BIO

I.AM is the artist name for multi-instrumentalist, Alex McKee. Drawing inspiration from Vangelis, M83, The Postal Service, Jai Wolf, and Bon Iver, Alex is searching for his voice somewhere between lofi acoustic and sample heavy electronic music. Alex’s earliest exposure to music came in the form of his dad’s affinity for guitar and record collecting. This led Alex to start classical guitar lessons and saxophone shortly after. Bass guitar and piano quickly followed and by 15, he was writing songs and creating loops on the family Casio keyboard and had formed his first garage band. In the Fall of 2006, he decided to pursue a music degree at University of North Texas. In addition to studying saxophone and guitar, McKee continued playing in local bands and began to find work as a session guitarist. After completing a master's degree in music at USC in 2012, Alex found work as a composer's assistant and eventually landed a gig as a sample developer for Hans Zimmer. It was there that his love for synthesizers and sampling deepened and he began to incorporate them into his original music. This time period was formative as Alex deconstructed a lot of the assumptions he had about songwriting and music after years spent studying it formally.

After working with Hans, McKee went on to work as a session guitarist/keyboardist for several LA-based artists, each collaboration fueling McKee’s desire to create his own original music. Under the moniker I.AM, McKee has released an EP and several singles with more on the way this year.