Chad Kroeger

Lead singer and guitar player for hard rock band Nickelback.
Background

Canada' Nickelback started life as a cover band in Hanna, 215 kilometers northeast of Calgary. Eventually, they got tired of playing other people's songs, and singer/guitarist Chad Kroeger put together a collection of original songs, borrowed money from his stepfather, and went to Vancouver to record the band in a friend's studio. Based on the results, Kroeger's bassist brother, Mike, and pal guitarist Ryan Peake all relocated to Vancouver in 1996; that same year, they recorded and released the EP Hesher and full-length Curb independently, then embarked on a series of cross-country tours.

In late 1998, the bandmembers started managing themselves, with Chad handling all the radio tracking, brother Mike Kroeger the distribution, and Ryan Peake all the bookings. A second LP, The State, was released independently in January 2000 during a period when Canadian content requirements were increased and local rock radio began desperately seeking out homegrown product. What they found was Nickelback's single "Leader of Men." The band toured ceaselessly for The State and 200 shows later, Nickelback had gone from virtual unknowns to playing in front of over a million people alongside the likes of Creed, 3 Doors Down, Fuel, and more. The band's post-grunge commercial appeal wasn't lost on the record industry, and The State was snapped up by Roadrunner in the U.S. and EMI in Canada. It eventually sold an impressive 500,000 copies.

Chad loves video games, and Role Playing Games. His favorite is Fable for the Xbox, as he stated in an interview with Electric Playground. Also “The Turt” bears a remarkable resemblance to the Paddle Pop Lion.

Career

Eventually the covers band split up, before Kroeger convinced his brother, their cousin Brandon Kroeger (drums), and Ryan Peake to enter a Vancouver studio and record a number of songs that he'd written. He formed Nickelback in 1995 in Hanna, Alberta and became singer and lead guitarist of Nickelback with his brother Mike Kroeger (bass), Ryan Peake (rythm guitar) and Ryan Vikedal (drums).

Chad Kroeger, along with Saliva vocalist Josey Scott, performed the theme song titled "Hero" (US Hot 100: #3; US Mainstream Rock: #1 [2 wks]; US Modern Rock: #1 [3 wks]) for the blockbuster smash hit movie Spider-Man in 2002.
Nickelback
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Nickelback

In 2002, Kroeger, along with attorney Jonathan Simkin, founded a record label, 604 Records. Among the bands currently signed to the label are Theory of a Deadman, Armchair Cynics, and Marianas Trench, the Organ, and Thornley.

Also in 2002, Kroeger wrote and sang on "Why Don't You & I" for Santana's Shaman. However, when Australia decided to release the song as a single in Summer 2003, Kroeger's label, Roadrunner, refused permission, citing concerns that Kroeger appearing on a "high-profile single" would compromise the excitement over Nickelback's fall 2003 release The Long Road. Kroeger is the one that recommended The Calling's Alex Band, another Arista artist, as a replacement for re-recording the single. The recording with Kroeger on vocals can easily be found on most peer-to-peer networks to this day, however.

Kroeger also wrote the lyrics for the song Photograph, which ostensibly documents his life and continues to be played in heavy rotation on various radio and streaming radio stations.