob Geldof

Famous rock musician and author Bob Geldof was born on October 5, 1951, in Dublin, Ireland. Geldof is best known as the singer of the punk band the Boomtown Rats and for his political activism—particularly his anti-poverty efforts in Africa—with the organizations Band Aid and Live Aid.

Born in Ireland in 1951, Bob Geldof had a couple of hits with his band the Boomtown Rats in the 1980s, but he became widely known when he formed the pop charity Band Aid trust in 1984. In 1985, Live Aid concerts were held to raise more money.

Geldof studied at Black Rock College in Ireland and worked in Canada as a pop journalist before returning home in 1975. There he formed the successful punk-rock group the Boomtown Rats (1975-86). The group had a couple of No. 1 hits, including the single "I Don't Like Mondays."

Geldof established the pop charity Band Aid trust in 1984, which raised $8 million for Africa famine relief with the release of the record Do They Know It's Christmas?. In 1985, Live Aid charity concerts were held in London and Philadelphia, raising an additional $48 million.

In July 2005, Geldof organized "Live 8" charity pop concerts. They scheduled the concert to coincide with the G8 summit on world poverty, held in Scotland with the representatives of the eight wealthiest countries of the world. In support of the Make Poverty History campaign, performances were shown on television channels in 10 cities around the world. That same year, Geldof presented Geldof in Africa for BBC 1 and wrote a book to accompany the series. At the 2005 Brit Awards, Geldof won a Lifetime Achievement Award. Additionally, he received an honorary knighthood in 1986, and was awarded the freedom of the City of Dublin in 2005.

Bob Geldof has three daughters with rock journalist Paula Yates: Fifi Trixibelle Geldof (born on March 31, 1983), Peaches Honeyblossom Geldof (March 13, 1989 - April 7, 2014) and Pixie Geldof (born on September 17, 1990). In 1995, Paula Yates left Geldof and married to another man. The couple had a daughter, Tiger Lily. Paula Yates’ husband died in 1997 and she died in 2000. Geldof became Tiger Lily's legal guardian. Peaches Geldof, 25, died on April 7, 2014.