Matt Berninger

About

Matt Berninger (born 1971, Cincinnati, Ohio) is an American singer and lyricist, best known as the frontman of Grammy-winning indie rock band The National, which he co-founded in Brooklyn in 1999. His deep baritone and densely literary songwriting have defined the band's sound across ten studio albums, from the breakthrough Boxer (2007) to the chart-topping Sleep Well Beast (2017). Alongside his work with The National, Berninger has released two solo albums - Serpentine Prison (2020) and Get Sunk (2025) - and co-wrote the stage and film musical Cyrano with his wife, New Yorker editor Carin Besser.

318K

Spotify monthly listeners (solo)

20.4M

Spotify streams - 'One More Second' (top solo track)

Grammy win - Best Alternative Music Album for Sleep Well Beast (2018)

Metacritic score for Get Sunk (2025)

What's new

2026-06
Berninger is scheduled to perform at Open'er Festival in Gdynia, Poland, and at Festivalpark Werchter in Rotselaar, Belgium, as part of his ongoing 2026 tour.
2026-03
Berninger completed a North American tour in March 2026, including Canadian dates in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg and Toronto's Massey Hall, supported by Hannah Georgas and Ronboy.
2025-06
Berninger performed 'Bonnet of Pins' on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on June 2, 2025, shortly after the release of Get Sunk.
2025-05
Berninger released his second solo album, Get Sunk, on May 30, 2025 via Book/Concord Records; it received a Metacritic score of 77 based on 12 reviews.
2025-03
Berninger announced Get Sunk and an extensive North America and Europe tour, with European dates including Berlin, Paris, Antwerp, Oslo and Copenhagen.