Long before Glen Hansard found himself on the Oscar®s stage, the Irish folk hero was attracting audiences on the streets of Dublin. Born in 1970 in Ireland’s capital, Hansard was already busking at age 13. By 20, he formed indie-rock band The Frames, which built up a large Irish following throughout the ‘90s and early 2000s. But it was a little indie film that could, 2007’s Once, that put him in the international spotlight. Hansard plays a fictionalized version of himself as Guy, a Dublin busker, who meets Girl, played by collaborator Markéta Irglová, with whom he recorded as The Swell Season. Their music fills the film with romance and heartache, and it earned them the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the yearning ballad “Falling Slowly.” Still, it took another half-decade for the troubadour to release his solo debut, 2012’s Rhythm and Repose, an album of fragile singer/songwriter confessions that strip his vulnerabilities down to their core. While his voice remains an indestructible force, Hansard keeps his sound fresh, trying on a little twang and soul on 2015’s Grammy-nominated Didn’t He Ramble, diving into murky electronic waters on 2019’s This Wild Willing, and working alongside Eddie Vedder on 2021’s Flag Day soundtrack.