David Usher
Adult Contemporary
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David Usher, born April 24, 1966, is a Canadian musician, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and activist best known as the front man for the band Moist. He has also released a number of solo albums and is the founder of Reimagine AI, an artificial intelligence creative studio, demonstrating his forward-thinking approach to technology and creativity. Born in Oxford, England, to Thai Buddhist artist Samphan Usher and Queen's University economics professor Dan Usher, he has lived in various places such as Malaysia, New York City, California, and Thailand since early childhood before his family settled in Kingston, Ontario.
While studying in Vancouver, Usher helped form the band Moist, composed of Usher on vocals, Mark Makoway on guitars, Jeff Pearce on bass, Kevin Young on keyboards, and Paul Wilcox on drums. Usher became the principal songwriter for the band. Moist's debut album "Silver" was released in 1994 and went on to achieve quadruple-platinum status, selling 400,000 copies in Canada. Their sophomore album "Creature" was released in 1996 and reached triple-platinum status, selling over 300,000 copies. In 2013, Moist returned from a twelve-year hiatus and recorded their fourth studio album "Glory Under Dangerous Skies" the following year.
Beyond Moist, Usher launched a successful solo career, releasing his first solo album "Little Songs," most of which was recorded in the kitchen of his apartment. Throughout his music career, David Usher has sold over 1.4 million albums, establishing himself as one of Canada's most successful artists. He attended high school at Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute at the same time as Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip and Hugh Dillon of the Headstones, representing a remarkable concentration of Canadian rock talent.