Rachael Yamagata Biography

Rachael Yamagata
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Rachael Yamagata

Background information
Born September 23, 1977 (1977-09-23) (age 32) Arlington, Virginia
Genres Adult alternative
Blues rock
Occupations Singer-songwriter
Instruments Piano
Guitar
Vocals
Labels RCA Victor (2003-2007); Warner Bros. Records (2008-)
Associated acts Bumpus
Website rachaelyamagata.com

Rachael Yamagata (born September 23, 1977)1 is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Born in Arlington, Virginia, she is a Yonsei or fourth-generation Japanese American on her father's side and of Italian and German ancestry on her mother's side.

Contents

Early life

A child of divorced parents, Yamagata divided her time growing up between her Sansei Japanese American father, a Washington, D.C.-based attorney and Harvard graduate; and her Italian-German mother, an artist/painter in New York City. Yamagata graduated from the Holton-Arms School for Girls in Bethesda, Maryland, and attended Northwestern and Vassar. She has a twin brother, Benji.

Music career

Bumpus

Yamagata became the vocalist for the Chicago funk-fusion band Bumpus, spending six years writing and recording three albums with the band and touring the country. In 2001, after having written a number of songs that didn't fit with the funk style of the band, Yamagata decided to take the songs and launch a solo career. In September 2002, she landed a two-record deal with Arista's Private Music and her self-titled EP produced by Malcolm Burn, Rachael Yamagata EP was released in October.

Solo career

Her first full-length album, Happenstance, followed in June 2004. It received generally positive reviews from critics. It was produced by John Alagia (Dave Matthews, John Mayer, Ben Folds Five). "I Want You" features several members of prominent American Klezmer group The Klezmatics. Videos were made for the first and second singles "Worn Me Down" and "1963".

Her songs have featured on several TV shows, including The L Word, Charmed, How I Met Your Mother, ER , Nip/Tuck, Men in Trees, Alias, One Tree Hill, Brothers & Sisters, Grey's Anatomy and The O.C., to which she made a guest performance in season 2. Yamagata also contributed a song to Mandy Moore's 2007 album, Wild Hope.2 She also toured with Moore, opening many of her shows around the country.

On May 22, 2008, a new banner was added to her site indicating the digital release of a new EP, Loose Ends, with three new songs, serving as a preview for the now delayed release of her second full-length album.

In early 2008, her site featured a "teaser video" for the new album. The album was finally released on October 7, 2008.3 Yamagata's second studio album is called Elephants...Teeth Sinking Into Heart. This album is much darker than its predecessor and deals more with heartache.3 It was originally slated for release in the late-summer of 2007.45

On October 9, 2008, a two-song live acoustic video performance premiered on LiveDaily Sessions, featuring the songs "Faster" and "Sunday Afternoon"6.

On April 2, 2009, she performed her single "Elephants" on One Life to Live in the fictional Capricorn Cafe.7

She previewed the song "Jonah" on October 10, 2009 on her official website. Later on in November 2, Yamagata premiered the song "He Loves You Deep Inside". The songs serve as an appetizer to her next record.

Yamagata's songs have appeared in a number of films and television shows. These include:

Year TV series/Film Song Notes
2004 One Tree Hill "Be Be Your Love" Season 2, Episode 9 - "The Trick Is to Keep Breathing"
2005 Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants "Be Be Your Love"
2005 Prime "I Wish You Love"
2005 ER "I'll Find A Way" Episode: "Back In The World"
2005 The O.C. "Reason Why" Season 2, Episode 11 - "The Second Chance"
2005 The O.C. "Worn Me Down" Season 2, Episode 3 - "The New Kids On The Block"
2005 One Life to Live "I'll Find A Way"
2005 In Her Shoes "Collide"
2005 Elizabethtown "Jesus Was A Cross Maker" Judee Sill cover song
2006 How I Met Your Mother "Quiet" "Nothing Good Happens After 2 A.M."
2006 The Last Kiss "Reason Why"
2006 Bella "Meet Me By the Water"
2006 One Fine Day (Korean TV series) "I'll Find a Way"
2007 Los Serrano "I'll Find a Way" Episode:"Las Fases del Amor"
2007 The L Word "Be Be Your Love" Fifth season preview
2007 Holiday in Handcuffs "I Want You"
2007 Definitely, Maybe "Meet Me By the Water"
2008 The L Word "The Other Side" Episode:"Lifecycle"
2008 Brothers & Sisters "Duet" Episode:"Just A Sliver"
2009 Private Practice "Don't" Episode:"Homeward Bound"
2009 Hotel for Dogs "Reason Why"
2009 Grey's Anatomy "Duet" Episode:"I Will Follow You Into the Dark"
2009 Taking the Stage "Elephants" Episode:"Dance Off"
2009 The City "Horizon" Episode:
2009 One Life to Live "Elephants" Episode:"Elephants (4/2/09)"
2009 30 Rock "He Needs a Kidney" Part of supergroup; Episode:"Kidney Now!"


She made an appearance in Jason Mraz's second album, Mr. A–Z, singing a song with him called "Did You Get My Message?". She also sings on "Fireflies" and "The Believer" on Rhett Miller's solo CD The Believer; on Toots & the Maytals True Love; "Barfly" on Ray Lamontagne's Till the Sun Turns Black; and "Let it Ride", "Sweet Illusions", "Cold Roses", and "Friends", on Ryan Adams' Cold Roses. She sings backup on six tracks on the Bright Eyes' album Cassadaga. She co-wrote "Kaleidoscope" with Jill Cunniff, formerly of Luscious Jackson, for Cunniff's solo album City Beach and also plays keyboards and second vocals. Yamagata also performs with an ensemble cast on the 30 Rock episode "Kidney Now!"8 The soundtrack for the film Dear John features the song "You Take My Troubles Away," Yamagata's duet with Dan Wilson.

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Singles

Live/Compilations

Bumpus

Other contributions

References

External links