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Ben McKee
McKee at the 2013 Ilosaarirock festival.
McKee at the 2013 Ilosaarirock festival.
Background information
Born (1990-04-23) April 23, 1990 (age 34)
OriginForestville, California, United States
GenresAlternative rock
Occupation(s)Bassist, musician
Instrument(s)Bass guitar, Percussion, vocals
Years active2009–present
LabelsInterscope, KIDinaKORNER
Websiteimaginedragonsmusic.com

Ben McKee (born June 15, 1984) is an American musician, best known as the bassist of the Las Vegas-based rock band Imagine Dragons.

Early life

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McKee was born on April 23, 1990 in Forestville, California.

He grew up playing acoustic guitar and violin, before picking up acoustic bass in fifth grade. In high school, he continued learning bass guitar as a member of a jazz trio, which influenced his decision to attend Berklee School of Music. [1][2] While at Berklee, McKee played in a guitar performance ensemble with future Imagine Dragons bandmates Wayne Sermon and Daniel Platzman.[3]

Career

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Imagine Dragons

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In 2008, McKee was invited by Wayne Sermon to join Imagine Dragons, based out of Los Vegas. McKee dropped out of his final semester at Berklee to join the band, inviting Daniel Platzman to play drums, completing the lineup. The band proceeded to earn a number of local accolades including "Best CD of 2011" (Vegas SEVEN),[4] "Best Local Indie Band 2010" (Las Vegas Weekly),[5] "Las Vegas' Newest Must See Live Act" (Las Vegas CityLife),[6] Vegas Music Summit Headliner 2010,[7] and more sent the band on a positive trajectory. In November 2011 they signed with Interscope Records and began working with producer Alex da Kid.[8]

In 2012 their debut album Night Visions brought the band mainstream success. It reached #2 on the Billboard 200 chart and won the Billboard Music Award for Best Rock Album (2014). Single "It's Time" became the band's first single reaching #15 Billboard Hot 100 and certified multi-platinum by the RIAA. Second single "Radioactive" reached #3 Billboard Hot 100 and was certified 9x platinum by the RIAA, becoming the best selling rock song in the history of Nielsen SoundScan. Third single "Demons" reached #6 Billboard Hot 100 and was certified multi-platinum by the RIAA. Their album made the highest debut for a new rock band in six years (since 2006) and single Radioactive set a new record for longest time atop the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart with 23 consecutive weeks.[9] Tracks from the album topped the Billboard Rock Songs, Billboard Alternative Songs, and Billboard Pop Songs charts. Radioactive was also nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning the Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance.[10]

In October 2014, the band debuted the first single from their untitled sophomore album, "I Bet My Life", written about Reynolds' relationship with his parents.[11][12]

The band has contributed songs to several film soundtracks, including "Ready Aim Fire" for Iron Man 3, "Who We Are" for Hunger Games: Catching Fire and "Battle Cry" for Transformers: Age of Extinction. In addition, in September, 2014, "Warriors" was released by Riot Games along with an animated music video promoting the League of Legends World Championships.[13][14][15][16]

Equipment

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Bass Guitars

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  • McKee frequently plays basses built by Stambaugh Musical Designs He has utilized their "Fossil" model, as well as custom designs.[17]

Discography

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Main article: Imagine Dragons discography

Awards

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Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Imagine Dragons

References

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  1. ^ "Opening DOors: Imagine Dragons' Bassist, Ben McKee, talks about the band's exciting journey". musichistorian.net. Retrieved 2014-12-09.
  2. ^ "Berklee College of Music". berklee.edu. Retrieved 2014-07-13.
  3. ^ "Staff Pick: Imagine Dragons (Interview)". berkleegroove.com. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help); Text "http://www.berkleegroove.com/2013/08/04/staff-pick-of-august-imagine-dragons-interview/" ignored (help)
  4. ^ "Vegas Seven 07-28-2011". Digitaleditiononline.com. 2011-07-28. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  5. ^ "2010 Vegas' Best Arts & Entertainment winners". Las Vegas Weekly. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  6. ^ "Las Vegas CityLife". Las Vegas CityLife. 2009-07-02. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  7. ^ [1][dead link]
  8. ^ [2][dead link]
  9. ^ "Imagine Dragons Blaze Into #2 Spot On Billboard Chart - MTV". mtv.com. Retrieved 2014-07-13.
  10. ^ "Imagine Dragons pick up a pair of Grammy nominations - Las Vegas Weekly". lasvegasweekly.com. Retrieved 2014-07-13.
  11. ^ http://www.spin.com/articles/imagine-dragons-new-album-announcement-i-bet-my-life/
  12. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2014/10/27/imagine-dragons-i-bet-my-life-listen-up-song-of-the-week/17998245/
  13. ^ http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/iron-man-3-soundtrack-features-passion-pit-imagine-dragons-rogue-wave-more-20130329
  14. ^ http://www.hypable.com/2013/11/11/imagine-dragons-catching-fire-soundtrack-who-we-are/
  15. ^ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6133924/imagine-dragons-battle-cry-new-music-radioactive
  16. ^ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6251744/imagine-dragons-warriors-league-of-legends
  17. ^ "Stambaugh Musical Designs- Client Profile". stambaughdesigns.com.com. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help); Unknown parameter |http://stambaughdesigns.com/client_profile_details.php?client_profile_id= ignored (help)
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Category:1990 births Category:Living people Category:Alternative rock musicians Category:American indie rock musicians Category:American male singers Category:American bass guitarists Category:Las Vegas musicians Category:Imagine Dragons members

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