David Hodges

David Hall Hodges (born December 5, 1978) is an American songwriter and record producer from Little Rock, Arkansas.

He was a studio contributor to the rock band Evanescence from 1999 to 2002.

He has since had success co-writing and co-producing for various pop, pop rock and country artists, including Kelly Clarkson, Celine Dion, Daughtry, Backstreet Boys, Avril Lavigne, David Archuleta, Christina Aguilera, Carrie Underwood, Jessie James, 5 Seconds of Summer, Christina Perri, and Tim McGraw.

Hodges joined Evanescence in December 1999 and co-wrote on co-founders Amy Lee and Ben Moody's demo CD Origin (2000) and debut album, Fallen (2003).

Fallen's first single, "Bring Me to Life", went to No. 1 on multiple charts, including the Billboard Top 40, and catapulted Evanescence into an international spotlight.

Fallen was certified platinum within weeks of its release in March 2003 and has gone on to sell over 16 million copies worldwide.

Back in Little Rock, he started a band in 2003 called Trading Yesterday.

In 2004, Hodges took home two Grammy awards with Lee and Moody, for Best Hard Rock Performance and Best New Artist.

After the Evanescence album Fallen was completed, Hodges left the band.

The band, which consisted of Hodges (vocals, guitar and keyboard/piano), Colbert (drums) and Steven McMorran (bass), released a demo CD called The Beauty and the Tragedy on May 15, 2004.

Within weeks, they signed a record deal with Epic Records and moved to Los Angeles, California to record their major label album.

The album was finished during the first half of 2005 and the single "One Day" was released on the soundtrack to the movie Stealth.

In 2006, Trading Yesterday parted ways with Epic Records and the album, tentatively titled More Than This, was shelved.

In August 2007, after parting ways with Epic, Hodges and McMorran started a new band called The Age of Information with collaborators Josh Dunahoo and Will Hunt.

The band evolved from the acoustic sound of Trading Yesterday to something more electronic.

The EP Everything is Broken was released on September 11, 2007.

While busy working on his own music, Hodges was also writing and producing songs for various artists.

Hodges worked with artist Kelly Clarkson along with former Evanescence bandmate Ben Moody on songs from her album Breakaway ("Because of You" and "Addicted").

Clarkson's second album sold more than 12 million copies and Hodges' work was awarded the 2007 BMI Song of the Year.

"Because of You" went on to be covered by Reba McEntire & Clarkson for McEntire's duets album Reba: Duets.

Clarkson's version was a Billboard Top 40 No. 1, and Reba's duet version peaked at No. 2 on the Hot Country Songs, garnering Hodges BMI Pop and Country Awards respectively.

In 2007 he worked with Celine Dion ("This Time") and the Backstreet Boys ("Something That I Already Know").

In July 2008, it was announced that Hodges had been signed by Warner Bros. Records as a solo artist.

In 2008, Hodges had a hit as writer and producer for American Idol season seven runner up David Archuleta for his song "Crush."

The song reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Hodges also wrote the single "What About Now" on Daughtry's debut album, which sold over 5 million copies to date.

With Warner, The Rising (EP) was released digitally on August 11, 2009.

Hodges took home BMI pop awards for both "Crush" and "What About Now" in 2010.

Hodges also co-wrote "Open Up Your Eyes" and "Supernatural" with Daughtry for their second album Leave this Town.

That record went on to sell over a million copies.

After Reba McEntire's "Because of You" duet, Hodges' next step into country music was with Carrie Underwood when he co-wrote "What Can I Say" with her for her third album Play On, which went to No. 1 on the Country Billboard Charts and sold over 2 million copies.

Hodges also co-wrote gold certified pop hit "Wanted" for Jessie James, along with "Circadian," "Hard To Believe," and "Rapid Eye Movement" for David Cook's second record This Loud Morning.

In fall of 2010, Hodges released a new project with longtime friend John Campbell entitled Avox.

The album The Fragile World is a collection of symphonic and electronic instrumental tracks.

Additionally in 2010, Hodges wrote with Carrie Underwood and Hillary Lindsey, this time for the end title song in the latest Chronicles of Narnia film.

The song was called "There's a Place for Us," and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for best original song in a motion picture.

After six years, More Than This was independently released in September 2011.

In October 2011, Hodges released an album entitled Kings & Thieves with the band Arrows to Athens, composed of Hodges and guitarist Steven Solomon.

In May 2011, Christina Perri released her debut album Lovestrong.

Hodges helped produce and co-wrote many songs on the album, including singles "Arms" and "Distance" featuring Jason Mraz.