- Ben Kweller is a singer-songwriter, who has been making music for 30 years.
- Ben has written and performed with Ed Sheeran on a few occasions.
- Ben shared the sad news that his son had died on February 28.
Ben Kweller is a musician who has been critically acclaimed for many years. The musician, 41, has nine albums under his belt and has collaborated with so many people across the music industry. The singer shared the heartbreaking news that he and his wife’s son Dorian died at 16 on Tuesday, February 28. He shared the news in an Instagram post, paying tribute to him. “He was only 16 and he was a true legend. Kindest, gentle soul, a friend to all. If you knew him, you know. We’ll never get over him as long as we’re here on earth,” he wrote.
Ben continued and explained that his son was an aspiring musician who was preparing to make his debut at the South By Southwest music festival in March. “Dorian Zev wrote and recorded songs every day. A true poet from the day he started speaking. Only a few of his recordings were released but he was on a path and excited about his journey,” he wrote. “My baby boy was at the starting line with so much life ahead of him.”
Find out more about Ben here.
1. Ben released his first album with his band Radish in 1994
Ben began his musical career when he was just a teenager. He formed his first-ever band, the post-grunge outfit Radish in 1993, when he was just 12-years-old, and the band released their debut record Hello in 1994, and they followed it up in 1996 with Dizzy. After their sophomore record, Ben gave a copy to E Street Band member Nils Lofgren, who was one of his dad’s friends. Nils introduced them to producer Roger Greenawalt, who helped them secure a record deal with Mercury for their third album.
2. He began releasing solo music at 19
After Radish’s fourth album was shelved, Ben moved to New York City and focused on a solo career in 1999. He began repurposing unreleased songs by his old band to be released on EPs and his first solo album Sha Sha, which came out in 2000. Since then, Ben has released nine solo albums, with his most recent being 2021’s Circuit Boredom. He’s also collaborated with other musicians and played in a few bands since the start of his solo career, like his project The Bens, which he plays in alongside fellow musicians Ben Folds and Ben Lee.
3. Ben co-wrote ‘Collide’ with Ed Sheeran
As a lifelong musician, Ben has worked on a wide variety of projects, but he notably played some shows with popstar Ed Sheeran in 2019. He joined the “Shape Of You” singer for a series of shows in Lyon, France and Lisbon, Portugal. Besides playing the shows with Ed, Ben also contributed to the singer’s 2021 album =, as a co-writer on the track “Collide.”
4. He and his wife have been married since 2003
Ben and his wife have been together for many years. The pair moved to New York together in 1999, and they eventually tied the knot in 2003. The pair welcomed Dorian in 2007. They also have a younger son Judah. In his memorial post for his son, Ben asked fans to keep his family in their prayers. “Lizzy, Judah, and I have no idea how to deal with this disaster. Thank you for your prayers and support and we apologize if we are slow to respond to messages,” he wrote.
5. He has dabbled in acting
While Ben is primarily known as a musician, he has dipped his toe into the world of acting. He made his movie debut in the 2014 film Rudderless, and he also had a role in the 2015 movie 7 Chinese Brothers, according to his IMDb. Besides his acting roles, Ben has also had songs featured on numerous soundtracks and he also wrote the theme for the TV series Better With You.