Benjamin Goldwasser

Benjamin Nicholas Hunter Goldwasser (born December 17, 1982) is an American songwriter and musician in the psychedelic rock band MGMT, for which he primarily plays keyboards and sings. In 2009, his song "Electric Feel" (co-written with bandmate Andrew VanWyngarden), remixed by Justice, won a Grammy Award in the Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical category."What's News." ''Burlington Free Press.'' February 10, 2009. In 2010, his band was nominated for a Grammy as Best New Artist and Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

Life and career

Goldwasser was born in Mishawaka, Indiana,Couch, Rachel. "MGMT Brings the Quirks on 'Oracular'." ''Daily Cavalier.'' January 31, 2008. the son of Rachel Hunter and David Goldwasser. He was raised in Westport, New York.Pollak, Sally. "A Spectacular Show." ''Burlington Free Press.'' April 12, 2008. Goldwasser is Jewish on his father's side. When he was age 11, he saw Adrian Belew live in concert and met guitarist Rob Fetters backstage. He began piano lessons with his grandmother and mother, played in his high school's jazz band, and attended a "rock and roll camp" in Montpelier, Vermont. One of his musical influences in high school was the electronic protopunk band Suicide.

MGMT: 2004–present

Goldwasser met Andrew VanWyngarden, the other half of MGMT, in his freshman year at Wesleyan University.Perry, Jonathan. "Year of the Brats." ''Boston Globe.'' February 8, 2008. Goldwasser was studying music at the time. While in college, he was a member of the Eclectic Society. He helped run the society's music venue located in a room in the house. Goldwasser, already a keyboardist, took experimental music classes from composer Ron Kuivila with VanWyngarden which exposed them to progressive musical ideas.Lanham, Tom. "MGMT Gets Down to Business at Bottom of the Hill." ''Inside Bay Area.'' January 25, 2008. They made their debut as MGMT at a party in a college dormitory (playing the theme to the movie ''Ghostbusters'' over and over for hours). The duo would email one another and sign the emails "The MGMT" as a way of satirizing corporate culture.Donahue, Michael. "Messin' With People's Heads." ''The Commercial Appeal.'' January 11, 2008. They chose this email signature line as the name of their new band.

After graduating from college in 2005, Goldwasser and VanWyngarden moved to New York City, experimenting with music and building a band. They immediately went on tour, opening for Of Montreal. But no record deal came, and the band was on hiatus by 2006. Goldwasser began working on a farm and was intending to move to California when the duo was signed by Columbia Records. The band's 2008 release for the label Oracular Spectacular was a major success. However, the band's sudden success, Goldwasser says, put a serious strain on his friendship with VanWyngarden for a time. The band released its album ''Congratulations'' in April 2010 to generally positive reviews. Additionally, in 2013, they released their third studio album, self-titled ''MGMT''. In 2014, Ben, along with psychedelic band Foxygen was featured on The Flaming Lips cover album '' With a Little Help from My Fwends'' on track 12. In 2021, Goldwasser and Karen O composed the music for the animated film ''Where Is Anne Frank''.

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldwasser, Benjamin
1982 births
American rock keyboardists
American rock singers
American rock songwriters
American male singer-songwriters
Living people
People from Westport, New York
Singers from New York City
People from Mishawaka, Indiana
Psychedelic rock musicians
Wesleyan University alumni
Jewish American rock musicians
American people of Jewish descent
Singer-songwriters from New York (state)
21st-century American keyboardists
21st-century American singer-songwriters
21st-century American male singers
MGMT members
21st-century American Jews
Singer-songwriters from Indiana