Graham Colton
Encyclopedia
Graham Colton is an American singer-songwriter from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
most widely known for his hit song "Best Days
", featured on the television series American Idol
and Kyle XY
(finale of season 2). He has toured with John Mayer
, Counting Crows
, Maroon 5
, Dave Matthews Band
, NeedToBreathe, and Kelly Clarkson
, and appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, the Late Show with David Letterman
, NBC's Today Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
and Live with Regis and Kelly
. Graham Colton's solo debut, Here Right Now, was released on October 30, 2007.
, in Oklahoma City
, Oklahoma
. While there, he was the quarterback of the football team. Together with his childhood friend and teammate Wes Welker
, now a star wide receiver
for the New England Patriots
, Colton led his team to a class 2A state championship in 1998 against the Tishomingo Indians. In the process, Colton and Welker set multiple state passing and receiving records, respectively.
to attend Southern Methodist University
, Colton began writing and performing songs in Dallas pubs and coffee houses. During this time, Colton perceived an appreciable demand for his music, “I would return to my college dorm room and have e-mails from kids across the country asking where to buy the album.” Colton began recording songs for a growing local fan base; his self-titled demo became a local favorite and also received attention outside Texas
.
Adam Duritz
invited Colton to perform as a supporting act for the Counting Crows
in their 2002 fall tour. Colton was invited for another tour in 2004.
The Graham Colton Band signed a record deal with Universal Records
. The group started recording sessions with producer Brendan O'Brien
at the Southern Tracks studio in Atlanta, GA.
The resulting album Drive was released in May 2004. To support the album, performance dates were arranged with various high profile acts, including John Mayer
, Maroon 5
and the Dave Matthews Band
.
, who he also dated, Colton began writing songs for what would become his solo follow up, 'Here Right Now', which was released in late October 2007. The album debuted at #2 on the Billboard
New Artist/Heatseeker chart, and #4 Pop Album/#11 Top Album charts on iTunes
.
Upon release of the album, Graham returned to the road for a series of solo performances with Vanessa Carlton
.
On March 10, 2008, Graham mentioned that a full tour would be announced in early 2008 for this album. He also performed to promote the album on the Today Show, Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and the Late Show with David Letterman
.
The lead track, "Best Days", was chosen as single of the week at iTunes
and subsequently, Graham was named by its editors as a 'Top New Pop Artist' of '07. In addition, the track landed coverage in Billboard
magazine with a 'Singles Review' and was the subject of their 'Breaking and Entering' feature.
The music video for the song was directed by highly acclaimed director Nigel Dick
, and made its TRL
debut on MTV
shortly after it was filmed. MTV
proceeded to use four songs from the album as part of their 'Featured Artist Program' for the hit show, Newport Harbor
.
From there, the song attracted attention from music supervisors and was used for several national promo campaigns including HBO (year-end promo), ABC
(October Road
promo), and Sundance
('08 new lineup promo). CBS
used the song in its nationally televised Thanksgiving Day Football programming. In addition, Graham was invited by the producers of ABC's hit show, Wildfire
, for an on-camera performance of the song "Telescope". Oprah Winfrey
also tapped the song for her new primetime network series, 'The Big Give'. It was also featured during the second season finale of Kyle XY
on ABC Family.
"Best Days" was selected by Fox
's hit show American Idol
for a featured ending montage of group auditions, which lead to additional use as the 'exit song' for three additional rounds of auditions leading up to the 'Top 12'. The video was the subject of a 'Spotlight Feature' on the official show website, and the digital single was featured in the official American Idol page on iTunes.
's Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Friday, February 2, 2008 with a full band performance of "Best Days" which included a three-piece string section. Shortly thereafter, he travelled to New York to perform on CBS
' Late Show with David Letterman
on March 13 and NBC
's Today Show on the 14th, again with full band and strings. The next week, he performed on CBS
' Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on March 19 with a stripped down acoustic performance with strings. The week after, he travelled back to New York for a solo acoustic performance on ABC
's Live with Regis and Kelly
on the 14th, making that the third consecutive week with a national television performance. On April 9, Graham returned to Los Angeles to perform on The Ellen DeGeneres Show
.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is the capital and the largest city in the state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's population, from the 2010 census, was 579,999, with a metro-area population of 1,252,987 . In 2010, the Oklahoma...
most widely known for his hit song "Best Days
Best Days (Here Comes the Rest of Our Lives)
"Best Days" is an American pop song performed by Graham Colton from his solo debut album, Here Right Now, released on Universal Republic Records October 30, 2007.-Best Days:...
", featured on the television series American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
and Kyle XY
Kyle XY
Kyle XY is an American television series with a science fiction premise and mystery-drama style. The central character is a teenage boy who awakens naked in a forest outside Seattle, Washington, with no more knowledge or abilities than a newborn. He is taken in by a family and given the name Kyle...
(finale of season 2). He has toured with John Mayer
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
, Counting Crows
Counting Crows
Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...
, Maroon 5
Maroon 5
Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...
, Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band, sometimes shortened to DMB, is a U.S. rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was...
, NeedToBreathe, and Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Brianne Clarkson is an American pop rock singer-songwriter and actress. Clarkson came into prominence after becoming the winner of the inaugural season of the television series American Idol in 2002 and would later become the runner-up in the television special World Idol in 2003.In 2003,...
, and appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, the Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
, NBC's Today Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
and Live with Regis and Kelly
Live with Regis and Kelly
Live! with Kelly is a syndicated American television morning talk show, hosted by Kelly Ripa. The show has aired since 1983 in New York City and 1988 nationwide. Tony Pigg has been the show's announcer since its inception...
. Graham Colton's solo debut, Here Right Now, was released on October 30, 2007.
Early life
Colton graduated from Heritage Hall SchoolHeritage Hall School
Heritage Hall School is a coeducational, college-prep school located in North Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. An independent private school not affiliated with any religious organization, the school is open to students of any race, religion, nationality, or ethnic origin.Heritage Hall was founded in...
, in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. While there, he was the quarterback of the football team. Together with his childhood friend and teammate Wes Welker
Wes Welker
-San Diego Chargers :Welker, who was not drafted during the 2004 NFL Draft, signed as an undrafted free agent with the San Diego Chargers. Welker made the Chargers out of training camp, but was released after the first game of the season.-2004 season:...
, now a star wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
for the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
, Colton led his team to a class 2A state championship in 1998 against the Tishomingo Indians. In the process, Colton and Welker set multiple state passing and receiving records, respectively.
Gaining attention
After leaving his hometown of Oklahoma CityOklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
to attend Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
, Colton began writing and performing songs in Dallas pubs and coffee houses. During this time, Colton perceived an appreciable demand for his music, “I would return to my college dorm room and have e-mails from kids across the country asking where to buy the album.” Colton began recording songs for a growing local fan base; his self-titled demo became a local favorite and also received attention outside Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
Adam Duritz
Adam Duritz
Adam Fredric Duritz is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and film producer. He is best known for his role as frontman and vocalist for the rock band Counting Crows, in which he is a founding member and principal composer of their catalogue of songs.Duritz has recorded solo...
invited Colton to perform as a supporting act for the Counting Crows
Counting Crows
Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...
in their 2002 fall tour. Colton was invited for another tour in 2004.
The Graham Colton Band signed a record deal with Universal Records
Universal Records
Universal Records was a record label owned by Universal Music Group, and it is now owned by Manny Patino and Michael Jackson, and operated as part of the Universal Motown Republic Group.-History:...
. The group started recording sessions with producer Brendan O'Brien
Brendan O'Brien (music producer)
Brendan O’Brien is a record producer, mixer, engineer, and musician.At age 14, O'Brien played guitar for the Atlanta-based cover band Pranks. In the late 1970s, he moved on to writing, performing and recording with the Samurai Catfish band...
at the Southern Tracks studio in Atlanta, GA.
The resulting album Drive was released in May 2004. To support the album, performance dates were arranged with various high profile acts, including John Mayer
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
, Maroon 5
Maroon 5
Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...
and the Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band, sometimes shortened to DMB, is a U.S. rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was...
.
Solo career
After spending the majority of 2005 on the road with Kelly ClarksonKelly Clarkson
Kelly Brianne Clarkson is an American pop rock singer-songwriter and actress. Clarkson came into prominence after becoming the winner of the inaugural season of the television series American Idol in 2002 and would later become the runner-up in the television special World Idol in 2003.In 2003,...
, who he also dated, Colton began writing songs for what would become his solo follow up, 'Here Right Now', which was released in late October 2007. The album debuted at #2 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
New Artist/Heatseeker chart, and #4 Pop Album/#11 Top Album charts on iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
.
Upon release of the album, Graham returned to the road for a series of solo performances with Vanessa Carlton
Vanessa Carlton
Vanessa Lee Carlton is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Upon completion of her education at the School of American Ballet, Carlton chose to pursue singing instead, performing in New York bars and clubs while attending university. Three months after recording a demo with producer Peter...
.
On March 10, 2008, Graham mentioned that a full tour would be announced in early 2008 for this album. He also performed to promote the album on the Today Show, Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and the Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
.
The lead track, "Best Days", was chosen as single of the week at iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
and subsequently, Graham was named by its editors as a 'Top New Pop Artist' of '07. In addition, the track landed coverage in Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
magazine with a 'Singles Review' and was the subject of their 'Breaking and Entering' feature.
The music video for the song was directed by highly acclaimed director Nigel Dick
Nigel Dick
Nigel Dick is an English music video and film director, writer and musician based in Los Angeles, California. He directed the Band Aid video "Do They Know It's Christmas?", as well as over 300 other music videos.Nigel Dick should not be confused with the Australian Dr...
, and made its TRL
Total Request Live
Total Request Live is a television series on MTV that featured popular music videos. TRL was MTV's prime outlet for music videos as the network continues to concentrate on reality-based programming. In addition to music videos, TRL featured daily guests...
debut on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
shortly after it was filmed. MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
proceeded to use four songs from the album as part of their 'Featured Artist Program' for the hit show, Newport Harbor
Newport Harbor
- Geography :* Newport Beach, California* Newport Harbor High School, in Newport Beach, Orange County, California* Newport Harbor Light, in Newport, Rhode Island* Newport, Rhode Island* Newport, Pembrokeshire...
.
From there, the song attracted attention from music supervisors and was used for several national promo campaigns including HBO (year-end promo), ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
(October Road
October Road (TV series)
October Road is an American television drama that debuted on ABC on March 15, 2007 following Grey's Anatomy. It follows Nick Garrett , who after a decade returns to his hometown, the fictional Knights Ridge, Massachusetts.The series is produced by ABC Studios and GroupM Entertainment; the latter is...
promo), and Sundance
Sundance
Sundance Resort is a ski resort located northeast of Provo, Utah, spanning over on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos in Utah's Wasatch Range. Snow skiing began on the site in 1944...
('08 new lineup promo). CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
used the song in its nationally televised Thanksgiving Day Football programming. In addition, Graham was invited by the producers of ABC's hit show, Wildfire
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
, for an on-camera performance of the song "Telescope". Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
also tapped the song for her new primetime network series, 'The Big Give'. It was also featured during the second season finale of Kyle XY
Kyle XY
Kyle XY is an American television series with a science fiction premise and mystery-drama style. The central character is a teenage boy who awakens naked in a forest outside Seattle, Washington, with no more knowledge or abilities than a newborn. He is taken in by a family and given the name Kyle...
on ABC Family.
"Best Days" was selected by Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
's hit show American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
for a featured ending montage of group auditions, which lead to additional use as the 'exit song' for three additional rounds of auditions leading up to the 'Top 12'. The video was the subject of a 'Spotlight Feature' on the official show website, and the digital single was featured in the official American Idol page on iTunes.
National television performances
Graham made his national television debut on NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Friday, February 2, 2008 with a full band performance of "Best Days" which included a three-piece string section. Shortly thereafter, he travelled to New York to perform on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
' Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
on March 13 and NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Today Show on the 14th, again with full band and strings. The next week, he performed on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
' Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on March 19 with a stripped down acoustic performance with strings. The week after, he travelled back to New York for a solo acoustic performance on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's Live with Regis and Kelly
Live with Regis and Kelly
Live! with Kelly is a syndicated American television morning talk show, hosted by Kelly Ripa. The show has aired since 1983 in New York City and 1988 nationwide. Tony Pigg has been the show's announcer since its inception...
on the 14th, making that the third consecutive week with a national television performance. On April 9, Graham returned to Los Angeles to perform on The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
.
Discography
- 2002: Graham Colton (Independent)
- 2004: Drive (as Graham Colton Band)
- 2007: Here Right Now U.S. #153
- 2009: Twenty Something EP
- 2009: Pictures on the Wall EP
- 2009: Dashboard Memory EP
- 2010: One By One EP
- 2010: Somewhere In Between EP
- 2010: Summertown EP
- 2011: Pacific Coast Eyes