Josh Groban (career bio)
With his flawless lyrical baritone, Josh Groban is known around the world as a classically influenced pop singer who thrills listeners with his emotional and moving interpretations of Italian standards and passionate ballads. But to anyone who caught one of Groban’s spirited performances on last year’s electrifying world tour in support of his 2006 album Awake, one thing is abundantly clear: The guy is also a rock star.
Don’t believe us? Check out the concert extravaganza captured on Groban’s new DVD, Awake Live, where 15,000 fans in Salt Lake City go berserk when he makes his entrance rising triumphantly on a mid-stage platform, raising a fist in the air while singing his hit single “You Are Loved (Don’t Give Up).” Witness the giddy, adoring faces as he grasps the outstretched hands of audience members while he strolls past the crowd barriers singing “In Her Eyes.” Watch as people wave their arms in the air and sway during “You Raise Me Up,” and cheer him on as he shows off his skills behind the drum kit on “Canto Alla Vita.” All the while, the crowd clearly revels in Groban’s natural charisma and, of course, his pristine, emotional voice that the New York Times, in a concert review, raved “has the power to knock the arena senseless.”
Not only did Groban sell out nearly every date on his 81-city Awake World Tour (which visited North America, Europe, Australia, and the Philippines between February and October in 2007), but he was also the best-selling artist of 2007 thanks to sales of the double-platinum Awake and his blockbuster Christmas album, Noel. Recorded in June 2007 with the London Philharmonic and the African Children’s choir, the stunning collection of holiday classics sold four million copies in the U.S. alone — making it the best-selling album of last year — and spent five consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, breaking a holiday album record previously held by the King of Rock and Roll himself, Elvis Presley. (See? Rock star!)
Overall, this musical phenomenon has sold more than 17 million copies of his four multi-platinum albums, sold-out three world tours, released three live DVDs, and dueted with some of the most celebrated recording artists in history, including Barbra Streisand (singing “All I Know of Love” on her 2002 Duets album), Celine Dion (singing “The Prayer” for her CBS special Celine Dion: That’s Just the Woman in Me), Andrea Bocelli (in a tribute to the late Luciano Pavarotti at the 2008 Grammy Awards), and Sarah Brightman (at Princes William and Harry’s Concert for Diana in London last year). Memorable television appearances over the years include six visits to The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Kennedy Center Honors (honoring Andrew Lloyd Weber), two PBS specials, and performances at Super Bowl XXXVIII, the Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade, on American Idol’s “Idol Gives Back,” and during the closing ceremonies of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, an event watched by more than 2 billion people around the world. On the other end of spectrum, Groban recently had the opportunity to show his lighter side by joining the likes of Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz, and Harrison Ford in Jimmy Kimmel’s hilarious video spoof, “I’m F**king Ben Affleck.”
With such a meteoric rise, it’s worth pointing out that Groban is only 27 years old. The Los Angeles native was discovered at 17 by the multiple Grammy-winning producer, writer, and arranger David Foster who caught Groban performing at an inaugural ceremony for former California Governor Gray Davis. A month later, Foster asked Groban to stand-in for Andrea Bocelli during a 1999 Grammy Award rehearsal of “The Prayer” with Celine Dion. What followed was a string of opportunities presented by Foster, whose remarkable ear for talent had honed in on Groban’s extraordinary ability to sing both pop and classical material. Groban went on to perform “There For Me” with Sarah Brightman on her 2000-2001 La Luna tour, featured on her La Luna concert DVD.
Groban made his recording debut by singing “For Always” with Lara Fabian on the movie soundtrack to A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. Under Foster’s guidance, Groban also became involved in many benefit shows, including “The Andre Agassi Grand Slam Event For Children”, singing alongside Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Don Henley, and Robin Williams; “Muhammad Ali’s Fight Night Foundation”; and “The Family Celebration” which was co-hosted by Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Ally McBeal creator David E. Kelley was so impressed with Groban’s performance at “The Family Celebration” event that he created the role of “Malcolm Wyatt” for Groban and asked him to perform “You’re Stil You” in the show’s 2001 season finale. After being flooded with thousands of emails from fans, Kelley asked Groban to return the following season to reprise his role and perform “To Where You Are.” Warner Bros. Records soon offered Groban an exclusive recording contract with Foster at the production helm. Six months after its release, his debut album, Josh Groban, went double-platinum and has now sold 4.9 million copies in the U.S. alone.
In December 2002, Groban performed at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway, and later joined The Corrs, Sting, Lionel Richie, and others for a Christmas performance at the Vatican in Rome, Italy. In 2003, Groban performed “The Prayer” with Celine Dion and the finale song, “Aren’t They All Our Children,” at the concert for World Children’s Day, an event created by Foster. In November 2003, Groban released his second album, Closer, which sold 375,000 copies in its first week and skyrocketed to No. 1 on the Billboard album chart two months later thanks to the gold-certified single “You Raise Me Up” — a track that earned Groban a Grammy Award nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. Closer went on to spend an astonishing 62 weeks on the Billboard Pop chart. That year, nearly 40 million people saw Groban perform as part of the AOL “Broadband Rocks” concert series.
In November 2004, Groban released his second live DVD, Live At The Greek, which PBS televised as a Great Performances special. He also performed “Remember When It Rained,” backed by a full orchestra, at the American Music Awards, having been nominated for Favorite Male Artist in the pop category. In 2004 and 2005, Groban and his recordings were nominated for more than a dozen awards, including an Academy Award for his performance of “Believe” from the Dreamworks film, Polar Express starring Tom Hanks.
Inspired by a visit with Nelson Mandela during a 2004 trip to South Africa, Groban established the Josh Groban Foundation to help children in need through education, health care, and the arts. Mandela appointed Groban an official ambassador for Mandela’s Project 46664, a campaign to help raise global awareness of HIV/AIDS in Africa. Over the years, Groban’s devoted fans (who call themselves “Grobanites”) have raised more than $720,000 for the Josh Groban Foundation. Groban’s commitment to help better the world around him includes his participation in many charity events including VH1 Save the Music, Tsunami Aid: A Concert of Hope, and Live 8.
In September 2006, Groban released Awake and proved his versatility as an artist by co-writing and co-producing several songs on the album, including the single “February Song.” Featuring collaborations with Dave Matthews, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Herbie Hancock, and John Ondrasik’s Five for Fighting, Awake represented a creative leap forward for Groban, which paid off when the album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart. It has now sold more than two million copies in the U.S.
Which brings us to 2008. On the heels of the phenomenal success of Noel, Groban performed at a special live event, entitled “Where Music Meets Film,” at the Sundance Film Festival in January, followed by his Grammy Award performance with Andrea Bocelli in February. In April, Groban joined Paul Simon for his “Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon” concert series at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. In May, Groban will not only promote the Awake Live DVD with appearances on The Late Show With David Letterman, Good Morning America, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Ellen Degeneres Show, and Jimmy Kimmel Live!, he will also appear as “The Russian” in a 21st-anniversary concert performance of the cult musical Chess, opposite Idina Menzel, at London’s Royal Albert Hall.
(April 2008)