The arrival of a piano as a barter trade by his father marked the beginning of a musical career for the quirky and original musician Ben Folds, who was only nine at the time. He was an avid fan of Elton John and Billy Joel, singing and performing at a young age. Ben Folds is now a popular singer-songwriter, who plays among other instruments, the key-tar and the melodic. He is most notably a percussionist, and his style, as part of various bands, can be categorized as piano rock or rock.

As a high school student in North Carolina, Ben Folds played the piano, bass or drums for various bands. Later his associated acts would include Ben Folds Five, The Bens, Fear of Pop and Majosha. Folds' band Majosha was formed in the late eighties, with Millard Powers, a longtime friend. The band released a few self-produced records, and performed their first gig at Duke University's "Battle of the Bands" in 1988 and won the contest.

The victory at Duke University came as their big break and Majosha was asked to do gigs in many places. Their popularity grew with each gig. Shut Up and Listen to Majosha was recorded in 1989. It includes the songs "Emaline" and "Video" besides others from Party Night. Around this time their dance mix "Get That Bug" was released in Japan. Majosha's break up in 1990 would be the first of a series of break ups Ben Folds has outlasted.

Ben Folds Five, the new band came up with their self-titled album, which included their popular songs "Philosophy" and "Underground." This debut album was released in 1995 followed by Whatever and Ever Amen, which came out in 1997 and generated hits like "Brick," "Song for the Dumped," and "Battle of Who Could Care Less." In 1998 they put together a compilation of assorted pieces and named it Naked Baby Photos. The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner was released in 1999 and was rated #35 on the US music charts. It included the hit "Army." This was Ben Folds' last album with the band. He describes Ben Folds Five, his former band as "punk rock for sissies" - the lyrics are cynical in nature, having to do with depression and a conflicted self-image.

Ben Folds launched a solo career in the span between 1999 and 2008 when Ben Folds Five was reunited. During this time, Ben Folds released Rockin' the Suburbs (2001) followed by Songs for Silverman which came out in 2005, peaking at # 13 on the US charts. Way to Normal was released by Epic and reached #11 in the US. In 2008, Ben Folds Five made a well-received appearance after nearly a decade, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Memorial Hall. In this event, featured bands played entire albums live, as part of the MySpace "Front to Back" series. Ben Folds Five performed their final album The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner, much to the delight of the audience.