For years, Liv Tyler believed Todd Rundgren was her biological father. Todd Rundgren had given the little girl a surname, helped provide for an education, and taken a place in a family whose history Liv Tyler would only gradually understand.
Learning that Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler was her biological father changed that understanding. Yet decades later, Liv Tyler continued to speak about Todd Rundgren with gratitude, affection, and an acknowledgment that the discovery had been painful.
The story reaches back to a child who needed care—and a musician who accepted the responsibility of helping provide it.
A childhood supported by several people
Liv Tyler’s mother, Bebe Buell, had been in a relationship with Todd Rundgren around the time of Liv Tyler’s birth. According to Liv Tyler’s account, Todd Rundgren agreed to take on a father’s role despite uncertainty about biological parentage.
In a 2007 interview with Glamour, Liv Tyler explained that Todd Rundgren continued providing financial support after the relationship with Bebe Buell ended, including paying for private schooling. Liv Tyler also remembered an ordinary childhood in Maine, with school, friends, and relatives contributing to everyday life.
Bebe Buell and extended family members were important caregivers. Todd Rundgren’s involvement belonged within that wider family network. Understanding those different roles matters: Liv Tyler’s childhood included several people whose contributions remained meaningful long after the family’s private history became public.
The discovery that changed the family story
During childhood, Liv Tyler began noticing a resemblance to Steven Tyler and to Steven Tyler’s daughter, Mia Tyler. In a conversation on the Sibling Revelry podcast in April 2025, Liv Tyler recalled seeing Mia Tyler at an Aerosmith concert.
The similarities were striking. Liv Tyler remembered matching concert clothes, similar hairstyles, and the unsettling feeling of looking at another version of herself.
Questions followed. Bebe Buell took Liv Tyler aside and explained the family history. Liv Tyler later described that conversation as sincere and loving, while also recalling the shock of receiving information that changed something fundamental about identity.
A relationship with Steven Tyler and another part of the family would develop from that discovery. Todd Rundgren’s place in Liv Tyler’s memories remained.
Gratitude alongside difficult feelings
In 2017, Liv Tyler expressed that gratitude in an interview with The Guardian:
“I’m so grateful to Todd for choosing to be a father figure to me.”
By 2025, Liv Tyler was also speaking candidly about the difficulties surrounding those relationships. On Sibling Revelry, Liv Tyler said the situation had been painful for Todd Rundgren, acknowledged that contact was less frequent than it should be, and remembered the family shared with Todd Rundgren and Todd Rundgren’s sons.
Liv Tyler’s account held affection and regret together. The relationship had a history worth honoring, even as unresolved feelings remained part of the conversation.
Remembering Todd Rundgren’s care, Liv Tyler said:
“He took care of me as, like, he was dad.”
The care Liv Tyler still remembered
Liv Tyler eventually described having two fathers and receiving love from both. That understanding made room for the excitement of discovering Steven Tyler’s family and the importance of Todd Rundgren’s earlier care.
Across interviews separated by many years, Liv Tyler returned to the same part of the story: Todd Rundgren had accepted responsibility, provided support, and helped a child grow up.
The discovery of biological parentage changed Liv Tyler’s understanding of the past. In Liv Tyler’s own telling, Todd Rundgren’s care remained part of that past—and something still worth remembering aloud.