Joel Madden is offering more insight on his and wife Nicole Richie’s daughter’s decision to go by her middle name, Kate.
“That’s a narrative everybody ran away with because it gets clicks,” Madden, 47, said during the Monday, March 16, episode of the “Dumb Blonde” podcast. “She’s been going by her middle name since she was in, like, first grade. She chose it.”
Madden and Richie, 44, are the parents of 18-year-old Harlow Kate and 16-year-old Sparrow James.
The couple found out that their daughter was going by her middle name during an “open house” at her school when the teacher referred to her as Kate.
“We went home, we’re like, ‘You go by Kate at school?’ She goes, ‘Yeah, I like it.’ And we were like, ‘OK, great,’” Madden continued. “Everyone who knows her calls her Kate.”
Madden noted that he thought “it was cool” his daughter made that choice. “It wasn’t a big deal,” he added. “There was no discussion.”
The Good Charlotte band member continued, “It’s kind of smart, actually. She knows if someone called her Harlow, they don’t really know her.”
Madden noted that his daughter’s decision about her name was probably “the most interesting thing about her turning 18,” which is why people were interested.
“She doesn’t care, but it was funny because it’s a big deal,” Madden said. “She’s such a nice girl, she’s really smart, she’s a lot like her mom.”
He added, “She’s incredibly talented with what she loves, which is fashion and design and things like that. She has a great eye, and I’m excited to see what she does, what she chooses to do.”
Richie made headlines in January while celebrating her daughter’s 18th birthday, revealing that the teenager goes by Kate.
“18 years of you ♥️🎂 @katemaddennn,” she captioned an Instagram post on January 12. Followers quickly flooded the comments section with questions.
Madden also celebrated his daughter’s big day, writing, “That’s my girl ❤️✨,” in the comments section.
Richie set the record straight during an interview with People days after her daughter’s birthday.
“Yeah, she goes by her middle name,” Richie said on January 14. “She has her whole life.”
The House of Harlow founder said that she “didn’t look” at the comments about the birthday post, but she noted the widespread reaction “makes sense.”
