From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaWilliam Charles Anderson (born May 5, 1986) is the main songwri...

1. Will Anderson (singer)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William Charles Anderson (born May 5, 1986) is the main songwriter and lead vocalist in the pop-
rock band Parachute.
Contents
1 Early life
2 Career
3 Influences
4 Personal life
5 References
6 External links
Early life
Anderson was born in Sacramento, California but his family later moved to Charlottesville,
Virginia.[1] His father, Mark, is a physician and a professor of radiology and orthopaedic surgery at
the University of Virginia.[2] He has two brothers, Charles and John, and a sister, Jane.[3][4] He
began taking piano lessons at a young age[5] and his parents bought him his first guitar as a
Christmas present when he was eleven years old.[3] He worked as a lifeguard in both high school
and college.[6][7] Anderson graduated from the University of Virginia in 2008, having majored in
music.[3]
Career
Anderson formed the band Sparky's Flaw in high school with his classmates Kit French, Johnny
Stubblefield, and Alex Hargrave. He met Nate McFarland while studying at the University of
Virginia; they were both members of The Virginia Gentlemen.[8] McFarland joined the band as a
lead guitarist and Sparky's Flaw released two independent EPs.[9] They later changed their band
name to Parachute.[10] Parachute played many college shows[11] and were signed to Mercury
Records during Anderson's third year of college in 2007.[12]

2. "Losing Sleep", Parachute's debut album,
was released in May 2009. They recorded
the album with producer John Shanks
during Anderson's final year of
college.[12][13] Anderson wrote six of
the album's ten songs alone; the
remaining four http://www.ocm.org/ were
co-written with Dan Wilson, John Shanks,
Nate McFarland and Chris Keup.[14] In a
three-star review, AllMusic remarked
that "every move here seems to be made
with Top 40 radio in mind ... but ambition
is good for any young band, and
Parachute is talented enough to warrant
the starry-eyed approach."[14]HitFix
drew comparisons to Ben Folds, Maroon
5 and The Fray: "If you like tame pop
rock that's soft around the edges, this
will be right in your sweet spot."[15]
Anderson and his bandmates made many
promotional appearances in support of
the album: they were featured on Daryl
Hall's Live From Daryl's House,[16]
CBS's The Early Show and "Second Cup
Cafe".[17] Parachute performed "She Is
Love" in Times Square, New York City on
New Year's Eve in 2008, as part of a
televised event which also featured
Taylor Swift, the Jonas Brothers and
Lionel Richie.[18]
The Way It Was, Parachute's sophomore album, was produced by John Fields and was released in
May 2011. Anderson wrote eight of the album's nine songs alone. The ninth song, "Kiss Me Slowly",
was co-written with his friends Dave Haywood and Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum.[19] In a
three-star review, Allmusic commented: "Everything sounds vaguely familiar, but that's because it's
supposed to; Parachute don't want to rewrite the rulebook as much as master the rules themselves
... Tired of the mainstream? Avoid this album. Looking for a stylish reboot of the Goo Goo Dolls
sound? You're in the right place."[19] Parachute has toured with artists including Switchfoot, All-
American Rejects, Kelly Clarkson, Duffy, Jon McLaughlin, The Script, Secondhand Serenade, Mat
Kearney, and The Cab.
Influences
In his teenage years, Anderson was a fan of Ben Folds Five,[20]John Mayer and Dave Matthews
Band: "Honestly, I think Dave Matthews Band is pretty much the reason we all wanted to be in a
band. They were huge at the time we were coming together."[21][22]Tragic Kingdom by No Doubt
and Motorcade of Generosity by Cake were the first albums he ever bought.[1][23] He has named

3. Billy Joel, Paul Simon, Elton John, and Stevie Wonder as his top four songwriting influences,
characterizing them as "classic singer-songwriters".[13][24] He describes Sam Cooke as his favorite
singer "of all time".[25] Anderson has also cited Bruce Springsteen, The Police, U2, Marvin Gaye,
Peter Gabriel, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon, My Morning Jacket
and Augustana as influences.[22][24][26][27][28] In a summer playlist created for Teen Vogue,
Anderson selected tracks by artists including Katy Perry, King Harvest, Baha Men and Weezer.[29]
Personal life
Anderson moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.[30] "Everything here is about music, at least
amongst my friends and I. It's fun to be in a place where everybody is thinking about writing ... and
just loves talking about it."[25] He owns two Labrador dogs called Lincoln and Jackson.[3] Anderson
describes Taylor Swift as "one of my best friends".[31]
References
^ a b Will Anderson | ParachuteFan.com | Your Source For Everything Parachute
^ dop search2
^ a b c d www.PopZineOnline.com
^ Twitter / willyj1234: Me and my sister Jane!
^ Music reviews and interviews: Parachute
^ Will Anderson (of Parachute) Interview on AXS Live - YouTube
^ Parachute TV Episode 74: Ask Parachute Volume 4 - YouTube
^ The Cavalier Daily :: Parachute: For the Record
^ Sparky's Flaw | Music Biography, Credits and Discography | AllMusic
^ Parachute Band Interview - Will Anderson Music QA - Marie Claire
^ ANDPOP Is It A Bird, A Plane? Nope, It's Parachute - The Band To Watch This Spring
^ a b Fredericksburg.Com - Charlottesville-Based Pop-Rock Band Is Rising Fast
^ a b Will Anderson Parachute Interview - Losing Sleep Album
^ a b Losing Sleep - Parachute | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic
^ Album Review: Parachutes "Losing Sleep"
^ Episode 20: Parachute :: Live From Daryl's House with Daryl Hall :: Current Episode
^ Second Cup Cafe: Parachute - CBS News
^ http://www.timessquarenyc.org/nye/nye_events.html

4. ^ a b The Way It Was - Parachute | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic
^ Parachute Talks Ben Folds: On The Record (interview) - YouTube
^ Interview: Parachute's Will Anderson! - TeenMusic.com
^ a b Entertainment News, Photos and Videos - HuffPost Entertainment
^ Interview with Parachute
^ a b Starry Constellation Magazine
^ a b http://blog.dmx.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Parachute-Interview.pdf
^ http://jbrinlinginterviews.tumblr.com/post/4138368214/interview-with-parachute
^ Parachute's Will Anderson talks about the band's big iTunes debut | C-Ville WeeklyC-Ville Weekly
^ 5 Questions With ... Parachute | GRAMMY.com
^ Parachute's Summer Must List | TeenVogue.com
^ Parachute drops new record news | C-Ville WeeklyC-Ville Weekly
^ Parachute Play Pop Associated, Gab About Kelly Clarkson, Taylor Swift, Ryan Tedder More | Music
News, Reviews, and Gossip on Idolator.com
External links
[1]
Will Anderson at Twitter [2]
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