Joe King (guitarist)

Joseph Aaron King (born May 25, 1980) is an American musician who is the guitarist, singer, songwriter, and co-founder of Denver-based rock band The Fray.

Early life

Joe King was born on May 25, 1980, in Colorado. He attended Faith Christian Academy in Arvada, Colorado.
Before his success with the Fray, King attended school while he worked as an auto damage appraiser.

He learned to play the piano at an early age, but later dropped it and started playing the guitar instead. He states that it was because "the coolest guys in my eighth grade class all played guitar. I wanted to fit in."

Career

Mainstream success

The Fray released ''Movement EP'' in 2002. King sang lead on two songs on the EP: "It's for You" and "Where You Want To".

The band released '' Reason EP'' in 2003, to some local acclaim in Denver. This prompted Epic Records to sign the band in 2004.

The band's first album, ''How to Save a Life'', released in 2005, brought the band mainstream success. Apart from playing guitar, King sang lead on the song, "Heaven Forbid", which was about his sister. He also gave backing vocals on "How to Save a Life", "Look After You" and "Trust Me".

The band released their second album, ''The Fray'', in 2009. The second single from the album, " Never Say Never", was written primarily by King from his perspective of his marriage. Apart from guitar, the second album also saw King singing a lot more: he supplied lead vocals on the song "Ungodly Hour" and on the bonus track "Uncertainty", and backing vocals on "Syndicate" and "Absolute".

The band released ''Scars & Stories'' in 2012, with King singing lead on "Rainy Zurich".

Vocal characteristics and songwriting

While the Fray has been lyrically spearheaded by Slade, King co-writes almost all of the songs. In an interview, King stated that his lyrics were mainly inspired by his experiences with the band: "With success, you have a lot more drama. For me, it was extreme highs in career and extreme lows in a relationship. There were really obvious things to write about."

Commenting on the lyrics on the second album, King said: "A lot of really big realizations about ourselves are on this record. We're singing about real things that we've experienced. I'm not really comfortable talking about it, but I'm a lot more comfortable singing about it. It's a different side of me."

Work outside The Fray

King sang in the song "Undertow" off the Timbaland album '' Shock Value 2''. He also co-wrote and co-produced the song "Alright With Me", which was included on ''American Idol'' winner Kris Allen's debut album, ''Kris Allen''. Commenting on his working with Allen, King said that there was "a good vibe in the studio".

In April 2013, King released a six-song EP, ''Breaking'', under the name "King." His single "Need a Woman by Friday" features Trombone Shorty.

In September 2017, King released five songs in a project titled "Union Moon".

Personal life

King married for the first time when he was 19 years old. He and his first wife, Julie, had two daughters, Elise Madison King and Ava Julie King, together.

King began dating actress Candice Accola after they met at a Super Bowl event in February 2012. They became engaged in May 2013, and married on October 18, 2014, in New Orleans, Louisiana. In August 2015, they announced that they were expecting their first child together. They had a daughter, Florence May, born on January 15, 2016. In August 2020, they announced that they were expecting their second child together. Candice gave birth to their second daughter, Josephine June, on December 1, 2020. In May 2022 it was announced that Accola and King have split.

References

External links

The Fray's website
(archived)

{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Joe
Living people
American rock guitarists
American male guitarists
American rock singers
APRA Award winners
The Fray members
Singers from Denver
Guitarists from Colorado
21st-century American male singers
21st-century American singers
21st-century American guitarists
1980 births