Donny Benét (born Ben Waples) is an Australian recording artist, based in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. In 2011, he released his debut studio album ''Don't Hold Back'' through indie label

Rice is Nice Rice Is Nice is an independent record label based in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia that takes its name from Welsh post-hardcore band Mclusky's 2000 single "Rice Is Nice". The label aims to promote artists that are unique and whose music will ...

. His fifth studio album, ''Mr Experience'', reached #26 on the

ARIA Charts The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...

in May 2020.

Biography

Benét was born Ben Waples to a family of an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

mother and a father who, like Benét, is also a musician. According to an

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

interview in 2020, Ben Waples developed his Donny Benét persona when he watched an Italian accordionist perform to nursing homes. Prior to his solo career, he played double bass for jazz bands in Sydney. Benét claims he was exposed to music from an early age as his father Antonio Giacomelli Benét was an Italian Disco accordionist and taught Donny to play the accordion and the electric bass. Benét played his first shows as an accordionist and synth player in Italian bands around Sydney until in the mid-2000s. In 2010, Benét played in Jack Ladder's band The Dreamlanders and began recording his own songs in his studio ''Donnyland Studios''. In 2011 he signed with

records and released ''Don't Hold Back'', which was received with interest from Australian music media publications praising Benét's sincere take on 80's pop music. In March 2020, Benét's track "Konichiwa" was included on

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...

's 'Handpicked Playlist', which highlights 24 songs that inspired his album, '' After Hours''. In March 2020, Benét announced the release of his fifth studio album ''Mr. Experience'' as well as an accompanying tour of Europe and Australia. In April, many of these tour dates were postponed due to effects of the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic. Benét said ''Mr. Experience'' was inspired by the stylings of

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. He became known as the frontman of the band Roxy Music and also launched a solo career. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established ...

and

Hiroshi Yoshimura was a Japanese musician and composer. He is considered a pioneer of ambient music in Japan. His music lies mostly in the minimalist genre of ''kankyō ongaku'', or environment music—soft electronic melodies infused with the sounds of nature ...

, and in order to produce the record, he "envisioned the soundtrack to a dinner party set in the late 1980s". ''Mr.Experience'' was released on 22 May 2020 and debuted at number 26 on the

, becoming Benét's first release to reach the ARIA top 100. In 2020, Benét's portrait, painted by Melbourne artist Tom Gerrard, was selected for the

Salon des Refusés (Archibald) Salon des Refusés is a popular Australian art exhibition showing some of the rejected submissions to the Archibald Prize, Australia's most prestigious art prize for portraiture, and also the Wynne Prize entries for landscape and figure sculpture. ...

. In February 2022, Benét released his first new music in almost two years with the instrumental piece titled ''Le Piano'' and announced the release of his forthcoming EP, of the same name, released on 1 April 2022. In October 2022, Benét announced a 2023 North American tour for ''Le Piano'' from 22 February to 18 March 2023.

Influences and musical style

Benét's music mostly consists of

synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

s, but also features electronic drum machines,

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

and

electric bass The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an electric but with a longer neck and scale leng ...

, all of which (excluding saxophone) are played by Benét. Benét's influences includes

Jan Hammer Jan Hammer () (born 17 April 1948) is a Czech-American musician, composer, and record producer. He rose to prominence while playing keyboards with the Mahavishnu Orchestra during the early 1970s, as well as with his film scores for television an ...

Alan Vega Alan Bermowitz (June 23, 1938–July 16, 2016), known professionally as Alan Vega, was an American vocalist and visual artist, primarily known for his work with the electronic proto-punk duo Suicide. Life and career Alan Bermowitz was raise ...

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

Eberhard Weber Eberhard Weber is a German double bassist and composer. As a bass player, he is known for his highly distinctive tone and phrasing. Weber's compositions blend chamber jazz, European classical music, minimalism and ambient music, and are regarded ...

Bernard Edwards Bernard Edwards (October 31, 1952 – April 18, 1996) was an American bassist and record producer, known primarily for his work in disco with musician Nile Rodgers, with whom he co-founded Chic. In 2017, Edwards was selected as the 53rd greates ...

, and

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

, whom Benét credits as his inspiration to sing his own songs. The sexual nature of his lyrics arise from his experiences playing

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

covers in the Airport Hilton Ballroom, Benét writing that he "had to sexualize his songs a lot more to keep (the audience) interested, make them a little bit more risqué, and I think that carried over to my own songs." In a 2018 interview he explained, "I'm kind of always poking the piss at what a poor lover I am or you know, fictitiously what a great lover I could be." Benét was described by

KEXP KEXP-FM (90.3 FM broadcasting, FM) is a non-commercial Radio broadcasting, radio station in Seattle, Seattle, Washington, United States, specializing in indie music programmed by its disc jockeys. KEXP's studios are located at the Seattle Cent ...

as "a fun, baffling mystery of a performer, one who you’ll find yourself falling in love with from his charisma alone" on the debut of the single "Second Dinner" in August 2019. Following the release of the single "Girl of My Dreams" in January 2020 during the North American ''Donny Benét Live'' tour, it was reviewed by

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. The ''Reader'' has been ...

as a single that "is a tender ballad" and "Anchored by a wistful whistle, it has a relaxing feel that makes it perfect for catching your breath with a slow dance."

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Singles

Awards and nominations

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as

AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. History The inaugural 2006 awards were held at Blacket Hot ...

) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. ! , - ,

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, ''Mr Experience'' , Best Independent Pop Album or EP , , , - ,

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, ''Le Piano'' , Best Independent Jazz Album or EP , ,

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). ! , - ,

, "Le Piano" , Song of the Year , , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. Donny Benét had received 2 nominations. , - , rowspan="2",

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, ''Mr Experience'' , Best Adult Contemporary Album , , - , Tim Rogers for ''Mr Experience'' by Donny Benét , Best Cover Art , , -

National Live Music Awards

The

National Live Music Awards The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are annual Australian music awards, established by Heath Media in 2016. They were preceded by the AU Live Music Awards in the previous two years. The awards are given in categories that recognise the best ...

(NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016. , - ,

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, Himself , Live Bassist of the Year ,

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benet, Donny Living people Australian male singers Australian singers of Italian descent Australian male songwriters 1981 births Australian accordionists