Damon Albarn celebrates his 54th birthday today. As a founding member of Blur and the virtual band Gorillaz, Albarn has found success in music from both groups and a solo career wrapped around the two. Albarn comes from an artistic family, the son of an artist and a theatrical set designer and with a sister who is also an artist. Growing up in a household he describes as bohemian and liberal, the lifestyle was countered somewhat by being raised in the Quaker religion.
Albarn describes his interest in music as coming at an early age, remembering attending a concert by the Osmonds as a six year old. In college, Albarn met Graham Coxon and were two of the founding members of Blur. Reaching the UK top 50 with their first single in 1990, it took the band some time to find a sound that would improve on that result.
After touring the US and feeling very homesick, the band began to write songs about British life, and it was this change that led them to Parklife, their hugely successful 1994 album.
Blur went on hiatus in 2004, three years after Graham Coxon had left the group. Albarn had already been exploring side and solo projects. His increasing interest in African music led him to visit the continent, where he recorded Mali Music with local musicians. Another trip in 2011 to Kinshasa led to the release of Kinshasa One Two, whose proceeds benefited Oxfam’s work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In 2013, Albarn announced his first solo album. Everyday Robots came in 2014 and Albarn toured playing material from the album along with songs from Blur and Gorillaz. The record peaked at number 2 in the UK and garnered a Mercury Prize nomination.
