Ezra Koenig
| Ezra Koenig | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ezra Michael Koenig |
| Born | April 8, 1984 |
| Origin | Glen Ridge, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Genres | Indie pop, indie rock, baroque pop, Afrobeat |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter, teacher |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, piano, percussion, saxophone |
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Labels | XL |
| Associated acts |
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| Website | vampireweekend |
| Notable instruments | |
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Epiphone Sheraton II Rickenbacker 330 Fender Hot Rod Deluxe |
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Ezra Michael Koenig (born April 8, 1984) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and radio personality. He is the lead vocalist and guitarist of the indie rock band Vampire Weekend.
Koenig was born in New York City, and is the son of Bobby Bass, a set dresser, and Robin Koenig, a psychotherapist on film and TV productions. His parents lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan before moving to Glen Ridge, New Jersey. He is Jewish, and his family came to the U.S. from Europe (including Romania and Hungary). He grew up in Northern New Jersey and attended Glen Ridge High School. Ezra has a younger sister, Emma Koenig, who is the author of the blog and book "FUCK! i'm in my twenties" and a writer on the ABC-TV comedy, Manhattan Love Story. Ezra began writing music around the age of ten, and his first song ever was titled "Bad Birthday Party." Koenig attended Columbia University, where he majored in English literature.
After graduating he taught English through Teach for America at Junior High School 258 in Brooklyn, New York. Students recalled Koenig bringing his guitar with him to class despite him trying to hide it and his music career. He was described as a "laid-back" teacher who successfully made bonds with his students. In the fall of 2007, a deal with XL Recordings cut short Koenig's teaching career.
Prior to forming Vampire Weekend, he was involved in numerous musical projects with Wes Miles, a childhood friend and current frontman of Ra Ra Riot. Koenig and Miles' experimental band, The Sophisticuffs, has been described as "wildly inventive musical work". Later, Koenig formed the "serious" rap band L'Homme Run with Andrew Kalaidjian and fellow Vampire Weekend band member Chris Tomson, played saxophone for the indie rock band Dirty Projectors, worked as an intern for The Walkmen.
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