Chad Kroeger

A deep-voiced rock singer-songwriter, Chad Kroeger used his powerful pipes and catchy hooks to boost his band Nickelback from local Canadian favorite to international superstars. With multiplatinum albums like 2001's Silver Side Up, 2003's The Long Road, 2005's All the Right Reasons and 2008's Dark Horse, the band perfected their fusion of grunge/hard rock, although many American music critics claimed they merely parroted that ethos for profit. They hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 with "How You Remind Me" and scored additional smashes, including "Someday," "Photograph," "Rockstar," "Gotta Be Somebody" and the Grammy-nominated "Burn it to the Ground." Outside of Nickelback, Kroeger wrote and sang the Grammy-nominated "Spider-Man" (2002) theme "Hero," and the Santana smash "Why Don't You & I." Although they racked up massive international sales and multiple awards, including a string of Canadian JUNOs, Kroeger and Nickelback became favorite pop culture punching bags. Subsequently, many Internet memes sprang up mocking them, which only increased when it was announced that Kroeger was engaged to fellow Canadian superstar Avril Lavigne. Although critics or Internet commentators seemingly derived pleasure in zinging Nickelback, it could be not denied that Chad Kroeger built and powered one of the world's most successful bands.

Born Nov. 15, 1974 in Hanna, Alberta, Canada, Chad Robert Turton took his mother's maiden name, Kroeger, when his father abandoned the family. Growing up a rebellious youth who was frequently in trouble with the law, Kroeger survived due to his street smarts, which helped him to make a living doing odd jobs, like selling seafood door-to-door, telemarketing and managing a rental property. A lifelong fan of heavy metal and hard rock, Kroeger founded a cover band called the Village Idiots with some friends, his brother and his cousin, which would eventually transform into Nickelback. After releasing a 1996 EP, Hesher, and a full album, Curb, the band built an impressive Canadian following, which helped them land a major record deal. Their 2000 album, The State, earned them a toehold in the American market, but it was not until Silver Side Up, released, ironically, on Sept. 11, 2001, that they broke through as global superstars. Buoyed by Kroeger's powerful, made-for-rock voice and catchy hooks, the LP eventually sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, spun off the No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit "How You Remind Me" and won them four JUNO Awards. The album also featured a song, "Hero," which became the theme of Sam Raimi's blockbuster reboot of "Spider-Man" (2002), credited to Chad Kroeger featuring Josey Scott, the former lead singer of Saliva. Rising to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping the Modern Rock and Mainstream Rock charts, the single became a global smash and earned Kroeger a JUNO Award for Songwriter of the Year, as well as a Grammy nomination and a Broadcast Film Critics Association Award.

While Kroeger and Nickelback were undoubtedly massively popular with fans, neither seemed able to win much critical acclaim, and the band and its lead singer were often dismissed as "grunge lite," merely aping the mannerisms and musicality of rawer, pioneering bands for profit. Kroeger did his best to silence these critics by focusing on his music, writing and singing the song "Why Don't You & I" for rock legend Santana's 2002 Shaman album. Although the song was tapped for release as a single, Nickelback's label refused to allow Kroeger's vocals to accompany it for fear that it would overshadow the band's upcoming release. The song, featuring re-recorded vocals by Alex Band of The Calling, became another massive hit, going Top Ten on the Billboard 100 and topping the Adult Top 40 chart. Kroeger carried on with Nickelback's next release, 2003's The Long Road, which continued the band's trend of leaving critics cold but wowing the fans who helped the album sell more than five million copies worldwide. It spawned the No. 1 Billboard Main Rock hit "Figured You Out" as well as the additional hits "Someday" and "Feelin' Way Too Damn Good."

As popular as they had been, however, Nickelback blasted off into the stratosphere with the release of 2005's JUNO-winning All the Right Reasons, which debuted at No. 1 and went on to sell more than 11 million copies worldwide, launching the hit singles "Photograph," "Savin' Me," "Far Away," "Rockstar" and "If Everyone Cared." Their follow-up set, 2008's Dark Horse, continued their success, winning three JUNO Awards and selling more than five million copies worldwide. Although the LP's singles did not dominate the charts, "Burn It to the Ground" earned a Grammy nomination and "Gotta Be Somebody" went Top Ten in the States.

Their next LP, Here and Now, became a moderate worldwide hit in 2010 but paled in comparison to some of the band's previous albums; singles like "When We Stand Together," "Bottoms Up" and "Lullaby" achieved only minor hit status. The backlash that had shadowed the band ever since their American debut also came to a head at this time, when the news that Nickelback was booked to play an NFL Thanksgiving Day halftime show in Detroit inspired thousands of people to sign an online petition citing that the band would allegedly hurt the musical legacy of Detroit. Showing an admirable sense of self-deprecation, the band taped a humorous Funny or Die.com video response and went ahead and played the show, which spoke greatly to their character but did little to stem the ever-growing pop cultural tide of almost joyful Nickelback-bashing. Canadian fans and critics may have found it surprising that a band who had achieved such renown in their own country found enormous sales but enormous pushback in the United States to the point where the band was punished for its popularity. After a point, the jokes about the band had little to do with the band or their music. Although he may have been a target for critics and cultural lampooners, Kroeger's track record and golden ear for songwriting spoke for themselves, and he penned songs for many of his peers, including the Daughtry smash "No Surprise," which topped the Billboard Adult Pop Songs chart and went to No. 15 on the Hot 100. Many fans and critics alike were surprised, however, when it was confirmed that Kroeger, who had been working with singer Avril Lavigne, had begun dating her and the two announced their engagement in August 2012.

By Jonathan Riggs