Sharon Van Etten

Biography

Sharon Van Etten is an American singer-songwriter and actress born on February 26, 1981, in Clinton, New Jersey. A dedicated choir student during her childhood, she studied clarinet, violin, and piano before transitioning to guitar. She began writing songs as a high school student and sang in a choir group called the Madrigals, crediting her choral experiences as instrumental in learning musical notation and harmony. After graduating high school, Van Etten moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, to attend Middle Tennessee State University, where she studied recording before dropping out after a year. She remained in Tennessee for over four years, working at Red Rose, a combination coffee house, record shop, and music venue, where she wrote songs continuously but never performed publicly.

Van Etten's professional music career began in earnest after a pivotal moment in Brooklyn when she handed a hand-painted CD-R of her music to Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio at a show, having known his brother in high school. Malone's enthusiastic encouragement proved transformative, launching her career as a nationally recognized artist. She released her first nationally distributed album, "Because I Was in Love," in 2009 on Language of Stone, followed by the more band-oriented "Epic" in 2010. Her third album, "Tramp" (2012), was produced in collaboration with Aaron Dessner of the National, marking a significant artistic evolution. Van Etten has since released multiple acclaimed albums including "Are We There" (2014), which received some of the highest critical acclaim of that year, "Remind Me Tomorrow" (2019), "We've Been Going About This All Wrong" (2022), and most recently "Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory" (2025). Beyond music, Van Etten has pursued acting and comedy, appearing in Netflix's "The OA" and exploring sketch writing as a creative outlet.

Van Etten's musical style has evolved from sparse, acoustic folk to more complex, band-oriented indie rock with synthesizer elements. Currently based in Brooklyn, New York, she has become an indie rock powerhouse with a career spanning more than fifteen years, known for her introspective songwriting and willingness to experiment with different instrumental palettes. She is the third of five children and has a tattoo of an African violet in honor of her maternal grandmother.

Fun Facts

• Van Etten became homeless in New York after completing a heavy touring schedule for her 'Epic' album in 2011, spending time sleeping on friends' couches before recording her next album.
• She initially recorded and sold her early songs on individually hand-painted CD-Rs that she distributed at shows and through her website before securing a record deal.
• Beyond music, Van Etten has pursued acting and comedy, appearing in Netflix's 'The OA' and exploring sketch writing as a creative outlet, which she considers a hobby and source of inspiration for her serious songwriting.
• She worked as a sommelier in a wine and dining establishment in New Jersey and later as a publicist at Ba Da Bing Records before fully committing to her music career.

Associated Acts

• Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory - lead vocals
• Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory - guitar

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• Kyp Malone - TV on the Radio member who discovered Van Etten's demo and encouraged her to pursue a music career, providing the crucial catalyst for her professional breakthrough (Hand-painted CD-R demo that Kyp Malone heard at a Brooklyn show) [2000s]

Key Collaborators

• Aaron Dessner - Guitarist and producer from the National who produced Van Etten's third album and worked with her in the studio (Tramp (2012)) [2010-2012]
• Stewart Lerman - Co-producer who worked with Van Etten on her fourth album, which she self-produced (Are We There (2014))
• The National - Van Etten opened for the National on tour and collaborated with band member Aaron Dessner; she also sang on their 2013 album (Trouble Will Find Me (2013)) [2010-2013]

External Links

• Spotify
• [Wikipedia](Not found in search results)
• MusicBrainz

Tags: #country-folk, #folk, #folk-rock