2007-Justin VernonVocals, guitar, keyboards
Matthew McCaughanBass, drums
Sean CareyPiano, drums
Mike LewisSaxophone, bass, keyboards2011-
Andrew FitzpatrickGuitar, keyboards2015-
Jenn WasnerGuitar, keyboards2019-
Bon Iver (pronounced bown-ee-vehr) is the name of the Justin Vernon-led indie-folk band. At first it was considered a solo project but he later acknowledged it as a band, with Sean Carey (drums, vocals, piano) and Matthew McCaughan (bass, drums, vocals) as key members.
The band name is derived from the French phrase "bon hiver," which means "good winter." Justin Vernon heard it in 2006 when he was binge watching the TV series Northern Exposure while recovering from mononucleosis. The show is set in Alaska, and in the 1993 episode "First Snow," the townspeople celebrate the snowfall by jubilantly saying, "bon hiver!" Vernon changed the spelling so it wouldn't remind him of "liver," an organ that was compromised when he was sick.
Justin Vernon wrote and recorded the first Bon Iver album, For Emma, Forever Ago, after retreating to his father's isolated log cabin in northeast Wisconsin after a spilt with both a girlfriend and his former band, DeYarmond Edison. The story of him recording in isolation in a remote Wisconsin cabin fueled his mythos as a loner woodsman, but after that album, he built a modern studio near Eau Claire, Wisconsin called April Base to work from.
Vernon released
For Emma, Forever Ago independently in the summer of 2007. That October, Pitchfork gave it a
positive review, and other music blogs (there were many in 2007) touted it as well. Big record companies came calling, but Vernon signed with a small independent label called Jagjaguwar Records, going with creative freedom over marketing might. They re-released
For Emma, Forever Ago in February 2008.
Bon Iver is very low-key, recording on an indie label and doing very little promotion, but Justin Vernon has been part of some very high-profile projects. In 2009 he landed on the
Twilight Saga: New Moon soundtrack with his song, "
Rosyln," a collaboration with St. Vincent. In 2020 he sang on three tracks from Taylor Swift's
Evermore album, including the
title track, where he duets with Swift.
In 2010, Bon Iver worked with Kanye West on West's album.
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Justin Vernon sings on two tracks on the record, "
Monster" and "Lost In The World," the latter of which heavily samples the Bon Iver track "
Woods."
Verson performed "Monster" with Kanye at Coachella in 2011 and also contributed to West's 2013 album
Yeezus.
Bon Iver's self-titled sophomore album was recorded in an old veterinary clinic in Fall Creek, Wisconsin, purchased and transformed into a studio by Justin Vernon in 2008. The album was released in June 2011 and peaked at #2.
Justin Vernon started dating the alt-country singer-songwriter Kathleen Edwards in 2011, and in 2012 he produced her album Voyageur with her. He's very tight-lipped about his personal life, but it appears they broke up a few years later.
Justin Vernon's favorite song is Indigo Girls' "Fugitive." He loves it so much, he got the lyrics "I said, 'Remember this how it should be'" from the track tattooed on his chest. Further tattoos include an extract from a letter written to Justin by his father on his underarm, the outline of Wisconsin on his chest and a row of elemental symbols on his forearm.
Justin Vernon is a huge WNBA fan and a regular at Minnesota Lynx games, often appearing on the Jumbotron. He admits he never knows what to do when the camera lands on him. His go-to move? Holding up his beer while wondering how many people in the arena actually recognize him.
Vernon likes to let his subconscious mind write his lyrics. "Our subconscious is in so many ways pure, so I love to try to fog the lights to remain instinctual rather than conceptual or philosophical," he told Triple J.
Bon Iver won the Best New Artist Grammy Award in 2012, beating The Band Perry, J. Cole, Skrillex and Nicki Minaj. Justin Vernon was a bit overwhelmed by the attention and surprised that he won. "When I started to make songs, I did it for the inherent reward of making songs, so I'm a little bit uncomfortable up here," he said in his acceptance speech.
A lot of his music is predicated on misery, reflecting his profound anxiety and depression. This became a problem when he felt like he had to stay miserable to keep making music. "Am I hurting myself in order to get that validation?" he
said on Popcast in 2025. "That's no way to live."
