Damon Albarn (, ; born 23 March 1968) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the frontman, main vocalist, and lyricist of the rock band Blur and the co-creator and primary musical contributor of the virtual band

Gorillaz Gorillaz are an English virtual band created by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett in London, England in 1998. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: (vocals, keyboards), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar), Noodle (gui ...

. Raised in Leytonstone,

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

, and around Colchester, Essex, Albarn attended the Stanway School, where he met Graham Coxon, with whom he would later form Blur in 1988. They released their debut album ''

Leisure Leisure (, ) has often been defined as a quality of experience or as free time. Free time is time spent away from business, Employment, work, job hunting, Housekeeping, domestic chores, and education, as well as necessary activities such as ...

'' in 1991. After spending long periods touring the US, Albarn's songwriting became increasingly influenced by British bands from the 1960s. The result was the Blur albums '' Modern Life Is Rubbish'' (1993), ''

Parklife ''Parklife'' is the third studio album by the English rock band Blur, released on 25 April 1994, by Food Records. After moderate sales for their previous album '' Modern Life Is Rubbish'' (1993), ''Parklife'' returned Blur to prominence in ...

'' (1994) and '' The Great Escape'' (1995). All three received critical acclaim, while Blur gained mass popularity in the UK, aided by a

Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s United Kingdom, British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. Musically, Britpop produced bright, catchy alternative rock, with significant influences from British guitar pop of the 1960s and 1970s. B ...

chart rivalry with

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentBlur'' (1997), '' 13'' (1999) and ''

Think Tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

'' (2003) incorporated influences from

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate stylistic ch ...

art rock Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an ar ...

, electronic and

world music "World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...

. These were followed by ''

The Magic Whip ''The Magic Whip'' (stylised in Chinese text as 模糊魔鞭) is the eighth studio album by English rock band Blur. It was recorded in Hong Kong and London, and released by Parlophone on 27 April 2015 and Warner Bros. Records on 28 April 2015. ...

'' (2015), Blur's first studio album in 12 years, and '' The Ballad of Darren'' in 2023. Albarn formed the virtual band Gorillaz in 1998 with the comic book artist

Jamie Hewlett Jamie Christopher Hewlett (born 3 April 1968) is a British comic book artist and illustrator. He is the co-creator of the comic book ''Tank Girl'' with Alan Martin (writer), Alan Martin and the virtual band Gorillaz, alongside Blur (band), Blur ...

. Drawing influences from electronic,

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

and

, Gorillaz released their self-titled debut album in 2001 to worldwide success, spawning numerous successful follow-ups and continuing to release albums and tour into the 2020s. Albarn remains the group's only consistent musical contributor. His other notable projects have included the supergroups The Good, the Bad & the Queen and Rocket Juice & the Moon. He co-founded the non-profit musical organisation Africa Express and has composed

film soundtracks A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured ...

. Albarn also scored the stage productions '' Monkey: Journey to the West'' (2008), '' Dr Dee'' (2012) and '' Wonder.land'' (2016). His debut solo album, ''

Everyday Robots ''Everyday Robots'' is the debut solo studio album by British musician Damon Albarn, best known as the frontman of Blur (band), Blur and Gorillaz. Described by Albarn as his "most personal record", the album was co-produced by Richard Russell ...

,'' was released in 2014, followed by '' The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows'' in 2021. In 2008, ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' named Albarn the 18th-most powerful person in British culture. In 2016, Albarn received the

Ivor Novello Award The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Welsh entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and Musical composition, composing. They have been presented annually in London by the The Ivors Academy, Ivors Academy, formerly called the Britis ...

for Lifetime Achievement from the

British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors The Ivors Academy (formerly known as British Academy of Songwriters Composers and Authors – BASCA) is one of the largest professional associations for music writers in Europe. The academy works to protect and support and also campaigns the int ...

. He was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to music. In 2020, Albarn was granted Icelandic citizenship.

Early life

Albarn was born in

Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. He is the eldest child of artist Keith Albarn and his wife Hazel (''née'' Dring). He has some Danish descent through his mother. Their daughter Jessica (born 1971) also went on to become an artist.Maconie, Stuart (1999). ''Blur: 3862 Days, The Official History''. Virgin Books; Hazel, originally from

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

, was a theatrical set designer for

Joan Littlewood Joan Maud Littlewood (6 October 1914 – 20 September 2002) was an English theatre director who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and is best known for her work in developing the Theatre Workshop. She has been called "The Mother of M ...

's theatre company at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in London, and was working on the

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...

play '' Mrs Wilson's Diary'' just before Damon was born. Keith, originally from

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

, was briefly the manager of

Soft Machine Soft Machine are an English Rock music, rock band from Canterbury, Kent. The band were formed in 1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. Soft Machine were central in the Canterbury scene; they became o ...

and was once a guest on BBC's '' Late Night Line-Up''.Harris, John (2003
"Damon Albarn: From Cool Britannia to radical campaigner for peace"
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 15 February 2003. He was head of the Colchester School of Art at Colchester Institute. Damon's paternal grandfather Edward, an architect, had been a conscientious objector during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and was involved in a farming community in

, becoming a peace activist. In 2002 Edward Albarn died; Damon stated in an interview that Edward did not want to live any longer and decided to go on a

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

. In 1968, at the age of six months, Albarn was a "testing expert" for designs for educational aids and toys for children including fibreglass furniture and play-structures fancifully called "The Kissmequiosk". "The Apollo Cumfycraft" and "The Tailendcharlie" produced by his father's company " Keith Albarn & Partners Ltd" under the trade-name of "Playlearn, Ltd." When Damon and Jessica were growing up, their family moved to Leytonstone, East London. The household was described as " bohemian"Ankeny, Jason "Damon Albarn Biography" AllMusic, Macrovision Corporation and their upbringing as "liberal". Damon and Jessica were also raised in the

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

religion. Albarn agreed with his parents' views, later claiming, "I always thought my parents were absolutely dead right. I went against the grain in a weird way – by continually following them." His parents primarily listened to

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

, Indian

ragas A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, from the perspec ...

and

African music The continent of Africa is vast and its music is diverse, with different regions and nations having many distinct musical traditions. African music includes the genres like makwaya, highlife, mbube, township music, jùjú, fuji, jaiva ...

. When Albarn was nine years old, his family took a holiday trip to

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

for three months before settling in Aldham Fordstreet, Essex, an area described by Albarn as "one of those burgeoning Thatcher experiments where they were building loads of small estates".'' No Distance Left To Run''. Pulse Films (2010) The population of the area was predominantly

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

as opposed to the ethnically mixed part of London which he had become used to. He described himself as "not really fitting in with the politics of the place." Albarn was interested in music from an early age, attending an Osmonds concert at the age of six. He started playing guitar, piano and violin in his youth and was interested in composing music, one of his compositions winning a heat in the nationwide Young Composer of the Year competition. Damon and Jessica both attended a primary school nearby which, according to Damon, was burnt down seven times over a period of 18 months by one of the teachers. After both siblings failed their

Eleven-Plus exam The eleven-plus (11+) is a Test (assessment), standardised examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools ...

s, they started attending Stanway Comprehensive School, where Damon described himself as being "really unpopular" and " rritating toa lot of people". However, he developed an interest in drama and started acting in various school productions. It was at Stanway where he would meet future Blur guitarist Graham Coxon, who recalls seeing him act and feeling that he was a "confident performer" as well as a "show off". Albarn's first words directed at Coxon were "Your brogues are crap, mate. Look, mine are the proper sort" as he was showing off his leather shoes, fashionable footwear at the time influenced by the

Mod Revival The mod revival is a subculture that started in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and later spread to other countries (to a lesser degree). The Mod Revival started with disillusionment with the punk scene when commercialism set in. It was f ...

. Nevertheless, the pair went on to become good friends, owing to their shared passion for music, particularly bands such as

the Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

the Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic music, electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their t ...

XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (vocals, guitars) and Colin Moulding (vocals, bass), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing ...

and Madness. Albarn has also credited

the Specials The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...

and Fun Boy Three as some of his earliest influences, and

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

in his taking up songwriting. He studied acting at the East 15 Acting School in Debden, but left after the first year. On leaving drama school he entered a production and management contract with Marijke Bergkamp and Graeme Holdaway, owners of the Beat Factory recording studio, where the members of Blur, then known as Seymour, did their first recordings. His first band was the

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s ...

group, Two's a Crowd. Before Blur, he played with the Aftermath and Real Lives.

Music career

Blur

Formation and ''Leisure''

Albarn enrolled on a part-time music course at London's

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a Member institutions of the University of London, constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The G ...

in 1988, claiming that his sole intention was to gain access to the student union bar. Albarn was in a group named Circus alongside Coxon and drummer Dave Rowntree.Thompson, pg. 209 Alex James, a fellow student at Goldsmiths, eventually joined as the group's bassist. They changed their name to Seymour in December 1988, inspired by J.D. Salinger's '' Seymour: An Introduction.'' In March 1990, after changing their name to Blur, they signed to Food Records. In October 1990, Blur released their first single, " She's So High", which reached number 48 in the UK Singles Chart. The band had trouble creating a follow-up single, but made progress when paired with producer Stephen Street. The resulting single, " There's No Other Way", became a hit, peaking at number eight. As a result of the single's success, Blur became pop stars and were accepted into a clique of bands who frequented the Syndrome club in London dubbed the " Scene That Celebrates Itself". The recording of the group's debut album was hindered by Albarn having to write his lyrics in the studio. Although the resulting album ''

'' (1991) peaked at number seven on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

, it received mixed reviews, and according to journalist John Harris, "could not shake off the odour of anti-climax". Albarn has since referred to ''Leisure'' as "awful".

Britpop era

After discovering they were £60,000 in debt, Blur toured the US in 1992 in an attempt to recoup their losses. Albarn and the band became increasingly unhappy and homesick during the two-month American tour and began writing songs which "created an English atmosphere".Harris, John. "A shite sports car and a punk reincarnation". ''NME''. 10 April 1993. Blur had undergone an ideological and image shift intended to celebrate their English heritage in contrast to the popularity of American

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...

bands like

Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

. Although sceptical of Albarn's new manifesto, Balfe gave his assent for the band's choice of

Andy Partridge Andrew John Partridge (born 11 November 1953) is an English guitarist, singer-songwriter and record producer best known for co-founding the band XTC. He and Colin Moulding each acted as a songwriter and frontman for XTC, with Partridge writing a ...

of the band

to produce their follow-up to ''Leisure''. The sessions with Partridge proved unsatisfactory, but a chance reunion with Stephen Street resulted in him returning to produce the group. The second Blur album, '' Modern Life Is Rubbish'', was released in May 1993 and peaked at number 15 on the British charts,Blur Single & Album Chart History
".

Official Charts Company The Official UK Charts Company Limited (formerly Music Industry Chart Services Limited), trading as the Official Charts Company (OCC) or the Official Charts (formerly the Chart Information Network), is a British inter-professional organisation ...

. Retrieved 21 August 2012. but failed to break into the US ''Billboard'' 200, selling only 19,000 copies.Blur – Awards
". AllMusic. Retrieved 21 August 2012. Despite the album's poor performance, Albarn was happy with the band's direction and wrote prolifically for Blur's next album. ''

'' was released in 1994 and revived Blur's commercial fortunes, with the album's first single, the disco-influenced " Girls & Boys", achieving critical acclaim and chart success. ''Parklife'' entered the British charts at number one and stayed in the album charts for 90 weeks. Enthusiastically greeted by the music press, ''Parklife'' is regarded as one of Britpop's defining records. Blur won four awards at the 1995 Brit Awards, including Best British Group and British Album of the Year for ''Parklife''. Coxon later pointed to ''Parklife'' as the moment when " lurwent from being regarded as an alternative, leftfield arty band to this amazing new pop sensation".Tuxen, Henrik; Dalley, Helen. "Graham Coxon interview". '' Total Guitar''. May 1999. Albarn was uncomfortable with fame, however, and he suffered from

panic attacks Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense fear and discomfort that may include palpitations, otherwise defined as a rapid, irregular heartbeat, sweating, chest pain or discomfort, shortness of breath, trembling, dizziness, numbness, con ...

. Blur began working on their fourth album '' The Great Escape'' at the start of 1995. Building upon the band's previous two albums, Albarn's lyrics for the album consisted of several third-person narratives. James reflected, "It was all more elaborate, more orchestral, more theatrical, and the lyrics were even more twisted ... It was all dysfunctional, misfit characters fucking up." The release of the album's lead single "

Country House image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

" played a part in Blur's public rivalry with Manchester band

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment Battle of Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s United Kingdom, British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. Musically, Britpop produced bright, catchy alternative rock, with significant influences from British guitar pop of the 1960s and 1970s. B ...

". Partly due to increasing antagonism between the groups, Blur and Oasis decided to release their new singles on the same day, an event the ''NME'' called the "British Heavyweight Championship". The debate over which band would top the British singles chart became a media phenomenon, and Albarn appeared on '' News at Ten''.''Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Brit Pop''. Passion Pictures, 2004. At the end of the week, "Country House" outsold Oasis' " Roll With It" by 274,000 copies to 216,000, becoming Blur's first number-one single. ''The Great Escape'' was released in September 1995 to positive reviews, and entered the UK charts at number one. However, opinion quickly changed and Blur found themselves largely out of favour with the media.

BBC Music BBC Music is the arm of the BBC responsible for the music played across its services. The current director of music is Lorna Clarke. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio operational division; however, its remit also includes music used i ...

writer James McMahon recalled how the "critical euphoria" surrounding the album lasted "about as long as it took publishers to realise Oasis would probably shift more magazines for them". Following the worldwide success of Oasis' ''

(What's the Story) Morning Glory? ''(What's the Story) Morning Glory?'' is the second studio album by the English Rock music, rock band Oasis (band), Oasis. Released on 2 October 1995 by Creation Records, it was produced by Owen Morris and the group's lead guitarist and chief ...

'', the media quipped that Blur "wound up winning the battle but losing the war." Blur became perceived as an "inauthentic middle-class pop band" in comparison to "working-class heroes" Oasis, which Albarn said made him feel "stupid and confused". Bassist James said: "After being the People's Hero, Damon was the People's Prick for a short period ... basically, he was a loser – very publicly."Maconie, Stuart. "The Death of a Party". '' Select'' (August 1999). In the ''New Statesman'', Stuart Maconie noted "Albarn... was mocked as the posh boy of Britpop when in fact he’d gone to a comprehensive in Essex and his family was just mildly bohemian. Nowadays he’d be decidedly 'below stairs'".

Post-Britpop and hiatus

An early 1996 '' Q'' interview reported that relations between Blur members had become strained; journalist Adrian Deevoy wrote that he found them "on the verge of a nervous breakup." Coxon, in particular, began to resent his bandmates and, in a rejection of the group's Britpop aesthetic, made a point of listening to noisy American alternative rock bands such as Pavement. Albarn grew to appreciate Coxon's tastes in lo-fi and underground music, and recognised the need to change Blur's musical direction once again. "I can sit at my piano and write brilliant observational pop songs all day long but you've got to move on," he said, and decided to give Coxon more creative control over their new album. Albarn visited Iceland during this period: "I used to have a recurring dream, as a child, of a black sand beach. And one hazy, lazy day aughs I was watching the TV and I saw a programme about Iceland, and they had black beaches. So I got on a plane ... I was on my own. I didn't know anybody. I went into the street,

Laugavegur Laugavegur () is a hiking trail in South Iceland. It is the most popular trail in Iceland, with an estimated 75,000-100,000 people hiking it every year. In 2012, National Geographic listed it as one of the twenty best trails in the world. Lau ...

, where the bars are, and that was it." After initial sessions in London, the band left to record the rest of the album in Iceland, away from the Britpop scene. The result was '' Blur'', the band's fifth studio album, released in February 1997. Although the music press predicted that the lo-fi sonic experimentation would alienate Blur's teenage girl fanbase, they generally applauded the effort. Pointing out lyrics such as "Look inside America / She's alright", and noting Albarn's "obligatory nod to

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...

, nd promotion ofthe new Pavement album as if paid to do so", reviewers felt the band had come to accept American values during this time – an about-face of their attitude during the Britpop years. Despite cries of "commercial suicide," the album and its first single, " Beetlebum", debuted at number one in the UK.Sutherland, Mark. "Altered States". ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...

''. 21 June 1997. Although the album could not match the sales of their previous albums in the UK, ''Blur'' became the band's most successful internationally, particularly in the US, helped by the successful single " Song 2". After the success of ''Blur'', the band embarked on a nine-month world tour. Damon Albarn live29

Blur's sixth studio album '' 13'', released in March 1999, saw them drift further from Britpop. Albarn's lyrics – more heartfelt, personal and intimate than on previous occasions – were reflective of his break-up with

Elastica Elastica were an English rock band formed in London in 1992 by guitarist/singer Justine Frischmann and drummer Justin Welch after their departure from Suede. The band was stylistically influenced by punk rock, post-punk and new wave musi ...

frontwoman Justine Frischmann, his partner of eight years.Sullivan, Caroline.
Down and outstanding
". ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. 5 March 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2012. Recording for Blur's next album began in London in November 2001. Not long after the sessions began, Coxon left the group. Coxon stated "there were no rows" and " he bandjust recognised the feeling that we needed some time apart". ''

'', released in May 2003, was filled with atmospheric, brooding electronic sounds, featuring simpler guitar lines by Albarn, and largely relying on other instruments to replace Coxon. The guitarist's absence also meant that ''Think Tank'' was written mostly by Albarn. Its sound was seen as testament to Albarn's increasing interest in African and

Middle Eastern music The various nations of the region include the Arabic-speaking countries of the Middle East, the Iranian traditions of Persia, the Jewish music of Israel and the diaspora, Kurdish music, Armenian music. Azeri Music, the varied traditions of Cyp ...

and to his control over the group's direction. ''Think Tank'' was another UK No. 1 and achieved Blur's highest US position of No. 56. The album was also nominated for best album at the 2004 Brit Awards.

Reunion

In December 2008, Blur announced they would reunite for a concert at London's Hyde Park on 3 July 2009.Blur confirm massive outdoor show
". BBC. 9 December 2008. Retrieved 10 December 2008. Days later, the band added a second date, for 2 July. A series of June preview shows were also announced, ending at Manchester Evening News arena on the 26th. All the shows were well received; ''

''s music critic

Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis (born 13 September 1971) is an English journalist. He is the head Rock music, rock and pop music critic for ''The Guardian'', and a regular contributor for ''GQ''. In addition to his music journalism for the paper, he has written ...

gave their performance at Goldsmiths College a full five stars, and wrote that "Blur's music seems to have potentiated by the passing of years ... they sound both more frenetic and punky and more nuanced and exploratory than they did at the height of their fame". Blur headlined the

Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...

on 28 June, where they played for the first time since their headline slot in 1998. Reviews of the Glastonbury performance were enthusiastic; ''The Guardian'' called them "the best Glastonbury headliners in an age". The band released their second greatest-hits album '' Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur'' in June 2009. After the completion of the reunion dates, Albarn told ''Q'' that the band had no intention of recording or touring live again. He said, "I just can't do it anymore", and explained that the main motivation for participating in the reunion was to repair his relationship with Coxon, which succeeded. In January 2010, '' No Distance Left to Run'', a documentary about the band, was released in cinemas and a month later on DVD and was nominated as Best Long Form Music Video for the 53rd Grammy Awards, Blur's first-ever Grammy nomination. In April 2010, Blur released their first new recording since 2003, " Fool's Day" in April 2010 as part of the

Record Store Day Record Store Day is a semi-annual event established in 2008 to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". Held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November, the day brings together f ...

event as a vinyl record limited to 1000 copies; it was later made available as a free download on their website. In February 2012, Blur were awarded the Outstanding Contribution to Music award at the

2012 Brit Awards Brit Awards 2012 was held on 21 February 2012. This was the 32nd edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual Brit Awards. The awards ceremony was held at The O2 Arena in London for the second time. The ceremony was presented by Jam ...

. Later that month, Albarn and Coxon premiered a new track together live, "Under the Westway". Blur entered the studio early that year to record material for a new album, but in May producer William Orbit told the ''NME'' that Albarn had halted recording.William Orbit: 'Damon Albarn has halted new Blur recording sessions'
". ''NME''. 23 May 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012. Blur released two singles "

The Puritan ''The Puritan, or the Widow of Watling Street'', also known as ''The Puritan Widow'', is an anonymous Jacobean stage comedy, first published in 1607. It is often attributed to Thomas Middleton, but also belongs to the Shakespeare Apocrypha ...

" and " Under the Westway" on 2 July. That August, Blur headlined a show at Hyde Park for the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony which was followed by a world tour the following year.London 2012: Blur to headline Olympics closing show
", BBC. Retrieved 25 July 2012. On 19 February 2015, Blur announced on social media that they would be releasing their eighth studio album on 27 April, titled ''

'', Blur's first album in 12 years and first in 16 years in their original line-up.

Gorillaz

Albarn and

met in 1990 when Coxon, a fan of Hewlett's work, asked him to interview Blur. The interview was published in '' Deadline'' magazine, home of Hewlett's comic strip, ''

Tank Girl Tank Girl is a British comic created by Alan Martin (writer), Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett. It first appeared in print in 1988 in the British comics magazine ''Deadline (magazine), Deadline'', and then in the solo comic book series ''Tank Girl' ...

''. Hewlett initially thought Albarn was "arsey, a wanker", and despite becoming one of the band's acquaintances, Hewlett often did not get on with its members, especially after he started going out with Coxon's ex-girlfriend, Jane Olliver. Nonetheless, Albarn and Hewlett started sharing a flat on Westbourne Grove in London in 1997. Hewlett had recently broken up with Olliver and Albarn was also at the end of his highly publicised relationship with Frischmann. The idea to create Gorillaz came about when the two were watching

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

: "If you watch MTV for too long, it's a bit like hell—there's nothing of substance there. So we got this idea for a cartoon band, something that would be a comment on that," Hewlett said. The band's music is a collaboration between various musicians, Albarn being the only permanent musical contributor, and incorporates influences including alternative rock, Britpop, dub,

, and pop music. In 2001, the band's eponymous debut album sold over seven million copies, and featured hits such as the songs " 19-2000" and "

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western (genre), Western TV series ''Rawhide (TV series), Rawhide'', Eastwood rose to international fame with his role as the "Ma ...

," earning them an entry in the ''

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

'' as the Most Successful Virtual Band. The second Gorillaz studio album, ''

Demon Days ''Demon Days'' is the second studio album by the British virtual band Gorillaz. It was released on 11 May 2005 in Japan, 23 May 2005 in the United Kingdom by Parlophone, and 24 May 2005 in the United States by Virgin Records. The album continu ...

'', was released in 2005 and included the singles " Feel Good Inc.", " Dare", " Dirty Harry", " Kids with Guns" and " El Mañana". ''Demon Days'' went five times platinum in the UK, double platinum in the United States and earned five

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 ...

nominations for 2006 and won one of them in the Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals category. The combined sales of ''Gorillaz'' and ''Demon Days'' had, by 2007, exceeded 15 million albums. Gorillaz released their third studio album, ''

Plastic Beach ''Plastic Beach'' is the third studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz, released on 3 March 2010 by Parlophone internationally and by Virgin Records in the United States. ''Plastic Beach'' evolved from an unfinished project entitled ' ...

'', in early 2010, which was received with high praise. In December 2010, the group released '' The Fall,'' recorded over 32 days during their North American tour. In a 2012 interview, Albarn talked about the unlikelihood of any future Gorillaz releases; his relationship with Hewlett had soured when Albarn chose to undercut the role of animation on their '' Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour''. Albarn later rescinded this claim, stating "When Jamie ewlettand I have worked out our differences, I'm sure we'll make another record." On 23 March 2017, the fifth Gorillaz studio album, ''

Humanz ''Humanz'' is the fifth studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz, released on 28 April 2017 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom and Warner Bros. Records in the United States. It was the band's first studio album released in seven years, fo ...

'', was announced and released worldwide on 28 April 2017. The sixth Gorillaz album, ''

The Now Now ''The Now Now'' is the sixth studio album by the British virtual band Gorillaz, released on 29 June 2018 through Parlophone and Warner Bros. Records. Gorillaz co-creator and frontman Damon Albarn began writing and recording the album in late 2 ...

'', was announced on 31 May 2018 and released on 29 June 2018. In 2020, Gorillaz began a project called ''

Song Machine ''Song Machine'' is an audiovisual project by British virtual band Gorillaz. It is a music video web series consisting of a collection of music videos and singles (music), singles that are released monthly by the band as episodes of the series, ...

'', in which new songs with collaborations would be released as monthly "episodes". The first nine episodes were compiled together along with more songs in Gorillaz's seventh studio album, '' Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez'', which was released on 23 October 2020 to positive reviews. A second season of Song Machine was planned, though it was later scrapped. On 31 August 2022, their eighth studio album, '' Cracker Island'' was announced, and was later released on 24 February 2023.

Solo career and side projects

In 2000, Albarn participated in the soundtrack of '' Ordinary Decent Criminal''. Albarn released '' Mali Music'' in 2002, recorded in Mali, during a trip he made to support Oxfam in 2000. He has visited Nigeria to record music with Nigerian drummer Tony Allen. In 2003, Albarn released an EP, '' Democrazy'', a compilation of demos he recorded in various hotel rooms during the United States portion of ''

''s tour. Albarn collaborated with producers

Dan the Automator Daniel M. Nakamura (born August 29, 1966), better known by his stage name Dan the Automator, is an American record producer. He is the founder of the publishing company Sharkman Music and the record label 75 Ark. Early life Daniel M. Nakamura wa ...

, XL Recordings, Richard Russell & Rodaidh McDonald, Jneiro Jarel, DJ Darren Cunningham aka Actress, Marc Antoine, Alwest, Remi Kabaka Jr., Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs and Kwes as part of his week-long visit to

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

to record an album, '' Kinshasa One Two'', released in 2011. All proceeds benefit

Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent non-governmental organizations (NGOs), focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. It began as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief ...

's work in the

. '' Maison Des Jeunes'', an album for Albarn's project Africa Express, was released in 2013. In 2014, Albarn appeared in the song "Go Back" in Tony Allen's albums ''Film of Life'' and '' The Source''. In a 2013 interview with ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', Albarn announced that a forthcoming solo record would be produced by Richard Russell of XL Recordings. He also said he would be taking his album on tour, and that he would play songs from all of his other bands, including Blur and Gorillaz. Albarn's debut solo album, ''

,'' was released on 25 April 2014 to generally positive reviews. The album peaked at No. 2 on the UK charts and produced five singles: "

", " Lonely Press Play", " Hollow Ponds", " Mr Tembo", and "

Heavy Seas of Love "Heavy Seas of Love" is the fifth single by Damon Albarn, from his solo debut album, ''Everyday Robots''. It was released as a single in digital formats on 27 April 2014, via Warner Bros. Records in the US. The song features Brian Eno and The Le ...

". It was nominated for the 2014 ''

Mercury Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual Music award, music prize awarded for the best album released by a musical act from the Music of the United Kingdom, United Kingdom or Music of Ireland, Ireland. It was cre ...

'' for Best Album. In 2018, Albarn collaborated with Kali Uchis, taking co-writing credits and performing on the song "In My Dreams", which appears on Uchis' album Isolation. In June 2021,

Transgressive Records Transgressive Records is an independent record label based in London, founded in 2004. Its founders, Tim Dellow and Toby L, first met at a Bloc Party gig organised by Toby's Rockfeedback website. The label's debut release was "1am" by the Su ...

announced that they had signed Albarn and would be releasing his second solo album, after which Albarn revealed the title '' The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows'' and 12 November release date alongside the title track's release.

The Good, the Bad & the Queen

In May 2006,

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

reported that Albarn was working with Danger Mouse on his first solo album, with the group billed as the Good, the Bad & the Queen. It featured

Paul Simonon Paul Gustave Simonon (; born 15 December 1955) is an English musician and artist best known as the bassist for the Clash. More recent work includes his involvement in the supergroup the Good, the Bad & the Queen and playing on the Gorillaz alb ...

, Simon Tong and Tony Allen. The album was awarded Best Album at the 2007 MOJO Awards on 18 June. The first single by the line-up, " Herculean", was released in late October 2006, and peaked at No. 22 in the UK Singles Chart. A second single, " Kingdom of Doom", and the band's debut album were then released in January 2007. That single fared slightly better than "Herculean", peaking at No. 20, while the album peaked at No. 2 in the

and went

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

during its first week of release in the UK. " Green Fields" was released as the third single from the album in April 2007, just missing out on the Top 50. On 27 April 2008, the Good, the Bad & the Queen headlined the

Love Music Hate Racism Love Music Hate Racism (LMHR) is a music-oriented antiracism campaign based in United Kingdom, Britain. The campaign aims to bring people together and promote unity through the power of music. LMHR was born in the tradition of the Rock Against R ...

Carnival in Victoria Park where they introduced on stage several guests including ex- Specials keyboard player

Jerry Dammers Jeremy David Hounsell Dammers GCOT (born 22 May 1955) is a British musician who was a founder, keyboard player and primary songwriter of the Coventry-based ska band the Specials (also known as the Special A.K.A.) and later the Spatial AKA Orch ...

. He also worked with Syrian rapper and friend Eslam Jawaad on the song "Mr. Whippy", though the song does not appear on the album it is a B-side on the Herculean single.

Rocket Juice and the Moon

'' Rocket Juice & the Moon'' is the title of Albarn's side-project featuring

Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...

bassist

Flea Flea, the common name for the order (biology), order Siphonaptera, includes 2,500 species of small flightless insects that live as external parasites of mammals and birds. Fleas live by hematophagy, ingesting the blood of their hosts. Adult f ...

and

afrobeat Afrobeat (also known as Afrofunk) is a West African music genre, fusing influences from Nigerian (such as Yoruba) and Ghanaian (such as highlife) music, with American funk, jazz, and soul influences. With a focus on chanted vocals, complex i ...

legend Tony Allen. Albarn has stated that he is not responsible for the name; someone in

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

did the sleeve design and that was the name it was given. Albarn has claimed that he is content with the outcome, as trying to come up with band names is difficult for him. The band performed together for the first time on 28 October 2011 in Cork, Ireland, as part of the annual Cork Jazz Festival. They performed under the moniker Another Honest Jon's Chop Up!. Their debut album was released on 26 March 2012.

Studio 13

Albarn, along with Tom Girling and Jason Cox, established Studio 13, a recording studio for their own use, with the first projects at 13 being pre-production work for Blur's similarly-named album, as well as Albarn's contributions to the '' Ravenous'' soundtrack. Since then, Studio 13 has been used not only for Albarn's projects, but also by other notable artists, including

Jorja Smith Jorja Alice Smith (born 11 June 1997) is an English singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Walsall, West Midlands, she has been writing songs since the age of 11. In 2012, Smith's friend uploaded her cover of Labrinth's "Earthquake" to YouT ...

, and others.

Other projects

In 1998, Albarn and

Michael Nyman Michael Laurence Nyman, Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 23 March 1944) is an English composer, pianist, libretto, librettist, musicologist, and filmmaker. He is known for numerous film soundtrack, scores (many written during his lengthy ...

recorded the song " London Pride" for the tribute album, '' Twentieth-Century Blues: The Songs of Noël Coward'', a patriotic song

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

had written in the spring of 1941 during

the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

. Collaboration with Terry Hall during 1994–2003: Having cited Hall as one of his early influences very often, Albarn and Hall went on and held a friendship for many years. They collaborated for multiple times including
The Rainbows EP
', in which Albarn co-wrote lead track "Chasing A Rainbow" with Hall. Later in Hall’s second solo album ''Laugh'' released in 1997, the two co-wrote "For The Girl" and "A Room Full Of Nothing". Hall also sang on a non-album track " 911" by Gorillaz; they were both lead vocals on " Lil' Dub Chefin'" by Spacemonkeyz vs Gorillaz for both album and single version. In 2003, Hall and Mushtaq released '' The Hour of Two Lights'', in which Albarn co-wrote and sang on the track "Ten Eleven". The album was also released on Albarn's label Honest Jon's Records in the UK. In 2003, Albarn worked with the

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...

band

the Strokes The Strokes are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1998. The band is composed of lead singer and primary songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikola ...

on their album '' Room on Fire''. Producer Gordon Raphael claims that Albarn was experimenting with backing vocals on the record. In the end, however, Albarn's contributions did not make the record. "Well, I guess the songs are just perfect the way they are," Albarn stated. In the same year he performed "

Fashion Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, Fashion accessory, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into Clothing, outfits that depict distinct ...

" live with

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

. Albarn has contributed backing vocals to the songs "FM" on Nathan Haines' ''Squire for Hire'' and "Small Time Shot Away" on Massive Attack's '' 100th Window'', which were released in 2003, however, for both tracks, credit was given to Gorillaz frontman 2-D instead. More recently, on Massive Attack's 2010 ''

Heligoland Heligoland (; , ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , ) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. The islands were historically possessions of Denmark, then became possessions of the United Kingdom from 1807 to 1890. Since 1890, the ...

'' album, he sang on the track "Saturday Come Slow" and contributed keyboards to the track "

Splitting the Atom ''Splitting the Atom'' is an EP by Massive Attack. It was released as a download on 4 October 2009, and on vinyl (limited to 1,000 copies worldwide) on 19 October 2009. The EP contains four new songs, two of which are remixes and all of which c ...

". Albarn also produced soul singer Bobby Womack's twenty-seventh studio album '' The Bravest Man in the Universe'', released in 2012. He recently performed on

Jools Holland Julian Miles Holland (born 24 January 1958) is an English pianist, bandleader, singer, composer and television presenter. He was an original member of the band Squeeze and has worked with many artists including Marc Almond, Jayne County, To ...

's ''Hootenanny on New Year's Eve'', performing the track "Love is Gonna Lift You Up". Albarn appeared with Womack at the Glastonbury Festival 2013. In 2016, Albarn appeared on

De La Soul De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evoluti ...

's studio album '' And the Anonymous Nobody...'' on the song "Here in After". Albarn had previously collaborated with the group on Gorillaz' albums ''Demon Days'', ''Plastic Beach'', and ''Humanz'' on the songs "Feel Good Inc", "Superfast Jellyfish", and "Momentz", respectively. In 2017, Albarn sung with Alex Crossan (Mura Masa) on "Blu", the last track of their debut album. In February of 2025, Albarn contributed to Is This What We Want?, a fully silent album made by 1000 UK artists, in protest against copyright laws in the UK regarding artificial intelligence.

Film, theatre and soundtrack work

"Closet Romantic" appeared on the soundtrack for '' Trainspotting'' alongside an early Blur recording, "Sing", which is from their debut album. Albarn composed the score with collaboration by

for the 1999 movie '' Ravenous'', and was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Music for his work. In their first major work together since Gorillaz, Albarn and Hewlett, along with acclaimed Chinese theatre and opera director Chen Shi-zheng, adapted for stage the Chinese story ''

Journey to the West ''Journey to the West'' () is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng'en. It is regarded as one of the Classic Chinese Novels, great Chinese novels, and has been described as arguably the ...

'' as '' Monkey: Journey to the West'', which received its world premiere as the opening show of the 2007

Manchester International Festival The Manchester International Festival is a biennial international arts festival, with a specific focus on original new work, held in the English city of Manchester and run by Factory International. The festival is a biennial event, first takin ...

, on 28 June 2007 at the Palace Theatre, Manchester. In collaboration with theatre director Rufus Norris, Albarn has created an opera for the 2011 Manchester International Festival based on the life of Elizabethan scientist

John Dee John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, teacher, astrologer, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divination, ...

and titled '' Doctor Dee''. Albarn recorded the film score for the film version of the book '' The Boy in the Oak'', which was written by his sister, Jessica Albarn. The film was set for a spring 2011 release in select theatres. In 2014, Albarn contributed the song "Sister Rust" to the soundtrack of science fiction film ''

Lucy Lucy is an English language, English feminine given name derived from the Latin masculine given name Lucius with the meaning ''as of light'' (''born at dawn or daylight'', maybe also ''shiny'', or ''of light complexion''). Alternative spellings ar ...

''. Albarn wrote the music for a musical based on ''

Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...

'' called '' Wonder.land'' with Rufus Norris and

Moira Buffini Moira Buffini (born 29 May 1965) is an English dramatist, director, and actor. Early life Buffini was born in Cheshire to Irish parents, and attended St Mary's College at Rhos-on-Sea in Wales as a day girl. She studied English and Drama at Gold ...

, which officially premiered in the

on 29 June 2015. Albarn provided a track for the film '' The White Helmets'' called "Crashing Down", an abandoned track initially planned for the Gorillaz album ''Plastic Beach''.

The Heavy Seas

Albarn's live band is called the Heavy Seas, and features guitarist Seye, drummer Pauli the PSM, guitarist Jeff Wootton and Mike Smith on keyboards. Both Smith and Wootton had previously been a part of Gorillaz' '' Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour''. With the exception of drummer Pauli, all members have played live with Gorillaz.

Acting appearances

Albarn starred in Antonia Bird's 1997 film ''

Face The face is the front of the head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may affect th ...

'' alongside Ray Winstone and Robert Carlyle. Albarn was also featured in Gunar Karlsson's 2007 film, '' Anna and the Moods'', along with

Terry Jones Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh actor, comedian, director, historian, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones a ...

and

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...

. Albarn played "Bull" in Joe Orton's '' Up Against It'', a Radio 4 play originally written for

broadcast in 1998.

Personal life

Albarn had a long-standing and publicized relationship with

frontwoman Justine Frischmann from 1991 to 1998.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate; , pp. 635–636 This relationship profoundly influenced his songwriting, notably on the '' Blur'' album (1997) on the track "Beetlebum" – said to be about their experiences with heroin – and a number of tracks on '' 13'' (1999), such as " Tender" and " No Distance Left to Run", said to be about their break-up in 1998. Albarn began a relationship with artist Suzi Winstanley in 1998. Winstanley gave birth to their daughter, Missy, named after rapper

Missy Elliott Melissa Arnette "Missy" Elliott (born July 1, 1971), also known as Misdemeanor, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She began her musical career as a member of the Contemporary R&B, R&B girl group 4 All the Sistas Arou ...

, on 2 October 1999. Albarn described becoming a father as "witnessing a life force" and saying:

It massively changes you. It slowly sort of shaves off the unpleasant thorny bits and hopefully creates a nicely rounded... I don't know, having a kid, you just become far more, inevitably you look to the future far more and, you know, it's desperate sometimes when you have a particularly bad few weeks of the newspaper just reminding you about this is wrong, this is wrong. We've got ten more years everyone.

Albarn and Winstanley are speculated to have separated in 2023, with reviewers noting allusions to a breakup in the lyrics of Blur's ninth studio album '' The Ballad of Darren'' (2023). Albarn has declined to specify if these lyrics are related to his relationship status with Winstanley. However, in an interview with

Paris Match ''Paris Match'' () is a French-language weekly gossip magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features. ''Paris Match'' has been considered "one of the world's best outlets for photojournalism". ...

, he stated that he had had a difficult breakup within the last few months, without mentioning anyone by name. In 2006, Albarn was awarded an honorary Master of Arts degree from the

University of East London University of East London (UEL) is a public university located in the London Borough of Newham, London, England, based at three campuses in Stratford, London, Stratford and London Docklands, Docklands, following the opening of University Squar ...

, saying it was "great to receive heaward from an institution where my dad used to work and which I, as a child, used to think of as that big building with lots of interesting people in". In 2015, Albarn was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the Queen's New Year Honours list of December 31, which recognises British citizens for their achievements in public life and service to the United Kingdom. In 2016, Albarn, a long-time advocate of the

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

, titling his 2002 album '' Mali Music'', has been given the title "Local King", and has had a school of music and dance named after him south of

Bamako Bamako is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2022 population of 4,227,569. It is located on the Niger River, near the rapids that divide the upper and middle Niger valleys in the southwestern part of the country. Bamak ...

. In 2020, Albarn was granted Icelandic citizenship. He visited the country in the mid-90s for recording, as well as on holiday, and subsequently bought a house in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

. Albarn is known to have homes in the

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a wikt:cosmopolitan, cosmopolitan and multiculturalism, multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting ...

neighbourhood of London, and

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

. Albarn is a fan of Chelsea F.C.

Philanthropy

Albarn has been an active supporter of various charities and philanthropic efforts throughout his career as a musician and has been involved in various charity albums and singles. DRC Music, a collective formed by Albarn, released their debut album '' Kinshasa One Two'' as a charity album in which all of the money earned is given to

. Albarn has also formed a collective with

bassist

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are compleme ...

guitarist Nick Zinner, and Franz Ferdinand frontman Alex Kapranos to make a charity single with the money earned from that single also donated to Oxfam. In 2013 Albarn, alongside fellow Blur bandmate Graham Coxon, performed live with former rival

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Gallagher is the primary songwriter, lead guitarist and a co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis (band), Oasis. After leaving Oasis, he formed Noel ...

of Oasis and

Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...

to play Blur's 1999 single "Tender" in support of Teenage Cancer Trust.

Politics and activism

In 2005, Albarn, among others, criticised the London

Live 8 Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland, from 6–8 July 2005 ...

concert for not featuring enough black artists; among the few included were

Ms. Dynamite Naomi Arleen McLean-Daley (born 26 April 1981), better known as Ms. Dynamite, is a British singer and rapper. She is the recipient of the Mercury Music Prize, two Brit Awards and three MOBO Awards. Early years She was born Naomi Arleen M ...

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

, and

Youssou N'Dour Youssou N'Dour (, ; also known as Youssou Madjiguène Ndour; born 1 October 1959) is a Senegalese singer, songwriter, musician, composer, occasional actor, businessman, and politician. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' described him as, "perhaps the m ...

. Eventually the organisers added a separate concert at the

Eden Project The Eden Project () is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay clay pit, pit.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS Explorer Map 107 – Fowey, Looe & Lostwithiel''. . The complex is dominated by two h ...

in Cornwall to the programme to showcase African musicians. Albarn said he did not want to perform at Live 8 because he thought it was too "exclusive" and may have been motivated by self-promotion. Albarn has been a vocal critic of

celebrity culture Celebrity culture is a high-volume exposure to celebrities' personal lives on a global scale. It is inherently tied to consumer interests where celebrities transform their fame to become product brands. Whereas a culture can usually be physically ...

, saying: "We need to dismantle very significant parts of our culture and really re-examine them. I suppose you start with the celebrity thing... you have to get rid of things like ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'' immediately." Albarn was a vocal critic of the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, describing it as "wrong" and saying that "it doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever." Albarn was a signatory on a 2018 editorial advocating for a "Citizen's Assembly" to resolve the parliamentary deadlock over withdrawal terms. Albarn stated that the Good, the Bad & the Queen album '' Merrie Land'' (2018) was inspired by Brexit and his reaction to it. Albarn has been a vocal supporter of Palestinian rights, cancelling concerts in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

following the

Gaza flotilla raid Ships of Gaza flotilla raid, Six civilian ships of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla were raided by Israel on 31 May 2010 in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea. Nine of the flotilla passengers were killed during the raid, with thirty woun ...

in 2010 and played a concert at the Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East Gala Dinner in 2014. During Glastonbury Festival 2024, Albarn gave a pro-Palestine speech, labeling the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

an "unfair war" and encouraging people to vote in the upcoming UK general election.

Anti-war activism

Albarn is

anti-war An anti-war movement is a social movement in opposition to one or more nations' decision to start or carry on an armed conflict. The term ''anti-war'' can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conf ...

, holding views shared by others in his family, including his grandfather Edward Albarn, who died during a

in 2002. In November 2001, shortly after the United States invasion of Afghanistan in response to

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

, the

MTV Europe Music Awards The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an al ...

were held in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, where Gorillaz won awards for Best Song and Best Dance. As Albarn and Jamie Hewlett walked onto stage to make a speech after receiving the latter award, Albarn wore a T-shirt with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament logo on it. In his speech, he said "So, fuck the music. Listen. See this symbol here, ointing to the T-shirtthis the symbol for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. Bombing one of the poorest countries in the world is wrong. You've got a voice and you have got to do what you can about it alright?" In 2002,

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

was under threat of invasion from a United States-led coalition. Opposition to the planned invasion led to protests being organised by a number of organisations. Albarn spoke out against the invasion. Albarn teamed up with Robert "3D" Del Naja of

Massive Attack Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol, England, by Robert Del Naja, Robert "3D" Del Naja, Daddy G, Grant "Daddy G" Marshall, Tricky (musician), Adrian "Tricky" Thaws and Andrew Vowles, Andrew "Mushroom" ...

and worked with

Stop the War Coalition The Stop the War Coalition (StWC), informally known simply as Stop the War, is a British group that campaigns against the United Kingdom's involvement in military conflicts. It was established on 21 September 2001 to campaign against the impe ...

, CND and the Muslim Association of Britain to organise campaigns to oppose British involvement in the war. This included spending £15,000 on anti-war adverts which ran in the ''

'', featuring quotes from

Tony Benn Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician and political activist who served as a Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabine ...

and the former US Attorney-General, Ramsey Clark. Albarn revealed that originally, many people whom he knew were against the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

were reluctant to take a stand, stating "to be honest with you when

Robert Del Naja Robert Del Naja (; born 21 January 1965), also known as 3D, is a British artist, musician, singer and songwriter. He emerged as a graffiti artist and member of the Bristol collective The Wild Bunch (sound system), the Wild Bunch, and later as ...

and myself started really stepping up prior to the war it was very difficult to find anyone. And I don't want to name any names because they are people who I respect but they were really, for some reason, very reticent to stand with us. A lot of people who you would now associate with being anti-war at that particular point didn't seem to be prepared to do it." He was due to speak in Hyde Park on the rally in February 2003 when a million people took to the streets of London in protest at the imminent war. In the event, he was too emotional to deliver his speech. Albarn later revealed that he had "this image of my grandad in his slippers reading the paper, knowing that his grandson had been involved in something which he'd put so much of his life into" and "got over-emotional". He also stated that "it obviously wasn't the best moment to get in that state, when you're at the head of the biggest peace march in the history of this country." Albarn also attended a protest in November where he commented on the diversity of people in attendance, saying that "It represents everybody. It's the voice in our democracy and that's why we should be listened to." Speaking about the experience in 2008, Albarn stated:

I think in this case the only reason we went to war was the result of our individual apathy in the end. You know, our inability to really express what was I think was a consensus that this was a terrifying idea and a very badly thought-out one.

Discography

Solo albums * ''

'' (2014) * '' The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows'' (2021) Collaboration albums * '' Mali Music'' (2002) (with Afel Bocoum, Toumani Diabaté & Friends) * '' The Good, the Bad & the Queen'' (2007) (with The Good, the Bad & the Queen) * '' Kinshasa One Two'' (2011) (as part of DRC Music) * '' Rocket Juice & the Moon'' (2012) (with

and Tony Allen as part of "''Rocket Juice and the Moon''") * '' Maison Des Jeunes'' (2013) (as part of Africa Express) * '' In C Mali'' (2014) (as part of Africa Express) * ''The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians and Guests'' (2016) (with Africa Express) * '' Merrie Land'' (2018) (with The Good, the Bad & the Queen) * ''Molo'' (EP) (2019) (with Africa Express) * ''Egoli'' (2019) (with Africa Express) * ''Bahidorá'' (2025) (with Africa Express)

Awards and nominations

Denmark GAFFA Awards

, - , rowspan=2, 2022 , Himself , International Solo Act , , rowspan=2, , - , '' The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows'' , International Album ,

Mercury Prize

The

is a highly prestigious annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. Nominations are chosen by a panel of musicians, music executives, journalists and other figures in the music industry in the UK and Ireland. , - , 2014 , , ''

'' , , Album of the Year , ,

Brit Awards

The Brit Awards are the

British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...

's annual popular music awards. , - ,

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, , Damon Albarn , , British Producer of the Year , , , - ,

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, , Damon Albarn , , British Male Solo Artist , ,

References

External links

* * *
Damon Albarn pieces including video interviews on BBC Imagine
bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 March 2014.

Albarn's Mali mission
BBC News. Retrieved 2 March 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Albarn, Damon 1968 births Living people 20th-century English male singers 20th-century English singers 21st-century English male singers Alternative dance musicians Alternative hip-hop musicians Alternative rock keyboardists Alumni of East 15 Acting School Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Art pop musicians Art pop singers Atomic Bomb! Band members British alternative rock singers Britpop musicians Blur (band) members English activists English anti-war activists English emigrants to Iceland English keyboardists English male singers English multi-instrumentalists English people of Danish descent English Quakers English record producers English rock singers English male songwriters Gorillaz members Grammy Award winners Icelandic musicians Icelandic people of Danish descent Icelandic people of English descent Ivor Novello Award winners Keytarists NME Awards winners Melodica players Musicians from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Musicians from the London Borough of Waltham Forest Musicians from Essex Naturalised citizens of Iceland Officers of the Order of the British Empire Parlophone artists People associated with the University of East London People from Leytonstone People from Whitechapel Singers from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Singers from the London Borough of Waltham Forest The Good, the Bad & the Queen members Virgin Records artists Warner Records artists