| Rachael Yamagata | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Born | September 23 1977 |
| Genre(s) | Adult alternative Pop rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Piano Guitar Vocals |
| Label(s) | RCA Victor |
| Associated acts |
Bumpus, Chantal Kreviazuk |
| Website | rachaelyamagata.com |
Rachael Yamagata (born September 23 1977 in Arlington, Virginia) is an American singer-songwriter. She plays piano and has a dark, raspy alto.
Contents |
Early life
A child of divorced parents, Yamagata divided her time growing up between her Sansei Japanese American father, a Washington, D.C.-based attorney and Harvard graduate; and her Italian-German mother, an artist/painter in New York City. Yamagata graduated from the Holton-Arms School for Girls in Bethesda, Maryland, and attended Northwestern and Vassar.
Music career
Bumpus
Yamagata became the vocalist for the Chicago funk-fusion band Bumpus, spending six years writing and recording three albums with the band and touring the country. In 2001, after having written a number of songs that didn't fit with the funk style of the band, Yamagata decided to take the songs and launch a solo career. In September 2002, she landed a two-record deal with Arista's Private Music and her self-titled EP, Rachael Yamagata Ep was released in October.
Solo career
She also made an appearance in Jason Mraz's second album, singing a song with him called "Did You Get My Message?". She also sings on "Fireflies" and "The Believer" on Rhett Miller's solo CD, "Barfly" on Ray Lamontagne's "Till the Sun Turns Black" and "Let it Ride", "Cold Roses", and "Friends", on Ryan Adams' Cold Roses. She sings backup on six tracks on the Bright Eyes' album Cassadaga. Her first full-length album, Happenstance, followed in June 2004. It was produced by John Alagia (Dave Matthews, John Mayer, Ben Folds Five). "I Want You" features several members of prominent American Klezmer group The Klezmatics. Videos were made for the first and second singles "Worn Me Down" and "1963". Her songs have featured on several TV shows, including ER , Nip/Tuck, Men in Trees,One Tree Hill, Brothers & Sisters and The O.C., to which she made a guest performance in season 2. Yamagata also contributed a song to Mandy Moore's 2007 album, Wild Hope.[1] Yamagata's second studio album, yet untitled, is slated for release for late-summer of 2007.[2][3] The 2005 film Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, adaptation of a Ann Brashares novel, starring America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel, Blake Lively features the song Be Be Your Love. The series One Tree Hill also features this song in their second season, 9th episode ("The Trick Is To Keep Breathing") The 2005 film Prime, starring Uma Thurman and Meryl Streep features Yamagata's song I Wish You Love. The 2005 film In Her Shoes, starring Cameron Diaz included the song Collide. The 2005 film Elizabethtown, starring Orlando Bloom and directed by Cameron Crowe features Yamagata's song Jesus Was A Crossmaker during the opening titles sequence. The 2006 film The Last Kiss, starring Zach Braff features the song Reason Why. The 2007 preview for the fifth season of the Showtime drama "The L Word" featured the song "Be Be Your Love." The 2007 film Holiday in Handcuffs, starring Melissa Joan Hart featured the song "I Want You."
Discography
Studio album
- Happenstance (2004)
EPs
- Rachael Yamagata EP (2003)
- Live at the Loft & More (2005)
Singles
- "Worn Me Down"
- "Letter Read"
- "1963"
- "River"
Live/Compilations
- Japan 2005 Tour Sampler
- Live at the Bonnaroo Music Festival (2004), released exclusively on Bonnaroo
- Sony Connect Sets (2005), released exclusively on Sony Connect
- KCRW Sessions: Rachel Yamagata (2005), released exclusively on iTunes
- Napster session: Rachael Yamagata (2005), released exclusively on Napster
Bumpus
- Bumpus (1999)
- Steroscope (2001)
Other contributions
- Ryan Adams - Cold Roses (2005)
- Bright Eyes - Four Winds (2007)
- Bright Eyes - Cassadaga (2007)
- Jason Mraz - Did You Get My Message?
- Mandy Moore - Wild Hope (2007)
