Natalie Merchant

Natalie Merchant (born October 26, 1963 in Jamestown, New York, USA) is a versatile musician.

Merchant co-founded and fronted the successful band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 (see 1981 in music), but left the band in 1993 (see

Natalie Merchant (born October 26, 1963 in Jamestown, New York, USA) is a versatile musician.

Merchant co-founded and fronted the successful band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 (see 1981 in music), but left the band in 1993 (see 1993 in music) for a solo career. Her debut solo album Tigerlily (1995) had three top-40 singles: "Carnival", "Jealousy", and "Wonder". In 1997 she first performed "Planctus," a song for voice and piano written for her by Philip Glass. In 1998, Merchant released Ophelia supported by co-headlining Lilith Fair and the following year released Live in Concert.