Those who remember the song "Closing Time" from the late 1990s may think the band Semisonic was a one-hit wonder. And even though the band is not regularly together anymore, you probably hear music similar to theirs everywhere you go. That is because the lead singer of the band is working with some of today's biggest artists — as a songwriter.
Earlier this year, Dan Wilson was part of the Grammy Award–winning team that co-wrote "Someone Like You" with Adele. He also co-wrote the tracks "Don't You Remember" and "One and Only" from her album 21. The album ended up winning Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards.
Wilson also won a Grammy for the Dixie Chicks' 2006 album Taking the Long Way, for which he co-wrote six songs, including the Song of the Year, "Not Ready to Make Nice." The album ended up winning the band a total of six Grammy Awards.
And next week, Wilson will be up for his first Country Music Award, for the song "Home" by Dierks Bentley, which Wilson co-wrote with Bentley and Brett Beavers. The song came from Bentley's 2012 album Home and reached number one on the Billboard Singles Country chart. Wilson has attended most of the Grammy ceremonies he has been invited to, and chances are, he will be with Bentley at the CMAs.
Wilson has also contributed to albums by artists like Josh Groban, Weezer, Pink, Katy Perry and Jason Mraz. And it's possible Wilson will be back at the Grammy Awards next year, because he contributed to Taylor Swift's new album, Red. He co-wrote the songs "Come Back... Be Here" and "Treacherous."
But Wilson's own band still hasn't won a Grammy, even though in 1999, they were nominated for Best Rock Song, for "Closing Time." They lost to Alanis Morissette and her song "Uninvited," but it sounds like Wilson is doing just fine now. After the third Semisonic album in 2001, he decided to focus more on songwriting and production. He is a Minneapolis native but now lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.