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Marcus King

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marcus King
Born (1996-03-11) March 11, 1996 (age 28)
Greenville, South Carolina, U.S.
Genres
Years active2013–present
Labels
SpouseBriley Hussey (m. 2023)
Websitewww.marcuskingofficial.com

Marcus King (born March 11, 1996) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was initially known as lead singer, guitarist, and founder of The Marcus King Band.

His 2020 album El Dorado recorded under his own name received a nomination for Best Americana Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.[1]

Early life

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Marcus King was born in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. His father, Marvin King, was a well-known blues guitarist in South Carolina who also played with gospel acts, and his grandfather was also a regionally popular musician. Marcus began playing guitar at a very early age, and at age eight he started playing shows with his father.[2] At age eleven, he played guitar on one of his father's albums. King started playing music with his own band in his teens, juggling club gigs at night and school in the morning as he and his bandmates brainstormed with what they called "soul-influenced psychedelic Southern rock."

Deciding to pursue a career in music, King dropped out of high school in his junior year and got his GED. King took an academic approach to music, studying his favorite guitar players, particularly The Allman Brothers Band co-founder Duane Allman, B.B. King, Albert King, Waylon Jennings and Merle Haggard.[3] King studied jazz theory and jazz performance with Steve Watson at the Fine Arts Center in Greenville, South Carolina.[4] He received some notable early attention in 2014 after a video of him jamming at Norman's Guitars racked up millions of views on YouTube.[5]

Career

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In 2019, King announced his debut solo album, El Dorado, produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys at his Easy Eye Studio in Nashville. The album is a genre-bending release that was released on January 17, 2020, by Fantasy Records. On release, Associated Press declared “El Dorado already stands out as a definite high point of 2020.”[6]

On 26 August 2022, King released his second album Young Blood, again produced by Dan Auerbach. Melinda Newman of Billboard called it "a staggeringly confident work."[7] It debuted at number one in the Billboard Top Blues Albums Chart[8] and was ranked as the 12th best guitar album of 2022 by Guitar World readers.[9]

Personal life

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King married Briley Hussey in a lavish ceremony on February 19, 2023, at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Awards and achievements

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Award Year Institution
Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album 2021 Grammy Awards
American Advertising Federation Silver Award for Social Media 2015 American Advertising Federation
American Advertising Federation Gold Award for Out of Home 2015 American Advertising Federation
American Advertising Federation Silver Award for Interactive Media 2015 American Advertising Federation
American Advertising Federation Best of Show for Out of Home 2015 American Advertising Federation
American Advertising Federation Gold Award for Out of Home 2015 American Advertising Federation
American Advertising Federation Bronze Award for Print 2015 American Advertising Federation
Graphis New Talent Award Annual Silver Award 2015 Graphis
Graphis New Talent Award Annual Platinum Award 2015 Graphis
Graphis Typography Award Annual Platinum Award 2015 Graphis
PPAH Hero award 2023 Piedmont Blues Preservation Society


Discography

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Albums

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  • Soul Insight (2014)
  • The Marcus King Band (2016)
  • Carolina Confessions (2018)[10]
  • El Dorado (2020) No. 142 US Billboard 200[11]
  • Young Blood (2022)[12]
  • Mood Swings (2024)[13]

Singles

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Title Year Peak chart positions Album
US
AAA
[14]
"The Well" 2019 12 El Dorado
"One Day She's Here" 33
"Hard Working Man"[15] 2022 — Young Blood
"Blood on the Tracks" 30
"Mood Swings" 2024 — Mood Swings

References

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  1. ^ "Grammy Awards Winners & Nominees for Best Americana Album". Grammy.com. Recording Academy. 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  2. ^ Walker, Donna Isbell (July 2, 2015). "Marcus King Band making noise on national scene". Greenvilleonline.com. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  3. ^ Greenberg, Rudi (September 29, 2016). "Meet Marcus King". Washingtonpost.com. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  4. ^ McFarland, Shane. "19-Year-Old Marcus King Talks Family, Friends And The Future Of His Music". Live for Live Music.
  5. ^ "Shop Owner Catches Young Man Playing Guitar In His Store And Wants Him To Keep Playing". Reshareworthy.
  6. ^ Gorondi, Pablo (January 15, 2020). "Review: Marcus King stirs soul, rock, country on 'El Dorado'". Timescolonist.com. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  7. ^ "Blues Rocker Marcus King on the Despair & Salvation of 'Young Blood': 'I Didn't Think I'd Be Around For Another Record'". Billboard.com. 2022-08-26. Retrieved 2022-09-02.
  8. ^ "Blues Albums". Billboard.com. January 2, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  9. ^ Horsley, Jonathan (21 December 2022). "The best guitar albums of 2022". Guitar World. Future plc. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  10. ^ "The Marcus King Band's 'Carolina Confessions' Brims with Stirring Lyrics and Conviction, PopMatters". www.popmatters.com. 2018-11-30. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  11. ^ @billboardcharts (January 27, 2020). "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200 (2/2)" (Tweet). Retrieved January 28, 2020 – via Twitter.
  12. ^ Windsor, Pam. "Marcus King's New Album 'Young Blood' May Just Put Him On The Path To Rock & Roll Superstardom". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  13. ^ Scavo, Allison (2024-04-02). "Marcus King: Mood Swings Review". Blues Rock Review. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  14. ^ "Adult Alternative Songs - March 28, 2020". Billboard.com. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  15. ^ "Future Releases on Triple A (AAA) Radio Stations". AllAccess. Archived from the original on May 2, 2022. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
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