Amanda Palmer
Biography
Amanda Palmer is a singer, songwriter, playwright, pianist, author, director, and blogger who simultaneously embraces and explodes traditional frameworks of music, theatre, and art. She first came to prominence as part of the punk cabaret duo The Dresden Dolls, earning global applause for their inventive songcraft and wide-ranging theatricality. Her solo career has proven equally brave and boundless, featuring such groundbreaking works as the fan-funded Theatre Is Evil, which made a top 10 debut on the Billboard 200 in 2012 and remains the top-funded original music project on Kickstarter. In 2013 she presented “The Art of Asking” at the annual TED conference, which has been viewed over 20 million times worldwide. Palmer expanded her philosophy into the New York Times best-selling memoir, The Art of Asking: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Let People Help. Since 2015 Palmer has used the patronage platform Patreon to fund her artwork with around 10,000 patrons supporting her creations each month. In March 2019, Palmer released her solo album, There Will Be No Intermission, with producer/engineer John Congleton at the helm, the album is a masterwork that includes life, death, abortion, and miscarriage among its tentpole themes. After the Covid pandemic disrupted life as we know it, Amanda Palmer stayed where she finished up her world tour and found a home amongst the Kiwis in Aotearoa for about 2.5 years. Recently returned to the US, Amanda has now reinvigorated The Dresden Dolls with drummer, Brian Viglione and is writing and touring with the group in the lead up to their next release.