Theo Katzman (born April 2, 1986) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and producer based in

Los Angeles, California 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' ...

. His musical style is a fusion of pop, jazz, funk and indie rock. He is a member of funk band

Vulfpeck Vulfpeck is an American funk band founded in 2011 by Jack Stratton, Theo Katzman, Woody Goss and Joe Dart. The band has released four extended plays, five studio albums and a live album, having released all of their music independently. The ba ...

and has contributed to the works of several artists as songwriter and producer. Katzman has released three studio albums. His latest album ''Modern Johnny Sings: Songs in The Age of Vibe'' was released in January 2020.

Career

Katzman grew up in a musical family in

Manhasset Manhasset is a hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in D ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. His father,

Lee Katzman Lee Katzman (May 17, 1928 – August 1, 2013) was an American jazz trumpeter. Biography Katzman was Chicago-born and Indianapolis-raised. In his early career, Katzman played primarily in big band settings. Arriving in New York in the late 40's, ...

, was a jazz trumpet player and would take him to rehearsals at an early age. Around age twelve he started playing drums, guitar and writing songs. In 2004, Katzman moved to

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, and studied jazz at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. In 2005, he joined the instrumental group Toolbox which evolved into the band

Ella Riot Ella Riot was a musical group based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 2007 by Tyler Duncan as My Dear Disco, the name change came in March 2011. The band first released the eponymous EP ''My Dear Disco'' in 2007, releasing its first album '' Da ...

. Katzman toured with the band from 2007 to 2010. During this period, the band released an EP titled ''My Dear Disco'' and an album titled ''

Dancethink __NOTOC__ ''Dancethink'' is the first album by the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based band Ella Riot, formerly My Dear Disco. The band was active from 2007 to 2011 and released two definitive works, ''Dancethink LP'' and '' Love Child EP''. The band had t ...

''. In early 2010, Katzman pursued a solo career to focus on his singing and songwriting. He formed the trio Love Massive, who performed regularly and opened at the Ann Arbor Folk Festival in 2011. Katzman released an EP titled ''Solo Acoustic'' in 2010 and released his first studio album ''

Romance Without Finance ''Romance Without Finance'' is the first studio album by singer-songwriter Theo Katzman. It was released on November 15, 2011. The album's sound draws from Katzman's influences which include rock, soul, folk and pop. Katzman is the composer and p ...

'' in 2011. In late 2011, he moved to

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

and released music videos for two of his songs, "Hard For You" and "Brooklyn". In 2012, he opened for several artists including

Vanessa Carlton Vanessa Lee Carlton (born August 16, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Upon completion of her education at the School of American Ballet, Carlton chose to pursue singing instead, performing in New York City bars and clubs while ...

Matisyahu Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum mac ...

and

Vienna Teng Cynthia Yih Shih (born October 3, 1978, Saratoga, California), better known by her stage name Vienna Teng, is an American pianist and singer-songwriter who was based in Detroit, Michigan and now lives in Washington, DC. Teng has released five s ...

. In 2013, he was the musical director and the opening act for

Darren Criss Darren Everett Criss (born February 5, 1987) is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He rose to fame starring on the television series ''Glee'' (2010–2015) and received Emmy and Golden Globe acting awards for his leading role as spree ...

on his national tour, Listen Up, and released a single titled "Pop Song". Katzman has worked with several artists as a songwriter and producer. He co-wrote and produced ''

Face the Fire ''Face the Fire'' is the debut studio album by singer-songwriter Michelle Chamuel. The album was released on February 10, 2015. All songs were written and produced by Chamuel and collaborators Tyler Duncan and Theo Katzman. This was Chamuel's fir ...

'', an album by Michelle Chamuel, and co-wrote several songs for an album by Darren Criss. He performs with the Irish-fusion band The Olllam, funk band

, and as a solo act. Katzman released a single titled "Hard Work" in October 2016. Katzman's second studio album ''Heartbreak Hits'' was released in January 2017. According to Katzman, the album's concept was about heartbreak and loss. A review by Lee Zimmerman noted the album's "upbeat" tone despite the underlying lyrical concept. In October 2019, Katzman released a single titled "You Could Be President", a preview of his third studio album ''Modern Johnny Sings: Songs in the Age of Vibe''. The album was released in January 2020 under the label, Ten Good Songs.

Style

Katzman grew up listening to classic rock and soul music. His influences include soul, R&B, funk, rock and folk. As a songwriter, a primary focus for Katzman is a song's lyrical theme. He writes parts for guitar, bass, drums and keyboards. His favorite songwriters are those who "capture a moment in cultural time", such as

Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

and

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...

Personal life

Katzman's father, Lee Katzman, was a jazz trumpet player with

The Tonight Show Band The Tonight Show Band is the house band that plays on the American television variety show '' The Tonight Show''. From 1962 until 1992, when the show was known as '' The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'', the band was a 17-piece big band, and ...

and the

Stan Kenton Orchestra Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though K ...

. Katzman's maternal grandparents were both classical musicians with the

Detroit Symphony The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Detroit, Michigan. Its primary performance venue is Orchestra Hall at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit's Midtown neighborhood. Jader Bignamini is the current music ...

and the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription ...

Vulfpeck

In addition to his solo work, Katzman is a member of the funk band

. Formed in 2011, Vulfpeck is a four piece instrumental group made up of Katzman on guitar, drums and vocals, Jack Stratton on keyboards, drums and guitar, Woody Goss on keyboards, and Joe Dart on bass. The band has released four EPs and five studio albums.Vulfpeck releases: * * * *

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

=Solo albums

=with Ella Riot

=with Vulfpeck

Live albums

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Production and writing credits

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Katzman, Theo American male singer-songwriters American indie rock musicians 21st-century American singers 21st-century American musicians Musicians from Brooklyn Musicians from Ann Arbor, Michigan University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni Living people 1986 births Singer-songwriters from New York (state) Singer-songwriters from Michigan 21st-century American male singers Manhasset High School alumni