What is Shirley Manson's Net Worth?
Shirley Manson is a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician and actress who has a net worth of $16 million. Shirley Manson is best known as the lead singer of the rock band Garbage. With the band, she has recorded several hit albums, including the multiple-Grammy Award-nominated "Version 2.0." Beyond Garbage, Manson has recorded material as a solo artist, and has acted on television and film.
Early Life
Shirley Manson was born on August 26, 1966 in Edinburgh, Scotland to Muriel, a big band singer, and John, a college lecturer. She has an older sister named Lindy-Jayne and a younger sister named Sarah. Manson had her first public performance at the age of four, appearing alongside her older sister in an amateur show at the Church Hill Theatre. For her schooling, she went to Flora Stevenson Primary School, where she took lessons in clarinet, recorder, and fiddle, and also learned ballet and piano. Subsequently, Manson went to Broughton High School; there, she continued to pursue music, and also became involved in theater. Despite these activities, she had a difficult time in school, as she was regularly bullied. As a result, Manson suffered from depression and body dysmorphic disorder, leading her to self-injury, substance abuse, and petty crimes.
Career Beginnings
Intending to become an actress, Manson applied to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama; however, she was rejected. She went on to volunteer in the cafeteria of a local hospital, and then became a waitress at a local hotel. For five years, she served as a shop assistant at Miss Selfridge. Manson had her first real musical experiences singing with local acts such as the Wild Indians and Autumn 1904. She then joined the rock band Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie, eventually becoming a prominent member. In 1987, the group signed with Capitol Records, and two years later released its first album, "Good Deeds and Dirty Rags." Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie's second album, "Hammer and Tongs," came out in 1991 through Radioactive Records. Shortly after this, Manson was signed to Radioactive as a solo artist. With members of Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie serving as her backing band, she recorded under the name Angelfish, and released a single self-titled album in 1994.
Garbage
Following the end of Angelfish, Manson joined the American rock band Garbage. The group's self-titled debut album, released in 1995, was a smash hit; it went on to sell over four million copies, and spawned the successful singles "Stupid Girl" and "Only Happy When it Rains." Manson grew in stature during the band's subsequent tour, becoming the public face of Garbage. She also became the band's chief songwriter for its second album, "Version 2.0," which topped the charts in multiple countries. Moreover, it earned Grammy Award nominations for Album of the Year and Best Rock Album.
In 1999, Garbage recorded the theme song to the James Bond film "The World is Not Enough." Two years later, the band released its third album, "Beautiful Garbage," which debuted at number 13 on the Billboard 200. Manson began writing more overtly political lyrics for the band on its fourth album, 2005's "Bleed Like Me," which launched the hit single "Why Do You Love Me." Following this, Garbage went on an extended hiatus. The group returned to the studio in 2010, and in 2012 released the album "Not Your Kind of People." This was followed four years later by the album "Strange Little Birds." In 2021, Garbage released its seventh studio album, "No Gods No Masters."
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Solo Career and Collaborations
Manson began creating material as a solo artist in 2006. Lacking a record deal, she posted three demos to Facebook in 2009. However, shortly after this, Manson announced she was taking a break from music, as she had become tired of the industry and was more interested in acting.
Beyond Garbage, Manson has collaborated with a myriad of artists throughout her career. She has recorded with Chris Connelly, Eric Avery, and Debbie Harry, and has performed on-stage with such groups as Incubus, Kings of Leon, No Doubt, and the Pretenders. Manson also appeared in the music video for "These Things" by She Wants Revenge.
Acting Career
As an actor, Manson is best known for her role on the science-fiction television series "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles." Making her debut in the show's season two premiere in 2008, she played the character Catherine Weaver, the CEO of a technology company who is revealed to be a liquid-metal T-1001 Terminator. Manson remained on the show through 2009. Her next role came in the 2012 political thriller film "Knife Fight," starring Rob Lowe and Carrie-Anne Moss. From 2017 to 2018, Manson voiced the characters of Chirp and Cheep on the animated Canadian children's show "Top Wing."
Personal Life and Philanthropy
In 1996, Manson wed artist Eddie Farrell; they divorced in 2003. Five years later, she got engaged to record producer and sound engineer Billy Bush, who she married in 2010. Together, Manson and Bush reside in Los Angeles, California.
Deeply committed to philanthropy, Manson has used her profile to support various causes. Through a Garbage-branded lip gloss, she raised funds for Grampian Children's Cancer Research and Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital. In 2001, Manson was appointed as an ambassador of the M•A•C AIDS Fund. She went on to donate to several AIDS charities throughout the world. Among her other philanthropic endeavors, Manson has been involved with the Pablove Foundation, a charity devoted to combating pediatric cancer.
