Wakey Wakey (formerly known as ''Wakey!Wakey!'') is an adult alternative pop group fronted by Michael Grubbs and based in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. Michael Grubbs is also known for his role as Grubbs on ''One Tree Hill'', where the band's music has been featured. They reached critical acclaim with their 2010 release,'' Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said the Last Time I Saw You'' which reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'''s Heatseekers Chart.

History

Michael Grubbs was born and raised in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

and began his career as a musician at the age of 5, taking lessons from his mother, a long time piano and choir instructor. Earlier influences included the church music he was forced to practice as rudiments, as well as classical composers such as Brahms, Bach, and Beethoven. As a teenager, Michael discovered the song books of the likes of

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

, and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

as a more culturally relevant counterbalance to his classical canon. Following a few early ventures into performance, Grubbs spent time with two touring musicals - ''

Brigadoon ''Brigadoon'' is a musical with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and score by Frederick Loewe. The plot features two American tourists who stumble upon Brigadoon, a mysterious Scottish village that appears for only one day every 100 years; on ...

'' and ''Camelot'' - standing out both for his technical ability as well as his exceptional aesthetic. Grubbs came to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in 1998 and soon came to be an understudy of the notable Lach, one of the main proponents and founding fathers of the

Anti-folk Anti-folk (sometimes spelled antifolk) is a music genre that emerged in the 1980s in New York City, founded by the musician, author and comedian Lach, as a reaction to the commercialization of folk music. It is characterized by its DIY ethos, ...

movement in New York's

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...

, from whom he learned to channel energy and inspiration from what he characterized as a repressed background into a style of music that was more accessible to today's audience. As an active member of this movement he came up alongside the likes of

Regina Spektor Regina Ilyinichna Spektor (, ; born February 18, 1980) is a Russian Americans, Russian-born American singer, songwriter, and pianist. After self-releasing her first three records and gaining popularity in New York City's Indie music scene, in ...

and Moldy Peaches. His greatest musical break came from meeting Mark Schwahn, critically acclaimed

head writer A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio ...

and

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

The CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...

drama series, '' One Tree Hill''. After being introduced to Schwahn and playing for him at an open mic in New York City, Grubb's song "War Sweater", the title track from his ''War Sweater'' EP, was featured on the finale of ''One Tree Hill''s sixth season. Following that placement, Schwahn offered to give Grubbs cameos on the show to promote a new record including performances of his songs "Brooklyn", "Light Outside", and "Almost Everything". Wakey!Wakey! signed with The Family Records, a Manhattan based independent record label, under which they released their full-length debut album ''Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said the Last Time I Saw You...''. The group has since signed with

The End Records The End Records is a record label in Manhattan that specialized in rock, heavy metal, indie, and electronic music. History Early years (1998–2005) The End Records was founded by Andreas Katsambas in Pasadena, California, with the goal of ...

and released the EP ''Homeless Poets'' in 2015 and full-length album ''Overreactivist'' in 2016.

Discography

*''Silent as a Movie'' (2007) *''Wakey!Wakey! Wednesdays'' (2008) *''War Sweater'' EP (2009) *''Brooklyn/Manhattan'' (2009) *''Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said the Last Time I Saw You...'' (2010; used as title of season 7 finale episode of '' One Tree Hill'') *''Dance So Good/Great Lake Love'' (2010) *''Irresistible'' EP (2014) *''Salvation'' (2014) *''Homeless Poets'' EP (2015) *''Overreactivist'' (2016) *''Strange is Beautiful'' EP (2018)

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control Musical groups from Brooklyn One Tree Hill (TV series) characters The End Records albums