BRETT DENNEN

Amiable West Coast singer/songwriter Brett Dennen first drew attention in 2004 with the single "Desert Sunrise." The tune, with its easy groove and soulful phrasing, garnered enough spins on KCRW to warrant the release of his self-titled debut the following year. Stylistically, Dennen's thoughtful, laid-back tunes fit in with the burgeoning singer/songwriter scene that had produced stars like Jason Mraz and Jack Johnson. He signed with Dualtone and released 2006's So Much More, followed two years later by Hope for the Hopeless. When he wasn't headlining his own tours, he could be found opening bills for Dave Matthews, Taj Mahal, Ziggy Marley, and Jackson Browne, among others. Dennen's fourth studio effort, Loverboy, arrived in 2011 and featured subtle African rhythms and more of a pop veneer. It was followed in 2013 by the sparser, acoustic-based Smoke and Mirrors, which was released by Atlantic. The album was a success and landed Dennen in Billboard's Top 200 for the first time. By this point he had also landed a number of prominent TV placements including the theme song of NBC's sitcom, About a Boy. His fifth album, 2016's Por Favor, was a rhythmic, stripped-down affair with a light reggae flair.