Acoustic pop duo Karmin was borne of the famed Boston’s Berklee College of Music. Now both 25 years old, Amy Heidemann and Nick Noonan first met at the school in 2004 when they were first year students. (They graduated in 2008.) Nick studied performance (jazz trombone), and Amy majored in professional music, with a focus on vocal performance, songwriting, and business.
Over the years, Berklee has produced numerous notable musicians, producers, composers, and other music industry professionals in genres from jazz to pop to rock—and beyond. Berklee alumni have received a total of 29 Grammy nominations for 2011, announced earlier this month. The 24 alumni receiving nominations include not only performers, but producers, engineers and arrangers in genres including pop, rock, hip-hop, alternative, jazz, musical theatre, folk, soundtracks, and Latin. In the 54 years the National Academy of Recording arts and Sciences have been handing out Grammys, Berklee alumni have won 205 awards.
A list of Berklee alumni reads like a "who's who" of the music industry. Among the numerous notable alumni are singer John Mayer; Natalie Maines, lead singer of the Dixie Chicks; and Joey Kramer, drummer for Aerosmith, jazz guitarist Bobby Broom, Gary Burton, Weezer’s River Cuomo, vocalist Diana Krall, industry guru Quincy Jones, Melissa Ethridge, Jan Hammer (Mahavishnu Orchestra keyboardist, and television/film composer for series like Miami Vice, among others), and Trey Parker, co-creator of the long-running popular animated series South Park.
Although Karmin has yet to score a Grammy nomination, with the release of their first studio album in February, it may not be too much longer until they join the ranks of Grammy-winning Berklee alums.
The duo's first-ever single release, released earlier this autumn called "Crash Your Party" is now available for download at iTunes and other places online. Here's a taste:
The 54th annual Grammy Awards will be held on Sunday, February 12, 2012 and broadcast on CBS at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Article comments
1 - kalie
Karmin's album is going to be amazing! I can't wait to see them live in Madison tonight!
2 - Stephanie
Respectfully, it's Berklee College of Music.
3 - Barbara Barnett
Stephanie--My humble apologies to you and the College. Thanks for pointing out the typo.