Born and raised in Ireland, singer/songwriter Damien Rice began his career with the band Juniper. Before they split, Juniper released an EP called Manna and two singles ("Weatherman" and "World Is Dead").

Rice went solo in 2002 and his first hit single, "The Blower's Daughter", was an instant Top 20 hit. He released O in 2002, hitting the U.S. in 2003, which earned him a solid base of American fans to add to his European ones. After a collection of B-sides in 2005, his second record, 9, was released in 2006 containing the hit single "9 Crimes."