The legacy of a Hollywood family dynasty hung on by a thread before a pair of ’90s rockers stepped in and saved it from collapse.
Matthew and Gunnar Nelson of the ’90s rock band Nelson faced a difficult road after the death of their father, television and music star Ricky Nelson. The brothers, best known for hits like “(Can’t Live Without Your) Love and Affection” and “After the Rain,” rose to fame during the era of big hair and arena-ready guitars. However, they didn’t expect their family legacy to hang in the balance after Ricky Nelson’s 1985 death.
Matthew and Gunnar Nelson’s Fight to Save Their Family Legacy
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Gunnar Nelson revealed their family estate was on the brink of collapse. He said, “It was pretty close. I mean, when our father passed away, the estate was millions in debt, and people don’t know that.”
Instead of going public with this information, the family banded together and figured out a plan.
Nelson continued, “That was really kind of the thing that Nelsons also did — we didn’t air our dirty laundry in public. We came from a different period of time, you know, we were the anti-Kardashians, so to speak. We weren’t the kind of people that would take pictures of ourselves and film what we ate.”
Nelson admitted that the family always maintained a solid work ethic and took pride in their profession. This was passed down from Ozzie and Harriet Nelson to their sons Ricky and David. Subsequently, Ricky’s sons also embraced the family ethos.
“It was just kind of one of those things that grandpa and grandma had a lot of pride. And our father did as well. I mean, he lived and died for rock and roll. He was playing up to 300 shows a year up until the day he died in the plane crash,” he explained.
How Did Gunnar and Matthew Nelson Fix Their Family’s Financial Issues?
Instead of claiming what the brothers told Fox News Digital was a “dishonorable” bankruptcy, the Gunnar and Matthew Nelson took on the debt themselves. “Matthew and I were a couple of kids. We were just 18 [when Ricky Nelson died], and our dad was our best friend,” Gunnar explained.
“So we were kind of dealing with all of that stuff. And then, at the same time, we got hit by the double whammy of the finances.”
“Our father was a good father. He wanted to hide all of the challenges. It was his role, he felt, to allow his children to have a good life… But when we actually opened up the books… it was sobering, and it forced my twin brother and I to grow up immediately,” Gunnar concluded.
Matthew and Gunnar Nelson continue to perform. They wrote a book titled “What Happened to Your Hair” in 2025.
