Ben Kweller (born June 16, 1981) is an American rock musician and former lead singer of the 1990s band Radish, which was compared to Nirvana in Rolling Stone Magazine. The band grew in popularity in the Dallas, Texas music scene from its formation in 1993. However, the band was dismissed by critics as little more than an imitation of Nirvana with the novelty of an extremely young lead vocal-guitarist (Kweller was in his teens for the entire existence of the band). Nonetheless, Kweller and his two bandmates, bassist Bryan Blur and drummer John Kent, were signed to a major record label in 1995 by Mercury Records. Regardless of a much-hyped beginning, which included appearances on Conan O’Brien and David Letterman, Radish failed to strike big success with either its first record Dizzy or its sophomore effort Restraining Bolt.

Kweller began his solo career with his 2002 debut Sha Sha which included the very radio-friendly and popular single ‘Wasted & Ready’. The title track reconciles his past career efforts with Radish and the difficulty of finding an identity as a 20 year-old artist beginning a musical career for the second time. The record kept many of the familiar sounds of Nirvana, but also worked in other pop music influences such as Weezer and Ben Folds. The album grew in popularity with a grassroot effort with his website and a promotion group called TeamBK, which promoted word-of-mouth advertising.

In 2003, Kweller toured Australia with Ben Folds and Ben Lee as The Bens. The trio produced an eponymous EP. Kweller’s second solo effort, 2004’s On My Way, has attempted to match the modest but well-received popularity of Sha Sha while creating a more mature and subdued sound. In 2006, and after a short break in which he had a son named Dorian, the eponymous album Ben Kweller was released. Taking influences from solo rock artists such as Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty, Kweller aimed for a more refined and well-produced sound. Every instrument (and handclap) on the album was recorded by Kweller himself.