whisper words of wisdom, let it be

Nathaniel Avery Eldridge ( born. august 03, 1979 ) is a Norwegian singer-songwriter, musician, entrepreneur and occasional model. Eldridge has released five studio albums, Dedicated To, The Perfect Ending, Wake up to Reasoning, God' Willin' and the Creek Don't Rise and We Can Look Up. He was born in Norway and was inspired to create music after hearing an album by Stephen Stills. Critics have compared Eldridge's music to that of The Band, Van Morrison, Nick Drake and Tim Buckley. He lives in New York City with his daughter. He is the co-founder of Burn This Forever Records and The Landing.

*** Eldridge was born in Oslo, Norway, in 1979, one of three children raised by his mother and father. He started his musical life as a drummer in a handful of post-hardcore rock bands. Despite liking the comfort and anonymity of playing drums, he began playing music by himself in the side room of this parents house, educating himself as a musician and a songwriter.

After graduating from high school, Eldridge quit his job and drained his savings account to buy a one-way ticket to New York City. He began performing on street corners and at open-mic nights. Eldridge accounts the days he went without a hot meal or a shower. "I was homeless for the first 4-months. Too stubborn to ask my family for help or clue them in on what was going on with me. I was determined to make it and on my own terms.."

A beautiful, Peruvian photographer walked past one of Eldridge's street performances and invited him to the now defunct, Orpheum. She asked him if he would be interested in opening up for her friend's band. "This kid's sound was like nothing I had ever heard before…" Unfortunately, his talents on the street did not proceed him on the stage. He was a bundle of nerves. He popped a string and was terribly out of key. Before Xiomara could catch up with him he ducked out of the cafe. It was by chance that Xiomara spotted him a week before Christmas in 1998 ducking into an alley. Still homeless, Eldridge had intended to make a fire escape his bed for the night.

"I'll never forget what she said to me that night," his face darkens as his eyes take on a distant glow. "You're not seriously about to sleep on that, are you? I can recall how perfectly her nose curled as she pushed the tip of her stiletto into my bag." Without saying anything more, she bent down and picked up his belongings. Together they trekked across the city back to her apartment.

Weeks later he was introduced to a business executive, Ben Marks, who introduced him to Chrysalis Music Publishing. The pair (Eldridge and Xiomara) relocated to Los Angeles where he recorded his first album, Dedicated To, and sold it to RCA Records in the US and Echo Records in the UK.

In 2008, Eldridge was the victim of a series of unfortunate events. A plane crash claimed the lives of his siblings, Remington, and Kiley Eldridge. In the wake of their death, Eldridge had a highly publicized "meltdown" which was broadcasted on television and on the internet. Per the request of his then girlfriend, Alice Leroux, Eldridge admitted himself to the Wonderland Center rehabilitation facility. He checked out on April 17th, after completing a 60-day stay. During the stay, he continued to write and record music, returning to the facility at night. He relocated to Hollywood Hills and wed Leroux in a private ceremony in August 2009.

In November of 2009, a supermarket tabloid The National Enquirer published a story claiming that Eldridge had an extramarital affair with a New York socialite. The couple annulled their 3-month union, which soured the announcement of the conception of their first child.

In December 2010, Eldridge received a Grammy nomination and won the award for Best Contemporary Folk Album for God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise.

In February 2012, Eldridge stepped off the stage indefinitely, virtually putting an end to his music for the time being. When asked for reasoning, he replied, " [I'm] winding it down. I look at it like a faucet. I have to turn it off and walk away from it because so much of how that music comes together is subconscious or discovering. There's so much attention on me and my family, it can be distracting and poisonous at times. I really feel the need to walk away from it while I still care about it. And then, if I com back to it - if at all - I'll feel better about it and be renewed or something to do that."