Thom Yorke

The son of a nuclear physicist, Thom Yorke (born 7 October 1968 in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire) formed Radiohead while at boarding school in Oxford and led the band as they became one of the biggest and most cutting-edge acts of the 1990s and 2000s. His ethereal vocals and eerie, obscure lyrics led to classic albums The Bends (1995), OK Computer (1997) and Kid A (2000), while outside of the group he contributed to tracks by UNKLE, Drugstore, Björk and MF Doom. His debut solo album The Eraser (2006) continued to follow Radiohead's growing use of experimental beats and electronica, but caught Thom Yorke at his angriest on lead track "Harrowdown Hill," written about the suicide of the government chemical weapons advisor David Kelly. Produced by Nigel Godrich, the album was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize and a Grammy, reaching number two in the US charts as critics acclaimed its melancholic digital ballads and doomed, desperate angst. Live performances of the record with Nigel Godrich and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers led to them forming Atoms for Peace and their debut record AMOK (2013). He released his second solo album in 2014 titled Tomorrow's Modern Boxes and set out on tour with performances at festivals in the UK and Europe with an American leg in 2018. In 2019 he released his third solo studio album, Anima, which was accompanied by a short film of the same name, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, in which Thom Yorke starred. Further adding to his cinematic repertoire, in 2024 he composed the soundtrack for the Italian drama film Confidenza—directed by Daniele Luchetti—which was released in April through XL Recordings. In 2021, Yorke launched a new band called The Smile with Radiohead's guitarist Jonny Greenwood and drummer Tom Skinner. Three albums followed, A Light for Attracting Attentions (2022), Wall of Eyes and Cutouts (2024), recorded simultaneously, before a collaboration with producer Mark Pritchard for Tall Tales (2025).