Van Hunt

Infobox musical artist
Name = Van Hunt


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Background = solo_singer
Birth_name =
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Born = Birth date and age|1977|3|8
Dayton, Ohio, USA
Died =
Origin = Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Instrument = vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, drums
Voice_type =
Genre = R&B, neo soul, funk, rock
Occupation = Singer, songwriter, musician, producer
Years_active = 1997–present
Label = Capitol (2001-2006) Blue Note (2007)
Associated_acts =
URL = [http://www.vanhunt.com/ www.vanhunt.com]
Notable_instruments =

Van Hunt (born March 8, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. In 2006, Hunt won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for appearing on the tribute version of the Sly & the Family Stone song, "Family Affair".

Biography

Early life

Hunt was born in Dayton, Ohio and raised by his single mother. His father, Van Hunt, Sr., was a factory worker and part-time painter, who was a friend of Ohio Players drummer Jimmy "Diamond" Williams. Hunt took up the drums at age 7, and saxophone at the age of 8, later adding bass and keyboards.Foster, Saptosa (September 30 2004). " [http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A16911 Good Van Hunting ] ". "Creative Loafing Atlanta". Retrieved on December 8 2007.] Guitar was the last instrument he learned to play; he played guitar in a rock band called Royalty. Hunt moved to Texas for a short time before relocating to Atlanta, Georgia in 1996 to attend Morehouse College, where he studied English, but soon dropped out. [Suggs, Kimberly. " [http://www.juicymagazine.us/entertainment/index.php?id=54 Unleashed: On the Floor with Van Hunt] ". "Juicy Magazine". Retrieved on December 7 2007.] In Atlanta, he started producing a few hip-hop demos for Atlanta rappers in order to pay bills. Hunt met up-and-coming record producers and artists like Dallas Austin, Jermaine Dupri and TLC through his work on demos.

Career

Early career

Hunt wrote and co-produced the song "Hopeless" for singer Dionne Farris, formerly of Arrested Development, and joined her band on guitar and keyboards. "Hopeless" appeared on the soundtrack for the film "Love Jones" (1997). Hunt co-wrote several songs with Rahsaan Patterson on his album "Love in Stereo" (1999), and co-wrote with Cree Summer, including the song "Mean Sleep", for her album "Street Faërie" (1999), produced by Lenny Kravitz. He also collaborated with Joi on the single "Missing You" (2002). Through Dionne Farris, Hunt met A&R person Randy Jackson (who later went on to be a judge on Fox's "American Idol"). Jackson would become Hunt's manager in 2002.

Capitol Records

Hunt recorded much of the material from his debut album in 2000. Producer Dallas Austin took Hunt's recording to Capitol Records, leading him to sign with the label in 2001. Hunt's first album, "Van Hunt", was released in February 2004. The album included the singles "Down Here in Hell (With You)", "Dust", and "Seconds of Pleasure", and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance. Hunt's second album, "On the Jungle Floor", was released in 2006. The album featured the single, "Character," a revisited "Mean Sleep", as a duet with Nikka Costa, and a cover of "No Sense of Crime" by The Stooges. The album was co-produced by Bill Bottrell. Hunt has toured and appeared with Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, Boney James, The Roots, Seal, Angie Stone, Coldplay, The Brand New Heavies and Kanye West.

In 2006, Hunt appeared with Nikka Costa on the Sam Moore album, "Overnight Sensational", on the song "If I Had No Loot". Hunt was also featured on "Half the Fun", a track on the Count Bass D album, "Act Your Waist Size", released on Fat Beats Records.

in 2007, Hunt won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, along with John Legend and Joss Stone, for their cover the Sly & the Family Stone song, "Family Affair", which appeared on the 2006 Sly & the Family Stone tribute album, "Different Strokes By Different Folks".

Blue Note

Hunt released the 4 track digital EP, "The Popular Machine", on August 7, 2007. In July 2007, he announced a full length album, "Popular", which was scheduled to be released on Blue Note Records on January 15, 2008. [Concepcion, Mariel (July 19 2007). " [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003614267 Van Hunt Feeling 'Popular' On Blue Note] ". "Billboard". Retrieved on July 21 2007.] In December 2007, it was announced that Hunt and Blue Note/EMI agreed to part ways, and that the label would not be releasing "Popular". [Goldmeier, Jeremy (December 4 2007). " [http://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/5998/news/music/van_hunt_and_emi_split_new_album_without_a_label Van Hunt and EMI Split, New Album Without A Label] ". "Paste Magazine". Retrieved on December 7, 2007.] In January 2008, Hunt stated that he couldn't promise that "Popular" would ever be officially released. [Hunt, Van (January 15, 2008). "Popular(ity) Contest". Myspace. Retrieved on January 22, 2008.] In March 2008, Hunt stated that the label owns the master recording and opted not to sell it back to him at an affordable price, and that he "didn't think that they had enough money" to promote the album properly. [Williams, DeMarco (March 19, 2008)." [http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/van_hunt_watch_for_the_hook/Content?oid=432387 Van Hunt: Watch for the hook] ". "Creative Loafing Atlanta". Retrieved on March 19, 2008.]

Independent

As of June 2008, Hunt is recording a fourth album, [Wikane, Christian John (June 30, 2008). " [http://www.popmatters.com/pm/feature/57934/dispatches-from-the-battlefield-an-interview-with-van-hunt/ Dispatches From the Battlefield: An Interview With Van Hunt] ". Pop Matters. Retrieved on June 30, 2008.] which he plans to release himself and market using the Internet. Hunt has blogged about his new approach on his MySpace page. [Mays, Mark (July 11, 2008). " [http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080711/TUNEIN04/80710086/1005/ENTERTAINMENT Van Hunt takes his eclectic soul career into his own hands] ". "The Tennessean". Retrieved on July 11, 2008.] Hunt is touring the U.S. in July and August 2008.

Influences

* David Bowie
* Serge Gainsbourg
* The Isley Brothers
* Curtis Mayfield
* Thelonious Monk
* The Ohio Players
* Iggy Pop
* Prince
* Richard Pryor
* Sly Stone
* Neil Young

Discography

Albums

*"Van Hunt" (2004), Capitol
*"On the Jungle Floor" (2006), Capitol
*"Popular" (2008) - unreleased studio album

ingles and EPs

*"Down Here in Hell (With You)" (2004), Capitol
*"Dust" (2004), Capitol
*"Seconds of Pleasure" (2004), Capitol
*"Acoustic E.P." (2004), Capitol - digital EP
*"Napster Sessions" (2004), Capitol - digital EP
*"Character" (2006), Capitol
*"Being A Girl" (2006), Capitol
*"Connect Set" (2006), Capitol - digital EP
*"The Popular Machine" (2007), Blue Note - digital EP

Awards and nominations

* 2005 Grammy Award nomination for Best Urban/Alternative Performance for "Dust."
* 2006 Grammy Award win for Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for "Family Affair"

References

*Hoard, Christian (May 5, 2004). " [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanhunt/articles/story/6055996/van_hunt_gives_up_the_funk Van Hunt Gives Up the Funk] " "Rolling Stone". Retrieved on April 29, 2007.
*" [http://the-raft.com/feature181 Van Hunt Laid Bare] ". March 8 2005. the-raft.com. Retrieved on December 7, 2007.
*" [http://www.whudat.com/interview/pages/vanhunt.html Van Hunt - Interview] ". March 2004. whudat.com. Retrieved on December 8, 2007.

External links

* [http://www.vanhunt.com/ Van Hunt official website]
*Myspace|vanhunt
*Allmusic|11:gjfixqwjld0e