Dustin Lee is an American singer-songwriter hailing from Fort Madison, Iowa. From there he moved to Milwaukee where he began his recording career and started touring throughout Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa. Currently living in Minneapolis, he is in the process of writing and recording his fourth studio album.
Dustin’s latest material draws from his experiences extensively touring across the Midwest. After moving to the Twin Cities in 2009 Dustin began sharing his music in coffee shops, clubs and concert halls becoming a very familiar name on the local and regional scene. During this time he has met a number of talented musicians and has assembled a group of players who compliment and add layers to the stories and feelings of each song. Life in the Hawkeye state inspired the 2010 Indian Summer Music Awards’ best Folk song, “On My Way Back Home,” from the album of the same name. The Dakota Jazz Club reported about a recent live performance, "Dustin Lee is a true Midwesterner who sings with vivid honesty and heart".
"Lee's mostly acoustic songs come straight from the heartland and are simple, honest and melodic, his warm and compelling voice sounding immediately familiar," is what Michael Popke of Express Milwaukee wrote in his review of This Is How The Story Goes. Writer David Pichaske, the author of Song of the North Country: A Midwest Framework to the Songs of Bob Dylan, said of Lee, "Dustin Lee is a familiar song that takes us home again, back to the place where it all began. He’s the sixties folk revival come to the Midwest half a century on."
While with the band or on the road as a solo performer, Dustin has learned much about the character and history that make the places and people of the heartland great. Dustin’s new material reflects these lessons and spirit with a passion and honesty that can be felt in every chord strummed and every note sung. Growing up along the Mississippi River as the son of a railroad conductor, there is no doubt that what you hear is genuine and from the heart. This music is in his blood, and when it comes to being a true singer-songwriter, that’s where it starts.