David Campbell and Jimmy Barnes open up on "complicated" relationship
Jimmy Barnes and David Campbell have opened up on their unconventional father-son bond in the latest episode of The Apple & The Tree podcast.
The podcast hosted by Richard and Christian Wilkins aims to get under the hood of famous Aussie families, discussing the good, the bad and everything else.
In the podcast, Jimmy revealed that he was just a teen when David was left in the care of his maternal grandmother, and he didn't know that his dad was the most famous rock star in the country until he was 10 years old.
When asked how David felt when he realised who his dad was, he replied: "He was 30 ... and a 10-year-old just lands in his lap ... it's a really complicated situation."
"I had lot of anxiety ... a lot of 'I don't belong here' but also 'I want to belong here'."
Jimmy agreed, and said, "He tried to escape from it."
The singer recalled what a tricky time it was for his son.
"David got a bit sick when he started to realise who I was, it was overwhelming, he got migraines and stuff.
"I was like, 'I'm sorry I'm your father ... have you seen Star Wars?'" he joked.
Despite the rough start, Jimmy's wife Jane had hope that the new family dynamic was a positive change, and she was right.
"We can both safely say that there was one factor that made this work quickly, it was Jane," Jimmy shared.
"Even now, David is probably closer to Jane than he is to me," he continued.
David also grew a close bond with his half-sister Mahalia Barnes, who was really young when they first met.
They now have the strongest bond, both on and off stage.
Speaking about his relationship with Mahalia, David said: "The joy of singing with Mahalia on stage, it reminds me of the time I just got there, and she was my first sister ... I trust her with secrets in my life, implicitly."
Over time the family dynamic has developed into something that Jimmy said he cherishes dearly.
"I can't regret anything I've done, because everything I've done has brought me to this space, with this family," he said.
"I don't take any of this for granted, but I used to medicate, I now just meditate."
Now that David is a parent himself he added that there are some perks for his kids for having a world-famous rocker as their 'Pa'.
"When Grandparent Day happens, all of a sudden every parent turns up really dressed well ... asking for selfies," he said.
Image: X/ Nine