Belgian-Australian singer-songwriter

Gotye

Wouter André "Wally" De Backer is a Belgian-born Australian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His 2011 single "Somebody That I Used to Know" topped the Billboard Hot 100, as well as several international charts, and became the best-selling song of 2012. He has won five ARIA Awards and received a nomination for an MTV EMA for Best Asia and Pacific Act. At the 55th Annual Grammy Awards, the song won Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, while its parent album — Making Mirrors (2012) — won Best Alternative Music Album.

Born

1980

May 21

Died

Living

Era

1980s

Country

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About

Gotye, in brief

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Life timeline

Key dates

1980 Born

Also on May 21

What else happened on this day, through history

293 Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian appoint Galerius as Caesar to Diocletian, beginning the period of four rulers known as the Tetrarchy.
878 Syracuse, Sicily, is captured by the Muslim Aghlabids after a nine-month siege.
879 Pope John VIII gives blessings to Branimir of Croatia and to the Croatian people, considered to be international recognition of the Croatian state.
996 Sixteen-year-old Otto III is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.

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The world in 1980

When Gotye arrived

april 12 The Americo-Liberian government of Liberia is violently deposed.
april 12 Transbrasil Flight 303, a Boeing 727, crashes on approach to Hercílio Luz International Airport in Florianópolis, Brazil. Fifty-five out of the 58 people on board are killed.
april 12 Canadian runner and athlete, Terry Fox begins his Marathon of Hope Run in St. John's, NF
april 18 The Republic of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) comes into being, with Canaan Banana as the country's first President. The Zimbabwean dollar replaces the Rhodesian dollar as the official currency.

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Same-day contemporaries

Also born on May 21

Albrecht Dürer 1471–1528 German painter, engraver, and mathematician (born 1471) Elizabeth Fry 1780–1845 English prison reformer, philanthropist and Quaker (died 1845) Jamaal Magloire 1978– Canadian basketball player and coach John Dalton 1943–1844 English physicist, meteorologist, and chemist (born 1776) Jonathan Hyde 1948– Australian-English actor Joseph Fouché 1759– French lawyer and politician (died 1820) Lázaro Cárdenas 1895–1970 Mexican general, president (1934–1940) and father of Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas (died 1970) Manly Wade Wellman 1903–1986 American writer (born 1903) Mohanlal 1960– Indian actor

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Same-year contemporaries

Also born in 1980

Aaron Brown 1980–2024 American journalist and academic (born 1948) Anthony Minichiello 1980– Australian rugby league player Bijou Phillips 1980– American actress and model Bradley Wiggins 1980– English cyclist Byron Leftwich 1980– American football player and coach Clinton Toopi 1980– New Zealand rugby league player Cody Ross 1980– American baseball player Daniel MacPherson 1980– Australian actor and television host Daniel Sedin 1980– Swedish ice hockey player

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More to explore

Gotye's birthday May 21 Gotye's zodiac Gemini When Gotye arrived 1980