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Mike was born Michael Pritchard on 4th May 1972 in Rodeo, California. His natural mother was a heroin addict who gave him up for adoption. He was adopted by a native American woman and her white husband, but they split up when Mike was seven. At first he lived with his father, then his mother and stepfather. "We didn't get along for years. Later on, when I hit high school, my mom moved away from us, and me and my stepdad got real close. But then he died when I was 17". It was a tough childhood.
Mike met Billie Joe Armstrong in their school cafeteria in 1982. They became friends whilst saving all their money to buy guitars to jam together. Later, Mike switched to bass and left the guitar playing to Billie. When his family moved away, Mike rented a room from Billie Joe's mother. He got a job to pay the rent, but at night he and Billie would play in their band, Sweet Children.
Mike has a daughter, Estelle Desiree, born in April 1997, with his ex-wife Anastasia.
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