Hazel Albarn, originally from Lincolnshire, was a theatrical set designer for Joan Littlewood's theatre company at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in London, and was working on the satirical play Mrs Wilson's Diary just before Damon was born. Their daughter Jessica, born in 1971, also went on to become an artist.
Īlbarn was born on 23 March 1968 he is the elder child of artist Keith Albarn and his wife Hazel, née Dring. In 2020, Albarn was granted Icelandic citizenship. He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to music. In 2016, Albarn received the Ivor Novello Award for Lifetime Achievement from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. In 2008, The Daily Telegraph ranked Albarn number 18 in their list of the "100 most powerful people in British culture". His debut solo studio album Everyday Robots was released in 2014, with his second The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows released in 2021. Albarn also scored the stage productions Monkey: Journey to the West (2008), Dr Dee (2012) and Wonder.land (2016). He has also worked with the non-profit organization Africa Express, which he co-founded, and composed film soundtracks. Albarn remains the group's only consistent musical contributor.Īlbarn's other notable projects include two supergroups: the Good, the Bad & the Queen and Rocket Juice & the Moon. Drawing influences from hip hop, dub, pop, trip hop and world music, 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. These were followed by The Magic Whip (2015), Blur's first studio album in 12 years.Īlbarn formed the virtual band Gorillaz in 1998 with comic book artist Jamie Hewlett. Subsequent albums such as Blur (1997), 13 (1999) and Think Tank (2003) incorporated influences from lo-fi, art rock, electronic and world music. All three received critical acclaim, while Blur gained mass popularity in the UK, aided by a Britpop chart rivalry with Oasis. The result was the Blur albums Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995). After spending long periods touring the US, Albarn's songwriting became increasingly influenced by British bands from the 1960s. They released their debut album Leisure in 1991. Raised in Leytonstone, East London, and around Colchester, Essex, Albarn attended The Stanway School, where he met guitarist Graham Coxon and formed Blur. Damon Albarn OBE ( / ˈ æ l b ɑːr n/ born 23 March 1968) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer, best known as the frontman and primary lyricist of the rock band Blur and as the co-founder, and primary musical contributor for the virtual band Gorillaz.