John Gallagher Jr. is a Brooklyn based singer-songwriter who has been seen on stage and screens both small and large.

Notable film and TV roles include The Newsroom, Short Term 12, 10 Cloverfield Lane, and Hush. He won a Tony Award for his performance in Duncan Sheik’s hit musical Spring Awakening, portrayed the Jesus of Suburbia in the Broadway adaptation of Green Day’s Grammy winning rock opera American Idiot, and most recently starred in Swept Away - a new musical featuring songs by The Avett Brothers. But when it comes to his music, that’s a bit more personal. 

Born in the Small Wonder to folk musicians, John wrote his first song at the ripe age of 5. Rather, just the chorus, as he would earnestly admit to his listeners today. In the years between he has played in a half-dozen bands ranging from roots rock to pop punk. He gigs most often as a solo performer, wielding his Gibson J-45 and lightning bolt strap. Taking inspiration from Prine, Costello, Springsteen, Westerberg and Schlesinger - his music is raw, honest, and heartfelt. Emo folk rock, if you will.

“Write what you know - I don’t go for that,” John joked while sharing his latest crop of songs at Rockwood Music Hall in 2023 - the now shuttered venue on NYCs Lower East Side that hosted him since 2006 and released his debut album Six Day Hurricane (2016). The wry humor is par for the course at a Gallagher gig. Produced by guitarist Thad DeBrock, this LP drew comparisons to the Laurel Canyon guitars of The Byrds and the lean bar band dynamics of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Following the release, John hit the road as an opening act for Anaïs Mitchell and Aaron Lee Tasjan. 

2021 saw the online self release of 8th and Jane, a short but sweet 8 song sophomore effort. It’s a fast and fierce postcard jammed with power pop rock and roll numbers, smoothed out by several soul searching acoustic ballads. An almost tragicomic blend of the rootsy bravado and vulnerable heart-on-sleeve reflection that has become a staple of his music.

Next came Gallagher’s most personal and profound LP to date - the achingly autobiographical jangle-folk breakup record Goodbye or Something. This marked the beginnings of a musical partnership with producing pair Oscar Albis Rodriguez and Zach Jones at Studio G Brooklyn and the New Hope, PA-based indie label Grand Phony Music. The summer 2024 release was bookended by a tour with Bandits on the Run and his newly minted band, The Summer Flame.

With a burst of try, try again doggedness comes John’s latest EP, Almost Ok. While some records are proclamations, the five songs of Almost Ok arrive more like a postcard from a state of being. A brief communique by someone who is on the mend. Recording was overseen by Oscar and Zach, who also serve as crackerjack lead guitarist and diesel-driving drummer/vocalist, respectively. Fellow Grand Phony artist Hannah Winkler added her effortless keys and vocals to the tracks and the steady, sturdy Tim Lappin provided bass. Each member an accomplished singer-songwriter in their own right. The ensemble had cut their teeth playing together live for two years but Almost Ok would be the first attempt to capture their sound on record. The resulting tracks convey the same playful dynamism they bring to the stage.

SHORT BIO

A Brooklyn based artist, actor, and screenwriter, John Gallagher Jr. broke out onto the scene with his originating role as Moritz Stiefel in Duncan Sheik’s Broadway mega-hit Spring Awakening, which would earn him the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. He has since starred in Green Day’s Grammy Award-winning rock opera American Idiot and The Avett Brothers’ critically acclaimed musical Swept Away, as well as appeared on the silver screen in Aaron Sorkin’s HBO series The Newsroom, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Short Term 12, and Hush among many others. With four records under his belt - Six Day Hurricane (2016), 8th and Jane (2021), Goodbye or Something (2024), and Almost Ok (2026) - Gallagher’s songwriting is known for having an emphasis on the confessional, cathartic, and emotional, prompting Billboard to rave “Be it a ballad strum or a hard rock shred, both come naturally to Gallagher.” His music has been described as “emo folk rock” - a tragicomic blend of rootsy bravado and vulnerable heart-on-sleeve reflection.