There seems to be a little bit of a trend lately where legendary performers surface after a brief time out of the spotlight, leaving a younger generation clueless about these musicians’ earlier body of work.
First, it happened to Paul McCartney, when he was “discovered” by Kanye West. Then, Missy Elliott rocked the Super Bowl halftime show alongside Katy Perry; her iTunes sales skyrocketed as young people became instantly turned on to her awesome music, which they had never heard before.
Tonight, Beck took home the Album of the Year Grammy for his amazing record Morning Phase, leaving a lot of people under the age of 28 asking, “Who?” while all of us who were worshiping rock in the 1990s rejoiced.
More: Watch Pharrell give Taylor Swift the death stare at the Grammys
Here are 10 things to know about Beck, just in case you didn’t know.
1. He’s been recording albums since 1993
This might be Beck’s first big win, but he’s no stranger to the music scene. 2014’s Morning Phase is Beck’s 12th studio album to be released.
2. He’s the ultimate loser
Beck released his fifth studio album, titled Odelay, in 1996, and the single “Loser” became a ’90s anthem. Other hits on the record include “Where It’s At,” “Devil’s Haircut” and “The New Pollution.”
3. Giovanni Ribisi is his brother-in-law
Beck married Ribisi’s twin sister, Marissa Ribisi, in 2004, according to IMDb. Marissa is a part of ’90s history herself: She was the redhead in Dazed and Confused.
4. He has other artistic ventures
Thought Beck has incredible musical talent, he also dabbles in the visual arts. He and his grandfather, Al Hansen, created an art exhibition together that included collages, photographs drawings, poems and video documentation, according to stewoo.net.
5. He got in on the Twilight craze
This should get some younger fans interested: In 2010, Beck contributed his track “Let’s Get Lost” to the soundtrack for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.
6. And he contributed to True Blood
The musician must be a vampire fan! The same year he lent his song to Twilight, Beck also added “Bad Blood” to the second volume of the True Blood soundtrack.
7. He’s already collaborating with other huge Grammy-winning artists
Beck was already working with Pharrell Williams before he released Morning Phase, according to Billboard. The musician opted to save the track with Pharrell for his next album because he wanted Morning Phase to be more stripped down.
8. He has grapples with his own image, like everyone else
“I wish I had more confidence,” he told Billboard. “I think it’s probably my Achilles’ heel. If I had more, I probably would have felt emboldened to make more interesting music early on, or really go for it in an artistic or songwriting sense.”
9. He’s a late-night pro
Beck has been either a guest or musical guest on more than 20 late night shows, including seven appearances on Saturday Night Live and six on The Late Show with David Letterman, according to tv.com.
10. He’s influenced by his surroundings
Beck was raised in East Los Angeles, but hje claims that Morning Phase‘s dreamlike feel came from spending time in nature. “I spent a number of years living in the country and in the mountains, in the elements, so I think some of that came through in the songs on this record.”
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