Van Hunt

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Van Hunt
Born March 8, 1977 (1977-03-08) (age 31)
Dayton, Ohio, USA
Origin Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Genre(s) R&B, neo soul, funk, rock
Occupation(s) Singer, songwriter, musician, producer
Instrument(s) Vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, drums
Years active 1997–present
Label(s) Capitol (2001-2006)
Blue Note (2007)
Website www.vanhunt.com

Van Hunt (born March 8, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. In 2006, Hunt won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for appearing on the tribute version of the Sly & the Family Stone song, "Family Affair".

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

Hunt was born in Dayton, Ohio and raised by his single mother. His father, Van Hunt, Sr., was a factory worker and part-time painter, who was a friend of Ohio Players drummer Jimmy "Diamond" Williams. Hunt took up the drums at age 7, and saxophone at the age of 8, later adding bass and keyboards.[1] Guitar was the last instrument he learned to play; he played guitar in a rock band called Royalty. Hunt moved to Texas for a short time before relocating to Atlanta, Georgia in 1988 to attend Morehouse College, where he studied English, but soon dropped out.[1][2] In Atlanta, he started producing a few hip-hop demos for Atlanta rappers in order to pay bills. Hunt met up-and-coming record producers and artists like Dallas Austin, Jermaine Dupri and TLC through his work on demos.

[edit] Career

Hunt wrote and produced the song "Hopeless" for singer Dionne Farris, formerly of Arrested Development, and joined her band on guitar and keyboards. "Hopeless" appeared on the soundtrack for the film Love Jones (1997). Hunt co-wrote several songs with Rahsaan Patterson on his album Love in Stereo (1999), and co-wrote with Cree Summer, including the song "Mean Sleep", for her album Street Faërie (1999), produced by Lenny Kravitz. He also collaborated with Joi on the single "Missing You" (2002). Through Dionne Farris, Hunt met A&R person Randy Jackson (who later went on to be a judge on Fox's American Idol). Jackson would become Hunt's manager in 2002. Hunt recorded much of the material from his debut album in 2000. Producer Dallas Austin took Hunt's recording to Capitol Records, leading him to sign with the label in 2001.

Hunt's first album, Van Hunt, was released in February 2004. The album included the singles "Down Here in Hell (With You)", "Dust", and "Seconds of Pleasure", and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance. Hunt's second album, On the Jungle Floor, was released in 2006. The album featured the single, "Character," a revisited "Mean Sleep", as a duet with Nikka Costa, and a cover of "No Sense of Crime" by The Stooges. The album was co-produced by Bill Bottrell. Hunt has toured and appeared with Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, Boney James, The Roots, Seal, Angie Stone, Coldplay, The Brand New Heavies and Kanye West.

In 2006, Hunt appeared with Nikka Costa on the Sam Moore album, Overnight Sensational, on the song "If I Had No Loot". Hunt was also featured on "Half the Fun", a track on the Count Bass D album, Act Your Waist Size, released on Fat Beats Records.

in 2007, Hunt won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, along with John Legend and Joss Stone, for their cover the Sly & the Family Stone song, "Family Affair", which appeared on the 2006 Sly & the Family Stone tribute album, Different Strokes By Different Folks. Hunt released the 4 track digital EP, The Popular Machine, on August 7, 2007.

In July 2007, Hunt announced a full length album, Popular, which was scheduled to be released on Blue Note Records on January 15, 2008.[3] In December 2007, it was announced that Hunt and Blue Note/EMI agreed to part ways, and that the label would not be releasing Popular.[4] In January 2008, Hunt stated that he couldn't promise that Popular would ever be officially released.[5] In March 2008, Hunt stated that the label owns the master recording and opted not to sell it back to him at an affordable price, and that he "didn't think that they had enough money" to promote the album properly.[6]

[edit] Influences

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

  • Van Hunt (2004), Capitol
  • On the Jungle Floor (2006), Capitol
  • Popular (2008) - unreleased studio album

[edit] Singles and EPs

  • "Down Here in Hell (With You)" (2004), Capitol
  • "Dust" (2004), Capitol
  • "Seconds of Pleasure" (2004), Capitol
  • Acoustic E.P. (2004), Capitol - digital EP
  • Napster Sessions (2004), Capitol - digital EP
  • "Character" (2006), Capitol
  • "Being A Girl" (2006), Capitol
  • Connect Set (2006), Capitol - digital EP
  • The Popular Machine (2007), Blue Note - digital EP

[edit] Awards and nominations

  • 2005 Grammy Award nomination for Best Urban/Alternative Performance for "Dust."
  • 2006 Grammy Award win for Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for "Family Affair"

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Foster, Saptosa (September 30, 2004). "Good Van Hunting ". Creative Loafing Atlanta. Retrieved on December 8, 2007.
  2. ^ Suggs, Kimberly. "Unleashed: On the Floor with Van Hunt". Juicy Magazine. Retrieved on December 7, 2007.
  3. ^ Concepcion, Mariel (July 19, 2007). "Van Hunt Feeling 'Popular' On Blue Note". Billboard. Retrieved on July 21, 2007.
  4. ^ Goldmeier, Jeremy (December 4, 2007). "Van Hunt and EMI Split, New Album Without A Label". Paste Magazine. Retrieved on December 7, 2007.
  5. ^ Hunt, Van (January 15, 2008). "Popular(ity) Contest". Myspace. Retrieved on January 22, 2008.
  6. ^ Williams, DeMarco (March 19, 2008)."Van Hunt: Watch for the hook". Creative Loafing Atlanta. Retrieved on March 19, 2008.

[edit] External links