Biography
Who is Dave Matthews?
Early life and background
David John Matthews was born on January 9, 1967, in Johannesburg, South Africa, as the third of four children born to parents John and Val Matthews. His father worked as a physicist for IBM, which caused the family to move frequently between South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States during his childhood. At age two, Dave moved with his family to Yorktown Heights, New York. The family later relocated to Cambridge, England, before returning to New York, where his father sadly passed away from lung cancer in 1977 when Dave was ten years old. Following this loss, the family returned to Johannesburg.
Dave naturalized as a United States citizen in 1980. Upon graduating from secondary school in 1985, he faced conscription into the Southants military amid growing civil disobedience. As a pacifist and a Quaker, he left South Africa to avoid military service. He moved to New York in 1986 and briefly worked for IBM before joining his mother in Charlottesville, Virginia, later that year. In Charlottesville, he became involved in the local music community and started performing publicly.
Dave Matthews Band career
While working as a bartender at Miller's in Charlottesville, Dave formed the Dave Matthews Band in early 1991 alongside LeRoi Moore, Carter Beauford, Stefan Lessard, Peter Griesar, and Boyd Tinsley. The band played its first live show on March 14, 1991, at Trax Nightclub. They released their debut studio album, Under the Table and Dreaming, on September 27, 1994, which achieved big worldwide success and earned a six times platinum certification. The album featured popular tracks such as What Would You Say, Satellite, and Ants Marching.
The group gained a reputation for altering their songs during every live performance and maintained a relentless touring schedule for decades. Between 2000 and 2009, the band grossed more revenue than any other touring act in North America. Their 2012 album Away from the World made them the only group with six consecutive studio albums debuting at number one on the Billboard charts, a record later extended to seven albums with the 2018 release of Come Tomorrow. Dave Matthews Band was officially inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on October 19, 2024.
Solo work and acting
Outside of his work with the main group, Dave has pursued various solo projects and collaborations. In 2003, he released his solo album Some Devil, which achieved platinum status and featured the single Gravedigger. That single earned him a Grammy Award in 2004 for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. He has also collaborated with numerous artists, including Béla Fleck and Emmylou Harris.
In addition to his musical career, Dave has taken on multiple acting roles in film and television. He appeared in the 2003 film adaptation of Where the Red Fern Grows and played a role in the 2005 film Because of Winn Dixie. He also guest-starred in a 2007 episode of the medical drama series House and appeared in the Adam Sandler film You Don't Mess with the Zohan in 2008.
Birthday and age
Dave Matthews was born on January 9, 1967, which makes Dave 59 years old today. That birthday falls under the Capricorn sign. Dave shares the date with 67 other famous people.
Explore more
