Ben Howard

Born and raised in Totnes, Devon, singer-songwriter Ben Howard (24 April 1987) spent his youth writing songs and surfing the local beaches. Taking a journalism degree at nearby Newquay, he started performing for his surfer mates and soon built a reputation that quickly spread by word of mouth across the UK thanks to a number of self-released EPs. Quitting his studies early, he signed to Island Records and developed his acoustic strumming into percussive rhythms and heady, beachy melodies as he became inspired by dark, poetic folk legends such as John Martyn, Cat Stevens and Nick Drake. Debut album Every Kingdom (2011) reached number six in the UK charts and a memorable performance on Later... With Jools Holland marked him out as one of the most highly regarded young artists of the moment. Shortlisted for the Mercury Music Prize in 2012, Ben Howard's great year was capped off with two BRIT Awards in February 2013 and huge critical acclaim for his EP The Burgh Island. 2014 saw Ben Howard headline the Somersault Festival in North Devon and he released his second album I Forget Where We Were, which landed at number 16 in the UK Albums Chart. After touring extensively with indie-folk band Daughter, Ben Howard returned to the studio to record his third album Noonday Dream, which he released in 2018. The album's lead single "A Boat to an Island On the Wall" proved successful after it debuted on BBC Radio 1 and a series of UK dates were announced. He teamed up with the National's Aaron Dessner for fourth studio album Collections from the Whiteout, which arrived in 2021, and paired with UK producer Nathan Jenkins aka Bullion for his fifth studio album Is It? which was released via Island Records in June 2023. The electronic-minded folktronica LP was created after Ben Howard suffered two mini-strokes in 2022 and features treated vocals.