The Reason Willie Nelson Claims He Has More Than One Birthday
At 90 years old, Willie Nelson is one of the most celebrated country musicians of all time. In fact, he's so darn special we get to celebrate him twice a year because he celebrates two birthdays. During his two-day 90th birthday party at the Hollywood Bowl, fellow musicians gushed over Nelson's legacy to Austin360. Miranda Lambert told Austin American-Statesman, "He's so versatile, and he's so honest," she said. "That's all we want to be as songwriters ... I don't know that anybody will ever catch Willie and what he's done for music."
For half a century, Nelson has wowed audiences as both a musician and songwriter, with nearly 350 songs that he has either written or co-written. A few of his biggest hits include the iconic "On the Road Again" and even Patsy Cline's "Crazy," which he wrote.
But how is it possible that he has two birthdays? Sure, he's an absolute legend, yet even Beyoncé and Dolly Parton only have one birthday.
Nelson was born late
No one can really predict exactly when a baby will be born. So when Willie Nelson came into the world at midnight on April 29, there wasn't anything anyone could do. "I was born before midnight on the 29th, but it didn't get registered in the county courthouse until the next day, the 30th," Nelson once explained on a SiriusXM radio show. "So, it went out officially as the 30th. So I just do both days."
Yet Southern Living notes that Nelson's daughter Lana has expounded on her father's simpler explanation. She says the country music star only had one birthday — April 29 — until he joined the Air Force and saw his birth certificate, which named his birthday April 30.
He decided to celebrate for both days from then on. That's a fair decision for someone like Nelson, who has had a lot of tragedy in his life. Regardless of the reason, we think it's swell that Nelson gets to have his big day twice a year.
Nelson said his milestone birthday was 'just another day'
When Willie Nelson turned 90 in April 2023, his celebration was a huge event at The Hollywood Bowl. Nelson himself, along with a slew of other performers like Snoop Dogg and Dave Matthews, took to the stage for the party. He even had celeb hosts like Helen Mirren and Ethan Hawke.
Even with so many famous folks celebrating at the public event and nearly 40,000 fans in attendance between both nights, Nelson told People it was just another day. Well, technically, two.
"I never thought I'd get here," Nelson told the outlet of his age. But in regard to the huge celebration, he said, "This ain't nothing. It's another day." He went on to say that it's performing and the crowds of people that still get him playing. Even if his birthday(s) are just another day for Nelson, they're always cause for celebration for his myriad fans around the world.