River - Ben Jelen

Benjamin Ivan Jelen (born 8 July, 1979; Scotland, UK) is a singer/songwriter. He plays the piano, violin, and guitar. He has lived in Scotland, England, Texas, New Jersey, and New York.
He graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in biology. After that, he moved to New York City to work as a producer and sound-engineer at a local recording studio.

Ben was discovered by Joseph Janus of Fearless Management, who originally wanted to sign Ben as a model. Instead, Ben handed him a demo, and shortly thereafter, he was signed to a label and released his debut album "Give It All Away". His music has been featured on One Tree Hill, Smallville, Las Vegas, and was used to promote the Academy Award Nominated "Finding Neverland" starring Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. He has also written music for Tori Amos' RAINN organization and joined the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and Wildlife Works. Ben also independently released the EP "Rejected" through Fearless Management Records in 2005.

In 2007, Ben Jelen released a proper followup to "Give It All Away". The CD is called "Ex-Sensitive" (formerly titled "East" and "Pulse") and it was released on Custard Records. This album is all about love, but unlike his debut, this album does not focus on romantic love, but love for the earth and the environment.

User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL.