Benjamin Nicholas Hunter Goldwasser (born December 17, 1982) is an American songwriter and musician in the

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

band

MGMT MGMT () is an American rock band formed in 2002 in Middletown, Connecticut. It was founded by singers and multi-instrumentalists Andrew VanWyngarden and Benjamin Goldwasser, Ben Goldwasser. Originally signed to Cantora Records by the nascent ...

, for which he primarily plays keyboards and sings. In 2009, his song "

Electric Feel "Electric Feel" is a song by the American rock band MGMT, released as the second single from their debut studio album '' Oracular Spectacular'' (2007) on June 23, 2008. The single was released as a 7" and CD single, and later on 12" vinyl. "Elect ...

" (co-written with bandmate

Andrew VanWyngarden Andrew Wells VanWyngarden (born February 1, 1983) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitar player and songwriter for the band MGMT, praised for (according to ''Interview Magazine'') "an uncanny knack for producing pop music that s ...

), remixed by

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

, won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

in the

Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical The Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical is an honor presented to producers for quality remixed recordings at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in seve ...

category."What's News." ''Burlington Free Press.'' February 10, 2009. In 2010, his band was nominated for a Grammy as

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1960 (except in 1967) "for a new artist who releases, during the Eligibility Year, the first recording which establishes the public identity of that ar ...

and

Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals The Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals was awarded between 1966 and 2011 (in its final year, it was awarded for recordings issued in 2010). The award had several minor name changes: *From 1966 to 1967, the award ...

Life and career

Goldwasser was born in

Mishawaka, Indiana Mishawaka () is a city on the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States. The population was 51,063 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Its nickname is "the Princess City". Misha ...

,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 Robert Steven "Adrian" Belew (born December 23, 1949) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. A multi-instrumentalist primarily known as a guitarist and singer, he is noted for his unusual approach to the instrument, his ...

live in concert and met guitarist

Rob Fetters Rob Fetters is an American musician, songwriter, and commercial music composer. He has performed as a guitarist and singer for power pop bands The Raisins, The Bears, psychodots, and has also released solo albums. Early life Fetters was born on S ...

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 Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

protopunk Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock genre and movement. A retrospective label, the musicians involved were generally not originally associated with each other and came from a variet ...

band

Suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

MGMT: 2004–present

Goldwasser met Andrew VanWyngarden, the other half of

, 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 Ron Kuivila (born December 19, 1955) is an American sound artist from Boston, MA. He is primarily known for his sound installations, performances, and recorded materials that make use of computers, and for his contributions to the SuperCollider ...

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 ''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler, three eccentric ...

'' 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 of Montreal is an American indie pop band from Athens, Georgia. It was founded by frontperson Kevin Barnes in 1996, named after a failed romance between Barnes and a woman "of Montreal". The band is identified as part of the Elephant 6 collec ...

. 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 Columbia Records is an American reco ...

. The band's 2008 release for the label

Oracular Spectacular ''Oracular Spectacular'' is the debut studio album by the American band MGMT, released on October 2, 2007, by RED Ink and physically on January 22, 2008, by Columbia. It was produced by Dave Fridmann and is the band's first release of new conte ...

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 Congratulations may refer to: Film and television * Congratulations (2010 film), an Egyptian film * Congratulations (2023 film), a Gujarati drama film *'' Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest'', 2005 television programme ...

'' 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 Foxygen is an American indie rock duo from Westlake Village, California, formed in 2005. The band consists of multi-instrumentalist Jonathan Rado and vocalist Sam France. They have released six albums and a number of self-released EPs. History ...

was featured on The

Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...

cover album '' With a Little Help from My Fwends'' on track 12. In 2021, Goldwasser and

Karen O Karen Lee Orzolek (born November 22, 1978) is a South Korean-born American singer, musician, and songwriter. She is best known as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Early life Karen Lee Orzolek was born in Seoul, So ...

composed the music for the animated film ''

Where Is Anne Frank ''Where Is Anne Frank'' is a 2021 animated magic realism film directed by Israeli director Ari Folman. The film follows Kitty, Anne Frank's imaginary friend to whom she addressed her diary, manifesting in contemporary Amsterdam. Seeking to lea ...

''.

References

External links

* {{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