How Billy Corgan Could REALLY Be Bill Burr's Secret Brother: Smashing Pumpkins' Rocker Insists They Were Not 'Doing a Bit' About Being Related
Billy Corgan reveals why he believes Bill Burr could be his secret half-brother.
March 18 2025, Published 6:30 p.m. ET
Musician Billy Corgan has insisted he could be Bill Burr's long-lost half-brother, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Rumors about Corgan, 58, potentially being Burr's half-brother hit a fever pitch in January when Howie Mandel hosted the comedian on his podcast.
Unbeknownst to Burr, 56, Mandel had also invited the Smashing Pumpkins singer, who proceeded to confront him.
Corgan claimed his theory was based on a comment his step-mother made about his late father.
Aside from their strikingly similar appearance, Corgan revealed his theory about Burr was based on a comment his step-mother once made and during an earlier appearance on Mandel's podcast in November 2024, in which he claimed his late father William Corgan, who passed in 2021, once told him he had another son named Bill who was born around the same time he was.
The singer noted pressure from a friend was also a factor, explaining: "A really good friend of mine said to me, looking around, 'OK, now tell me the truth.' And I said, 'I don’t think so. I don't think we're related.' And then my friend said, 'Well, I think you are.'"
Corgan added pressure from a friend also caused him to look more into rumors.
When Burr was blindsided by the stunt Mandel played with Corgan, the comedian confessed there was some truth to rumor but branded the podcast host "an a--hole" for orchestrating the interaction – and later unleashed on Corgan.
A visibly uncomfortable Burr told the singer: "Did you ever think the fact that I never told that story (meant) that maybe you shouldn't?"
Mandel later apologized to his guests and claimed he was "only tried to do something good."
Content warning: the video below contains explicit language.
Mandel invited both Corgan and Burr on his podcast to discuss paternity rumors.
The rocker later told Huff Post the tense meeting with Burr was "one of those rare moments where I think all three of us really didn't know where it was going. And you see that, and that’s what makes it sort of interesting."
Corgan also insisted the episode was not a bit and claimed "there's enough energy" between all three men to prove it.
He added: "It's not a bit, because it's really about confronting something in a way that none of us really knew what that confrontation would lead to, and you see it play out.
"You see jokes, but you also see kind of like, oh, there’s something there."
Corgan insisted the interaction between him and Burr was 'not a bit' on Mandel's podcast.
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
In a separate chat with People, Corgan said his friend has pushed him to take a DNA test to settle rumors once and for all, but wouldn't say whether or not he's gone through with it.
He also provided further context on his father's life and what fueled him to believe rumors.
Corgan explained: "It's taken on a life of its own. It’s sort of strange.
"It really started from honest things, which are, my father may have fathered 12 other children, and the facts of Bill's life actually do match the story that I was told.
"There's no invention there."
