Sting, whose real name is Gordon Matthew Sumner, met his second wife, actor Trudie Styler, through his first wife, Frances Tomelty. Needless to say, the relationship timeline was just a touch murky. The rock star had already welcomed two children, Joe Sumner and Fuschia Kate Sumner, with his then-wife when he fell in love with Styler. The same year she gave birth to their first child, Brigitte Michael "Mickey" Sumner, Sting divorced Tomelty. It was a messy situation, but it led the couple to have
three more children and tie the knot after 10 years together in 1992.
Not unlike Pink, who has opened up about life as a mom and rock star, Sting has been candid about his fatherhood journey. "I never intended to be a dad," the legendary musician told People in 2020. "I became a dad by accident six times — that's how smart I am. Yet they were the happiest accidents of my life because [my kids are] remarkable human beings." In addition to his six children, Sting has now become a grandfather seven times over. "All of this has happened by accident," he continued. "I didn't intend to be the patriarch of a tribe, but I am."
The majority of Sting's kids have followed in their parents' footsteps, be it musically or generally leaning into creative pursuits. From his rock star son to his actor daughters, and the youngest who forged his own path, these are Sting's six kids.
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Joe Sumner Followed In His Father's Footsteps
Sting's eldest child, Joe Sumner, was born in 1976, a year before The Police came to be. Given the musical influence of the time period as well as his dad's status, it didn't take long for him to fall in love with making music himself. Joe and his bandmates became Santa's Boyfriend in 1999, but after experiencing some success, renamed themselves Fiction Plane and released their debut album "Everything Will Never Be OK" in 2003.
While the group did okay, it wasn't until Sting took them under his wing and invited Fiction Plane to open for The Police during the band's 2007 reunion tour. Joe, the bass player and lead singer of the group, admitted that it was pure nepotism he was benefitting from in speaking with The Globe and Mail in May 2007. "It's a free ride. It totally is," he remarked. "But if we suck, we're going to fall five times harder." It's far from the first time the child of a musician banked off their parents' success — Bob Marley's kids, for example, followed in his footsteps — and Joe's never been too proud to admit it.
During a joint October 2023 interview with Variety, both Joe and Sting spoke about going on tour together yet again — this time, both as solo artists. Then asked how it feels to sing songs side by side on stage, The Police front man noted, "I feel very proud he's my boy. I have a natural dad's pride."
Joe Sumner Is A Married Father Of Four
Now that Joe Sumner is married with children, he has a lot more in common with his dad. Not only is he learning to balance his music career and fatherhood, like Sting had to, but it seems he's found the woman of his dreams, too. Joe began dating Kate Finnerty in January 2009 and they tied the knot less than two years later. Though they keep their family life relatively private, we do know they share three daughters and one son. It's also unclear how they met or what Sting's daughter-in-law does professionally, but what has been made evident is that the couple seems perfect together.
In December 2024, the Fiction Plane front man shared a sweet Instagram tribute to his wife, writing, "13 years ago today I opened my heart to the inevitable. The first time I met Kate I knew that if I was lucky enough to be with her it would be forever." Joe's caption was written alongside a snapshot of several of their photos together, two of which were from their wedding day. "Back then that seemed like a very long time. Now it doesn't seem like nearly long enough," Joe continued. "I'm so proud to be your husband."
Fuschia Kate Sumner Is An Actor And Director
Like Ozzy Osbourne's six children, the dynamics of the Sumner family are a little complicated. In 1982, five years after Sting and Frances Tomelty had their son Joe, they welcomed their daughter, Fuschia Kate Sumner, who goes by her middle name. Less than two years later, the couple divorced — but thankfully, it seems that the rock star's children have managed to come out the other side of the drama well-adjusted, all things considered.
When she was old enough to follow in her parents' footsteps, Kate dove headfirst into the entertainment industry. She kicked off her acting career with smaller gigs in the mid-'00s, including a part on "ER" and an uncredited role in 2007's "Stardust." Since then, Kate has added another dozen projects to her filmography and even ventured into producing and directing. She participated in 2021's "Everything I Ever Wanted to Tell My Daughter About Men," an anthology film made up of 23 short films made by 21 female directors, and couldn't help but share her enthusiasm when it earned a major award. "Well this is cool," Kate wrote on Instagram in May 2022. "We won Best Feature - Jury Prize - at Cannes Independent Film Festival."
Fuschia Kate Sumner And Sting Seem To Have A Strong Bond
In addition to keeping on top of her busy schedule, Fuschia Kate Sumner became a mom for the first time in July 2024 when she gave birth to her son Roman. A year later, she married her long-time partner Max Wright in Sicily, and of course, her adoring father was in attendance, alongside Kate's stepmother. Not only did Sting walk his daughter down the aisle, but he also gave an emotional speech welcoming Max to the family.
This wasn't the first time the "Every Breath You Take" singer and his daughter proved they have a sweet relationship. Back in October 2021, Kate shared an Instagram tribute for Sting's 70th birthday alongside a sweet snap of the two hugging. "Happy 70th Birthday to my Dad," the actor wrote, going on to call him the "hardest working man I know [because] he never stops, ever!" Kate shared that she had been enjoying watching Sting perform live from backstage over the past couple days, emphasizing her pride for him. "Love you dad," she signed off.
Mickey Sumner Is A Model-Turned-Actor
Brigitte Michael "Mickey" Sumner, Sting's first child with Trudie Styler, was born in 1984. In 2004, she moved across the pond from London to New York City, got her bachelor's degree in fine art, and became the rock star's first child to pursue modeling. However, as Mickey told W Magazine in September 2013, it wasn't long before she changed course. "I was once the world's worst model," she joked. Mickey took acting lessons while in New York, noting, "I realized pretty quickly I had another calling."
After appearing in a handful of short films in the mid-noughties, she decided to take a leap. "I told my family I was going to be an actress," Mickey recalled during a conversation with Interview magazine in May 2013. "They were like, 'What? Where is your fallback plan?'" Thankfully, it didn't take long for her to make it in the industry, as she landed her breakout role in 2012, playing Sophie in Noah Baumbach's "Frances Ha." Mickey elaborated on the film, noting, "It's basically about navigating those murky waters, which is something I can relate to." From there, she went on to play Patti Smith in the 2013 musical film "CBGB," worked with some big names in "Battle of the Sexes," and secured a recurring role in the "Snowpiercer" television series.
Motherhood Has Had Its Ups And Downs For Mickey Sumner
Parenthood is not always a walk in the park, but it seems to have been especially difficult for Mickey Sumner, who gave birth to her son Akira Rogue Kantrowitz at her parents' house on New Year's Eve back in 2016. He arrived two weeks early, and the "Frances Ha" star noticed some warning signs pretty immediately. "He didn't cry, he didn't latch, and he was a little bit floppy," Mickey wrote in her April 2021 essay for Romper. Three days after his birth, Akira turned yellow and he was admitted to the NICU where he was diagnosed with "a rare genetic unbalanced translocated chromosome."
Several other misdiagnoses came up during Akira's time in the hospital, including Zika virus, microcephaly, and a degenerative brain disease. Mickey and her then-husband Chris Kantrowitz were faced with the reality that their son may not survive his condition. Ultimately, Mickey filed for divorce in 2021.
"At this moment in time, Akira is nonverbal, he is not walking, he is hard of hearing in both ears, has hypotonia, and global delays," she continued. "And yet, regardless of all the things some people think he might be 'missing,' he can connect with people on a level that makes everyone feel deeply seen and deeply loved." To this day, doctors are unsure of Akira's diagnosis, but Mickey isn't looking to "fix" her child. "At some point, I had to come to understand: 'My child is not a project. We are not working on an Akira improvement project here,'" she shared.
Jake Sumner's Birth Was Featured In A Documentary About Sting
Just as fellow rocker Dave Grohl's family lives a lavish life, Sting's children had an undeniably privileged upbringing. For one thing, how many people can say their birth was featured in a rockumentary? Jake Sumner, the first son of The Police front man and Trudie Styler, can as 1985's "Bring On the Night" included footage of his first moments. In the film, which is about Sting breaking away from his band to go solo, the musician can be seen wiping away a tear as he supports Styler in Jake's delivery. The vulnerable and real moment offers fans a glimpse into who the "King Of Pain" singer is outside of his music career.
To promote the documentary, Sting sat down with Rolling Stone for an interview in September 1985. He reminisced about his incredible success, difficulty in his first marriage, and how he hoped his debut solo album "The Dream of the Blue Turtles" would "sell like hot cakes." After noting how he's never planned to be a father, Sting remarked, "The children are the best thing I've been involved in." Not only did they have a remarkable influence over his music, but they gave him purpose. "I'm grateful to my children for giving me that sense of future history. I actually care what the world's going to be like in twenty years, for them," Sting said.
Jake Sumner Is A Director And Producer
Perhaps it's kismet or maybe it's purely a coincidence, but it's pretty wild that 38 years after Jake Sumner's birth was featured in a rock documentary, he made his feature-length debut as a documentary director. Sting's son had previously been attached to eight short films and an episode of the docuseries "I Was There When House Took Over the World," which was also centered around music history. However, Jake's 2023 film "Ron Delsener Presents," about the legendary concert promoter, proved to be a monumental move in his career.
As he told Relix in May 2025, "[The movie] was a balancing act between being a personal story of an octogenarian who can't stop hustling and also a history of live music." Despite being raised by rock and roll royalty himself, Jake was inspired to tell Delsener's story, as he'd been present at some of the most legendary moments in music history and worked with the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Bruce Springsteen, and Tina Turner. "I think ultimately Ron is a great vehicle to tell a story about the larger picture of live music history because he is who he is. You couldn't do that with anyone but he's such a character," Jake explained.
Eliot Sumner Identifies As Gender Fluid
Whether you know Eliot Sumner for their music or you recognize them for their roles in "The Gentlemen" or Netflix's "Ripley," odds are that you've seen them as more than just Sting's second-youngest child. Born in Italy in 1990, they grew up in England and fell in love with making music. Over the years, Eliot made several appearances alongside their parents Sting and Trudie Styler at events, so the public was relatively familiar with them when they revealed how they identified.
During a December 2015 interview, Eliot told British newspaper the Evening Standard that they had been dating model Lucie Von Alten for the past couple years. When asked whether they had come out to their friends and family about their sexuality yet, they said no. "They knew already," Eliot explained. "So I didn't need to. I've never come out to anyone."
"I think forever I was trying to figure out maybe ... what I am," Eliot said. "But I don't think anyone should feel pressured to have any kind of label or tag on them." They elaborated that they preferred not to use "labels" or "specifications" regarding their gender. "We should treat everybody the same. Me, I don't like to be put down to a specific thing," Eliot remarked. "We're all human beings."
Eliot Sumner Doesn't Credit Sting For Their Success
Many celeb kids have offered their take on what it means to be a nepo baby. While some are quick to acknowledge the privilege they were born into, others have suggested they've made it on their own. Eliot Sumner may fall in the latter category. Despite being the kid of a super successful rock star who has sold over 100 million albums, Eliot has said that this hasn't necessarily worked in their favor. "Being Sting's daughter hasn't kicked any doors open for me — he has had absolutely nothing to do with my career," Eliot told the Daily Mail in January 2011. "It's all been down to me so far, and that's how I want to keep it."
At age 4 or 5, they received their first guitar and began writing songs as a teenager. Eliot signed a multi-album deal with Island Records at 18 years old and released their debut record under the band name I Blame Coco. Other solo work followed, until Eliot was 21 and "systematically sabotaged" their own career, as they put it to The Cut in June 2016. "You get told you have to make something popular and as soon as you've done that you can go and do your own thing," Eliot revealed. "But I didn't believe in what I was doing. It wasn't me."
They stepped out of the spotlight, only to reinvent themselves as Vaal, a house music-playing DJ. In addition to Eliot's music career, they've also found work as an actor with roles in "Ripley," "No Time to Die," and "Cry Wolf."
Giacomo Sumner Joined The Police Force
Sting may have been a founding member of The Police, but his son is an actual cop. While the "Fields of Gold" singer has several children who are accustomed to the limelight, he's one of many celebrities who also has kids nobody knows about. Take Giacomo Sumner, Sting's youngest child, who has maintained a fairly private life. He was born in 1995 and eventually moved abroad to attend California Lutheran University, graduating in 2020 with a degree in criminal justice.
Giacomo's mom Trudie Styler shared her pride for her son's accomplishment in a Facebook post at the time, writing, "Congratulations, G. Dad and I [are] so very proud of you. Your hard work has paid off!" In May 2024, he joined the Metropolitan Police back home in London in a ceremony attended by both his parents. "Becoming a police officer has been my dream since I was 13," Giacomo wrote on social media, per People.
It might seem like a bold move for Sting's youngest son to distance himself from the entertainment industry and pursue a career in law enforcement. That said, Giacomo's own dad used to have a normal job, having worked as a teacher under his birth name Gordon Sumner.
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