Breanne Elizabeth Dürenberger (born October 9, 1987),[1] known professionally as Breanne Düren, is an American musician best known for her work with electronic music project Owl City and her own solo work.

Breanne Düren
Düren in April 2010
Düren in April 2010
Background information
Birth nameBreanne Elizabeth Dürenberger[1][2]
Also known asBreanne Düren
Born (1987-10-09) October 9, 1987 (age 37)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
Instruments
Years active2008–present
Labelsdürendüren
Websiteweb.archive.org/web/20190908011400/http://breanneduren.com/

Early life

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Breanne Düren was born on October 9, 1987, to Jill and Louis Dürenberger. She has two sisters, Thuressa Dürenberger and Celesta Bork, and a brother, Caleb Dürenberger. She also has two nieces, Olivia and Isabella.[citation needed]

Düren took vocal lessons as a child.[3] She also took piano and dance lessons.[4] In middle school she began writing her own songs, and by high school she started playing local coffeehouses.[4] She attended Apple Valley High School.[5] Düren also worked as a barista.[1]

Career

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2008–2018: Owl City

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During college, Austin Tofte of Swimming With Dolphins, a band wherein Adam Young of Owl City was previously a member, suggested that Düren would be perfect to work with Young.[6][7] She is featured in a duet in the songs "The Saltwater Room" (on both Maybe I'm Dreaming and Ocean Eyes), "The Tip Of the Iceberg",[8] and "Honey And The Bee".[9] She also sings background vocals in "On The Wing" and "Air Traffic".[8] She plays the keyboard and provides backing vocals for Owl City on his tours.[10] While touring with Owl City in 2012, Düren filled-in for Carly Rae Jepsen on the live version of "Good Time." She also provided backing vocals in "Silhouettes", a song by Swimming with Dolphins.[6][11]

Breanne sings background vocals in Jamestown Story's version of "Take Me Home Tonight" by Eddie Money. She also sings background vocals in their song "Summer" from their album Love vs. Life.

2008–Present: Solo career, Sparks and Gem

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Düren released her debut self-titled album independently on August 8, 2008.[12] Breanne provided additional vocals to Ari Herstand's 2008 record, Whispering Endearments.[13] In 2010, Breanne was featured on the song "Lament" by Robbie Seay Band on their album Miracle.[14] On March 5, 2010, Breanne released a cover song titled "Everlasting Light", originally performed by The Black Keys, via her Twitter account.[15]

Düren wrote the songs on her EP Sparks while on tour and was recorded in November 2010.[3] It was released by her own record label, dürendüren records, on May 3, 2011 and was produced by Mike Daly.[10] Songs included her first single "Gold Mine", "No One Else", and "Daydreams".[16] Rick Florino of artistdirect gave the EP "5/5 stars".[17]

Released in April 2011, the "Gold Mine" music video features dancing and choreography by Düren and the Apple Valley AVaires. It was directed by Brandon Boulay.[5] Düren has often stated that the song was about how she was "at a place in her life where she had many questions" and was "finding out a lot about herself".[18]

The music video for "No One Else" was released June 23, 2011, and was also directed by Brandon Boulay.[19] Düren has stated that the song was about being on the road but missing her loved ones at home.[20]

On April 3, 2012, Breanne sang a duet with Minnesota-based singer/songwriter Dustin Hatzenbuhler on the song "The Fight" on his debut album Fall.[21]

On March 2, 2014, Porter Robinson released the lead single from his album Worlds, titled "Sea of Voices". It features uncredited vocals by Breanne.[22] She also has featured vocals on the song "Years of War", from Worlds.

On July 18, 2014, Breanne revealed that she would be making a new EP via her Twitter, using Indiegogo as a fundraising tool.[23] On September 18, 2015, Breanne released her second EP, Gem on iTunes.[24]

In 2018, Breanne played keyboards and contributed backing vocals for pop band Echosmith's North American headlining tour.[25]

Discography

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Studio albums

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Title Album details Notes
Breanne Düren
  • Released August 8, 2008
  • Label: Dürendüren Records
  • Format: CD
No.TitleLength
1."Lenses"2:59
2."Black Coffee"3:20
3."Doctor"3:43
4."Warm Water"5:29
5."They Call Me October"4:05
6."After You"4:11
7."No Magic Show"4:34
8."Speak"5:00
9."Who Is To Blame?"4:29
10."Untitled"5:46
11."Steady"5:27

Extended plays

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List of extended plays, with selected chart positions
Title Album details Peak chart positions
US
Heat.

[26]
Sparks 5
Gem
  • Released September 18, 2015
  • Label: Dürendüren Records
  • Format: CD, digital download
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Other appearances

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Title Year Album
"Silhouettes"
(Swimming With Dolphins featuring Breanne Düren)
2008 Ambient Blue
"On the Wing"
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
Maybe I'm Dreaming and Ocean Eyes
"The Saltwater Room"
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
"Air Traffic"
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
Maybe I'm Dreaming
"Summer"
(Jamestown Story featuring Breanne Düren)
Love vs. Life
"Meteor Shower"
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
2009 Ocean Eyes
"Fireflies" [27][28]
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
Ocean Eyes
"The Bird and the Worm" [29]
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
Ocean Eyes
"Lament (We Cannot Wait)"
(Robbie Seay Band featuring Breanne Düren)
2010 Miracle
"Honey and the Bee"
(Owl City featuring Breanne Düren)
2011 All Things Bright and Beautiful
"Here's to You"
(André Rodriguez featuring Breanne Düren)
Somewhere New
"The Flight"
(Dustin Hatzenbuhler featuring Breanne Düren)
2012 Fall
"Years of War"
(Porter Robinson featuring Breanne Düren & Sean Caskey)
2014 Worlds
"Hearth"
(Forenn featuring Breanne Düren & Gatlin Elms)
2015 Forenn

References

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  1. ^ a b c "20 Things You Probably Don't Know About Me". Breanne Düren Blog. March 28, 2011. Archived from the original on April 24, 2012. Retrieved November 2, 2011.
  2. ^ Riemenschneider, Chris (August 17, 2012). "Music: Owl City sidekick Duren threatens to become the state's next big sensation". The Minnesota Star Tribune. Archived from the original on April 29, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Carson, Erin (June 20, 2011). "Catch A Fire: Breanne Düren's Career Heats Up". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on October 5, 2016. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Who's Next: Breanne Düren". M Music & Musicians. July–August 2011. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Belz, Leigh (April 29, 2011). "Watch Breanne Duren's Exclusive "Gold Mine" Video Premiere". Teen Vogue. Archived from the original on January 28, 2016. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  6. ^ a b Graves, Shahlin (November 26, 2011). "Interview: An Exclusive Indoor-Picnic Date With Breanne Düren". Coup de Main Magazine. Archived from the original on January 2, 2015. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  7. ^ Cosmo Girl (May 26, 2011). "Artist to Know: Breanne Düren". Seventeen. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  8. ^ a b "Ocean Eyes - Owl City Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  9. ^ "All Things Bright and Beautiful - Owl City Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  10. ^ a b Leahey, Andrew. "Breanne Düren Biography by Andrew Leahey". AllMusic. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  11. ^ Cardenas, Ben (May 25, 2011). "Swimming With Dolphins - Ambient Blue EP". Jesus Freak Hideout. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  12. ^ "Breanne Düren - Indie Artist Discography". Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  13. ^ "Whispering Endearments - Ari Herstand". AllMusic. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  14. ^ "Robbie Seay Band - Miracle CD". Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  15. ^ Sam Einhorn (February 29, 2012). "Breanne Duren, 'Everlasting Lights' (Black Keys Cover) -- Video of the Day". Spinner. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  16. ^ "iTunes - Music - Sparks - EP by Breanne Düren". Itunes.apple.com. May 3, 2011. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  17. ^ "Breanne Düren "Sparks" Review — 5 out of 5 stars - ARTISTdirect News". Artistdirect.com. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  18. ^ "Hit or Miss: Breanne Düren". sugarscape.com. September 6, 2011. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  19. ^ "BREANNE DÜREN: Putting the Spark in Sparkle". Ivy League Spins. June 30, 2011. Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  20. ^ Contessa Gayles (June 22, 2011). "Breanne Duren Is Like 'No One Else' in New Video - AOL Music Blog". Blog.music.aol.com. Archived from the original on June 25, 2011. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  21. ^ "Fall - Dustin Hatzenbuhler". Apple Music. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  22. ^ Billboard March 28, 2014, Zel McCarthy.Porter Robinson's tired of 'Electro Bangers', will switch things up on 'Worlds' debut album.Retrieved from http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/code/6029308/porter-robinsons-tired-of-electro-bangers-will-switch-things-up-on .
  23. ^ Düren, Breanne (July 18, 2014). "Breanne Düren official Twitter". Twitter. Twitter, Inc. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
  24. ^ "Gem - EP by Breanne Düren". Apple Music. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  25. ^ Melissa Lagrotta (May 1, 2018). "Echosmith's Love-Filled Tour Hit NYC and Philly Last Weekend". Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  26. ^ "Heatseekers Albums: Week of May 21, 2011". Billboard. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  27. ^ Filmed at LA's Club Nokia in July, the full 21 track concert captures the magic behind the recent huge success. "Owl City - Fireflies (Official Live Video)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  28. ^ Owl City perform the worldwide smash hit "Fireflies" live at Last.fm Sessions. "Owl City - Fireflies (Last.fm Sessions)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  29. ^ June 17, 2011, Charlotte, NC. All Things Bright and Beautiful Tour."The Bird and the Worm - Owl City Live)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
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