Biography
Samuel Wilbur is a Minneapolis-based singer-songwriter, producer, high school teacher, and composer known for collaborating internationally with instrumentalists of all backgrounds. By day, he teaches social studies and journalism; by night, he crafts indie folk-pop anthems packed with lush harmonies, sharp hooks, and powerful messages about climate change, capitalism, and hope.
Originally from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Samuel Wilbur put out his first proper solo album, Subject to Change, in 2017 and has put out a new album every year since. Inspired by artists like Wilco, Andrew Bird, and Jenny Lewis, he blends heartfelt storytelling with clever, layered arrangements. Since moving to Minneapolis in 2004, Samuel has balanced his life as a dedicated educator for Minneapolis Public Schools, with a deep commitment to music and activism.
Wilbur's songs are a call to action, offering both a rallying cry and a place of refuge. Whether performing solo or with a full band, Samuel’s live shows are intimate and electric, driven by the same passion he brings to the classroom.
His most recent album, Ivory Tower, is a global collaboration recorded across four continents featuring everything from Violin, Cello, Trumpet, and the grammy nominated pianist James Graham. The album also features standouts from Minnesota's vibrant local music community, including 5 songs with Kiss the Tiger's electric vocalist Meghan Kreidler , Grammy Nominated powerhouse producer Andy Thompson, vocals from Kiernan (First Avenue's Best New Band of 2024), and groove-rich bass lines from acclaimed bassist Ian Martin Allison. The album was Mixed and Mastered by the great Matt Patrick at the Library Recording Studio.
The album once again tackles the global climate crisis, the rise of the billionaire ruling class, and finding hope while the world always seems to be unraveling. Despite the heavy subject matter, the album is a therapeutic act of pure joy.
Originally from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Samuel Wilbur put out his first proper solo album, Subject to Change, in 2017 and has put out a new album every year since. Inspired by artists like Wilco, Andrew Bird, and Jenny Lewis, he blends heartfelt storytelling with clever, layered arrangements. Since moving to Minneapolis in 2004, Samuel has balanced his life as a dedicated educator for Minneapolis Public Schools, with a deep commitment to music and activism.
Wilbur's songs are a call to action, offering both a rallying cry and a place of refuge. Whether performing solo or with a full band, Samuel’s live shows are intimate and electric, driven by the same passion he brings to the classroom.
His most recent album, Ivory Tower, is a global collaboration recorded across four continents featuring everything from Violin, Cello, Trumpet, and the grammy nominated pianist James Graham. The album also features standouts from Minnesota's vibrant local music community, including 5 songs with Kiss the Tiger's electric vocalist Meghan Kreidler , Grammy Nominated powerhouse producer Andy Thompson, vocals from Kiernan (First Avenue's Best New Band of 2024), and groove-rich bass lines from acclaimed bassist Ian Martin Allison. The album was Mixed and Mastered by the great Matt Patrick at the Library Recording Studio.
The album once again tackles the global climate crisis, the rise of the billionaire ruling class, and finding hope while the world always seems to be unraveling. Despite the heavy subject matter, the album is a therapeutic act of pure joy.
Press Quotes
- "By day, Samuel Wilbur is a social studies teacher; by night, he immerses himself in the dream of being a musician. Latest single ‘Good on Paper’ is an absorbing example of Wilbur’s fine songcraft and his ability to find a memorable melody and follow that dream." - Americana UK
- "Samuel Wilbur was always more than merely a singer/songwriter; he is a narrator, a sonic archivist, a storyteller, a philosopher of life, and a recorder of thoughts and sentiments of the everyday person, a creator of personal songs that we can all relate to." -The Big Takeover NYC
- "Wilbur certainly has a rich commercial-mainstream voice that isn’t necessarily sweetened as many of today’s voices are or valium induced in others. Lots to like here. Not bad for a full-time high school social studies teacher who moonlights as a rock singer. He gets a well-earned A." - Americana Highways
- "There is no doubt, once you get a taste of this album, you'll be wanting more." - Steel Notes Magazine
- "Samuel Wilbur puts life lessons into song in a way that’s clever, compassionate, and best of all catchy. It’s not didactic because he sings from the voice of an equal, not a superior. I left the show feeling like a member of the community that made me want to do better." - Mostly MN Music
- "Minneapolis native Samuel Wilbur conveys his messages subtly. He lulls the listener with sweet pop songs that unexpectedly deliver a lyrical bombshell or at least give them food for thought..."The Age”, the current album by multi-instrumentalist Samuel Wilbur, is a gentle and good-natured stab for a better world." - Tracks Magazine
IVORY TOWER OUT NOW! FEATURING:
About the Album
Fueled by the success of his 2024 Album, The Age, Samuel Wilbur channeled his environmental anxieties into a focused 13-track concept album. Ivory Tower reflects on life in modern day America, where the rise of the billionaire ruling class opens its doors to fascism, while invasive technology and ubiquitous AI accelerate the global climate crisis.
A sweeping and urgent indie rock opera, Ivory Tower is Samuel Wilbur’s most ambitious project to date.
The album's themes are prescient and impossible to ignore. This history teacher delivers powerful lessons through his music that are accessible, resonant, and bound to strike a chord with anyone who is paying attention.
SINGLES
|
Everything is Falling Apart is a tender apocalyptic love song that questions whether it’s ethical, or even sane, to dream of the future when everything around us feels like it’s unraveling. Set against a backdrop of apocalyptic anxiety: “Will this world survive to see another century? … Everything is falling apart, but I’m still in love with you.” The song expresses fears of climate and societal collapse but clings to love, like a lifeline in the storm. Listen Now!
|
|
Featured on 89.3 the Current as the Song of the day on October 14th. Once Again the World Let You Down features the powerhouse vocals from Meghan Kreidler of Kiss the Tiger. The Song is raw emotional outcry about systemic failure and moral fatigue, this anthem acknowledges the heartbreak of injustice—but clings to hope and forward motion. A song about disillusionment with authority and broken systems, this track explores the emotional aftermath of being failed by the world. It’s about trying to hold onto hope while everything good gets dismantled.
|
TRACK INFO
1. Everything is Falling Apart is a tender, apocalyptic love song that asks what it means to hold onto hope when everything else is unraveling.
2. Social Security Number is a darkly satirical song about digital surveillance, and the slow death of personal privacy. It's a paranoid anthem for anyone feeling watched in the age of algorithms and AI.
3. Stay Out is an introspective meditation on letting go in the age of informational overload. A cathartic scream and drill to the head to release and reclaim mental peace in a world that won’t stop demanding attention.
4. Ivory Tower - The title track takes aim at the illusion of leadership and inherited power. Ivory Tower exposes the emotional cost and frustration of watching the gatekeepers in power stall progress and maintain the status quo.
5. Miss the Feeling channels postmodern burnout and a numbness born from overstimulation and digital overload. A love letter to simpler times when life wasn't permeated with a constant base level of dread.
6. My Corner is a cry for solidarity in an increasingly isolating world. “My Corner” pleads for someone to stand up, fight back, and believe that a better world is possible.
7. Once Again the World Let You Down is an emotionally raw ballad about disillusionment, burnout, and betrayal. The song reckons with a world that twists truth and rewards the wrong people.
8. Hornet’s Nest explores capitalism through the eyes of a bee who is tired of the grind, realizing the Queen doesn’t care about them, and that "honey" might not be all it’s cracked up to be. This metaphor-rich song explores blind loyalty, hierarchical obedience, and the isolation that follows when people dare to leave the hive by breaking free from the collective control of capitalism.
9. I’m Not is a cinematic escape story filled with paranoia, disorientation, and the desire for truth over deception. The song reads like a psychological thriller, where the protagonist is both hunted and hiding in a world that doesn’t feel safe.
10. The Remainder reckons with mortality, acceptance, and finding peace in the impermanence of everything. It's better to live in the moment, even while the world is burning.
11. Tired is a burned out anthem about the emotional exhaustion of living in a world of endless crises, outrage, and inaction.
12. It Belongs to Me is a raw declaration of justice and ownership. It demands accountability from those in power, and calls out their refusal to act on problems they created. The system always has the power to inflict cruelty, but remains powerless to do anything that could improve people's lives.
13. Everything Repeats is the album’s stark searing closer. It critiques consumerism, environmental collapse, and cyclical destruction; asking whether we’ll ever truly stop before we destroy ourselves for good.
2. Social Security Number is a darkly satirical song about digital surveillance, and the slow death of personal privacy. It's a paranoid anthem for anyone feeling watched in the age of algorithms and AI.
3. Stay Out is an introspective meditation on letting go in the age of informational overload. A cathartic scream and drill to the head to release and reclaim mental peace in a world that won’t stop demanding attention.
4. Ivory Tower - The title track takes aim at the illusion of leadership and inherited power. Ivory Tower exposes the emotional cost and frustration of watching the gatekeepers in power stall progress and maintain the status quo.
5. Miss the Feeling channels postmodern burnout and a numbness born from overstimulation and digital overload. A love letter to simpler times when life wasn't permeated with a constant base level of dread.
6. My Corner is a cry for solidarity in an increasingly isolating world. “My Corner” pleads for someone to stand up, fight back, and believe that a better world is possible.
7. Once Again the World Let You Down is an emotionally raw ballad about disillusionment, burnout, and betrayal. The song reckons with a world that twists truth and rewards the wrong people.
8. Hornet’s Nest explores capitalism through the eyes of a bee who is tired of the grind, realizing the Queen doesn’t care about them, and that "honey" might not be all it’s cracked up to be. This metaphor-rich song explores blind loyalty, hierarchical obedience, and the isolation that follows when people dare to leave the hive by breaking free from the collective control of capitalism.
9. I’m Not is a cinematic escape story filled with paranoia, disorientation, and the desire for truth over deception. The song reads like a psychological thriller, where the protagonist is both hunted and hiding in a world that doesn’t feel safe.
10. The Remainder reckons with mortality, acceptance, and finding peace in the impermanence of everything. It's better to live in the moment, even while the world is burning.
11. Tired is a burned out anthem about the emotional exhaustion of living in a world of endless crises, outrage, and inaction.
12. It Belongs to Me is a raw declaration of justice and ownership. It demands accountability from those in power, and calls out their refusal to act on problems they created. The system always has the power to inflict cruelty, but remains powerless to do anything that could improve people's lives.
13. Everything Repeats is the album’s stark searing closer. It critiques consumerism, environmental collapse, and cyclical destruction; asking whether we’ll ever truly stop before we destroy ourselves for good.
PRESS PHOTOS
Discography
- "The Age" (2024)
- A blend of Indie Folk and Americana with an important message.
- Features Singles: Good on Paper, Karen, The Age, Take My Hand
- Featured on 89.3 The Current's United States of Americana show and the Local Show
- Over 60,000 Streams on Spotify
- "Tone Deaf" (2022)
- Acclaimed album featuring songs like "Found a Friend," "When The Time Comes," and "Blame."
- Featured on 89.3 The Current's United States of Americana show and the Local Show
- Album: "Diminishing Returns" (2021)
- A mesmerizing collection of introspective tracks that showcase Samuel's lyrical prowess and musical versatility.
- Album: "No Time Left" (2020)
- An ode to Industrial Rock of the late 90s. No Time Left features the hit single Bad Faith.
- Over 20,000 Streams on Spotify!
2024 Album "The Age"
|
|
VIDEOS
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ONE SHEET
| samuel_wilbur_one_sheet_download.pdf |
SHOWS
SOCIAL MEDIA
|
|
|