Matt Berninger is a Cincinnati native, Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

 based singer/songwriter, primarily known as the frontman of indie rock

Indie rock

Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...

 band

Musical ensemble

A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...

 The National

The National (band)

The National is an indie rock band formed in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1999 and currently based in Brooklyn, New York. The band's lyrics are written and sung by Matt Berninger, a baritone...

.

Vocals

Berninger is notable for his baritone vocals making The National's melodies original and distinct, allowing words to come to life with stories of "gloomy vignettes about young city dwellers".

Personal life

Berninger is a 1989 graduate of St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati. He went on to study graphic design

Graphic design

Graphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...

 at the University of Cincinnati

University of Cincinnati

The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....

, where he met fellow band member, Scott Devendorf in 1991 and they became best friends.

Matt is married to Carin Besser, a one-time fiction editor for The New Yorker

The New Yorker

The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...

, who has often contributed to the band's songwriting ("Brainy" and "Ada" from the album Boxer

Boxer (album)

Boxer is the fourth studio album by Brooklyn-based indie rock band The National. It was released on May 22, 2007 by Beggars Banquet Records, and has since sold over 300,000 copies worldwide. The album features a guest performance by Sufjan Stevens on "Ada" and "Racing Like a Pro" and backing vocals...

) and backup vocals. Together with Hope Hall and Andreas Burgess, Carin also helped direct the music video for "Bloodbuzz Ohio

Bloodbuzz Ohio

"Bloodbuzz Ohio" is a single by Brooklyn-based indie rock band The National, from their fifth studio album, High Violet. It is notable for Matt Berninger's baritone vocals. It was made available for download on the band's website on March 24, 2010. The song was also released on 7" vinyl on May 3,...

". They have a two-year-old daughter, Isla. Matt has stated that the song "Afraid of Everyone" was influenced by his anxiety about being a new father.