Dave Matthews

Background

Dave John Matthews was born on January 9, 1967, in Gauteng, South Africa. He is the second youngest of four children born to John and Val. His father was a physicist, and the family moved to New York when his father started working for the information technology company I.B.M. He began playing guitar at the age of nine. Matthews got naturalized as an American citizen in the United States of America in 1980. Matthews started performing publicly in 1986 while living in Charlottesville, Virginia, with his mother.

In 1991, he formed his eponymous group, the Dave Matthews Band, while bartending at a local bar named Miller’s, where he had met his new bandmates. The band’s first public show was at a benefit event for the Middle East Children’s Alliance. They released their first studio album titled “Under the Table and Dreaming” in 1994. That same year, the band signed with the record label R.C.A. Records. The Dave Matthews Band opened for the iconic rock band The Rolling Stones in 1997. Matthews focused on writing for and performing with his band throughout the 1990s.

Just after the turn of the century, Matthews began spending more time on his solo career. In 2003, he released a solo album entitled “Some Devil,” which achieved platinum status. The album’s single ‘Gravedigger’ won a Grammy Award for “Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.” In 2003, he also landed an acting role alongside Adam Sandler and Kevin James in the comedy film blockbuster “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry.” Matthews also had a guest appearance on the medical drama series “House” in 2007. He continued starring in comedy films with Adam Sandler, such as “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan” (2008) and “Just Go With It” (2011).