Justin Tranter | |
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 Tranter atSXSW 2024 | |
| Born | Justin Drew Tranter (1980-06-16)June 16, 1980 (age 45) Hawthorn Woods, Illinois, U.S. |
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| Years active | 2002–present |
| Musical career | |
| Origin | Lake Zurich, Illinois, U.S. |
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| Formerly of | Semi Precious Weapons |
Musical artist | |
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Justin Drew Tranter (born June 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, singer, and activist. Tranter has written songs for artists such asBritney Spears,Gwen Stefani,Linkin Park,Kelly Clarkson,Sara Bareilles,Selena Gomez,Justin Bieber,DNCE,Citizen Queen,Kesha,Imagine Dragons,Cynthia Erivo,The Knocks,Fifth Harmony,5 Seconds of Summer,Chappell Roan,Halsey,Ariana Grande,Lady Gaga,Katy Perry,Raye,Bea Miller,Demi Lovato,Dua Lipa,Måneskin,Fall Out Boy andKATSEYE. From 2004 to 2014, Tranter was the lead singer ofSemi Precious Weapons, a rock band based in New York City. Since February 2017, they have been a board member ofGLAAD, an organization that promotes LGBT acceptance in the entertainment and news industries. Tranter's songs have garnered over 50 million single sales and 40 billion streams on Spotify and YouTube as of May 2021[update].[1]
Justin Drew Tranter was born and grew up inHawthorn Woods, Illinois. They have three older brothers.[2] Tranter says that they experienced bullying during their youth,[3] which caused them to be transferred from theLake Zurich public high school to theChicago Academy for the Arts after a semester.[2][4] While studying musical theater at the Academy, they started the AIDS Benefit, an annual show run by students to raise awareness forHIV/AIDS.[4][5] Tranter graduated in 1998.[5] Following this, they studied at theBerklee College of Music in Boston. Along with songwriting, they also took classes in business management.[6] While at Berklee, they founded Musicians with a Mission, a scholarship fund for LGBT youth education.[6]
Tranter released their debut studio albumScratched in 2002 and followed it up with their second studio albumTear Me Together in 2004.[6]
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In 2004, following the release ofTear Me Together, Tranter formed the bandSemi Precious Weapons in New York with fellow Berklee graduatesCole Whittle, Dan Crean, andAaron Lee Tasjan;[6] Tasjan was later replaced by Stevy Pyne.[7] The band's debut studio albumWe Love You was released in 2008 and the band subsequently opened forLady Gaga on herMonster Ball Tour from 2009 to 2011.[8] Semi Precious Weapons released two more albums,You Love You (2010) andAviation (2014), before disbanding in 2014.[9] While still part of Semi Precious Weapons, Tranter moved to Los Angeles and signed a publishing deal withWarner Chappell Music in 2012 to write songs for other artists.[7]
After signing with Warner Chappell, Tranter began working with artists such asJustin Bieber,Selena Gomez,Hailee Steinfeld,Fifth Harmony, andFall Out Boy.[10] In December 2015, Tranter was named one of the "20 Biggest Breakouts of 2015" byRolling Stone for their songwriting contributions to the pop charts of that year.[11] Tranter frequently collaborates withJulia Michaels and multiple songs co-written by the pair have appeared onBillboard charts; two such tracks, Gomez's "Good for You" and Bieber's "Sorry", topped theMainstream Top 40.[12] Tranter and Michaels also teamed up to co-writeGwen Stefani's third solo studio albumThis Is What the Truth Feels Like (2016).[13] Tranter has since written for artists ranging fromBritney Spears andDemi Lovato toImagine Dragons andLinkin Park.[2][14] Their songwriting work on Michaels's song "Issues" earned Tranter aSong of the Year nomination at the2018 Grammy Awards.[15]
Tranter has worked on music for film and television. They co-wrote the song "Home" performed byNick Jonas for the soundtrack to the animated filmFerdinand (2017), which earned Tranter a nomination for theGolden Globe Award for Best Original Song at the2018 ceremony.[9] They also co-wrote "Hindsight", the end title song forBilly Eichner's filmBros (2022).[16] Furthermore, Tranter was an executive producer and songwriter for the soundtracks to theHulu filmHappiest Season (2020),[17]Billy Porter's directorial debutAnything's Possible,[18] theNetflix filmPurple Hearts (both 2022),[19] theParamount+Grease prequel television seriesGrease: Rise of the Pink Ladies (2023),[20] and Larin Sullivan's filmThe Young King.[21]
Tranter was nominated forSongwriter of the Year, Non-Classical at the2024 Grammy Awards for their work on songs byReneé Rapp,Måneskin,Marisa Davila,Baby Tate,Talk, andMiley Cyrus.[22] At the2025 ceremony, Tranter received their second Song of the Year nomination forChappell Roan's "Good Luck, Babe!", which they co-wrote with Roan andDan Nigro.[23] The three had previously collaborated on the track "My Kink Is Karma" from Roan's debut studio albumThe Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess (2023).[24]
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Tranter's activism began in high school at theChicago Academy for the Arts, where they created the annual AIDS Benefit to raise awareness forHIV/AIDS.[4][5] This was followed by Musicians with a Mission, a scholarship fund for LGBT youth education that Tranter founded while attending theBerklee College of Music.[6]
Tranter flew to Orlando to help in the aftermath of the2016 Pulse nightclub shooting.[7] They also co-wrote and co-organized the release of the charity single "Hands" to raise funds forEquality Florida's Pulse Victims Fund,GLAAD, and the GLBT Community Center of Central Florida.[26]
In February 2017, Tranter joined GLAAD's National Board of Directors.[27] During theGLAAD Media Awards of that year, Tranter raised $123,000 for the organization by auctioning off four individual songwriting and recording sessions.[28] Each year, Tranter hosts an in-person Spirit Day concert to raise funds for GLAAD's efforts to support LGBT youth. The fourth annual event in 2022 raised $400,000.[29]
Tranter is also a supporter ofMercy for Animals and stopped eating meat in 1994.[3] They are an advocate for fairer payment of songwriters in themusic streaming era.[30]
On November 17, 2019, Tranter was honored with theACLU of Southern California's Bill of Rights Award for their activist work as "an outspoken and powerful voice for the LGBTQIA+ community, diversity, the climate crisis, arts education, animal rights, and ending gun violence".[31]
Tranter is bisexual,[32]gender nonconforming,[33] andnon-binary.[34] They have stated that, with regard to pronouns, "they/them/theirs is what I relate to the most".[33]
Tranter's jewelry company, Fetty, grew out of necklaces they designed to sell as merchandise for the Semi Precious Weapons shows. Fetty sold at retailers such asUrban Outfitters andBarneys.[35] The designs typically feature hearts and weapons.[35] In 2008, Tranter designed a limited-edition sneaker forDKNY.[36]
Tranter is the founder and CEO of Facet Records and Publishing, which looks after a roster of artists, songwriters, and producers.[37]
In 2008, Tranter appeared as a guest on theE! cable network showChelsea Lately.[38] In December of the same year, they served as a coach on theMTV reality showMade, in which they helped a young girl transform into a "rock star".[39] In 2010, Tranter and their fellow Semi Precious Weapons members had cameo appearances in Lady Gaga's music video for "Telephone".[40][41] In 2012, Tranter was interviewed for the documentary feature filmJobriath A.D. about rock musicianJobriath.[42]
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Outmusic Awards | "Blend In" | Out Song of the Year | Won | |
| 2017 | BMI Pop Awards | Themself | Pop Songwriter of the Year | Won | |
| 2018 | Golden Globe Awards | "Home" | Best Original Song | Nominated | |
| 2018 | Grammy Awards | "Issues" | Song of the Year | Nominated | |
| 2018 | BMI Pop Awards | Themself | Pop Songwriter of the Year | Won | |
| 2019 | ACLU Bill of Rights Dinner | Themself | Bill of Rights Award | Won | |
| 2024 | Grammy Awards | Themself | Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical | Nominated | |
| 2025 | Grammy Awards | "Good Luck, Babe!" | Song of the Year | Nominated |
| Year | Title | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | "Endwell" (Bleu featuring Justin Tranter and Mike Taylor) | To Hell with You |
| 2015 | "Our World" (Shapov featuring Justin Tranter) | Axtone Ten |
| 2016 | "Tied to You" (The Knocks featuring Justin Tranter) | 55 |
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Forever" | 2017 | The Lego Batman Movie: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack |
We're so proud of Justin Tranter and Ross Golan, who won 2017 Songwriter of the Year, and all of our winners tonight.
Media related toJustin Tranter at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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