Benjamin Michael Lee (born 11 September 1978) is an Australian musician and actor. Lee began his career as a musician at the age of 14 with the Sydney band Noise Addict, but he focused on his solo career when the band broke up in 1995. He appeared as the protagonist in the Australian film '' The Rage in Placid Lake'' (2003). He has released eleven solo studio albums.

Career

Noise Addict

Lee's musical career began in 1993 with the band Noise Addict, who were signed to Steve Pavlovic's independent label Fellaheen Records, on the strength of a self-produced and distributed four-track demo recorded in Lee's bedroom. Pavlovic's connections brought the band to the attention of

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

Thurston Moore Thurston Joseph Moore (born July 25, 1958) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter best known as a member of the rock band Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside Sonic Youth, as well as running ...

and

Beastie Boys The Beastie Boys were an American Hip-hop, hip hop and Rap rock, rap rock group formed in New York City in 1979. They were composed of Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Mike D, ...

' Mike D, both of whom released the band's material in the US. The group put out several releases on the Beasties' Grand Royal Records. These included the acoustic ''Young and Jaded'' EP in 1994, which contained Lee's tribute to Evan Dando, "I Wish I Was Him". In 1995, Grand Royal released the band's only full-length album, the

Brad Wood Brad Wood is an American record producer and sound engineer based in Los Angeles. He has produced many albums, including Liz Phair's ''Exile in Guyville'' and Placebo (band), Placebo's Placebo (Placebo album), self-titled debut. Career W ...

–produced ''Meet the Real You''. Noise Addict made a music video for the song "16", toured with

Sebadoh Sebadoh () is an American indie rock band formed in 1986 in Northampton, Massachusetts, by Eric Gaffney and Lou Barlow, with multi-instrumentalist Jason Loewenstein completing the line-up in 1989. Barlow co-created Sebadoh as an outlet for his ...

, but then broke up. Lee was also briefly a member of the alternative act Gerling. In 2009, Lee recorded a new Noise Addict album, ''It Was Never About the Audience'', with a new lineup: Lou Barlow and Lara Meyerratken.

Solo career

Lee's solo career started at the age of 16, while he was still in Noise Addict. He began recording his first solo album, '' Grandpaw Would'', in both Sydney and

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

with producer

. This was followed by the 1997 album, '' Something to Remember Me By'', also produced by Wood. An alternate version of his song "Burn to Shine", produced by T-Bone Burnett, played over the end credits of the film '' Best Men''. Lee was then featured on the '' There's Something About Mary'' soundtrack, with the song "How to Survive a Broken Heart". 1998's '' Breathing Tornados'', released on Pavlovic's new label Modular, marked a new direction for Lee as he introduced synthesisers and increased instrumentation into his sound. The album was a success in Australia, earning Lee ARIA Award nominations for Best Male Artist and Album of the Year. The album's first single, " Cigarettes Will Kill You", was also nominated for Single of the Year and finished second in that year's Triple J Hottest 100. In 2001, Lee contributed a track ("Sweet Is the Night") to a Jeff Lynne tribute album '' Lynne Me Your Ears''. Lee's fourth album, '' hey you. yes you.'', was released in 2002. The first single from the album, "Something Borrowed, Something Blue", reached number 67 on the

ARIA Charts The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...

and number 22 on the 2002's Triple J Hottest 100. The second single, "Running with Scissors", peaked at number 82 on the ARIA charts. In 2003, he also contributed several songs to the Evan Dando solo album ''Baby I'm Bored''. In late 2004, Lee left Steve Pavlovic's Modular Recordings and started his own record label, Ten Fingers. The first release on the label was the single, " Gamble Everything for Love", followed by the album, '' Awake Is the New Sleep'' in February 2005, which went double platinum in Australia. A defining release in his career, the album showcased a much brighter, positive side of Lee's personality, in contrast to his previous darker musings. ''Awake Is the New Sleep'' received several nominations for the 2005

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival Records (Australia), Festival, Sony Music ...

(ARIA) awards, and Lee won Best Male Artist, Best Independent Release, and Single of the Year for " Catch My Disease", which Lee wrote with Mcgowan Southworth. "Catch My Disease" also went to No. 2 on the 2005 Triple J Hottest 100. In addition, the song was featured on the soundtracks to the 2005 films '' Just Friends'' and '' Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo'' as well as the soundtracks to the television series ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series focusing on the personal and professional lives of surgical internship (medicine), interns, residency (medicine), residents, and attending physician, attendings at the fictional ...

'', ''

Hidden Palms ''Hidden Palms'' is an American teen drama television series that ran on The CW in the United States from May 30 until July 4, 2007. It was canceled after eight first-run episodes. The series, created by Kevin Williamson (screenwriter), Kevin W ...

'' and '' Scrubs''. In 2006, it was used in a television commercial for

Dell Dell Inc. is an American technology company that develops, sells, repairs, and supports personal computers (PCs), Server (computing), servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, computer peripherals including printers and webcam ...

Computers. On 26 March 2006, Lee performed "We're All in This Together" from '' Awake Is the New Sleep'' at the closing ceremony of the

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006, were an International sport, international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Melbourne ...

. The single for "We're All in This Together" was released on 8 April 2006. The CD includes cover versions of the song by Pony Up, Holidays on Ice and Gelbison. "We're All in This Together" has been used in commercials for Kohl's (2008), Coca-Cola (

Remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

ed Australian Summer Series Ads in 2007), the South Australian Government (2006), the Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal (2007), and Telus Mobility's "My Faves" (2007). Lee released his sixth album, '' Ripe'', on 18 September 2007, with Benji Madden and Mandy Moore making appearances. Mandy Moore sang a light-hearted, 1950s-style duet with Lee called "Birds and Bees". "Mandy was very sweet and did her best

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British and Australian singer and actress. With over 100 million records sold, Newton-John was one of the List of best-selling music artists#100 million to 119 million record ...

for me. I'm really psyched about this recording," Lee says. Madden helped out with some backing vocals, along with US band Rooney and Sara Watkins from the band

Nickel Creek Nickel Creek (formerly known as the Nickel Creek Band) is an American bluegrass music, bluegrass band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), and siblings Sara Watkins (fiddle) and Sean Watkins (guitar). Formed in 1989 in Southern California, the ...

. "American Television" from the album was used in a VH1 advertisement for '' Flavor of Love 3'' and the song "Ripe" appeared in an episode of ''One Tree Hill'' (Season 5, episode 2). In 2007, Lee performed a cover of Crosby, Stills & Nash's " Our House" for Landmarks on The DL. In February 2009, Lee released his seventh studio album, '' The Rebirth of Venus'', which received mixed reviews. It featured guest performances from the likes of Missy Higgins and Patience Hodgson, and peaked at No.21 on the

. Lee's eighth studio album, '' Deeper into Dream'', was released on 11 October 2011. It was Lee's first attempt at a concept album, basing the entire 12 tracks around the

dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...

state. Despite not charting, it was received fairly favourably by critics. In April 2013, Lee released his ninth and arguably his most experimental studio album, entitled '' Ayahuasca: Welcome to the Work'', with collaboration from Jessica Chapnik. The album is based upon his personal experience with the psychoactive South American drug known as Ayahuasca. Lee featured as the mentor for Joel Madden's team on the 2013 season of '' The Voice Australia''. In June 2015, Lee released his 10th solo album, '' Love Is the Great Rebellion'', his first on a major label, Warner Bros. Records. According to

Radio National ABC Radio National, more commonly known as Radio National or simply RN, is an Australian nationwide public service radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2. ...

's Geoff Wood, Lee invented the term "electro-yoga" to describe a new form of music dedicated to the practice of yoga. Lee has since followed up this release with an acoustically oriented album, entitled '' Freedom, Love and The Recuperation of the Human Mind'', in 2016, as well as a children's album called ''Ben Lee Sings Songs About

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

for the Whole Family'' in 2017. Together with former ''

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom created by Craig Thomas (screenwriter), Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005, to March 31, 2014, follows main char ...

'' star Josh Radnor, Lee formed an indie-folk duo called Radnor and Lee, and they released their debut self-titled album in November 2017. 2018 saw the release of '' B Is for Beer'', a soundtrack to the musical based on the novel of the same name written by Tom Robbins. Lee and Robbins had collaborated for ten years to develop the musical. Funding for the album's development came via crowd-sourcing at

Kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...

. Lee released Quarter Century Classix in 2019, a collection of cover songs he was influenced by during his teenage years. In 2020, Radnor and Lee released their second collaborative album, ''Golden State''. In 2021, Lee competed in the third season of the Australian version of ''The Masked Singer'' as "Professor". He finished tenth after being eliminated in the third episode. In September 2021, The Music Network confirmed Lee had signed with Warner Music Australia, releasing ''I'M FUN!'' in June 2022, preceded by single "Born for This Bullshit"; it was Lee's first album to chart in the top-50 ARIA album charts in more than seven years. The deal includes rights to his 19-album back catalogue. ''This One's for the Old Headz'' was released in September 2024.

Personal life

Lee was born in Sydney and was raised in a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

household but did not consider himself religious as a child. Lee was educated at Moriah College, located in Sydney's eastern suburbs. Lee dated

Claire Danes Claire Catherine Danes (born April 12, 1979) is an American actress. Prolific in film and television since her teens, she is the recipient of three Primetime Emmy Awards and four Golden Globe Awards. In 2012, ''Time (magazine), Time'' named he ...

for several years, but their relationship ended in 2003. He married actress Ione Skye on 28 December 2008, in a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

wedding ceremony in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. They have one child. Lee stated that he follows a pescatarian diet.

Discography

Studio albums

Collaboration albums

Soundtrack albums

Mixtapes

Extended plays

Singles

Notes *A The Australian peak for the ''Into the Dark'' EP is on the ARIA Albums Chart.

Promotional singles

Other appearances

* " Itchycoo Park" from '' I Shot Andy Warhol'' (1996) * "Make Your Move" (featuring Ione Skye) from ''

Spider Spiders (order (biology), order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight limbs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude spider silk, silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and ran ...

'' (2007) * "Beautiful Flirt" (with Ione Skye and Jack Graddis) from ''

Bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

'' (2011) * "We're All in This Together" (with Jack River and Lime Cordiale) from '' Music from the Home Front'' (2020)

Awards and nominations

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as

AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. History The inaugural 2006 awards were held at Blacket Hot ...

) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. ! , - , rowspan="2" ,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, ''Awake Is the New Sleep'' , Best Performing Independent Album , , rowspan="2" , , - , Ben Lee , Independent Artist of the Year , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987. Lee has won four awards. ! , - , rowspan="3",

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, rowspan="2", ''Breathing Tornados'' , Album of the Year , , rowspan="3", , - , Best Male Artist , , - , "Cigarettes Will Kill You" , Single of the Year , , - ,

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, ''hey you. yes you.'' , Best Male Artist , , , - , rowspan="6",

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, "Catch My Disease" , Single of the Year , , rowspan="6", , - , rowspan="4", ''Awake Is the New Sleep'' , Best Male Artist , , - , Best Independent Release , , - , Album of the Year , , - , Best Pop Release , , - , ''Awake Is the New Sleep'' (Ben Lee, Lara Meyerratken, Dan Estabrook) , Best Cover Art , , - , rowspan="3",

, rowspan="2", "We're All in This Together" , Best Male Artist , , rowspan="3", , - , Best Independent Release , , - , ''Into the Dark'' , Best Pop Release , , - , rowspan="2",

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, ''Ripe'' , Best Independent Release , , , - , ''The Square'' (with Jessica Chapnik) , Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album , , ARIA Award previous winners. , -

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwri ...

to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. ! , - , rowspan="2",

, rowspan="2", "Catch My Disease" , Song of the Year , , , - , Most Performed Australian Work , , , -

Australian Music Prize

The Australian Music Prize (the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. They commenced in 2005. ! , - , 2005 , ''Awake Is the New Sleep'' , Australian Music Prize , , , -

References

External links

*
Artist page on Dangerbird Records
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Ben 1978 births Living people APRA Award winners ARIA Award winners Australian child singers Australian indie pop musicians Australian indie rock musicians Australian male film actors Australian pop singers Jewish Australian male actors Jewish Australian musicians Lojinx artists Dew Process artists Male actors from Sydney New West Records artists 21st-century Australian male actors People educated at Moriah College 21st-century Australian singers 21st-century Australian male singers The Bens members Gerling members Noise Addict members Radnor and Lee members Australian male singer-songwriters Dangerbird Records artists Modular Recordings artists 21st-century Australian singer-songwriters Fellaheen Records artists