Serj Tankian life and biography

Serj Tankian is an Armenian-American singer, poet, songwriter, activist, and composer. He is an Armenian immigrant born in Lebanon and re-rooted in Los Angeles. He is the lead singer and songwriter of the Grammy Award winning rock band System of a Down. Tankian has released two critically acclaimed solo albums Imperfect Harmonies and Elect the Dead, both produced by Tankian himself at his home studio in Los Angeles.

He is known for his gritty yet wide vocal range. His solo output mixes various styles and genres, including metal, rock and Armenian musical motifs.

At age five, Serj Tankian moved with his parents to Los Angeles, California. After high school, he studied marketing. He took singing lessons for four years and also took guitar lessons as a young child. In 1993, he founded the band Soil (not to be confused with Soil) with Daron Malakian, which later went on hiatus, and later changed to System of a Down. Tankian is not only a member of the band System of a Down, but also has his own record label which is called Serjical Strike Records, a sub-division of Columbia Records. He also performed guest vocals on songs such as Mushroom Cult by Dog Fashion Disco, and Mein by Deftones. He produced “Enter The Chicken” by Buckethead, and provided vocals to the Buckethead songs “We are One,” “Coma” and “Waiting Here.” With Serjical Strike Records, he endeavors to offer those musicians often ignored by the mainstream a possibility to release their music and be heard. The first release of Serj’s new label was Serart, a project consisting of Tankian, himself, and Arto Tunçboyaçiyan, an Armenian friend of Tankian’s.

Albums released:

Solo
Elect the Dead (2007)
Imperfect Harmonies (2010)
Harakiri (2012)
Orca (TBA)
Jazz-Iz-Christ (TBA)


"Harakiri" 2012 single:


With System of a Down
System of a Down (1998)
Toxicity (2001)
Steal This Album! (2002)
Mezmerize (2005)
Hypnotize (2005)

With Serart
Serart (2003)

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