Since the summer of 2006, OneRepublic has consistently been ranked as one of the top musical acts on MySpace, due to heavy promotion within the online community. The band was formed by songwriter and Grammy-nominated record producer, Ryan Tedder and his high school friend, Zach Filkins, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The initial name of the band was This Beautiful Mess.
Tedder caught the attention of producer Timbaland during his stint in an MTV-sponsored talent show and was soon signed as his protegé. The two parted ways after two years under Timbaland's tutelage. For a while, he worked under the nom de plume 'Alias', earning a name for himself by producing and writing songs for various artists; even receiving a Grammy nomination for his work on Paul Oakenfold's, A Lively Mind.
In 2002, Tedder reconnected with Filkins who was living in Chicago, Illinois and modeling on the side for Covington and Jockey Underwear. Tedder convinced Filkins to move to Los Angeles, California to put a band together. Nine months later they were quickly signed to Columbia Records. After a few line-up changes, they finally solidified with Tedder on vocals, Filkins on guitar and backing vocals, Eddie Fisher on drums, Brent Kutzle on bass and cello, and Drew Brown on guitar. Known initially as Republic, they later changed the name to OneRepublic.
They worked in the studio for two and a half years and recorded a full album. Two months before their album was due to be released, (with "Sleep" as their debut single), they were dropped by Columbia Records, though just as quickly, the band was beginning to get exposure on MySpace, becoming the number-one unsigned act on the site. The band caught the attention of a number of labels, including Timbaland's. The band signed to the Mosley Music group, becoming the first rock band signed to the label.
OneRepublic's song "Apologize," written by Ryan Tedder, was released in its original version on the band's debut album Dreaming Out Loud. The song was also prominently featured as a remix on Timbaland's 2007 release of Shock Value. The single, as featured on Shock Value, has gone three times Platinum (marking three million copies sold in the US) and five million copies worldwide. It peaked at number three on the UK official Top 40 Week on November 11, 2007. The week of November 10, 2007, "Apologize" was the biggest radio airplay hit in the history of Top 40 radio in North America, racking up 10,331 spins in one week. The song held the number one position for five months before the record was broken by "Bleeding Love," a song co-written and produced by Tedder.
The band is widely known for their collaboration with producer Timbaland, specifically for his remix of their song, "Apologize". Tedder also reciprocated by remixing Timbaland's "The Way I Are," drastically changing the song's vibe by adding a rock vibe into the synth-driven melody. The less polished version was leaked on the internet before the final version ended up on Tedder's MySpace page.
Their debut album was released in the United States on November 20, 2007, with international release dates staggered throughout early 2008. As of November 25, 2008, Dreaming Out Loud had sold 822,458 copies in the US, with the bands total album sales reaching over 1.7 million worldwide. Their third single, "Say (All I Need)," has been released in the UK and the US. In September, 2008 the band released their fourth single, "Mercy".
The band performed "Apologize" live on Fox's So You Think You Can Dance on August 2, 2007, and with Timbaland on an episode of One Life to Live in October 2007. It was also played at the end of the three television shows — Cold Case episode "Sabotage," Smallville's "Hero," Hollyoaks and Gossip Girl episode "Hi, Society". They performed "Stop and Stare" and "Mercy" live on the Smallville episode, "Hero," which aired March 13, 2008. They also performed "Stop and Stare" on the Australian version of So You Think You Can Dance on April 7, 2008. On May 21, 2008, the band appeared on the American Idol (season 7) finale performing a duet of "Apologize" with finalist David Archuleta. They returned to Fox's So You Think You Can Dance on July 3, 2008 with a live performance of their third single "Say (All I Need)".
In 2008, OneRepublic toured with The Daylights, Maroon 5 and Brandi Carlile. They also headlined the Isle of MTV 2008 at the Floriana Granaries, Malta, on June 25, 2008.
On August 2, 2008, OneRepublic performed "Apologize" and "Stop and Stare" at MTV Asia Awards 2008 in Genting Highlands, Malaysia. They were nominated for and won the Best Hook-up award (which was recently added that year) for "Apologize," beating Beyoncé Knowles and Shakira's "Beautiful Liar," Rihanna's "Umbrella" and other hits of that year. During the presentation of the nominees one of the presenters, Miguel Chavez, said "Ryan, I love your music." pointing to Tedder, hinting the band's win.
On September 24, 2008, the band stated during a concert at the London Forum in England, they were working on new songs for a new album to be released in the summer of 2009. The band played one of the newly recorded songs titled, "All The Right Moves". The band is reported to be relocating to Denver, Colorado during the first part of 2009 to complete work on the album.
Tuesday, May 21st 2013, 5:10pm UTC+2