| Joe King | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Joe King |
| Born | May 25, 1980 |
| Origin | Denver, Colorado |
| Genres | Piano rock, pop rock, alternative rock |
| Occupations | Musician, vocalist |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Labels | Epic, Sony |
| Associated acts | The Fray |
| Website | www.thefray.net |
| Notable instruments | |
| Rickenbacker 330 | |
Joe King (born May 25, 1980) is the guitarist, backing vocalist, songwriter and co-founder of Denver-based piano rock band The Fray.[1]
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Joe King was born on May 25, 1980 in Colorado, and is of Spanish descent. He attended Faith Christian Academy in Arvada, Colorado.[2] Before his success with The Fray, King attended school while he worked as an auto damage appraiser for Hanks Auto Body West.
He learned to play the piano at an early age, but later dropped it and started playing the guitar instead. He states that it was because "the coolest guys in my eighth grade class all played guitar. I wanted to fit in."[3]
King stated in an interview that Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was the song that first inspired him and drew him towards music.[4]
In the spring of 2002, King ran into vocalist/pianist Isaac Slade in a record store.[5] King and Slade were former schoolmates who then began regular jam sessions that led to writing songs. Before forming The Fray, King had previously been in bands of his own, which were called "Spruce" and "Fancy's Show Box".
The duo added Dave Welsh and Ben Wysocki to the band. Both had been former band-mates of Slade. The newly formed band was named "The Fray".
The band released Movement EP in 2002. King sang lead on two songs on the EP - It's for You and Where You Want To.
The band released Reason EP in 2003, to some local acclaim in Denver. This prompted Epic Records to sign the band in 2004.
The band's first album, How to Save a Life, released in 2005, brought the band mainstream success. Apart from playing guitar, King sang lead on the song, Heaven Forbid, which was about his sister.[6] He also gave backing vocals on "How to Save a Life", "Look After You" and "Trust Me".
The band released their second album, The Fray, in 2009. The second single from the album, "Never Say Never", was written primarily by King from his perspective of his marriage.[7] Apart from guitar, the second album also saw King singing a lot more: he gave lead vocals on the song "Ungodly Hour" and on the bonus track "Uncertainty", and backing vocals on "Syndicate" and "Absolute".
While The Fray's have been lyrically spearheaded by Slade, King co-writes almost all of the songs (only "Hundred", "Say When" and "Happiness" have been written entirely by Slade). In an interview, King stated that his lyrics were mainly inspired by his experiences with the band: "With success, you have a lot more drama. For me, it was extreme highs in career and extreme lows in a relationship. There were really obvious things to write about."[8]
Commenting on the lyrics on the second album, King said: "A lot of really big realizations about ourselves are on this record. We're singing about real things that we've experienced. I'm not really comfortable talking about it, but I'm a lot more comfortable singing about it. It's a different side of me."[8]
King has used falsetto on all the songs he has performed to date.
King sang in the song "Undertow" off the Timbaland album Shock Value 2. He also co-wrote and co-produced the song, "Alright With Me", which was included on American Idol winner Kris Allen's debut album, Kris Allen. Commenting on his working with Allen, King said that there was "a good vibe in the studio".[9]
King has two daughters, Ava and Elise.
King is the oldest member of The Fray.
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