Wayne Coyne
| Wayne Coyne | |
|---|---|
Wayne Coyne, 2006
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Wayne Michael Coyne |
| Born |
January 13, 1961 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Origin | Norman, Oklahoma, United States |
| Genres | Alternative rock, experimental, neo-psychedelia |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, actor, director |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, theremin, percussion |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Labels | Warner Bros. |
| Associated acts | The Flaming Lips, Electric Würms |
Wayne Michael Coyne (born January 13, 1961) is an American musician. He is the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter for the band the Flaming Lips.
Coyne was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, the son of Thomas Coyne and Dolores "Dolly" Jackson. The fifth of six children, Coyne moved with his family from Pittsburgh's Troy Hill neighborhood to Oklahoma in early 1961. Coyne grew up in Oklahoma City. Coyne preferred listening to music and playing pickup football. He, his sister, and his brothers dubbed themselves "The Fearless Freaks" for their brutal backyard football games. Tommy Coyne, Coyne's older brother, described the games as a "semi-civilized gang fight."
In 1977, while in high school, Coyne began working as a fry cook for a Long John Silver's restaurant in Oklahoma City. During his second year of employment, there was a rash of robberies in Oklahoma City. The restaurant was robbed and Coyne and other employees were held at gunpoint and forced to lie on the ground. Coyne was certain he was going to die. The assistant manager couldn't open the restaurant's safe, however, and the robbers eventually fled the scene. Coyne believes "this is really how you die...one minute you're just cooking up someone's order of french fries and the next minute you're laying on the floor and they blow your brains out. There's no music, there's no significance, it's just random." Coyne continued working at Long John Silver's until 1990.
Coyne formed the Flaming Lips in 1983 with brother Mark singing lead and Michael Ivins on bass guitar, and Richard English on drums. Mark later left the band and Wayne assumed vocal duties. Wayne and Michael have been the only two constant members of the band since its founding. (According to allmusic.com Coyne "became the primary singer and songwriter" of the band.)
During large-crowd festival performances, Coyne makes his entrance by descending from an alien mother ship (a nod to Parliament-Funkadelic) in a bubble and floats across the audience. Coyne has also been known to pour fake blood down his face via a hidden tube during live shows. Coyne does this to pay homage to a famous picture of Miles Davis who, after a performance, had blood on his suit because a police officer had beaten him during the show.
...
Wikipedia