Adam Granduciel

Adam Granofsky (born February 15, 1979),^[1] better known under his stage name Adam Granduciel, is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the frontman and primary songwriter of the indie rock band the War on Drugs,^[2] with whom he has recorded five studio albums, and a former member of Kurt Vile's backing band the Violators.

Adam Granduciel
Granduciel performing at Austin Psych Fest 2014
Background information
Birth name	Adam Granofsky
Born	(1979-02-15) February 15, 1979 (age 46)[1] Dover, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genres	Indie rock, heartland rock, Americana, shoegazing, neo-psychedelia, pop rock
Instrument(s)	Vocals, guitar, piano, bass guitar, harmonica keyboard, synthesizer
Years active	2003–present
Labels	Secretly Canadian, Matador
Partner	Krysten Ritter (2014–2021)
Website	www.thewarondrugs.net

In addition to his work with The War on Drugs and Kurt Vile & the Violators, Granduciel has made guest appearances on albums by The Killers, Beyoncé and Sharon Van Etten. As a record producer, he has produced albums for Sam Fender, Craig Finn and Purling Hiss.

Early life

Adam Granduciel was born in Dover, Massachusetts. His father Mark Granofsky is a first-generation American who was born to Russian-Jewish immigrants.^[3]

He attended the Roxbury Latin School of West Roxbury. A French-language pun by a teacher there (Ken Conn) inspired his stage name; "du ciel" means "of the sky" in French.^[4] He is a graduate of Dickinson College, where he studied painting and photography.^[5]

Production work

Granduciel produced and performed on the English singer-songwriter Sam Fender's third studio album, People Watching, with The War on Drugs set to support Fender on his UK stadium shows at London Stadium and Newcastle's St James' Park. Regarding working with Fender, Granduciel noted: "I fell in love with him. He’s a savant. Sam and the boys came out in March [2024] for about five weeks. We worked on some stuff they’d already started, then we worked on some more stuff from the ground up. It was awesome. I’d never met Sam, but we’d communicated once or twice. I have this picture above the sink in my kitchen, that I took of the boys. Sam, Joe [Atkinson], Dean [Thompson] and Drew, just hanging out in my studio. They inspire each other. It’s like my band: everyone can just sit there for fifteen hours and just hang. You don’t have a wildcard, everyone’s easy and loose, and musical, and good-hearted. It was a blast working together."^[6]

Granduciel produced the forthcoming sixth solo studio album by The Hold Steady's Craig Finn, Always Been, scheduled for release on April 4, 2025. The album features Granduciel's The War on Drugs bandmates appearing throughout the album.^[7]

Personal life

Granduciel began a relationship with actress Krysten Ritter in August 2014.^[8] In February 2019, Ritter revealed that she and Granduciel were expecting their first child.^[9] Their son, Bruce Julian Knight Granofsky, was born on July 29, 2019.^[10]

Granduciel is an avid golfer.^[11]

Discography

The War on Drugs

Studio albums

• Wagonwheel Blues (2008)
• Slave Ambient (2011)
• Lost in the Dream (2014)
• A Deeper Understanding (2017)
• I Don't Live Here Anymore (2021)^[12]

EPs

• Barrel of Batteries (2007)
• Future Weather (2010)

Kurt Vile

Studio albums

• Constant Hitmaker (2008)
• God Is Saying This to You... (2009)
• Childish Prodigy (2009)
• Smoke Ring for My Halo (2011)

EPs

• The Hunchback EP (2009)
• Square Shells (2010)
• So Outta Reach (2011)

As producer

• Water on Mars — Purling Hiss (2013)
• People Watching — Sam Fender (2025)
• Always Been - Craig Finn (2025)

As guest performer

• Are We There — Sharon Van Etten (2014)
• Imploding the Mirage on "Blowback" — The Killers (2020)
• Cowboy Carter on "II Most Wanted" — Beyoncé (2024)
• "Old Tape" single - Lucius (2024)