The member of The Deloreans, a Hampton Roads-based ’80s tribute band, said being Billy Idol is a breeze.
“All it takes is a box of L’Oreal No. 205, extra bleach blond and some hair gel,” he laughed.
Toss in a few leather-gloved fist pumps, a well-timed lip curl, and Willoughby is pretty much a dead ringer for the “White Wedding” singer.
“I’m totally recognizable,” said the band’s keyboard player and one of its seven vocalists. “I don’t even need business cards anymore.”
The resemblance to the iconic ’80s figure may seem obvious now, but it wasn’t always so. Willoughby, who’s 37, came of age in the era of Nirvana and grunge-inspired flannel shirts. By that time, Billy Idol’s punk chic was about as relevant as a Rubik’s Cube and had faded from the public eye.
“I grew up in the ’90s, so on a personal level, that’s the music and era that I identify with,” Willoughby said.
Even so, a gig’s a gig, so when his brother and a few musician friends got the idea of forming The Deloreans in 2007, Willoughby agreed to join them.
“I was like, yeah, an ’80s band, sure why not. I wasn’t ambivalent about it, but I can’t say I was that ecstatic about it either.”
As it turns out, the decision proved to be a very wise career move. It may be a cliche, but music really is the soundtrack to our youth, no matter the generation. For the original MTV generation, ’80s music represents carefree times, and nostalgia can mean big business. But the price of admission includes more than just a grab bag of cover tunes.
The Deloreans, who play The Jewish Mother in Virginia Beach on New Year’s Eve, are all in when it comes to embodying the era of excess.
“We are like an ’80s theme park,” Willoughby said. “We’ve got the costumes; we got the look and the attitude. When you come to a Deloreans show, you feel like you’re actually in the ’80s.”
Each member of the eight-piece unit gets their moment to shine, swapping off the lead role in tunes from Madonna to Twisted Sister.
“The thing about ’80s music is that every song is like a party,” Willoughby said. And he’s more than happy to play the part of its merry prankster host.
When it’s his turn to take the lead as Billy Idol, Willoughby plays the part with all the hedonistic gusto the British musician became known for.
“I wind up doing stuff that would get most people thrown out of a club, but I’m actually getting paid to do it,” Willoughby laughed. “I’m usually on top of a bar or on a chair right in the middle of the crowd. One time I jumped up on a table with my big black boots, just getting into the song, and I stomped on a glass. Shrapnel went everywhere.”
When Willoughby isn’t performing with The Deloreans, he’s a music teacher in Virginia Beach, as are many of his bandmates. Still, it’s fair to ask if spraying on Aqua Net and wearing neon ever gets old.
“I always get a charge out of playing in this band,” Willoughby said. “Every time we perform there’s always at least one person who is seeing us for the first time. When they hear a song they haven’t heard since they were in seventh grade, it’s like magic. That’s the appeal, and that’s why they keep coming back. We touch on love and memories, and that makes people feel good.”
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