Switchfoot Biography

The alternative rock band Switchfoot was established in San Diego in 1996 by Chad Butler, Tim Foreman, and Jon Foreman. Switchfoot began as a the Christian rock band Chin Up, but after undergoing a name change Switchfoot released the album Learning to Breathe, which rose to tremendous success. Learning to Breathe earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Gospel Album and the band’s  music found its way into the blockbuster film A Walk to Remember in 2002.

The exposure established Switchfoot’s career, and brought them to Columbia Records/Sony BMG for their first major label deal. The band’s sophomore effort, The Beautiful Letdown, followed, and rose to multi-platinum status, spawning the hit singles “Dare You to Move,” “Gone,” and “Meant to Live.” Since then, Switchfoot has enjoyed a number of highly successful albums, including: Nothing Is Sound (2005), Oh! Gravity (2006), Hello Hurricane (2009), and Vice Verses (2011.) The albums gave audiences the additional hit songs: “Stars,” “We Are One Tonight,” “Awakening,” “Head over Heels (In This Life),” “This is Home,” “Mess of Me,” “The Sound (John M. Perkins’ Blues),” “Your Love is a Song,” “Dark Horses,” “Restless,” “Afterlife,” and “The Original.” Switchfoot has been recognized with GMA Dove Awards in multiple categories, including Rock Recorded Song of the Year, Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Rock Album of the Year. Switchfoot has also earned a Grammy for Hello Hurricane in the Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album category.

Switchfoot has also committed support to a variety of humanitarian and philanthropic organizations, including Invisible Children, Habitat for Humanity, and the ONE Campaign. The band has also founded Switchfoot Bro-Am Surf Contest, an annual event to benefit a variety of organizations in the San Diego area. Most recently, Switchfoot released the album Fading West (2013), and continues to perform and record with the current lineup of Jon and Tim Foreman, Butler, Jerome Fontamillas, and Drew Shirley.