Ben Howard

Ben Howard is a mercurial British singer/songwriter who rose to prominence — alongside contemporaries like Benjamin Francis Leftwich and James Vincent McMorrow — on the basis of his 2011 LP Every Kingdom. His soulful croon and deft guitar work initially drew inspiration from the 1970s British folk scene, but later works like 2018’s Noonday Dream, 2021’s Collections from the Whiteout, and 2023’s Is It? utilized more contemporary pop and, in turn, became experimental touchstones.

Born in London in 1987, Howard grew up in South Devon, where his mother’s collection of folk records helped instill a love for Joni Mitchell, Donovan, and Richie Havens. Howard also developed an interest in surfing, briefly moving to Newquay, the surf capital of the U.K., where he received class credit for working at a surfing magazine. Howard dropped out of school six months shy of graduation, though, convinced by the surf community’s enthusiastic response to his music — which, despite its acoustic folk sound and beachy vibe, sounded more like John Martyn than Jack Johnson — and decided to focus on songwriting.