The Colorful Life of Rodney Bingenheimer: The King Maker of New Artists
For more than 50 years, Rodney Bingenheimer has been in the limelight for being one of LA’s scenesters and a DJ. But much more than those things, his most significant contribution remains to help numerous bands succeed in America.
Rodney is the first American DJ to identify new artists and play “edgy new bands” such as Nirvana, Hole, The Pandoras, The Bangles, Guns ‘n Roses, The Ramones, and the like.
Contrary to the spectacular life he lived, Rodney actually had a sad childhood. His parents separated when he was three years old and then lived with his mother, who worked as a waitress. With this, he was left with no choice but to spend the nights alone.
His mother was obsessed with autographs. She went as far as dropping Rodney, who was still 16 back then, at Connie Stevens’ house for him to get a signature.
This marked the beginning of a six years separation from his mother. He was left on his own, with nothing but a dream. Little did he know that later on, he would take the music industry like a storm.
How His Career Started
After being left alone by his mother, Rodney went on his own to Los Angeles. He became friends with LA scene’s rising bands like The Byrds or Sonny & Cher…
