Mark Charles (born Mark Charles Heidinger on May 8, 1977) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from Louisville, Kentucky. Primarily known as the principal singer and songwriter for the indie-folk outfit

Vandaveer Vandaveer ( Mark Charles Heidinger) is an American, Louisville, KY-based indie-folk musical project, spearheaded by singer-songwriter Mark Charles Heidinger. Vandaveer has released five albums and three EPs since 2007, touring extensively through ...

, Mark began a solo career under his given name in 2020.

Biography

Mark was born in

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...

and grew up in and around

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

. His music career began as the frontman for Kentucky-based

indie-pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and su ...

band The Apparitions. In 2004, Mark moved to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and began performing under the name

in early 2006. He also spent time as the bassist for DC's

These United States These United States was an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, and Carrboro, North Carolina, made up of songwriter and bandleader Jesse Elliott, pedal steel and keyboardist J. Tom Hnatow, guitarist Justin Craig, bassist and vocalist Anna ...

. Mark first founded his project

as a solo venture, releasing their first album
Grace & Speed
' in 2007. Later that year, vocalist Rose Guerin joined the project, officially making

a duo. From mid-2007 through 2016, the group released five full-length LPs and three EPs, performing across the US and Europe with notable appearances at

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

, NPR's Mountain Stage, Forecastle, C3's Landmark Music Festival, among others. In 2015, Mark made the decision to move back to Kentucky to focus on his growing family, establishing Vandaveer's new home-base in

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. On July 7, 2016, Vandaveer performed at

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

's annual Peace and Love gathering at

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, celebrating Starr's 76th birthday. Following the performance, Vandaveer was invited to record as the backing band on two tracks of Ringo Starr's release ''

Give More Love ''Give More Love'' is the 19th studio album by English musician Ringo Starr. It was recorded primarily in Starr's home studio in Los Angeles and was released on 15 September 2017 by UM. The album features Starr's frequent collaborators such as ...

''. They were featured on reimagined versions of Starr's hit song "Photograph", and

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' "

Don't Pass Me By "Don't Pass Me By" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as the "White Album"). A country rock song, it was the first solo composition written by drummer Ringo Starr. The song w ...

", from their

White Album White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

. ''Give More Love'' was released in September 2017.

went on an extended hiatus in 2017, In 2018, Mark performed in the "house band" at Bonnaroo's SuperJam celebrating the music of

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the lat ...

, alongside My Morning Jacket's

Patrick Hallahan My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ba ...

and

Tom Blankenship Tom Blankenship (born February 7, 1978) is an American indie rock musician. He is the bass guitar-player for the Louisville, Kentucky band My Morning Jacket. Equipment *Fender Precision Bass The Fender Precision Bass (often shortened to "P- ...

Wilco Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently dur ...

Pat Sansone Patrick Anthony "Pat" Sansone (born June 21, 1969) is an American multi-instrumentalist in the rock bands Wilco and The Autumn Defense. Early bands Sansone was born in Meridian, Mississippi. Upon entering college at The University of Souther ...

, Craig Pfunder of VHS or Beta, Daniel Creamer of The Texas Gentlemen, and

The Watson Twins The Watson Twins are an American alternative country band based in Los Angeles, formed by identical twin sisters Chandra and Leigh Watson. Biography Chandra and Leigh were born on March 28, 1975, in Tulsa, Oklahoma and raised in Louisville, Ke ...

. Mark Charles began releasing solo music during the pandemic-plagued summer of 2020. His debut single, "Blood Will Always Be," was released on July 22, 2020 and was accompanied by a fan-sourced, pandemic-themed video directed by long-time film collaborator Jared Varava. Charles also released a cover of the famed Pete Seeger tune "Which Side Are You On," alongside fellow Louisvillian Shadwick Wilde in October of 2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles, Mark American indie rock musicians Songwriters from Ohio 1977 births Living people