Thundercat (musician) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Thundercat
Thundercat in 2018
Background information
Birth name	Stephen Lee Bruner
Born	(1984-10-19) October 19, 1984 (age 40) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres	Funk progressive R&B soul electronica acid jazz psychedelia crossover thrash yacht rock astral jazz
Occupations	Musician, producer, songwriter, singer
Instruments	Bass guitar, vocals
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Brainfeeder
Associated acts	Erykah Badu Flying Lotus Kamasi Washington Kendrick Lamar Mac Miller Ronald Bruner Jr. Haim

Stephen Lee Bruner (born October 19, 1984), better known by his stage name Thundercat, is an American musician, singer, record producer, and songwriter from Los Angeles. He switched his music with funk, soul, progressive R&B, psychedelia and jazz-fusion. He has since released four solo studio albums and is noted for his work with producer Flying Lotus. In 2016, Thundercat won a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Performance for his work on the track "These Walls". In 2020, Thundercat released his fourth studio album, It Is What It Is, which earned him a Grammy Award for Best Progressive R&B Album.

Early life

Raised in Compton and other parts of Los Angeles, Bruner was born into a family of musicians, including his father Ronald Bruner Sr., a drummer, and his mother Pam, a flautist and percussionist. His father played drums for The Temptations, The Supremes, and Gladys Knight, amongst others. Bruner attended Locke High School, playing in the school's jazz band. His teacher, Reggie Andrews, produced and co-wrote the Dazz Band's 1982 single "Let It Whip" and collaborated with Rick James. Andrews re-introduced Bruner to Kamasi Washington; the two had originally met as children, through their fathers' membership in a gospel fusion band. The reunited duo would sneak into jazz concerts, driving around in a worn-down 1982 Ford Mustang to do so. They would later get to play the same venues as the performers they watched. They also did sessions with Bruner's cousin Terrace Martin in Washington's father's garage during this time.

Career

Bruner began playing the bass at an early age, listening to bass players such as Stanley Clarke and Marcus Miller for inspiration. By the age of 15, he had a minor hit in Germany as a member of the boy band No Curfew. Bruner's earliest studio album appearances include playing electric bass on Kamasi Washington's Live at 5th Street Dick's and The Proclamation.

Erykah Badu was credited with helping Bruner find his stage presence and identity as Thundercat. Around this time, Bruner would play in live bands for Raphael Saadiq and Snoop Dogg, and both would make quips about his playing style. Bruner credited Flying Lotus with pushing him to start singing and making his own projects.

In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked him as one of the greatest bass players of all time.

Collaborations

In 2004, Bruner collaborated with Kamasi Washington, as well as Cameron Graves and Ronald Jr., under the name The Young Jazz Giants. The group later united with Terrace Martin and five other Los Angeles jazz musicians to form the West Coast Get Down collective, with whom they recorded several albums.

Along with his band duties, Bruner is also a session musician, acclaimed for his work on Erykah Badu's New Amerykah (2008) and fellow Brainfeeder artist Flying Lotus' Cosmogramma (2010), Until the Quiet Comes (2012), and You're Dead! (2014).

Bruner was a frequent collaborator on Mac Miller's tracks. On August 6, 2018, Bruner played bass during Miller's Tiny Desk Concert, during which the two played their collaborative track, "What's the Use?"

In 2022, he collaborated with virtual band Gorillaz on their single "Cracker Island", the first single and title track for their album of the same name. The song was released on April 30, 2022.

In 2024, he collaborated with Justice on the track "The End", the last track on their album Hyperdrama. The album was released on 26 April 2024. The song was featured at the Summer Olympics 2024 closing ceremony in Paris.

In August 2024, he was featured in an episode of children's show Yo Gabba Gabba, performing "Orange Cat" with the show's cast, while in costume. He would reunite with the cast in December 2024, to perform a medley of songs as a part of the Tiny Desk Concert series.

Solo albums

The Golden Age of Apocalypse and Apocalypse

He released his first solo album in 2011, The Golden Age of Apocalypse, which featured production from Flying Lotus, and was influenced by 1970s fusion artists such as Stanley Clarke and George Duke, who his brother also later toured with. Thundercat's second album Apocalypse was released in 2013.

The Beyond / Where the Giants Roam

Thundercat performing at Stern Grove, San Francisco, 2021

On June 22, 2015, Thundercat released The Beyond / Where the Giants Roam EP. The EP includes tributes to his friend and collaborator Austin Peralta, a jazz pianist who was signed to Brainfeeder before his death in 2012. The EP also includes a feature from Herbie Hancock and was the first appearance of "Them Changes".

In 2016, Bruner revealed to XXL that he was working on a new album with Flying Lotus as a main contributor. In May of that year, Bruner appeared live with Red Hot Chili Peppers to play additional bass on their song "Go Robot" at iHeartRadio's release party for the band's 2016 album The Getaway. In August 2016, Bruner appeared live with singers Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald in Chicago.

It Is What It Is

In October 2018, Thundercat premiered the song "King of the Hill" from his then upcoming album It Is What It Is. The second single, "Black Qualls", featuring Steve Lacy, Steve Arrington, and Childish Gambino, was released on January 16. Another single, "Dragonball Durag", was released on February 17. It Is What It Is released on April 3, 2020, and was met with critical acclaim. Thundercat dedicated the album to friend and frequent collaborator Mac Miller. In 2020, It Is What It Is won Best Progressive R&B Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.

Thundercat performing in front of his logo in 2018

In 2021, he received the Libera Award for Best R&B Record 2021 for his album It Is What It Is (Brainfeeder Records) by the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM). The album was also nominated as Record of the Year, but lost to Phoebe Bridgers' album Punisher.

In 2022, he made a guest appearance in the fourth episode of The Book of Boba Fett as a "Mod Artist" who Boba Fett enlists to save Fennec Shand's life in a flashback where he replaced her damaged parts with cybernetic replacements.

In April 2023, he released a new single collaborating with Kevin Parker/Tame Impala, "No More Lies." Following the release of "No More Lies", Thundercat announced the In Yo Girl’s City Tour, to begin on August 5, 2023 in Newport, Rhode Island and conclude on November 14, 2023 in Santiago, Chile.

Personal life

He has a teenage daughter named Sanaa.

Bruner was a close friend of the rapper Mac Miller, and the two often spent time together in their personal lives.

Bruner is a big fan of anime and cartoons, and will wear outfits that reflect this, such as a Pikachu backpack, cat-ear headbands, and the Interface Headset from the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. His stage name, taken from the 1985 cartoon series Thundercats, is further evidence of these influences. Bruner is a Christian, and incorporates many of the religion's themes in his music.

Instruments

Bruner is most often seen playing his Ibanez Custom Shop model bass, possessing six strings (which are tuned to BEADGC), a hollowed out maple body, five-piece maple/jatoba neck, and rosewood fingerboard. It utilizes EMG magnetic pickups, Graph Tech Ghost piezo saddles, and a MIDI program In/Out.

Thundercat in 2015

Discography

• The Golden Age of Apocalypse (2011)
• Apocalypse (2013)
• It Is What It Is (2020)

Filmography

Awards and nominations