Greg Holden is a New York-based British singer-songwriter. He is best known for his hit charity single "The Lost Boy" and for co-writing "Home", the 2012 debut single for American Idol-winner Phillip Phillips.
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Early life edit:
Holden was born in Aberdeen, Scotland and lived in Methlick in Aberdeenshire until he was three. The family then moved to England, and he was raised in Morecambe and then Leyland (Lancashire). He went to St Patrick's Primary School, Heysham near Morecambe, then attended Leyland St. Mary's Catholic Technology College and the University of Central Lancashire.
After leaving education he went to Brighton with his band. He then moved to London in 2007 to attempt a career, before moving to New York in 2009.
Music career edit:
Holden won the Lancashire Evening Post Battle of the Bands in 2005.
Greg first gained a large following by posting live videos of himself performing his songs on YouTube. Greg Holden's debut album, A Word in Edgeways (2009, 9 tracks) was followed by the EP "Sing For the City". His second album, I Don't Believe You (2011), was funded by fan donations using Kickstarter. In March 2012, he released an acoustic version of I Don't Believe You, which included 2 bonus tracks.
Holden wrote "The Lost Boy" in 2011. It was inspired by the book What is the What by American writer Dave Eggers about a Sudanese refugee. Holden recorded it and released as a charity single in December 2011, and it became a hit for him in the Netherlands, topping the Dutch iTunes singles chart on Christmas Day and reaching #2 on the Dutch Top 40.
He is best known in the United States for "Home", a song he co-wrote with Drew Pearson that was picked by American Idol mentor Jimmy Iovine for Phillip Phillips as his coronation song for the final of the show's season 11. The song quickly topped the US iTunes singles chart.
Holden has toured throughout Europe and the United States as a headliner and as a support act for the likes of Ingrid Michaelson. The Dutch leg of his 2012 European tour sold out months in advance.
All of Holden's albums to date were either self-released or released on his own label, Falling Art Recordings.
His songs have been featured on several TV shows, for example a track from A Word In Edgeways, "Choking on the Concrete", was featured on an episode of the TV show Private Practice. Other shows include ABC's Make It Or Break It, One Tree Hill and the CW's Life Unexpected. His song "The Lost Boy" was featured prominently at the end of Season 5 Episode 4 "Stolen Huffy" of the smash hit show Sons of Anarchy (10/02/2012). It was used as the musical backdrop during the funeral procession of slain "SAMCRO" member, Opie Winston. Holden's single "I Need An Energy", which was released in October, 2012, is found on the soundtrack of the film, Chasing Mavericks.
