Joshua Radin (born June 14, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter. He has recorded ten studio albums, and his songs have been used in a number of films and TV series. His most successful album, '' Simple Times'', was released in 2008.

Beginnings

Joshua Radin was born and raised in

Shaker Heights, Ohio Shaker Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population was 29,439. Shaker Heights is an inner-ring streetcar suburb of Cleveland, abutting the eastern edge of the c ...

, United States, to a Jewish family of Polish, German, Austrian, and Russian background. He studied drawing and painting at

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

, following his college years with stints as an art teacher, screenwriter, and art gallery employee. Radin turned to music when he moved to New York City, his father bought him a guitar, and he taught himself to play and write music. In 2004, American actor

Zach Braff Zachary Israel Braff (born April 6, 1975) is an American actor and filmmaker. He portrayed J.D. (Scrubs), John Michael "J.D." Dorian on the NBC/American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Scrubs (TV series), Scrubs'' (2001–2010), for ...

, a friend of Radin since their days at Northwestern, introduced Radin's first composition, "Winter", to '' Scrubs'' show creator Bill Lawrence, who ultimately used several of Radin's songs in various scenes of the television series.Joshua Radin: A Musician For the Fans
. Socal.com. Retrieved on January 5, 2019.Josh Radin Biography
Youmix.co.uk

Musical career

According to Radin his musical career started in 2004, and he had learned to play the guitar only two years before that. His first song, "

Winter Winter is the coldest and darkest season of the year in temperate and polar climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Dif ...

", appeared on his debut album '' We Were Here''. Since that time, Radin has been touring the United States, as well as much of the United Kingdom and Europe. Over the course of his career, Radin has shared stages with artists such as

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is noted for her Optimism, optimistic and Idealism, idealistic subject matter, and incorporation of genres including Rock music, rock, Po ...

Tori Amos Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos; August 22, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She is a classically trained musician with a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Having already begun composing instrumental pieces on piano, Amos won a full ...

Imogen Heap Imogen Jennifer Jane Heap ( ; born 9 December 1977) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and entrepreneur. She is considered a pioneer in pop music, particularly electropop, and in music technology. While attending the ...

, Meiko,

Missy Higgins Melissa Morrison "Missy" Higgins (born 19 August 1983) is an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. Her most popular singles include "Scar", " Steer", and " Where I Stood". Her Australian number-one albums are '' The Sound of White'' (2004 ...

, Maria Taylor,

Gary Jules Gary Jules Aguirre Jr. (born March 19, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, known primarily for his cover version of the Tears for Fears song " Mad World", which he recorded with his friend Michael Andrews for the film '' Donnie Darko''. ...

, Amber Rubarth, Schuyler Fisk,

The Script The Script are an Irish Soft rock, soft-rock band formed in 2001 in Dublin. The band currently consists of Danny O'Donoghue (lead vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards), Glen Power (drums, percussion, backing vocals), Benjamin Seargent (bass, backin ...

and many more. In addition to his American following, Radin has enjoyed success with his 2008 release, '' Simple Times'' in the United Kingdom. His song " I'd Rather Be With You" reached No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart and number two on the US Top Digital Chart.

''We Were Here'' (2006)

Radin has said that much of the album was inspired by a bad break-up.Gitlin, Lauren (August 10, 2006), "Joshua Radin: We Were Here".'' Rolling Stone''. (1006):102 It was released exclusively to iTunes for a month, before attracting attention from major labels.Newman, Melinda (April 1, 2006), "YOUNG READY TO ROCK".''Billboard''. 118 (13):38 Released on Columbia Records in May 2006, '' We Were Here'' presented the first batch of songs Radin ever wrote. The album drew critical acclaim and received a four-star review from ''Rolling Stone'', who praised it for Radin's "whispery, silver-bell voice" and its themes, calling them "poignant and refreshingly frank." The record hit number one on the iTunes Folk Album Chart and included a number of well known musicians, including

Ryan Adams David Ryan Adams (born November 5, 1974) is an American Rock music, rock and Country music, country singer-songwriter. He has released 30 studio albums and three as a former member of Whiskeytown. In 2000, Adams left Whiskeytown and released ...

who played guitar on the song "Lovely Tonight".

hand-picked one of the tracks to be featured on the soundtrack for '' The Last Kiss''. Radin played the song "Today" from the album, along with five other songs, for

Ellen DeGeneres Ellen Lee DeGeneres ( ; born January 26, 1958) is an American former comedian, actress, television host, writer, and producer. She began her career in stand-up comedy in the early 1980s, gaining national attention with a 1986 appearance on '' ...

and Portia de Rossi at their August 16, 2008, wedding.

''Simple Times'' (2008)

Radin's second album, ''Simple Times'' went straight to No. 1 on the iTunes overall chart upon its release. Radin enlisted highly regarded producer Rob Schnapf (Elliott Smith, Beck). The two spent seven weeks recording at L.A.'s legendary Sunset Sound Studio working with a cast of musicians that included guitarist

Greg Leisz Gregory Brian Leisz ( ; born September 18, 1949) is an American musician. He is a songwriter, recording artist, and producer. He plays guitar, dobro, mandolin, banjo, lap steel and pedal steel guitar. Biography Leisz grew up in the garage ba ...

, bassist Johnny Flaugher, keyboardist Jason Borger, drummer Victor Indrizzo and percussionist Lenny Castro. Among the album's many highlights are "You Got Growin' Up To Do", featuring guest vocalist

Patty Griffin Patricia Jean Griffin (born March 16, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.Griffin, Patricia She is a vocalist and plays guitar and piano. She is known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. Her songs ...

, lead single " I'd Rather Be with You" and "Brand New Day". Tracks from the album were featured on TV shows such as ''

Bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, an ...

'', '' Scrubs'', ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

'', ''

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

'', '' One Tree Hill'', ''

Life Unexpected ''Life Unexpected'' is an American teen drama television series that aired for two seasons from January 18, 2010 to January 18, 2011. It was produced by Best Day Ever Productions and Mojo Films in association with CBS Productions and Warner Bro ...

'', '' 90210'', '' Brothers and Sisters'', ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...

'' and Australian hit series ''

Packed to the Rafters ''Packed to the Rafters'' is an Australian family-oriented comedy drama television program which premiered on the Seven Network on Tuesday 26 August 2008 at 8:30 pm. The show continued on Tuesdays in this timeslot for its entire run. The dr ...

'' among others. Radin's " Simple Times" was released on

Mom + Pop Music Mom + Pop Music is a New York City–based independent record label. Founded by Michael Goldstone in 2008, its roster includes Alicia Keys, Courtney Barnett, Magdalena Bay, Madeon, Tom Morello, Porter Robinson, Maya Hawke, Tycho, Tash Sul ...

''The Rock and The Tide'' (2010)

Radin's third studio album, '' The Rock and The Tide'' was released on October 12, 2010 on

, his second release with the label. The album reached number five on the iTunes albums chart upon its release. ''The Rock and The Tide'' was produced by Martin Terefe (Cat Stevens, Ron Sexmith). A later EP released in 2011 used 6 of the album's tacks recorded in an acoustic session.

''Underwater'' (2012)

On September 4, 2012, Radin released his fourth studio album, ''Underwater''. The album was Radin's third release with

. Radin wrote songs with Janet Devlin in the Autumn of 2012 for her debut album.

''Wax Wings'' (2013)

Joshua Radin's fifth studio album ''Wax Wings'' was released May 7, 2013. ''Wax Wings'', a self-released album, has eleven tracks. Included on the album is the song "Lovely Tonight", which had been previously released on iTunes as a single. The tracks "In Her Eyes" and "Stay" were produced by

Matt Noveskey William Matthew Noveskey (born June 16, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, guitarist, and bassist, best known as the bassist in the bands Blue October and Harvard of the South (band), Harvard of the South, and as bassist ...

''Onward and Sideways'' (2015)

Joshua Radin's released a sixth studio album on January 6, 2015. The album consisted of 13 tracks, one of which was a re-release of the ''Wax Wings'' track "Beautiful Day" recorded with

''The Fall'' (2017)

Radin released a self-produced album titled ''The Fall'' on January 27, 2017 through Cadence Music.

''Here, Right Now'' (2019)

Radin's eighth studio album, ''Here, Right Now'', was released on October 4, 2019 through

Nettwerk Music Group Nettwerk Music Group is an independent record label founded in 1984. The Vancouver-based company was created by principals Terry McBride and Mark Jowett as a record label to distribute recordings by the band Moev, but the label expanded in Ca ...

. It was his first album with Nettwerk. ''Here, Right Now'' features a cover of

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the leader and frontman of the Rock music, rock bands Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Mudcrutch and a member of the late 1980s sup ...

I Won't Back Down "I Won't Back Down" is a song by American rock musician Tom Petty. It was released in April 1989 as the lead single from his first solo album, '' Full Moon Fever''. The song was co-written by Petty and Jeff Lynne, his writing partner for the alb ...

''The Ghost and The Wall'' (2021)

Joshua Radin's ninth full-length album, ''The Ghost and The Wall'', was released on July 23, 2021. Radin wrote ''The Ghost and The Wall'' at his home in Los Angeles in 2020, in isolation during the early days of the

Covid-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. The album was produced remotely via email and text messages with Jonathan Wilson, who also played several instruments on the album. The two musicians have never met in person.

''ONE DAY, HOME'' (2025)

Radin's tenth studio album, ''ONE DAY, HOME'', was self-released on February 14, 2025.

Personal life

Joshua Radin attended Northwestern University, where he met and became friends with Zach Braff. Radin also wrote the song "In Her Eyes" in celebration of his own sister's wedding. In addition to his love of music, Radin is an avid traveler.

Philanthropy

Radin has been involved with Little Kids Rock, a national nonprofit that provides music education to schools without music programs. Radin visited schools in six cities during his 2011 tour in support of ''The Rock and the Tide'' to give guitar lessons on the song "Brand New Day", and brought some of the students on stage at his concerts to perform the song with him. He did so again in 2015 for his song "Beautiful Day". Radin also supports the North Shore Animal League as a celebrity ambassador, donating 100% of the proceeds from his single, "Here, Right Now", to the New York based animal rescue organization.

Television and movies

Radin's songs have been used on television series such as ''

Designated Survivor In the United States, a designated survivor (or designated successor) is a person in the presidential line of succession who is kept distant from others in the line when they are gathered together, to reduce the chance that everyone in the line ...

'', '' Scrubs'', ''

'', '' Brothers and Sisters'', ''

'', ''

Cougar Town ''Cougar Town'' is an American television sitcom that ran for 102 episodes over six seasons, from September 23, 2009, until March 31, 2015. The first three seasons aired on ABC, with the series moving to TBS for the remaining three seasons. AB ...

'', '' One Tree Hill'', ''

'', '' Shameless'', among others. Radin also made a cameo appearance in ''Cougar Town''s 4th-season finale. As of September 2010, he had amassed more than 75 film and television placements of his songs.

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

*''Live from the Village'' (2016)

EPs

*'' First Between 3rd and 4th'' (2004) *''Live Session'' (iTunes Exclusive EP) (2006) *''Unclear Sky'' (iTunes Exclusive EP) (2008) *''Simple Times – Bonus Material (Demos) EP'' (2009) *''Songs Under a Streetlight'' EP (2010) *''The Rock and the Tide (Acoustic Session) EP'' (2011) *''Covers, Vol. 1'' EP (2020) *'' though the world will tell me so, vol. 1'' (2023) *'' though the world will tell me so, vol. 2'' (2023)

Singles

Others *2016: "Belong" (with

Måns Zelmerlöw Måns Petter Albert Sahlén Zelmerlöw (; born 13 June 1986) is a Swedish singer and television presenter. He took part in ''Idol 2005'', eventually finishing fifth, won the Let's Dance 2006, first season of ''Let's Dance (Swedish TV series), Le ...

)

Compilation appearances

* '' His Way, Our Way'' (

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

tribute album)

References

External links

*
Review of One of Those Days at Daily Music Guide
* ;Video links
Joshua Radin – ''Winter'', and other songs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Radin, Joshua 1974 births Living people Singer-songwriters from Ohio 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singer-songwriters Musicians from Shaker Heights, Ohio Northwestern University alumni American rock songwriters American rock singers American acoustic guitarists American male guitarists American folk rock musicians American folk guitarists American people of German-Jewish descent American people of Polish-Jewish descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent American people of Austrian-Jewish descent Jewish American rock musicians Jewish folk singers 21st-century American guitarists Guitarists from Ohio Mom + Pop Music artists 21st-century American Jews American male singer-songwriters