Sum 41's Deryck Whibley Welcomes Baby #2 With Wife Ariana Cooper
Sum 41 frontman Deryck Whibley is now a father of two after welcoming his second child, daughter Quentin Arlo, with wife Ariana Cooper. The rocker took to Instagram to share the news Monday, posting a Polaroid photo of him, his wife and their newborn daughter in the hospital alongside some close-up shots of Quentin, who was born on her mom's birthday.
"[Ariana] here we are, 12 years into our relationship with 2 beautiful children, an amazing life and so much to be grateful for. You've given me more than everything and I couldn't imagine this life without you. Happy birthday to you and to our beautiful new daughter!" he captioned the post. "World, meet Quentin Arlo Whibley." Cooper and Whibley, who married in 2015, are also parents to son Lyndon Igby, whom they welcomed in February 2020.
Whibley announced that Cooper was expecting their second child, writing on Instagram at the time, "On a more personal note, my beautiful wife [Ariana] and I shared our 7th wedding anniversary and also found out we have another little one on the way!" he wrote alongside photos of him with his wife and older son. "It's beyond words. I feel amazing, overjoyed, refreshed and excited to be back on stage with my brothers in [Sum 41]."
Whibley is raising his kids to be just as much of a music lover as he is, the "Fat Lip" artist told The Independent in November 2022. "Pop-punk is the only music he chills out to," Whibley said of Lyndon's musical taste. Compiling a playlist that includes Pennywise, NOFX, Bad Religion, the father of two notes that Sum 41 didn't make the cut. "It would feel weird to include us next to all of this great music," he said. "It never crossed my mind to play him our stuff."
Whibley previously was married to fellow Canadian pop-punk star Avril Lavigne, whom he wed in 2006 before their 2009 split. He told The Independent that the increased tabloid focus on their relationship started to feel "more intrusive" than the public scrutiny he had faced as a musician. "It became not about the music; it was my private life and gossip. And it was constant. You can imagine it was overwhelming," he said.
Whibley's drinking got "bad" in 2010 and 2011 as the band began to "implode" a little bit. "I don't really have an addictive personality, but I had drunk so much that my body had become dependent," he said. "I couldn't function without it; I would be shaking and then I'd have a drink and feel normal." In 2013, Whibley was rushed to the hospital after his liver failed, and the next month in the hospital was "very touch and go."
Staying sober in the wake of his near-death experience wasn't difficult for the singer. "I had nerve damage in my feet, which felt like I was walking on hot coals or broken glass, or both. It was like that for a year and a half," he explained. "I was so out of it that I couldn't form sentences and my motor skills were off. Drinking wasn't even a thought because it was like, 'How are we going to get back to normal?'"