Gryffin

Biography

Daniel Griffith (born September 29, 1987), known by his stage name Gryffin (often stylized as GRYFFIN), is an American musician, DJ, and music producer. He gained recognition for remixing some well-known songs such as Tove Lo's "Talking Body", Maroon 5's "Animals" and Years & Years' "Desire".

Background

Gryffin was born in San Francisco, California and is of Native American and Japanese descent. Gryffin grew up as a classically trained pianist and learned to play the guitar at an early age. He played in bands to initially hone his instrumental abilities. He studied electrical engineering at the University of Southern California where he took much of his leisure time in his dorm room to work on music.
In 2009, he began releasing his music as White Panda, with childhood friend Tom Evans, who was studying in Chicago. They began a national tour in July 2011, in a second generation of mashup artists gaining popularity on college campuses and music-streaming websites. They played college campuses, such as the University of Delaware and Swarthmore College, and shared the stage with Flo Rida, Wale and Sam Adams. Later performances included the Firefly Music Festival and Lolapalooza.
When asked on his key lessons of music production, he said: "At the beginning, I just released music with the main goal of having my friends play it at college parties and I never would have imagined it would get to this point". He made his 'world' debut as Gryffin at the SnowGlobe Music Festival 2015.
He moved to Los Angeles to be closer to his label and management.

2016

On January 22, 2016, Gryffin released his debut single titled "Heading Home×Heading Home22 January 2016 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Heading Home4:31" featuring Australian singer Josef Salvat via Darkroom/Interscope Records. On May 2, 2016, an official music video was uploaded on his YouTube channel. The song peaked at number 22 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, number 21 on the Dance/Electronic Digital Songs chart, number 1 on Spotify Viral 50 chart and number 5 on the Billboard Twitter Emerging Artists chart. On August 26, 2016, he released a song titled "Whole Heart×Whole Heart26 August 2016 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Whole Heart3:45" with Bipolar Sunshine. In an interview, about the song "Whole Heart", Gryffin said "'Whole Heart’ is a big step for me as an artist, as it represents a developing maturity of my sound and depth of songwriting".

2017

2017 saw three singles for Gryffin. "Feel Good", a collaboration with DJ Illenium and singer Daya, was released on March 3. "Love in Ruins×Love in Ruins27 July 2017 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Love in Ruins4:19" with singer Sinéad Harnett was released on July 7 and "Nobody Compares to You×Nobody Compares to You6 October 2017 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Nobody Compares to You3:51" with Katie Pearlman was released on October 6.

2018

2018 proved to be a big year for Gryffin, releasing five singles throughout the year. His first single of the year, "Winnebago×Winnebago20 April 2018 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Winnebago2:59" with Quinn XCII and Daniel Wilson was released on April 20. He followed this up with single "Just for a Moment" with Iselin, released June 22, and "Tie Me Down" with Elley Duhé, released on August 3. Two months following the release of "Tie Me Down", Griffith released a song with Zohara. "Remember×Remember26 October 2018 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Remember3:42" was released on October 26 and eventually topped the US Dance Charts, marking Griffith's first number one hit song.

2019

In 2019, Gryffin released his full-length debut album, Gravity×Gravity24 October 2019 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 16 tracks1Intro1:572All You Need to Know3:583Need Your Love3:264Tie Me Down3:385Nothing Like You3:016Remember3:417Body Back3:358Bye Bye3:309If I Left the World3:2010Out of My Mind3:0011Baggage3:1712Just for a Moment4:1313OMG3:3614You Remind Me3:3715Hurt People3:4616Nobody Compares to You3:51, to critical acclaim.

2020

On July 26, 2020, Gryffin announced the release of "Cry", with John Martin, on his Instagram page. He hinted that the track would be the first single from his upcoming second album, and announced July 30, 2020 as the single's release date.

2024

On August 2, 2024, Gryffin released his third studio album Pulse×PULSE2 August 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1MAGIC3:232ENEMIES2:263DANCE THROUGH THE NIGHT3:074FALLING TO PIECES3:105LONELY2:566MAGNET3:237WHERE ARE YOU TONIGHT3:078DANDELION3:459SONAR HEART4:1910ON THE LINE2:3311WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG3:3112THE REASON3:1713I DON’T WANNA KNOW3:0914LAST OF US3:11. This album continues to demonstrate Griffith's ability to captivate listeners with his melodic and emotional music. Pulse marks a new era for Gryffin, showcasing his continued experimentation with different genres while staying true to his signature sound. The album embodies themes of energy, community, and nostalgia for the early-mid 2000s EDM boom, with collaborations from artists like Elderbrook, Disco Lines, and Armin van Buuren.

Musical style

Gryffin produces music in a melodic house style and classifies himself as a melodic house artist. He incorporates sounds of piano and guitar for a 'hybrid of electric and organic' musical style.