Adrian Young Profile

Adrian Young:  Playing poker often requires nerves of steel and an intestinal fortitude to hold up long term under hours of folding hands punctuated with moments of adrenaline pounding action. If there was a celebrity player whose job experience prepared them for that side of poker more than No Doubt drummer Adrian Young it would be a surprise; after all Adrian spends the majority of his time performing before thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of fans completely naked.  Well, to be accurate, those are the band’s European venues; in America he displayed a touch of modesty by donning a pair of thong bottoms.

It is always interesting to watch musicians sort of grow up and mature. Their ability deepens, their style sometimes changes, the get married, sometimes slow down on the partying, and in Young’s case, they put on boxer shorts. After some time with the G-Strings, which he described as “butt floss” he moved on to a more comfortable solution, while still allowing the majority of his skin real estate to be stitch-free.

Adrian landed his gig with No Doubt when he fudged a bit on his drumming experience; only a two-year practitioner, he said he had played for seven. In the end it was his fun loving attitude as well as his ability that scored him the spot; besides, he’s had more than seven years of experience by now, right?

When the spiky coiffed drummer showed up for the World Poker Tour’s popular Hollywood Home Game, he was fully dressed and ready to have fun and win some money for his charity of choice, the Cancer Research Foundation, for whom he won $2,000.

Having fun doesn’t mean taking a subject lightly, as his drumming attests to. Adrian plays with other bands when not working with No Doubt, showing his passion for working in music is very strong. Young is also a very serious golfer, and he spends much time on the links when not recording and touring with his band. He took another mature step on January 16, 2000, when he married his longtime girlfriend, Nina Kent. They have one son, Mason James Young, who lives with mom and dad in Long Beach, California.