Wouter André "Wally" De Backer (known professionally as Gotye; born 21 May 1980) is a Belgian-born Australian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His 2011 single "Somebody That I Used to Know" (featuring Kimbra) 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.
Gotye has released three studio albums independently and one album featuring remixes of tracks from his first two albums. He is a founding member of the Melbourne indie-pop trio the Basics, who have independently released five studio albums and numerous other titles since 2002.
Early life and education
Born in Belgium, De Backer immigrated to Australia with his family at the age of two. They first resided in Sydney before settling in Montmorency, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria. His mother nicknamed him "Gotye", based on "Gauthier", the French equivalent of his Flemish first name. His parents chose to use the English equivalent of his name, Walter, when enrolling him in school.
