Washington’s homegrown artists

Amelia Nored, Editorial Board Member

Rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix was locally born and raised in Seattle. Many people regard him as one of the most influential guitarists ever, and he is one of the most highly praised musicians of the twentieth century.
Also, Pearl Jam is a rock band from Seattle that formed in 1990. Some of Pearl Jam’s songs that you might be familiar with are Better Man, Alive, Black, and Last Kiss.

Nirvana, an American rock band founded in 1987, was formed in Aberdeen, Washington. Popular songs made by this band include Smells Like Teen Spirit, Lithium, and Come as You Are. Nirvana is considered one of the most influential bands in history because they brought rock music into the light of the media and made it more mainstream.

Rapper Benjamin Haggerty, better known as Macklemore, was born and raised in Kent, Washington, which is merely 20 minutes away from Liberty High School. Macklemore has won 4 Grammys, 2 AMAs, and 2 Billboard Music awards. He is a big fan of the Mariners, and attended Garfield High School and Nathan Hale High School.

Bing Crosby spent most of his life in Washington. He was born in Tacoma, but moved to Spokane later and attended Gonzaga University for college. Crosby was a radio and television star in his early career, but you may know him best as a performer of Christmas music, such as White Christmas, I’ll Be Home For Christmas, and Winter Wonderland.