Father John Misty

Born Joshua Tillman, the musician didn’t become Father John Misty until 2012. Before then, he recorded music as J. Tillman between shifts at a bakery. After his demo was heard by singer-songwriter Damien Jurado, Tillman began opening for him at shows, where he would hand out copies of his CDs. He released several albums as J. Tillman, including ‘Minor Works’ and ‘Vacilando Territory Blues’, before becoming the drummer of the folk-rock band Fleet Foxes in 2008. After touring extensively, Tillman left the band in 2012 to pursue his solo career, moving to Los Angeles and signing to Sub Pop.

The musician released his first album as Father John Misty, ‘Fear Fun’, in 2012. Inspired by genres such as classic folk, country, psychedelic folk and indie rock, the album featured hits such as ‘Hollywood Forever Cemetry Sings’ and ‘Nancy From Now On’. It demonstrated Tillman’s unique and captivating songwriting style, which often takes an intimate storytelling approach.

By 2015, Tillman had released his second album, ‘I Love You Honeybear’, which was met with widespread critical acclaim. Featuring lush production with grandiose strings and striking personal and social commentary, the album remains one of his greatest. In 2016, Tillman earned writing credits for Beyonce’s ‘Hold Up’ and Lady Gaga’s ‘Sinner’s Prayer’ and ‘Come to Mama’. His third album ‘Pure Comedy’ followed in 2017, significantly inspired by the state of American politics and Tillman’s dissatisfaction with the election of Donald Trump.

The following year, Tillman released ‘God’s Favourite Customer’, which featured contributions from artists such as Mark Ronson, Foxygen’s Jonathan Rado and Weyes Blood. His latest studio album, ‘Chloë and the Next 20th Century’, was released in 2022 and included a collaboration with Lana Del Rey. Tillman has released a live EP featured on Del Rey’s album, ‘Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd’.