In his teens, Ásgeir was a competitive javelin thrower, but an unexpected injury prompted him to shift his focus to music.∙ Many of his early lyrics were written by his poet father, Einar Georg Einarsson, who was in his seventies when his son’s debut album, Dýrð í Dauðaþögn, was released in 2012.∙ Within his native Iceland, Ásgeir's Dýrð í Dauðaþögn is the top-selling debut album ever, besting Sigur Rós, Of Monsters and Men, and Björk.∙ In 2012, he picked up four Icelandic Music Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Newcomer.∙ “Hvítir skór,” his collaborative 2012 Christmas single with rapper Blaz Roca, spent nine weeks at the top of the Icelandic charts.∙ Following the success of Dýrð í Dauðaþögn, Ásgeir worked with American singer-songwriter John Grant to develop an English-language version of the album, titled In the Silence.