Minka Kelly burst onto the TV scene in the 2000s on the critically acclaimed Friday Night Lights. Two decades after the high-school drama premiered, Minka is returning to the small screen for the second season of Netflix’s popular western drama, Ransom Canyon, which is a delectable mix of Yellowstone’s dramatic ranch lifestyle with the cosy small town romance of Virgin River.
Following the first season’s success last year, Ransom Canyon, which stars Minka as former concert pianist Quinn O’Grady, is back for round two with eight brand new episodes all dropping on the streaming platform on 23 July. With Minka back in the spotlight, fans may be surprised to discover she has a famous connection to the entertainment industry.
Read on for all you need to know about Minka’s relative who was in one of the biggest bands of the 80s.
Minka’s dad is an 80s rock star
© FilmMagicMinka Kelly and her father former Aerosmith guitarist Rick Dufay
Minka’s dad is French-American musician Rick Dufay, 74, who rock and roll fans would best know for playing guitar for Aerosmith in the early 80s.
Rick stepped in to replace the American rock band’s rhythm guitarist Brad Whitford in 1981, joining lead singer Steven Tyler, Tom Hamilton on bass, Joey Kramer on drums and Jimmy Crespo, who replaced Joe Perry as the lead guitarist, in the lineup. Rick was credited on Aerosmith’s 1982 album Rock in a Hard Place and toured with the band across North America.
His stint in the group was brief, however, as he became a temporary replacement until Brad ultimately returned to the band in 1984. He stuck with music after leaving Aerosmith, going on to join the 90s blues group, Blue by Nature.
His small role in Aerosmith’s comeback
Aerosmith founding member Joe Perry previously opened up about how Rick played a part in getting the original band back together in the 80s. Joe had walked away from the group in 1979 amid growing tensions. Guitarist Brad followed shortly after in 1981 to form his own band, Whitford/St. Holmes. However, both estranged members rejoined the band just a few years after meeting backstage with the rest of the group at a show in 1984.
Speaking of how the reunion came about in a 2024 interview, Joe recalled: “Even Rick Dufay said, ‘Listen, you’ve gotta get those guys back in the band. This just isn’t working without them.’ Rick is a really smart, standup guy who was just telling it like he saw it. But [Joe’s wife] Billie encouraged me to get together with Steven, and we hooked up and talked about Aerosmith.”
© Alamy Stock PhotoRick and Steven Tyler perform
Rick addressed the band’s comeback himself in a 2008 interview, claiming, “Steven really missed Joe and Joe certainly missed Steven.”
“I basically shoved them in a room together and said that they had to get their [expletive] together. Joey and Tom flipped out on me. I only found out years later that they were really [expletive] at me doing that. The management called me and said I was out of my mind as Tim Collins would end up managing them but I just thought, ‘[expletive] that!!’. It was the right thing to do. It worked out right for them and I had to get back to what I was doing.”
He’s ‘very proud’ of his daughter
© FilmMagicRick and his daughter Minka in 2007
Minka had a complicated relationship with her dad growing up. The actress was raised by her single mother, Maureen Dumont Kelly, whom she became estranged from in later years before Maureen’s death in 2008. Minka first met her dad when she was three years old and later moved to Los Angeles to reconnect with him.
Opening up about their reconciliation on social media in 2018, Minka admitted it “was a very bumpy road to start but we found our way”, adding that they “still drive each other nuts sometimes but I can honestly say that I’m not sure where I’d be without him today.”
She told People that they were “still working on a lot of” their issues. “I love my dad so much. I think that he is so wise and he is so smart, and he’s wonderful in so many ways and helped me navigate living in L.A. and going through this business in a way that I need maybe him more now than I did when I was younger. We’re good friends now, and I’m glad he’s here,” she said.
Meanwhile, Rick said in 2008 that he was “very proud and happy about my daughter”.
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