Biography
Dan Auerbach first gained recognition through his roles as vocalist, guitarist, and frontman for the gritty yet inventive blues-rock pair the Black Keys, eventually emerging as a central figure in the U.S. roots music scene. Beyond his contributions to the Black Keys along with individual releases including Keep It Hid from 2009 and Waiting on a Song from 2017, he also fronts the Arcs, a group blending psychedelic elements with soul and blues that made its initial appearance via Yours, Dreamily in 2015, while simultaneously building a successful production career. From the facilities he constructed in Akron, Ohio, and Nashville, Tennessee, Auerbach has applied his subtle production expertise, natural aptitude for song arrangement and ensemble formation, along with an organic touch, to recordings involving figures like Ray LaMontagne, Dr. John, Lana Del Rey, the Pretenders, Kurt Vile, and Hank Williams, Jr.
Born in Wooster, Ohio, on May 14, 1979, Auerbach was raised in a musically diverse home that exposed him to classic blues and bluegrass recordings; he is also a distant relative of Lou Reed and Richard Hell guitarist Robert Quine. His earliest live shows as a youngster consisted of Whitney Houston, accompanied by his mother, and the Grateful Dead, accompanied by his father. After finishing high school, he enrolled at the University of Akron, yet his focus shifted sharply upon encountering the work of Mississippi hill country blues figure Junior Kimbrough. Auerbach devoted extensive hours attempting to replicate Kimbrough’s haunting guitar approach on his own instrument, ultimately leaving school to immerse himself in the blues through repeated listens to Son House, Hound Dog Taylor, Mississippi Fred McDowell, and R.L. Burnside, among others. In 2000 he assembled his initial group, the blues-rooted rock outfit the Barnburners, which issued the self-released The Raw Boogie EP in 2001. That year he also began informal sessions with high-school acquaintance and drummer Patrick Carney; when Auerbach alone appeared for a Barnburners rehearsal, the pair started developing material and soon completed a basic demo. The recording secured a contract with independent label Alive Naturalsound, and under the name the Black Keys their debut album The Big Come Up appeared in 2002. By 2006 the duo had generated sufficient attention to sign with Nonesuch Records, and through releases such as 2008’s Attack & Release, 2010’s Brothers, and 2011’s El Camino they achieved widespread commercial success, earning platinum certifications, Grammy awards, and sold-out arena performances.
Auerbach maintained an active schedule outside the Black Keys, and as the band’s profile rose he established a personal recording studio in Akron. In 2009 he assembled the Fast Five side project with members of Hacienda and My Morning Jacket, resulting in several tours, some as support for the Black Keys. That same year he collaborated with producer and Roc-A-Fella Records founder Damon Dash on the BlakRoc project, where Auerbach and Carney supplied robust, blues-tinged rhythms for rappers including Mos Def, Q-Tip, Ludacris, RZA, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Auerbach additionally found time in 2009 to issue his debut solo album, the raw and swampy Keep It Hid. In 2015 he released Yours, Dreamily, the debut from his Arcs project, which merged soul, rock, and psychedelia through partnerships with songwriter and guitarist Richard Swift plus musicians from New York’s retro-soul community. Swift passed away in 2018, and the second Arcs album, Electrophonic Chronic, arrived in 2023 as a tribute incorporating tracks he had recorded with the group prior to his death.
During the mid-2000s Auerbach began producing other artists, starting with Midwest acts such as SSM, Brimstone Howl, and Nathaniel Mayer; in 2011 he produced Abdication … For Your Love for Memphis garage-soul band Reigning Sound and Tell Me for singer-songwriter Jessica Lea Mayfield. In 2012 he assisted Dr. John in recapturing the atmosphere of his Night Tripper period on Locked Down, while 2013’s Head in the Dirt emerged from a collaboration with artist and musician Hanni El Khatib. When the Black Keys entered a hiatus in 2014, Auerbach produced three notable albums: Lana Del Rey’s Ultraviolence, Ray LaMontagne’s Supernova, and Nikki Lane’s debut All or Nothin’. Chrissie Hynde enlisted him to produce the Pretenders’ 2016 album Alone and to contribute keyboards to the sessions, and in 2017 he issued his second solo album, Waiting on a Song, which allowed him to explore his affinity for 1970s pop and rock.
Waiting on a Song marked one of the initial releases on Easy Eye Sound, the label Auerbach founded to issue work by artists he admired; he applied the same name to a Nashville studio where he could pursue projects at his preferred pace. In addition to his solo output and albums by the Black Keys and the Arcs, Easy Eye Sound has released archival material from Son House (2022’s Forever on My Mind) and Tony Joe White (2021’s Smoke from the Chimney), new recordings by established performers such as Hank Williams, Jr. (2022’s Rich White Honky Blues) and John Anderson (2020’s Years), albums by emerging talents including Marcus King (2022’s Young Blood) and Yola (2021’s Stand for Myself), and debut projects by newcomers such as Nat Myers (2023’s Yellow Peril) and Ceramic Animal (2022’s Sweet Unknown). Auerbach further explored his blues interests with the 2023 Easy Eye Sound compilation Tell Everybody! 21st Century Juke Joint Blues, which featured his track “Every Chance I Get (I Want You in the Flesh)” alongside rare recordings from Robert Finley, R.L. Boyce, Mississippi Gabe Carter, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes, and one of the final performances by reclusive guitarist Glenn Schwartz, known for his work with the James Gang, Pacific Gas & Electric, and the All Saved Freak Band.
Born in Wooster, Ohio, on May 14, 1979, Auerbach was raised in a musically diverse home that exposed him to classic blues and bluegrass recordings; he is also a distant relative of Lou Reed and Richard Hell guitarist Robert Quine. His earliest live shows as a youngster consisted of Whitney Houston, accompanied by his mother, and the Grateful Dead, accompanied by his father. After finishing high school, he enrolled at the University of Akron, yet his focus shifted sharply upon encountering the work of Mississippi hill country blues figure Junior Kimbrough. Auerbach devoted extensive hours attempting to replicate Kimbrough’s haunting guitar approach on his own instrument, ultimately leaving school to immerse himself in the blues through repeated listens to Son House, Hound Dog Taylor, Mississippi Fred McDowell, and R.L. Burnside, among others. In 2000 he assembled his initial group, the blues-rooted rock outfit the Barnburners, which issued the self-released The Raw Boogie EP in 2001. That year he also began informal sessions with high-school acquaintance and drummer Patrick Carney; when Auerbach alone appeared for a Barnburners rehearsal, the pair started developing material and soon completed a basic demo. The recording secured a contract with independent label Alive Naturalsound, and under the name the Black Keys their debut album The Big Come Up appeared in 2002. By 2006 the duo had generated sufficient attention to sign with Nonesuch Records, and through releases such as 2008’s Attack & Release, 2010’s Brothers, and 2011’s El Camino they achieved widespread commercial success, earning platinum certifications, Grammy awards, and sold-out arena performances.
Auerbach maintained an active schedule outside the Black Keys, and as the band’s profile rose he established a personal recording studio in Akron. In 2009 he assembled the Fast Five side project with members of Hacienda and My Morning Jacket, resulting in several tours, some as support for the Black Keys. That same year he collaborated with producer and Roc-A-Fella Records founder Damon Dash on the BlakRoc project, where Auerbach and Carney supplied robust, blues-tinged rhythms for rappers including Mos Def, Q-Tip, Ludacris, RZA, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Auerbach additionally found time in 2009 to issue his debut solo album, the raw and swampy Keep It Hid. In 2015 he released Yours, Dreamily, the debut from his Arcs project, which merged soul, rock, and psychedelia through partnerships with songwriter and guitarist Richard Swift plus musicians from New York’s retro-soul community. Swift passed away in 2018, and the second Arcs album, Electrophonic Chronic, arrived in 2023 as a tribute incorporating tracks he had recorded with the group prior to his death.
During the mid-2000s Auerbach began producing other artists, starting with Midwest acts such as SSM, Brimstone Howl, and Nathaniel Mayer; in 2011 he produced Abdication … For Your Love for Memphis garage-soul band Reigning Sound and Tell Me for singer-songwriter Jessica Lea Mayfield. In 2012 he assisted Dr. John in recapturing the atmosphere of his Night Tripper period on Locked Down, while 2013’s Head in the Dirt emerged from a collaboration with artist and musician Hanni El Khatib. When the Black Keys entered a hiatus in 2014, Auerbach produced three notable albums: Lana Del Rey’s Ultraviolence, Ray LaMontagne’s Supernova, and Nikki Lane’s debut All or Nothin’. Chrissie Hynde enlisted him to produce the Pretenders’ 2016 album Alone and to contribute keyboards to the sessions, and in 2017 he issued his second solo album, Waiting on a Song, which allowed him to explore his affinity for 1970s pop and rock.
Waiting on a Song marked one of the initial releases on Easy Eye Sound, the label Auerbach founded to issue work by artists he admired; he applied the same name to a Nashville studio where he could pursue projects at his preferred pace. In addition to his solo output and albums by the Black Keys and the Arcs, Easy Eye Sound has released archival material from Son House (2022’s Forever on My Mind) and Tony Joe White (2021’s Smoke from the Chimney), new recordings by established performers such as Hank Williams, Jr. (2022’s Rich White Honky Blues) and John Anderson (2020’s Years), albums by emerging talents including Marcus King (2022’s Young Blood) and Yola (2021’s Stand for Myself), and debut projects by newcomers such as Nat Myers (2023’s Yellow Peril) and Ceramic Animal (2022’s Sweet Unknown). Auerbach further explored his blues interests with the 2023 Easy Eye Sound compilation Tell Everybody! 21st Century Juke Joint Blues, which featured his track “Every Chance I Get (I Want You in the Flesh)” alongside rare recordings from Robert Finley, R.L. Boyce, Mississippi Gabe Carter, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes, and one of the final performances by reclusive guitarist Glenn Schwartz, known for his work with the James Gang, Pacific Gas & Electric, and the All Saved Freak Band.
Albums
Sonatas, Songs and Chant: 20th Century Music for Violin and Piano
2023
The Devil's Trill - Music for Violin and Piano by Mozart, Brahms, Hába and Tartini
2018
Waiting on a Song
2017
Blått Rom, Vol. 2
2016
Keep It Hid
2009
Singles
