Wesley Keith Schultz (born December 30, 1982) is an American musician. He is the guitarist and lead vocalist for the

folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...

band The Lumineers.

Life and career

Schultz grew up in Ramsey, New Jersey,"The Lumineers: Chasing Big Dreams Out West"
NPR, May 26, 2012. Accessed November 14, 2012 the son of clinical psychologist Dr Michael J. Schultz (died 2007) and Judy (née Kinyon), and attended Ramsey High School and the

University of Richmond The University of Richmond (UR or U of R) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Richmond, Virginia, United States. It is a primarily undergraduate, residential institution with approxim ...

. At the time The Lumineers released their first album, their press release highlighted the fact that Schultz, then age 9, had been quoted in a 1992 story in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. In that story (a profile of Dennis Kobray, who since 1986 has performed the award-winning musical/ acting show "Meet the Musicians", as part of which he tours elementary schools imitating classical composers as a way to introduce children to classical music), 9-year-old Schultz is quoted as saying: "I spend a lot of time on my drawings and it turns out good 'cause I've been practicing a lot." Growing up in Ramsey, Schultz's best friend was Josh Fraites.McDermott, Maeve
"Meet roots rockers The Lumineers"
''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'', June 24, 2012. Fraites died of a drug overdose in 2002, at the age of 19. In the wake of Josh's death, Schultz connected with Josh's younger brother Jeremiah Fraites, a drummer, and the two "found solace in music, writing songs and playing gigs around New York City." The two toured under various names including Wesley Jeremiah and Six Cheeks, and released a self-titled EP, including future The Lumineers songs, "Flowers In Your Hair" and "Darlene". Frustrated by their band's limited success in New York, and struggling with the high cost of living, Schultz and Fraites decided to relocate to

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, where they could dedicate more time to working on their music and touring. Upon arriving in Denver, they placed a Craigslist ad for a classical cellist. Neyla Pekarek responded to their ad and ultimately became the third member of The Lumineers. The trio spent the next year playing gigs around Denver and touring nationally at their own expense. In 2012 The Lumineers released their first album, '' The Lumineers''. Three songs from that album (all co-written by Schultz and Fraites) have charted: " Ho Hey", " Stubborn Love", and "Submarines". In 2013 the band released a deluxe edition of their self-titled album. It included 5 bonus tracks, over 25 minutes of video footage, and a 28-page booklet. In 2016 Schultz sang Honey Pie in Beat Bugs episode 12b. In 2016 The Lumineers released the album ''Cleopatra''. The songs were written in the four years after the first album, ''The Lumineers'', was released. In 2019 The Lumineers released the album "III". This is their third album. The album title references that the album is presented in three chapters, each focusing on a different main character of the fictional Sparks family On October 25, 2020 Schultz announced that a 10-song solo album containing covers entitled "Vignettes" would be released that Friday, October 30. He defined the album as a love letter to the songs he played in bars and coffee shops at the beginning of his music career. Schultz had previously released a version of

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

's song " Bell Bottom Blues" on September 3, which was included on the album. In December 2024, he participated on a single by the Uruguayan artis
Zeballos
The song, "AIRPORT RISOTTO", garnered mild attention because this was the first time the Uruguayan artist participated with one from the United States.

Songwriting credits

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schultz, Wesley Living people 1982 births People from Ramsey, New Jersey Ramsey High School (New Jersey) alumni American folk rock musicians Songwriters from New Jersey American people of German descent The Lumineers members Musicians from Bergen County, New Jersey