# Beth Hart
**Beth Hart** (born 1972 in Los Angeles, California) is an American blues-rock singer, songwriter, and keyboardist known for a powerful, [Janis Joplin](https://www.edgepedia.org/janis-joplin)-like voice and a recording career that runs from a 1993 band debut to 2024's *You Still Got Me*[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/n2003073729) • [2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart). She has topped the Billboard Blues charts six times, gone double platinum, and surpassed 600 million streams, with her strongest following in Europe rather than her home country[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/) • [2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1972, Los Angeles, California; field: blues-rock[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/n2003073729) |
| First recordings | *Beth Hart and the Ocean of Souls* (Razz Records, 1993); *Immortal* with the Beth Hart Band (Lava/Atlantic, 1996)[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) |
| Breakthrough single | "L.A. Song (Out of This Town)" from *Screamin' for My Supper* (1999), a Billboard Adult Contemporary success and a No. 1 single in New Zealand[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart) |
| Bonamassa albums | *Don't Explain* (2011), *Seesaw* (2013), *Black Coffee* (2018); *Seesaw* earned a Best Blues Album Grammy nomination[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [5](https://www.grammy.com/artists/beth-hart/17899/) |
| Commercial standing | Six Billboard Blues chart toppers, double platinum, over 600 million streams[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/) |
| Latest album | *You Still Got Me* (2024), her eleventh studio album, produced by Kevin Shirley with guests Slash and Eric Gales[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/) • [4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) |
## Early life and career beginnings
Hart began playing piano at age four and attended Los Angeles' High School for the Performing Arts, majoring in vocal and cello[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). Her first breakthrough came in 1993, when she won the Female Vocalist portion of the television competition *Star Search*[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776).
Her first band, Beth Hart and the Ocean of Souls, released a self-titled album on Razz Records in 1993[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). The Beth Hart Band then signed to Atlantic's Lava subsidiary and released *Immortal* in 1996; despite slots on the 1996 [Lollapalooza](https://www.edgepedia.org/lollapalooza) tour, the album was not a hit and the group disbanded[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). Her solo debut, *Screamin' for My Supper* (1999, on 143/Atlantic), produced the single "L.A. Song (Out of This Town)", which performed well on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart and reached number one in New Zealand, where the album reached No. 22[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart). In this period she also played the lead role of Janis Joplin in the off-Broadway musical *Love, Janis*[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [6](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/beth-hart/).
## Breakthrough and established career
Personal troubles, including addiction, slowed Hart's progress in the early 2000s. She left Atlantic for Koch and released *Leave the Light On* in 2003; "Learning to Live" became a number one hit in Denmark, and the album was her breakthrough in Denmark and Norway, reaching No. 23 there in 2005[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart).
In 2010 she signed with the Dutch label Provogue for *My California*, which reached No. 11 in Norway[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart). The 2011 duet album *Don't Explain* with guitarist [Joe Bonamassa](https://www.edgepedia.org/joe-bonamassa) raised her profile considerably, and *Bang Bang Boom Boom* (2012), produced by Kevin Shirley, became her first solo album on the Billboard Blues Album chart[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776).
## Collaborations with Joe Bonamassa
Hart has made three studio albums with blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa: *Don't Explain* (2011), *Seesaw* (2013), and *Black Coffee* (2018)[2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart). *Seesaw* brought a Grammy nomination for Best Blues Album at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards (2014), credited to Beth Hart and Joe Bonamassa[5](https://www.grammy.com/artists/beth-hart/17899/). The concert album *Live in Amsterdam* (2014) topped the Billboard Blues chart, and *Black Coffee* was another Blues chart topper[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). AllMusic describes the Bonamassa collaboration as having rejuvenated her career[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776).
## Musical style and personnel
The Norwegian encyclopedia Store norske leksikon describes Hart as making blues- and gospel-influenced rock, known for a powerful, Janis Joplin-like voice, intense concerts, and personal lyrics[2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart). AllMusic calls her a formidable singer and songwriter on the contemporary blues scene[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776).
Her studio sound has been shaped by a series of producers and session players. Kevin Shirley has produced the Bonamassa albums, *Bang Bang Boom Boom*, and *You Still Got Me*[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/) • [7](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-2/). For *Fire on the Floor* (2016), producer Oliver Leiber assembled a studio band including Michael Landau and [Waddy Wachtel](https://www.edgepedia.org/waddy-wachtel) (guitar), Brian Allen (bass), Rick Marotta (drums), Jim Cox (piano), Dean Parks (acoustic guitar), and Ivan Neville (B3 and organ) at his home studio in Toluca Lake; the album's twelve songs reflect influences from gospel, soul, classical, and the rock of [Soundgarden](https://www.edgepedia.org/soundgarden)[7](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-2/). Rob Cavallo produced *War in My Mind* (2019) and *A Tribute to Led Zeppelin* (2022); during the *War in My Mind* sessions Hart sang an unprompted version of "Whole Lotta Love" during a break, and Cavallo suggested she record a full album of Zeppelin songs[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776).
## Discography
AllMusic lists 18 releases from 1993 to 2024, including live and collaborative albums[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). The core album sequence, including her early band releases, runs: *Beth Hart & the Ocean of Souls* (1993, Razz Records), *Immortal* (1996, Lava/Atlantic), *Screamin' for My Supper* (1999, 143/Atlantic), *Leave the Light On* (2003, Koch), *37 Days* (2007), *My California* (2010, Provogue), *Bang Bang Boom Boom* (2012), *Better Than Home* (2015), *Fire on the Floor* (2016), *War in My Mind* (2019), *A Tribute to Led Zeppelin* (2022), and *You Still Got Me* (2024, Provogue)[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776) • [3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/). The official site counts *You Still Got Me* as her eleventh studio album[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/).
## By the numbers
Hart has topped the Billboard Blues charts six times, gone double platinum, and surpassed 600 million streams, with a string of Top 10 charting albums across Europe and Top 30 albums on the official Billboard US chart[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/). *A Tribute to Led Zeppelin* (2022) and *War in My Mind* (2019) became her highest charting UK and US releases to date and hit the Top 10 in Germany, France, Sweden, Belgium, Switzerland, Poland, Austria, and the Netherlands[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/). Her touring has filled Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, Amsterdam's Ziggo Dome, and London's Royal Albert Hall, with recent dates across the US, Europe, India, Morocco, Australia, and Canada[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/). Store norske leksikon notes she is popular in Norway, the Netherlands, and Denmark, but not in her homeland[2](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart).
## What has changed since 2023
*You Still Got Me* was recorded in 2023 and produced by Kevin Shirley at Ocean Way Studios in [Nashville, Tennessee](https://www.edgepedia.org/nashville-tennessee), housed in a 100-year-old Gothic revival gray-stoned church in the heart of Music Row[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/). The 2024 album features guest guitar from Slash and an appearance by [Eric Gales](https://www.edgepedia.org/eric-gales)[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). Also in 2024, Hart contributed guest vocals to Walter Trout's *Broken* and Slash's *Orgy of the Damned*, with [Slash](https://www.edgepedia.org/slash-musician) returning the favor on her album[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776). Her touring has continued across the US, Europe, and other international markets[3](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/).
## References
1. [Hart, Beth — LC Linked Data Service: Authorities and Vocabularies, Library of Congress](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/n2003073729)
2. [Beth Hart – Store norske leksikon](https://snl.no/Beth_Hart)
3. [About Beth | Beth Hart (official site)](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-3/)
4. [Beth Hart — Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beth-hart-mn0000044776)
5. [Beth Hart Grammy Awards and Nominations, Recording Academy](https://www.grammy.com/artists/beth-hart/17899/)
6. [Hart, Beth — Enciclopedia Treccani](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/beth-hart/)
7. [Biography | Beth Hart (official site, Fire on the Floor era)](https://www.bethhart.com/biography-2/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical practice and theory › Blues › Blues performers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license