Milo Jay Aukerman (; born January 1, 1963) is an American singer, songwriter, and former research

molecular biologist Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

. Aukerman is most widely known for being the lead vocalist of the

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band the

Descendents The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in Manhattan Beach, California, in 1977, by guitarist Frank Navetta, bassist Tony Lombardo and drummer Bill Stevenson (musician), Bill Stevenson as a power pop/surf music, surf punk band. I ...

, a group widely considered to be pioneers of

pop-punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

. A

caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...

of Aukerman serves as the band's

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...

Education and scientific career

Aukerman attended

Mira Costa High School Mira Costa High School (MCHS, "Costa") is a four-year public high school located in Manhattan Beach, California that first opened 1950. It is the only high school in the Manhattan Beach Unified School District. The school's athletic teams are k ...

, with fellow members of the Descendents. He holds a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

degree in biology from

UC San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Sc ...

, conducted postdoctoral research in

molecular biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

and the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, and formerly worked as a plant researcher at

DuPont Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, duPont, or du Pont may refer to: People * Dupont (surname) Dupont, also spelled as DuPont, duPont, Du Pont, or du Pont is a French surname meaning "of the bridge", historically indicating that the holder of the surname re ...

and as an adjunct professor at the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially known as UD, UDel, or Delaware) is a Statutory college#Delaware, privately governed, state-assisted Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Newark, Delaware, United States. UD offers f ...

. In a 2016 interview with '' Spin'', Aukerman announced that he decided to quit researching in favor of doing music full-time.

Musical career

While not an original member, Aukerman joined Descendents after their first single was released ("Ride the Wild" b/w "It's a Hectic World"), which featured founding members Frank Navetta and

Tony Lombardo Tony Lombardo (born 1945) is an American musician who was the original bassist in the punk rock band the Descendents. He joined the band in 1979 and played on their debut single, the '' Fat EP'' (1981), and the albums '' Milo Goes to College'' ( ...

on lead vocals. Aukerman's first recording with Descendents was the ''

Fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specif ...

'' EP, released in 1981. The first full-length Descendents album was released in 1982 and was titled '' Milo Goes to College'', as Aukerman had by then decided to leave the group to pursue a degree in

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

at the

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...

. From 1983 to 1987 Aukerman would briefly rejoin Descendents several times to record albums and go on tour. Aukerman left the band for good at the conclusion of the supporting tour for the 1987 album '' All'', after which the remaining members continued to tour and record with a series of lead singers under the name All. Aukerman decided to rejoin Descendents in 1995, releasing the album '' Everything Sucks'' the following year. He returned to his molecular biology career following the tour supporting the album, returning to Descendents intermittently over the next several years to tour and to record the album '' Cool to Be You'' and the EP '' 'Merican'', both released in 2004 on Fat Wreck Chords. In July 2016, Aukerman announced he would be leaving his scientific career to pursue the Descendents full-time, citing burnout with biochemistry and getting laid off from DuPont. The band released their seventh studio album, '' Hypercaffium Spazzinate'', on July 29, 2016. As a musician, Aukerman sings in a mid-range

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

, and his generally upbeat lyrics encompass such universal topics as girls/rejection, dependence upon

caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine chemical classification, class and is the most commonly consumed Psychoactive drug, psychoactive substance globally. It is mainly used for its eugeroic (wakefulness pr ...

, and the never-ending quest for good food. He is known for his bespectacled, unabashedly nerdy persona and self-deprecating, "anti-rockstar" demeanor. Apart from his work with Descendents, Aukerman has also provided backing vocals for other musicians (including Descendents offshoot All, and Black Flag on their 1985 album '' Loose Nut'') and briefly fronted the band Milestone in 1988 in

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

while attending university. During 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 ...

, in addition to tracking the lead vocals to Descendents' '' 9th and Walnut'' at his home studio, Milo also contributed vocals remotely to Punk Rock Karaoke's rendition of the Dickies' "Manny, Moe and Jack", as well as covers of Black Flag's " Jealous Again" (with bandmate Bill Stevenson playing lead guitar), Nirvana's "In Bloom",

Devo Devo is an American new wave band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs ( Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a No. 14 ...

's " Girl U Want" and

Green Day Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...

’s " Basket Case" for the YouTube series ''Mikey And His Uke''.

Personal life

Aukerman was born on January 1, 1963, in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. He has been married to Robin Andreasen since 1995 and is the father of two children, Owen and Claire Andreasen. On July 27, 2023, Aukerman suffered a "mild" heart attack and underwent surgery.

References

External links

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(Interview) {{DEFAULTSORT:Aukerman, Milo 1963 births Living people Descendents members American atheists American tenors American punk rock singers 20th-century American male singers Singers from California 20th-century American biochemists People from Lomita, California DuPont people University of California, San Diego alumni Mira Costa High School alumni 21st-century American male singers