Karen O
{{Short description|Korean American musician (born 1978)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Karen O
| image = OhanaSep18-124 (44501161754) (cropped).jpg
| caption = Karen O performing with Yeah Yeah Yeahs in 2018
| birth_name = Karen Lee Orzolek
| alias = Marshmellow
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1978|11|22}}
| birth_place = Seoul, South Korea
| origin = Englewood, New Jersey, U.S.
| occupation = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter}}
| years_active = 2000–present
| spouse = {{Marriage|Barnaby Clay|2011}}
| website = {{URL|karenomusic.com}}
| genre = {{hlist|Indie rock|alternative rock|art rock|punk rock}}
| instrument = {{hlist|Vocals|piano|keyboards|guitar}}
| label = {{hlist|Shifty|Touch and Go|Dress Up|DGC|Interscope|Cult}}
| current_member_of = Yeah Yeah Yeahs
}}
Karen Lee Orzolek (born November 22, 1978){{cite news|last=Marks|first=Craig|title=Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Stayin' Alive|work=Spin|url=https://www.spin.com/2009/02/yeah-yeah-yeahs-stayin-alive/|access-date=November 22, 2010|date=February 25, 2009|quote=On a wintry evening in late November [2008], Karen O celebrated her 30th birthday by ...|archive-date=May 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200520004317/https://www.spin.com/2009/02/yeah-yeah-yeahs-stayin-alive/|url-status=live}} is a South Korean-born American singer, musician, and songwriter. She is best known as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Early life
Karen Lee Orzolek was born in Seoul, South Korea,{{Cite magazine |last=Martoccio |first=Angie |date=2022-10-20 |title=Karen O and Michelle Zauner on Smashing Expectations and the Power of 'No' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/karen-o-michelle-zauner-yeah-yeah-yeahs-japanese-breakfast-musicians-on-musicians-1234609999/ |access-date= |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}{{Quote|text=Karen O: Actually, I was born in Seoul.
Zauner: You were born in Seoul, that's right! Your Wikipedia used to say Busan.
Karen O: Does it still say that?
Zauner: Yeah, it still says that.
Karen O: We changed it two years ago. I guess they went back—
Zauner: Busan really wants to claim you [laughs].|author=Rolling Stone|title=Karen O and Michelle Zauner on Smashing Expectations and the Power of ‘No’}} the daughter of a Korean mother and a Polish father.{{cite web|url=http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/030718/20030718_kareno.html |title=Half Korean, 100% Rock Star |author=Chi, Minnie |publisher=Asia Pacific Arts |date=July 18, 2003 |access-date=April 26, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201014407/http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/030718/20030718_kareno.html |archive-date=December 1, 2008 }}{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/yeahyeahyeahs/articles/story/9596960/yeah_yeah_yeahs_goth_nerd_slut |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071121164904/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/yeahyeahyeahs/articles/story/9596960/yeah_yeah_yeahs_goth_nerd_slut |archive-date=November 21, 2007 |title=Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Goth, Nerd, Slut |author=Sheffield, Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=April 7, 2006 |access-date=November 24, 2007 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|last=Catucci|first=Nick|title=The Yeah Yeah Yeahs Return With New Album 'It's Blitz!'|url=https://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/features/55662/|work=New York Magazine|access-date=August 13, 2010|location=New York|date=March 29, 2009|archive-date=September 21, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921195332/https://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/features/55662/|url-status=live}} The family eventually moved to Englewood, New Jersey, where she grew upLa Gorce, Tammy. [https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06EEDA1038F935A25752C1A9659C8B63 "Success Stories In New Jersey Rock: The Un-Springsteen"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201173719/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06EEDA1038F935A25752C1A9659C8B63 |date=December 1, 2008 }}, The New York Times, November 16, 2003. Accessed January 2, 2008. "All of which is fine by Ms. O, 24, an Englewood native who still lives in Bergen County but declined to say where. Any rock star who struts around in outfits made specifically for her by the designer Christian Joy can expect some of that, she said." and graduated from Dwight-Englewood School.Kleimann, James. [http://patch.com/new-jersey/englewood/englewood-native-s-band-first-in-history-to-perform-o3c47f23d2f "Englewood Native's Band First in History to Perform on Empire State Building; Indie darlings the Yeah Yeah Yeahs filmed the music video "Despair" in April on top of the famous building."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615032332/https://patch.com/new-jersey/englewood/englewood-native-s-band-first-in-history-to-perform-o3c47f23d2f |date=June 15, 2018 }}, Englewood-Englewood Cliffs Patch, June 26, 2013. Accessed June 14, 2018. "Karen O, the stage name of Karen Lee Orzolek, a Dwight Englewood grad, kept the filming a secret for logistical and creative reasons, she told the Times." About her childhood, she stated that "it's almost embarrassing how well-behaved I was, which is probably why I do things like spit water on myself on stage as an adult".{{cite web|title=The Things They Say 13802|url=http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/story/the-things-they-say-13802_1119552|work=contactmusic.com|access-date=November 22, 2010|date=October 20, 2009|archive-date=November 2, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091102200650/http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/story/the-things-they-say-13802_1119552|url-status=live}} She attended Oberlin College before transferring to New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
Career
Karen O is best known as the lead vocalist for the band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. She has also been noted for her fashion, often wearing outfits made by her friend, fashion designer Christian Joy. In the early days of the band, she became well known for her antics during live shows.
During a tour for the 2003 Livid Festival in Australia, at a sideshow at The Metro in Sydney, Karen O accidentally danced off the stage and was reluctantly taken to a hospital. A few days later, at the Sydney leg of the Livid Festival, she appeared in a wheelchair pushed onstage by Angus Andrew.{{cite news | url=https://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/12/1065917279681.html | work=The Sydney Morning Herald | title=Boys with the hoods clean up | date=October 13, 2003 | access-date=April 21, 2020 | archive-date=October 8, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008083725/http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/12/1065917279681.html | url-status=live }}
In 2007, Karen O was placed at number three on Spinner's "Women Who Rock Right Now" list.{{cite web|url=http://www.spinner.com/2007/07/15/women-who-rock-right-now-no-3/|title=Women Who Rock Right Now: No. 3|website=Spinner|date=July 15, 2007|access-date=February 26, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524063846/http://www.spinner.com/2007/07/15/women-who-rock-right-now-no-3/|archive-date=May 24, 2011}} The following year, she debuted a side project called Native Korean Rock with fellow New York City musicians, with two intimate performances at Union Pool in Brooklyn on July 21.{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/yeah-yeah-yeahs-103-1330487|title=Karen O debuts side project with Brooklyn show|work=NME|date=July 22, 2008|access-date=July 8, 2022|archive-date=July 8, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708235043/https://www.nme.com/news/music/yeah-yeah-yeahs-103-1330487|url-status=live}}{{cite web|author=Brandon|url=http://stereogum.com/11134/karen_o_makes_native_korean_rock/news/|title=Karen O Makes Native Korean Rock|website=Stereogum|date=July 18, 2008|access-date=July 8, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304170210/http://stereogum.com/11134/karen_o_makes_native_korean_rock/news/|archive-date=March 4, 2010}}
File:Karen O - ATP - 2009.JPG festival, December 2009]]
In 2009, she contributed backing vocals, screaming animal sounds and noises to the songs "Gemini Syringes", "I Can Be A Frog" and "Watching the Planets" on The Flaming Lips' album Embryonic. In 2011, she contributed vocals on the song "Pinky's Dream" on the David Lynch debut album Crazy Clown Time. In 2012, she collaborated with experimental rock group Swans on the song "Song for a Warrior" on their album The Seer. She also lends vocals to the song "GO!" on Santigold's 2012 album Master of My Make-Believe.
On the collaboration project with N.A.S.A. on The Spirit of Apollo, she appears on the track "Strange Enough", together with Ol' Dirty Bastard and Fatlip. Karen O's vocal approach has been described as "ethereal"{{cite news
|author= Mikael Wood
|title= Album review: Karen O and the Kids' 'Where the Wild Things Are'
|newspaper= Los Angeles Times
|quote= ... ethereal vocals over charmingly ramshackle folk-pop arrangements ...
|date= September 29, 2009
|url= http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2009/09/album-review-karen-o-and-the-kids-where-the-wild-things-are.html
|access-date= July 7, 2011
|archive-date= February 7, 2011
|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110207020109/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2009/09/album-review-karen-o-and-the-kids-where-the-wild-things-are.html
|url-status= live
}} and has been described as "yelping" at times.{{cite news
|author= Margaret Wappler
|title= Yeah Yeah Yeahs will blitz the main stage Sunday
|newspaper= Los Angeles Times
|quote= ... singer Karen O yelps her mandate over slabs of marbled synths ...
|date= April 18, 2009
|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-apr-18-et-yeahyeahyeahs18-story.html
|access-date= July 7, 2011
|archive-date= March 23, 2010
|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100323115000/http://articles.latimes.com/2009/apr/18/entertainment/et-yeahyeahyeahs18
|url-status= live
}} She described her approach:
{{blockquote|We still have to grab people by the collar ... We put out a record every three years now; we could easily be forgotten. If you look at a lot of our peers that we came up with, a lot of them have disappeared.|Karen O in the Los Angeles Times, 2009}}
Karen O has also collaborated with James Iha on his second solo LP, Look to the Sky, in 2012. In 2014, her cover of "A Marshmallow World" was featured in Target's holiday commercials.{{cite web|url=http://radio.com/2014/11/11/karen-o-marshmallow-world-cover-target-christmas-ad/|title=Karen O Covers 'A Marshmallow World' for Target's Holiday Ads: Listen|website=Radio.com|access-date=October 1, 2017}} In 2015, her cover of Animotion's "Obsession" was used as the opening theme for the Starz miniseries Flesh and Bone. On May 5, 2015, a song by Karen O in tribute to Nellie Bly was used as part of a Google doodle commemorating Bly's 151st birthday.{{Cite web|title = Nellie Bly's 151st Birthday|url = https://doodles.google/doodle/nellie-blys-151st-birthday/|website = www.google.com|access-date = February 5, 2016|archive-date = November 21, 2023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231121003428/https://doodles.google/doodle/nellie-blys-151st-birthday/|url-status = live}} The same year, Microsoft approached Karen O to pen a theme song for Square Enix's game Rise of the Tomb Raider, which resulted in the song "I Shall Rise".{{Cite magazine|title = Hear Karen O's Haunting New Song in 'Tomb Raider' Video Game Trailer|url = https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/hear-karen-os-haunting-new-song-in-tomb-raider-video-game-trailer-20151029|magazine = Rolling Stone|access-date = February 5, 2016|archive-date = February 2, 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160202124450/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/hear-karen-os-haunting-new-song-in-tomb-raider-video-game-trailer-20151029|url-status = live}}
= Soundtrack work =
Karen O was featured in the track "Cut Me Up" by Har Mar Superstar for the soundtrack to the 2005 horror film House of Wax. For the film Jackass Number Two, Karen O collaborated with electronic artist Peaches and Johnny Knoxville to record a track entitled "Backass"; for Jackass 3D, she covered Roger Alan Wade's "If You're Gonna Be Dumb" under the alternative title of "If You're Gonna Be Dumb, You Gotta Be Tough". In 2007, she also contributed vocals to a version of Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited" for the I'm Not There film soundtrack.{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/archives/new-karen-o-highway-61-revisited-stereogum-premier.html|title=New Karen O – "Highway 61 Revisited"|website=Stereogum|access-date=October 1, 2017|archive-date=July 5, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705174102/http://www.stereogum.com/archives/new-karen-o-highway-61-revisited-stereogum-premier.html|url-status=dead}} She performed a short song at the end of the Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! episode "Brothers Cinco". She also performed the track "Strange Love" on the album Frankenweenie Unleashed! (Music Inspired by the Motion Picture).
Karen O collaborated with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross on a cover version of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" for the soundtrack to the 2011 film The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, for which Reznor and Ross composed the score.{{cite web|date=May 27, 2011|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/42655-trent-reznor-and-karen-o-cover-led-zeppelin/|title=Trent Reznor and Karen O Cover Led Zeppelin|author=Tom Breihan|work=Pitchfork|access-date=May 29, 2011|archive-date=May 30, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110530010327/http://pitchfork.com/news/42655-trent-reznor-and-karen-o-cover-led-zeppelin/|url-status=live}}
== Work with Spike Jonze ==
Karen O and Spike Jonze collaborated on a 2005 Adidas commercial, Hello Tomorrow, after Jonze had directed the video for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' 2004 single "Y Control". Karen O composed all songs on the soundtrack of Jonze's film Where the Wild Things Are (with the exception of a cover of the Daniel Johnston song "Worried Shoes") in collaboration with Carter Burwell. She is listed on the soundtrack as "Karen O and the Kids".{{cite magazine | url =https://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/5880/news/music/karen_o_is_where_the_wild_things_are | title =Karen O is Where the Wild Things Are | access-date =November 20, 2007 | author =Kasia Galazka | date =November 20, 2007 | magazine =Paste Magazine | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20071123013500/http://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/5880/news/music/karen_o_is_where_the_wild_things_are | archive-date =November 23, 2007 }} The song "All Is Love", written by Karen O and Nick Zinner and included in this soundtrack, was nominated for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media at the 2010 Grammy Awards.{{cite news|work=NME|url=https://www.nme.com/news/yeah-yeah-yeahs/48844|title=Karen O's 'Where The Wild Things Are' song replaces Miley Cyrus in Grammys|date=December 11, 2009|access-date=December 12, 2009|archive-date=December 14, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091214165919/http://www.nme.com/news/yeah-yeah-yeahs/48844|url-status=live}}
Karen O also contributed "The Moon Song" to Jonze's 2013 film Her,{{cite web|last=Minsker|first=Evan|title=Karen O Also Has a Song in Spike Jonze's Film Her|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/51856-karen-o-also-has-a-song-in-spike-jonzes-film-her/|work=Pitchfork|date=August 10, 2013|access-date=January 5, 2014|archive-date=January 18, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140118103343/http://pitchfork.com/news/51856-karen-o-also-has-a-song-in-spike-jonzes-film-her/|url-status=live}} which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song.{{cite web |title=Karen O & Spike Jonze's Oscar-Nominated 'Moon Song': 'Her' Track Spotlighted in New Featurette |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/karen-o-oscar-nominated-moon-song-her-track-spotlighted-in-new-featurette-5901210/ |publisher=Billboard |access-date=March 16, 2023 |date=February 11, 2014 |archive-date=March 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230316201456/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/karen-o-oscar-nominated-moon-song-her-track-spotlighted-in-new-featurette-5901210/ |url-status=live }}
File:Karen O Bumbershoot.JPG 2009]]
Jonze shot the video for Karen O & Danger Mouse's "Woman" live in one take as the duo performed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
= Video work =
In 2004, Karen O, using the moniker Marshmellow, directed the music video for "We Fenced Other Gardens with the Bones of Our Own" by Liars, fronted by her then-boyfriend Angus Andrew.{{cite web | url=http://www.discogs.com/release/316656 | title =Liars – We Fenced Other Gardens With The Bones Of Your Own | date =May 27, 2004 | access-date=August 28, 2008 | publisher =Discogs}}{{cite web | url=https://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/21208/liars-wefenced | title=Liars: We Fenced Other Gardens With The Bones Of Your Own | access-date=August 28, 2008 | author=Katie Zerwas | date=July 15, 2004 | website=PopMatters | archive-date=October 8, 2008 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081008013206/http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/21208/liars-wefenced | url-status=live }} The following year, she directed the "Blessed Evening" video for Foetus with her then-boyfriend Spike Jonze working as cinematographer.{{cite web | url=http://www.foetus.org/video/Foetus%20-%20Blessed%20Evening.html | title=Foetus: "Blessed Evening" | access-date=August 28, 2008 | publisher=foetus.org | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081210204843/http://www.foetus.org/video/Foetus%20-%20Blessed%20Evening.html | archive-date=December 10, 2008 }} In 2006, she directed the Yeah Yeah Yeahs video for "Cheated Hearts".{{cite web | url =http://www.internetvideomag.com/News/News2006/072906_YeahYeahYeahs.htm | title =Fans star in Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Cheated Hearts" video with help from Final Cut editor Stephen Berger | access-date =August 28, 2008 | author =Michele Lu | date =July 28, 2006 | website =Internet Video Magazine | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20081203155508/http://internetvideomag.com/News/News2006/072906_YeahYeahYeahs.htm | archive-date =December 3, 2008 }}{{cite web | url=http://www.videostatic.com/vs/2006/week31/index.html#entry-12010342 | title=New Release: Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Cheated Hearts" | access-date=August 28, 2008 | date=August 4, 2006 | publisher=Video Static | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081009163746/http://www.videostatic.com/vs/2006/week31/index.html#entry-12010342 | archive-date=October 9, 2008 | url-status=dead }}
Under the moniker Kids with Canes, Karen O and her now-husband Barnaby Clay directed the music video for the Tiny Masters of Today song "Hologram World", released in 2008. Karen O also contributed vocals to the song and served as choreographer of the video, in which she appears with Yeah Yeah Yeahs bandmates Nick Zinner and Brian Chase, as well as Mike D from the Beastie Boys, Gibby Haynes from the Butthole Surfers, Russell Simins from the Blues Explosion, and Sam James from The Mooney Suzuki.{{cite web | url=http://www.promonews.tv/2008/03/06/tiny-masters-of-todays-hologram-world-by-kids-with-canes-inc/ | title=Tiny Masters of Today's Hologram World by Kids With Canes Inc. | access-date=August 26, 2008 | author=David Knight | date=March 6, 2008 | website=PromoNews | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103135744/http://www.promonews.tv/2008/03/06/tiny-masters-of-todays-hologram-world-by-kids-with-canes-inc/ | archive-date=January 3, 2009}}
= ''KO at Home'' demo leak =
On December 10, 2006, a home-recorded album titled KO at Home was leaked via an invite-only BitTorrent tracking site. The album, originally a personal gift to Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio, was discovered inside a suitcase that Sitek had left behind in a New York City apartment. The disc's 14 tracks and scan of the cover (a photograph of Karen O with a poem written by Oscar Wilde on the back side of the photo) quickly spread. News sites broke the story of the leak when Sitek lashed out at the fan who leaked the demos.{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/archives/004140.html|title=Karen (Dem)O|date=December 11, 2006|website=Stereogum|access-date=October 1, 2017|archive-date=October 15, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015131816/http://stereogum.com/archives/004140.html|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/archives/004144.html|title=The Story Behind The Karen O Demo|date=December 11, 2006|website=Stereogum|access-date=October 1, 2017|archive-date=May 16, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516120205/http://www.stereogum.com/archives/004144.html|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://youngliars.blogspot.com/2006_12_01_archive.html#39643304333086041|title=completely surrounded by no trees: 12/01/2006 – 01/01/2007|website=Youngliars.blogspot.com|access-date=October 1, 2017|archive-date=September 24, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130924064902/http://youngliars.blogspot.com/2006_12_01_archive.html#39643304333086041|url-status=dead}} Eventually, Sitek followed up his comments with an apology letter.{{cite web|url=http://www2.blogger.com/email-post.g?blogID=6198312&postID=7815441358413327623|title=Blogger|website=www2.blogger.com|access-date=October 1, 2017|archive-date=September 15, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130915050535/http://www2.blogger.com/email-post.g?blogID=6198312&postID=7815441358413327623|url-status=live}} In response to the leak, Karen O said that "shit happens", and although she was "a little grossed out", she offered commentary on which of the songs she liked the most.{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/yeah-yeah-yeahs-113-1338521 |title=Yeah Yeah Yeahs discuss demo leak |work=NME |date=December 14, 2006 |access-date=October 7, 2017 |archive-date=October 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008080517/http://www.nme.com/news/music/yeah-yeah-yeahs-113-1338521 |url-status=live }}
= Solo career =
Karen O's debut solo album, Crush Songs, was released on September 9, 2014.{{cite web |last=Gordon |first=Jeremy |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/55702-yeah-yeah-yeahs-karen-o-announces-first-solo-record-crush-songs/ |title=Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O Announces First Solo Record, Crush Songs |work=Pitchfork |date=June 25, 2014 |access-date=October 8, 2017 |archive-date=October 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008031150/https://pitchfork.com/news/55702-yeah-yeah-yeahs-karen-o-announces-first-solo-record-crush-songs/ |url-status=live }} It was released on Cult Records via Kobalt Label Services.[http://www.technologytell.com/entertainment/46631/karen-o-releasing-first-vintage-solo-album/ Karen O is releasing her first vintage solo album] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129081014/http://www.technologytell.com/entertainment/46631/karen-o-releasing-first-vintage-solo-album/ |date=November 29, 2014 }} June 27, 2014 On February 17, 2015, Karen O released a live album titled Live from Crush Palace, recorded during three shows at Hollywood Forever Cemetery's Masonic Lodge in Los Angeles in September 2014. The album features live renditions of songs from Crush Songs, as well as "Hideaway" from Where the Wild Things Are and "The Moon Song" from Her.{{cite web |last=Goble |first=Corban |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/58415-karen-o-streams-live-album-live-from-crush-palace/ |title=Karen O Streams Live Album Live From Crush Palace |work=Pitchfork |date=February 10, 2015 |access-date=October 7, 2017 |archive-date=October 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008080542/https://pitchfork.com/news/58415-karen-o-streams-live-album-live-from-crush-palace/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/live-from-crush-palace/id962847348 |title=Live from Crush Palace by Karen O |publisher=iTunes Store (US) |access-date=October 7, 2017 |archive-date=October 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010004222/https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/live-from-crush-palace/id962847348 |url-status=dead }} On January 11, 2018, Karen O released the song "Yo! My Saint", featuring guest vocals from Michael Kiwanuka, in support of Kenzo's Spring Summer 2018 collection.{{cite web |last=Thomas |first=Helen |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/karen-o-michael-kiwanuka-kenzo-yo-my-saint-2218100 |title=Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O returns for Korean soap opera inspired track with Michael Kiwanuka |work=NME |date=January 11, 2018 |access-date=January 25, 2018 |archive-date=January 26, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126125525/http://www.nme.com/news/music/karen-o-michael-kiwanuka-kenzo-yo-my-saint-2218100 |url-status=live }} In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Karen O at number 184 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.{{cite magazine|title=The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=1 January 2023|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-singers-all-time-1234642307/tom-waits-7-1234642318/|access-date=8 February 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208220733/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-singers-all-time-1234642307/tom-waits-7-1234642318/|url-status=live}}
''Lux Prima''
Lux Prima is the collaborative album from Karen O and musician-producer Danger Mouse, released March 15, 2019. The two originally met to discuss collaboration in 2007 as mutual admirers, but did not collaborate until 2016 due to scheduling and availability, resulting in the album Lux Prima three years later.{{cite news |title=Karen O and Danger Mouse Made an Album. It Only Took 11 Years |work=New York Times |date=2019-03-06 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/06/arts/music/karen-o-danger-mouse-lux-prima.html |accessdate=2024-08-06 |archive-date=March 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230330222526/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/06/arts/music/karen-o-danger-mouse-lux-prima.html |url-status=live }}
= An Encounter with ''Lux Prima'' =
"An Encounter with Lux Prima"{{Cite web|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNbrrS-J_7g|title = An Encounter with Lux Prima – the Art of Collaboration|website = YouTube|date = May 23, 2019|access-date = April 1, 2020|archive-date = January 27, 2020|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200127035901/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNbrrS-J_7g|url-status = live}} was an immersive art piece and communal listening experience soundtracked by Karen O and Danger Mouse's collaborative album Lux Prima.{{Cite book |last=Rambarran |first=Shara |url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/virtual-music-9781501336379/ |title=Virtual Music: Sound, Music, and Image in the Digital Era |publisher=Bloomsbury |year=2021 |isbn=9781501336379 |location=New York |publication-date=8 April 2021}} The installation premiered at Los Angeles' Marciano Art Foundation in April 2019, where it played to sold-out audiences.{{citation needed|date=January 2022}} The piece saw the duo collaborate with a number of artists, including creative director Barnaby Clay, sound designer Ren Klyce, lighting designer Tobias Rylander and visual artist Davy Evans, in collaboration with George Lucas' Skywalker Sound and Meyer Sound on audio design and build, as well as MSG's Obscura Digital on projection mapping.{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}
Personal life
Karen O has dated Spike Jonze and Liars lead singer Angus Andrew, the latter of whom was the subject of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' song "Maps".{{cite news|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/karen-o-im-married-20111209|title=Karen O: 'I'm Married!'|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 9, 2011|access-date=September 2, 2017|archive-date=October 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008080408/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/karen-o-im-married-20111209|url-status=live}} In December 2011, she married director Barnaby Clay.{{cite web |last=Hudson |first=Alex |url=http://exclaim.ca/News/karen_o_announces_marriage_to_director_barney_clay |title=Karen O Announces Marriage to Director Barnaby Clay |work=Exclaim! |date=December 9, 2011 |access-date=April 21, 2014 |archive-date=November 25, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141125220838/http://exclaim.ca/News/karen_o_announces_marriage_to_director_barney_clay |url-status=live }} Their son was born in August 2015.{{cite news|url=http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/karen-o-welcomes-baby-son-first-photo-2015289|title=Karen O Welcomes Baby Son, Shares Adorable First Photo!|work=Us Weekly|date=September 28, 2015|access-date=October 28, 2015|archive-date=October 31, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151031102625/http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/karen-o-welcomes-baby-son-first-photo-2015289?|url-status=live}}
Discography
{{See also|Yeah Yeah Yeahs discography}}
= Studio albums =
= Collaborative albums =
= Live albums =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+ !Title !Details |
| scope="row"| Live from Crush Palace
|
|
|---|
= Soundtrack albums =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+ ! rowspan="2" |Title ! rowspan="2" |Details ! colspan="5" |Peak chart positions |
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| US ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| US ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| US ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| UK ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| UK |
|---|
| scope="row"| Where the Wild Things Are {{Small|(as Karen O and the Kids)}} |
|35 |10 |15 | 89 | 11 |
= Singles =
== As lead artist ==
== As featured artist ==
= Other charted songs =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:16em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:1em;"| Year ! scope="col" colspan="1"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Album |
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:85%;"| MEX |
|---|
| scope="row"| "Strange Love"
| 2012 | 41 |
= Guest appearances =
Awards
In 2006, Karen O was nominated for the GAFFA-Prisen Award for Best Foreign Female Act.{{Cite web|url=https://gaffa.dk/nyhed/8752|title=GAFFA-prisen 1991–2006 – se vinderne|access-date=October 6, 2019|archive-date=January 14, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150114130130/https://gaffa.dk/nyhed/8752|url-status=dead}}
Karen O was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song for co-writing "The Moon Song" with Spike Jonze for the film Her.
Notes
{{notelist-ua}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- {{official website|http://www.karenomusic.com}}
{{Yeah Yeah Yeahs}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:O, Karen}}
Category:20th-century American singer-songwriters
Category:21st-century American singer-songwriters
Category:American women rock singers
Category:American women singer-songwriters
Category:American indie rock musicians
Category:American musicians of Korean descent
Category:American people of Polish descent
Category:Dwight-Englewood School alumni
Category:Oberlin College alumni
Category:Musicians from Englewood, New Jersey
Category:Singer-songwriters from New Jersey
Category:Singers from New York City
Category:South Korean emigrants to the United States
Category:Tisch School of the Arts alumni
Category:Yeah Yeah Yeahs members
Category:20th-century American women singers
Category:21st-century American women singers
Category:Singer-songwriters from New York (state)