Richard Melville Hall (September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, disc jockey, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the most important dance music figures of the early 1990s, helping bring dance music to a mainstream audience both in the United States and the United Kingdom".
After taking up guitar and piano at age nine, he played in several underground punk rock bands through the 1980s before turning to electronic dance music. In 1989, he moved to New York City and became a prolific figure as a DJ, producer and remixer. His 1991 single "Go" was his mainstream breakthrough, especially in Europe, where it peaked within the top ten of the charts in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Between 1992 and 1997 he scored eight top 10 hits on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart including "Move (You Make Me Feel So Good)", "Feeling So Real", and "James Bond Theme (Moby Re-Version)". Throughout the decade he also produced music under various pseudonyms, released the critically acclaimed Everything Is Wrong (1995) and composed music for films. His punk-oriented album Animal Rights (1996) alienated much of his fan base.
Moby found commercial and critical success with his fifth album Play (1999), which, after receiving little recognition, became an unexpected global hit in 2000 after each track was licensed to films, television shows, and commercials. It remains his highest selling album with 12 million copies sold. Its seventh single, "South Side", featuring Gwen Stefani, remains his only one to appear on the US Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 14. Moby followed Play with albums of varied styles including electronic, dance, rock, and downtempo music, starting with 18 (2002), Hotel (2005), and Last Night (2008). His later albums saw him explore ambient music, including the almost four-hour release (2016). Moby continues to record and release albums; his twenty-first studio album, Resound NYC, was released in May 2023.
In addition to his music career, Moby is known for his veganism and support for animal rights and humanitarian aid. He was the owner of Teany, a vegan cafe in Manhattan, and Little Pine, a vegan restaurant in Los Angeles, and organized the vegan music and food festival Circle V. He is the author of four books, including a collection of his photography and two memoirs: (2016) and Then It Fell Apart (2019).
Moby was raised by his mother, first in San Francisco from 1969 for a short period. He recalled being sexually abused by a staff member at his daycare during this time. This was followed by a move to Darien, Connecticut, living in a squat with "three or four other drug-addicted hippies, with bands playing in the basement." The two then moved to Stratford, Connecticut, for a brief time. His mother struggled to support her son, often relying on food stamps and government welfare. They occasionally stayed with Moby's grandparents in Darien, but the affluence of the Connecticut suburb made him feel poor and ashamed. Shortly before his mother's death in 1997, Moby learned from her that he has a half brother. His first job was a caddy at a golf course.
Moby took up music at the age of nine. He started on classical guitar and received piano lessons from his mother before studying jazz, music theory, and percussion. In 1983, he became the guitarist in a hardcore punk band, the Vatican Commandos, playing on their debut EP Hit Squad for God. Around this time he was the lead vocalist for Flipper for two days; Moby played bass for their reunion shows in the 2000s. Moby formed a post-punk group named AWOL around the time of his eighteenth birthday. He is credited on their only release, a self-titled EP, as Moby Hall.
In 1983, Moby graduated from Darien High School and started a philosophy degree at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut. Around this time he had found the instruments he had learned "sonically limiting" and moved to electronic music. He spun records at the campus radio station WHUS, which led to DJ work in local clubs and bars. Moby grew increasingly unhappy at university, however, and transferred to State University of New York at Purchase, studying philosophy and photography, to try and renew his interest in studying. He dropped out in April 1984 to pursue DJing and music full-time, which started his interest in electronic dance music. For two years he lived in Greenwich, Connecticut, where he DJ'd at The Cafe, an under-21 nightclub at the back of a church. In 1987, he started to send demos of his music to record labels in New York City; he failed to receive an offer, which led to a two-year period of "very fruitless labor". Around 1988, Moby moved into a semi-abandoned factory in Stamford, Connecticut, that had no bathroom or running water, but the free electricity supply allowed him to work on his music, using a 4-track recorder, synthesizer, and drum machine.
Moby cites the English band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) as "heroes", without whom he would never have begun making electronic music. His other formative influences include Nick Drake, Suicide, Silver Apples, Eric B. & Rakim, and Public Enemy.
By mid-1990, Moby had signed a deal as the sole artist of Instinct Records, an independent New York City-based dance label then still in its infancy. The three-man operation saw Moby answer incoming calls and make records in a studio he set up in the owner's lounge. To appear that Instinct had more artists, Moby's early singles were put out under several names such as Voodoo Child, Barracuda, Brainstorm, and UHF. The first, "Time's Up" as The Brotherhood, was co-written by Moby and vocalist Jimmy Mack. This was followed by "Mobility", his first single released as Moby, in November 1990, which sold an initial 2,000 copies. He then scored a breakthrough hit with a remix of "Go", originally a B-side to "Mobility" with an added sample of "Laura Palmer's Theme" by Angelo Badalamenti from the television series Twin Peaks. Released in March 1991, it peaked at No. 10 in the UK in October and earned him national exposure there with an appearance on Top of the Pops. Instinct capitalised on Moby's success with the late 1991 compilation Instinct Dance featuring tracks by Moby and his pseudonyms. The following year, Moby revealed that "Go" had earned him just $2,000 in royalties.
The success of "Go" led to increased demand for Moby to produce more music and to remix other artists' songs. He often arranged for the artist and himself to trade remixes as opposed to being paid for his work, which was the case for his mixes for Billy Corgan and Soundgarden. The increased mainstream exposure led Moby to request a release from his contract with Instinct for a bigger label. Instinct refused, so Moby retaliated by holding out on new material. However, Instinct continued to put out records, mostly from demos, without his consent having previously copied many of his tapes and had the master rights. This was the case for Moby's debut album, Moby, released in July 1992 and formed mostly of previously unreleased demos that Moby considered old and unrepresentative of the musical direction he had taken since. Nonetheless, he claimed Instinct had insisted and had the legal right to put it out. It was re-titled The Story So Far and presented with a different track listing for its UK release. Four singles were released: "Go", "Drop a Beat", "Next Is the E", and a double A-side of "I Feel It" with "Thousand". The latter was recognised by Guinness World Records as the fastest tempo in a recorded song at 1,015 beats-per-minute.
In 1992, Moby completed his first US tour as the opening act for the Shamen. In mid-1992, Moby estimated that he had earned between $8,000 to $11,000 a year for the past six years. At the 1992 Mixmag awards, he smashed his keyboard after his set. After his second nationwide tour, this time with the Prodigy and Richie Hawtin, in early 1993, a second compilation of Moby's work for Instinct followed named Early Underground. His second and final album on Instinct, Ambient, was released in August 1993. It is a collection of mostly ambient techno instrumentals of a more experimental style. By this time Instinct had agreed to release Moby who then took legal action, claiming that the label demanded "a ridiculous amount of money" that he did not have to leave. He also expressed disagreements over the way Instinct had packaged and handled his music. Moby was eventually released after he paid the label $10,000.
Moby's contract with Elektra allowed the opportunity to make his third full-length album, which was underway in 1994. He chose to include a variety of musical styles on the album that he either liked or had been influenced by, including electronic dance, ambient, rock, and industrial music. Everything Is Wrong was released in March 1995 to critical praise; Spin magazine named it Album of the Year and some commentators considered it to be an album ahead of its time as it failed to crack the Billboard 200 or have an impact on the dance charts. In the UK, the album reached No. 25 and the singles "Hymn" and "Feeling So Real" went to Nos. 31 and 30, respectively. Elektra took advantage of its diverse sound by distributing tracks of the same style to corresponding radio stations nationwide. Early copies put out in the UK and Germany included a bonus CD of ambient music entitled Underwater. Moby toured the album with some headline spots on the second stage at the 1995 Lollapalooza festival. He followed it with a double remix album, Everything Is Wrong—Mixed and Remixed.
The success of Everything Is Wrong had Moby reach a new peak in critical acclaim. The Los Angeles Times thought the 29-year-old Moby was "poised for greatness ... to make that big crossover" from a respected underground artist to a mainstream dance and rock musician. Billboard declared him "King of techno" and Spin named him "the closest techno comes to a complete artist." In 1995, Moby was approached by Courtney Love to produce the next Hole album, but he declined. He directed the music video for "Young Man's Stride" by Mercury Rev. In 1995 and 1996, Moby put out a number of "self-indulgent dance" singles under the pseudonyms Lopez and DJ Cake on Trophy Records, his own Mute imprint, so he could release material that he was interested in without concern for its commercial impact. In 1996, Moby contributed "Republican Party" to the AIDS benefit album produced by the Red Hot Organization and released his second Voodoo Child album, The End of Everything.
While touring Everything Is Wrong, Moby had grown bored with the electronic scene and felt the press had failed to understand his records and take them seriously. This marked a major stylistic change for his next album, Animal Rights, combining guitar-driven rock songs with Moby on lead vocals and softer ambient tracks. Upon completing the album Moby said that it was "weird, long, self-indulgent and difficult". Its lead single is a cover version of "That's When I Reach for My Revolver" by post-punk group Mission of Burma. Animal Rights was released in September 1996 in the UK, where it peaked at No. 38, and in February 1997 in the US. It was poorly received by his dance fan base who felt Moby had abandoned them, creating doubts as to what kind of artist Moby really was. Moby pointed out that he had not abandoned his electronic music completely and had worked on dance and house mixes and film scores while making Animal Rights.
After Animal Rights, Moby's manager recalled: "We found ourselves struggling for even the slightest bit of recognition. He became a has-been in the eyes of a lot of people in the industry". Despite the hit in sales and critical response, Moby promoted the album with a European tour with Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden, and headlined the Big Top tour with other dance and electronic DJs. He returned to the genre after liking the house music that a friend and DJ had played at a party. In October 1997, Moby displayed his range of music styles with the release of I Like to Score, a compilation of his film soundtrack work with some re-recorded tracks. Among them are updated version of the "James Bond Theme" used for Tomorrow Never Dies, music used in Scream, and a cover of "New Dawn Fades" by Joy Division, an instrumental version of which appeared in Heat. Late 1997 saw Moby start his first US tour in two years.
In 1998, Elektra granted Moby's request to be released from his deal on the condition that he paid to leave, which amounted to "quite a lot". He felt Elektra did little to capitalise on the critical success of Everything Is Wrong, and that it was only interested in radio friendly hits. Left without an American distributor, his only deal remained with the UK-based Mute Records. Moby considered himself an artist that did not belong to a major label as his music did not fit with the genres that they promoted.
In 2000, Moby contributed "Flower" to Gone in 60 Seconds. He co-wrote "Is It Any Wonder" with Sophie Ellis-Bextor for her debut solo album, Read My Lips. Moby: Play - The DVD, released in 2001, features the music videos produced for the album, live performances, and other bonus features. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video. In 2001, Moby founded the which toured the US and Canada across 17 shows that summer with a range of artists. The set included Outkast, New Order, Incubus, Nelly Furtado, and Paul Oakenfold, with Moby headlining.
Moby started on the follow-up to Play in late 2000. Prior to working on tracks for 18, he got friends to search for records with vocals that he could use and make samples from and went on to write over 140 songs for the album. At the same time, Moby familiarised himself with the ProTools software and made 18 with it. Released in May 2002, 18 went to No. 1 in the UK and eleven other countries, and No. 4 in the US. It went on to sell over four million copies worldwide. Moby toured extensively for both Play and 18, playing over 500 shows in the next four years. The tour included the Area Festival in the summer of 2002, featuring a line-up of Moby, David Bowie, Blue Man Group, Busta Rhymes, and Carl Cox. In December 2002, during a tour stop at Paradise Rock Club in Boston, Moby was punched in the face and sprayed with mace by two or three assailants while signing autographs outside the venue. The incident left him with multiple bruises and cuts.
In February 2002, Moby performed at the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics. That month he hosted the half-hour MTV series Señor Moby's House of Music, presenting a selection of electronic and dance music videos. His song "Extreme Ways" was used in all five of the Bourne films, from 2002 to 2016. Moby said that after it was used for the first, the producers originally sought a different artist for the second but they had too little time to secure someone, leading them to pick "Extreme Ways" for the entire series. In 2002, rapper Eminem mocked Moby in his song "Without Me" and its music video, dressing up like him and calling him a "thirty-six-year-old baldheaded fag" and his techno music outdated. Eminem had also shot a mock figure of Moby on stage. Moby put the attack down to Eminem having "this unrequited crush on me."
In 2003, Moby headlined the Glastonbury Festival on the final day. He co-wrote and produced "Early Mornin'" for Britney Spears' album In the Zone released that year. Moby returned to his dance and Rave music roots with the release of Baby Monkey, the third album under his Voodoo Child moniker, in 2004. Later that year, he collaborated with Public Enemy on "Make Love Fuck War", a protest song against the Iraq War.
In 2006, he accepted an offer to score the soundtrack for Richard Kelly's 2007 movie Southland Tales, because he was a fan of Kelly's previous film, Donnie Darko. In 2007, Moby also started a rock band, The Little Death with his friends Laura Dawn, Daron Murphy, and Aaron A. Brooks. Following the dissolution of V2 Records in 2007, Moby signed a new deal with Mute Records to handle his American distribution. In 2007 Moby produced and performed on a remake of "The Bulrushes" by The Bongos that appeared on the special anniversary edition of the group's debut album Drums Along the Hudson, on Cooking Vinyl Records. From 2007 to 2008 he ran a series of New York club events titled "Degenerates".
In 2008, Moby released Last Night, an electronic dance album inspired by a night out in his New York City neighborhood. The album was recorded in Moby's home studio and features various guest vocalists, including Wendy Starland, MC Grandmaster Caz, Sylvia of Kudu, MC Aynzli, and the Nigerian 419 Squad. The singles from Last Night include "Alice" and "Disco Lies".
Moby wished for the follow-up to Last Night to be emotional, personal, and melodic. He felt creatively inspired by a David Lynch speech at the BAFTA Award ceremony in the UK which prompted him to write new material that he liked with little regard to its mainstream commercial success. He decided against recording in a professional studio as he wanted to record the entire album at home, and chose to have the album mixed using analogue equipment. Wait for Me was released on June 30, 2009. Moby and Lynch discussed the recording process of Wait for Me on Lynch's online channel, David Lynch Foundation Television Beta. The video to the first single, "Shot in the Back of the Head", offered as a free download, was directed by Lynch.
Moby held a user-generated content competition to have fans create a video for "Wait for Me", the last single from the album, which was to be used as the official video. The winning entry was written and directed by Nimrod Shapira of Israel, and portrays the story of a girl who decides to invite Moby into her life. She attempts to do so by using a book called How to Summon Moby, A Guide for Dummies, putting herself through bizarre and comical steps, each is a tribute to a different Moby video. The single was released in May 2010.
The Wait for Me tour featured a full band. Moby raised over $75,000 from three shows in California to help those affected by domestic violence after funding for the state's domestic violence program had been cut. The tour also saw Moby headline the Falls Festival in Australia and various Sunset Sounds festivals. An ambient version Wait for Me was released in late 2009 as , which Moby did not produce.
In 2010, Moby enlisted vocalist Phil Costello as a songwriting partner for a new heavy metal band, Diamondsnake. After writing 13 songs, they recruited guitarist Dave Hill and a drummer named Tomato to complete the line-up. They recorded their self-titled debut album in one day and released it for free on their website. It was promoted with a series of gigs in New York City and Los Angeles. Moby contributed four songs to the soundtrack of The Next Three Days, including the single "Mistake".
Moby toured worldwide throughout 2013, completing acoustic and DJ sets at various concerts and festivals. His DJ set at Coachella was produced in collaboration with NASA with various images from space projected onto screens during the performance. On Record Store Day in 2013, Moby released a 7-inch record, The Lonely Night, featuring Screaming Trees vocalist Mark Lanegan. The track was subsequently released as a download with remixes by Moby, Photek, Gregor Tresher, and Freescha.
In October 2013, Moby released Innocents. He had worked on the album for the previous 18 months and hired Spike Stent to produce it. Moby used several guest vocalists on the album, and picked Neil Young and "Broken English" by Marianne Faithfull as the biggest influences to the musical style on the album. As with Destroyed, the photographs used for the artwork were all shot by Moby. The first single from the album was "A Case for Shame", followed by "The Perfect Life", which featured Wayne Coyne. A casting call for its video asked "for obese Speedo-sporting bikers, nude rollerskating ghosts, and an S&M gimp proficient in rhythmic gymnastics". Moby promoted the album with three shows at the Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, following his decision to undergo little touring from 2014. He wrote: "Pretty much all I want to do in life is stay home and make music. So, thus: a 3 date world tour."
Six of Moby's songs are feature in Charlie Countryman (2013). His music set the tone to Cathedrals of Culture (2014), a 3D documentary film about the soul of buildings, directed by Wim Wenders. In December 2014, Moby performed three shows of ambient music at the Masonic Lodge in Hollywood Forever Cemetery to support the release of . The performances were accompanied by visuals created by himself and with David Lynch.
Moby announced his fifteenth studio album, Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt, in December 2017. The announcement coincided with the release of the first single, "Like a Motherless Child". In contrast to the politically inspired and punk nature of the two Void Pacific Choir records, the album explores themes of spirituality, individuality, and humanity. The album was released on March 2, 2018. The second single, "Mere Anarchy", was described by Moby as "post apocalypse, people are gone, and my friend Julie and I are time traveling aliens visiting the empty Earth." "This Wild Darkness" was the third single, released in February 2018. Moby described the song as "an existential dialog between me and the gospel choir: me talking about my confusion, the choir answering with longing and hope." Moby promoted the album with three live shows in March 2018 with a full band, one at The Echo in Los Angeles and two at Rough Trade in New York City. All profits from the album and gigs were donated to animal rights organizations.
Later in 2024, "This Wild Darkness" would go on to be featured in the critically acclaimed .
In 2018, Moby was a guest performer on "A$AP Forever" by American rapper A$AP Rocky which samples "Porcelain". This resulted in Moby's second ever appearance on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, having previously charted for "Southside", 17 years prior. Moby contributed several songs to the comedy Half Magic (2018) directed by Heather Graham.
In March 2019, Moby released a follow-up to his first long ambient album, Long Ambients 2.
In January 2020, Moby announced that his new studio album All Visible Objects will be released on May 15. The first single, "Power is Taken" featuring D. H. Peligro, was released on the same day as the announcement. All profits from the album will be given to charity.
In December 2020, Moby released another ambient album, Live Ambients – Improvised Recordings Vol. 1. It features tracks recorded under three conditions that he set himself: improvise with nothing written beforehand, no editing of the pieces after recording, and that every part of the process was to be "calming". The album was released on digital streaming platforms, followed by videos of Moby performing each track on December 30 on his YouTube channel.
Moby's next album, Reprise, was also released that month on Deutsche Grammophon. It features orchestral versions of his greatest hits with multiple guest artists. The album charted in 16 countries and includes vocals by Gregory Porter, Kris Kristofferson, Jim James and more. In May 2022, Moby released Reprise Remixes, featuring remixes of tracks from the Reprise from various artists, including Topic, Anfisa Letyago, Planningtorock, and Biscuits.
On June 1, 2022, Moby launched his new record label, Always Centered at Night. He established it to sign "emerging and fascinating variety of singers to join with me in making music they might not have been able to make elsewhere." The first single, "Medusa", features Grammy nominated singer Aynzli Jones.
On January 1, 2023, Moby released a two-and-a-half-hour ambient album Ambient 23. It was made almost exclusively with dated drum machines and synthesizers, with his "early ambient heroes" as sources of inspiration, including Brian Eno and Jean-Michel Jarre.
On June 14, 2024, Moby released A lways Centered At Night . Featuring vocals from several artists including Brie O'Banion on the first single released on music platforms, "We're Going Wrong", serpentwithfeet, returning to the album Lady Blackbird on the second single "Dark Days", Benjamin Zephaniah on the third single "Where Is Your Pride?", Gaidaa on "Transit", Danae, J.P. Bimeni, Raquel Rodriguez, Aynzli Jones, Akemi Fox, Choklate on the fourth single "Sweet Moon", India Carney on the fifth and final single, "Precious Mind", and Jose James. Moby released the music videos for both "Transit" and "Where is your Pride?" on YouTube in June shortly after the album released. Rolling Stone praised the album on Moby for his "creativity knows no boundaries". Moby later release a complimentary remix album in mid September titled "always centered at night (quiet home: remixes dj mix)". Fans would go on to say the original album is "like a sequel" to Moby's smash hit "Play" released in 1999 going on to be his most recognized album.
He has performed two duets with the French singer Mylène Farmer ("Slipping Away (Crier la vie)" in 2006 and "Looking for My Name" in 2008) and produced seven songs on her eighth album, Bleu Noir, released on December 6, 2010 and two songs on her twelfth album L'Emprise, released on November 25, 2022 . She also sang the vocals to the rework of the song "Hyenas" present on the Resound NYC album.
In 1992 he contributed vocals to song "Curse" on Recoil's "Bloodline" (Alan Wilder's solo project, he was Depeche Mode member at time of that recording). Moby arguably later used this inspiration for his breakthrough 1999 album, Play, for which he used several old field recordings by Alan Lomax, much as Wilder had used a 1937 recording of Bukka White's "Shake 'Em On Down".
In 2013, Moby was responsible for the soundtrack of the documentary The Crash Reel, who tells the story of snowboarder Kevin Pearce.
On October 16, 2015, Jean Michel Jarre released his compilation album , which included the track "Suns have gone" co-produced by Jarre and Moby.
On September 24, 2016, Moby announced the release of an album titled These Systems Are Failing, released under the name Moby & Void Pacific Choir. The followed the release of two singles from Moby & The Void Pacific Choir in 2015, "Almost Loved" & "The Light Is Clear In My Eyes".
Moby was one of the first musicians to have an episode on Netflix's new music documentary series titled Once In a Lifetime Sessions; where he records, discusses, and performs his music.
Moby Doc, a Documentary film about the artist's life was released on May 28, 2021.
His documentary Punk Rock Vegan Movie was released in February 2023.
In January 2023, Little Walnut released its second documentary feature directed by Moby himself, " Punk Rock Vegan Movie," which examines the intersection of punk rock music and animal activism. Moby released the film for free on YouTube. "Punk Rock Vegan Movie" premiered as the opening night film at the prestigious Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, ultimately earning awards at the Awareness Festival and Santa Monica Film Festival.
The company has given funding and production assistance to independent documentary features such as “Meat The Future” directed by Liz Marshall, “Slay” directed by Rebecca Capelli, and “ Rowdy Girl” directed by Jason Goldman. They also helped produce the short film “ Super Cow” by director/writer Dustin Brown. Little Walnut recently invested in the scripted feature film “ Eternal Return” starring Kit Harington and Naomi Scott and directed by Yaniv Raz. In addition, Little Walnut has produced several music videos, including “Natural Blues” (featuring Gregory Porter and Amythyst Kiah), " Walk with Me" (featuring Lady Blackbird), and the award-winning animated video "Are You Lost in the World Like Me?" directed by Steve Cutts.
Little Walnut produces Moby's " Moby Pod" podcast, which premiered in late 2022. The podcast focuses on several topics: animal rights, climate change, creative expression, and mental health. It has featured guests as diverse as Hunter Biden (in one of his rare interviews), Ed Begley Jr., Lisa Edelstein, Dan Buettner, Peter Kalmus, Steve-O, and Joe Manganiello.
Little Walnut is currently in post-production on their first scripted feature, “ Tecie,” penned by Moby, directed by Mark Webber, and produced by Hicks and Teresa Palmer. The film is based on the activist culture of the Los Angeles animal rights community and is set to star Sarah Jeffery, Mena Massoud, and others.
In November 2015, Moby opened the vegan restaurant Little Pine in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles. The restaurant served organic, vegan, Mediterranean-inspired dishes and had a retail section with art and books, curated by Moby himself. All profits were donated to animal welfare organizations. In May 2016, Moby estimated the year's donations at $250,000. In December 2019, Moby launched the Little Pine lifestyle range of products and merchandise, with all profits donated to six charities. Little Pine closed permanently in December 2022.
On August 23, 2016, Moby announced the inaugural Circle V Festival along with the official video for "Don't Leave Me", by Moby & the Void Pacific Choir. The event took place at LA's Fonda Theatre and featured Blaqk Audio & Cold Cave on the bill, amongs others, as well as talks and vegan food stalls. Moby described Circle V as "the coming together of my life's work, animal rights and music. I couldn't be more excited about this event and am so proud to be head-lining."
The second Circle V event took place on November 18, this time at the Regent Theatre in Los Angeles. Moby headlined the event for the second year, with artists Waka Flocka Flame, Dreamcar, and Raury featuring on the bill.
In June 2013, Moby and numerous other celebrities appeared in a video showing support for Chelsea Manning.
Moby identifies himself as heterosexual and cisgender; in a 2018 interview with The Guardian, he claims to have felt "disappointed" to be straight. He does date, but has stated that he feels more comfortable alone than in a relationship. In 2016 he was in a relationship, his first in ten years, that spanned at least eight months. He has no children.
In 2019, in his book Then It Fell Apart, he claimed to have had a brief relationship with actress Natalie Portman in the late 1990s. In response, Portman denied the story and called Moby's account "disturbing" (she was 18 at the time, while he was 33), with Portman further describing their interactions as "a much older man being creepy with me". He later apologized to Portman, saying: "I accept that given the dynamic of our almost 14 year age difference I absolutely should've acted more responsibly and respectfully."
Moby practices meditation and has explored different types, including transcendental, Mettā, and Vipassanā.
In March 2016, Moby supported the social media campaign #TurnYourNoseUp to end factory farming in association with the nonprofit organization Farms Not Factories..
In 2019, Moby had "Vegan for life" tattooed on his neck by his friend, tattoo artist Kat Von D. That November, he had "Animal rights" tattooed on his arms to commemorate the 32nd anniversary of being a vegan. He also had "VX" tattooed next to his right eye, the "V" standing for vegan and the "X" for straight edge, referencing his sobriety.
In February 2023 he released Punk Rock Vegan Movie, his documentary about the relationship between the worlds of punk rock and animal rights. He says every time he visits San Francisco, he stops at Rainbow Grocery given his stance on "ethical eating."
In May 2024 he announced collaboration on a new film project with director Mark Webber.
In the liner notes of Animal Rights (1996), Moby wrote: "I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a Christian in the conventional sense of the word, where I go to church or believe in cultural Christianity, but I really do love Christ and recognize him in whatever capacity as I can understand it as God. One of my problems with the church and conventional Christianity is it seems like their focus doesn't have much to do with the teachings of Christ, but rather with their own social agenda". In 2014, Moby pointed out that if he needed to label himself, it would be as a "Taoism–Christian–agnostic quantum mechanic." In 2019, Moby said that he is not a Christian, "but my life is geared towards God ... I have no idea who or what God might be."
Moby is a member of the board of directors of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function (IMNF), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing scientific inquiry into music and the brain and to developing clinical treatments to benefit people of all ages. He has also performed on various benefit concerts to help increase awareness for music therapy and raise funds for the institute. In 2004, he was honored with the IMNF's Music Has Power Award for his advocacy of music therapy and for his dedication and support to its recording studio program.
He is an advocate of net neutrality and testified before a United States House of Representatives committee debating the issue in 2006.
In 2007, Moby launched MobyGratis.com, a website of unlicensed music for filmmakers and film students to use in any independent, non-commercial, or non-profit film, video, or short. If a film is commercially successful, all revenue from commercial licence fees granted via Moby Gratis is donated to Humane Society of the United States.
In 2008, he participated in Songs for Tibet, an album to support Tibet and the Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso. In a 2021 interview, he discussed the experience and called the Dalai Lama "a wonderful inspired and inspiring man".
In April 2009, Moby spoke about his personal experiences of Transcendental Meditation at the benefit concert Change Begins Within of the David Lynch Foundation in New York City. In April 2015, Moby performed "Go" at the evening of a David Lynch tribute event, hosted at the Theatre at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, which highlighted the work of the David Lynch Foundation and raised funds to teach Transcendental Meditation to local youth.
In April 2018, Moby auctioned more than 100 pieces of musical equipment via Reverb.com to raise funds for the nonprofit organization Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, thinking it was better to sell it for a good cause rather than keep it in storage. Moby held a second sale for the organization in June 2018 consisting of his personal record collection, including records that he used for DJ sets in his early career and his personal copies of his albums. A third was held in October 2018 that included the sale of almost 200 analog drum machines, 100 instruments, and his entire vinyl collection.
In 2018, Moby participated in Al Gore's 24-hour broadcast on climate change and other environmental issues.
Moby is an advocate for Best Friends; he was part of the No-Kill Los Angeles (NKLA) launch celebration and directed a lyric video for his song "Almost Home" that features dogs and cats from the Best Friends Pet Adoption and Spay/Neuter Center in Mission Hills, California.
In 2014, Moby began writing an autobiography covering his life and career from his move to New York City in the late 1980s to the recording of Play in 1999. He enjoyed the experience, and wrote approximately 300,000 words before cutting it by half to reach a rough edit of the book. was released on May 17, 2016, by Penguin Press. Moby put out the compilation album Music from Porcelain to coincide the book's release, featuring his own tracks and a mixtape of tracks by other artists.
His second memoir, Then It Fell Apart, was released on May 2, 2019, and covers his life and career from 1999 to 2009.
In September 2021, Moby published The Little Pine Cookbook, featuring vegan recipes developed from his time owning his restaurant.
Career
1989–1993: Signing with Instinct, "Go", and breakthrough
1993–1998: Signing with Elektra, Everything Is Wrong, and Animal Rights
1999–2004: Play, worldwide success, and 18
2004–2010: Hotel, Last Night, and Wait for Me
2010–2015: Destroyed and Innocents
2016–present: Recent albums and documentary
Collaborations
TV work
Little Walnut
Business ventures
Personal life
Veganism and animal rights
Drug use
Spirituality and faith
Charity
Photography
Books
Politics
Discography
Awards
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! scope="row" rowspan=8|MTV Europe Music Awards
| 1995
| rowspan=2|Best Dance
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| rowspan=3 | 2000
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| rowspan=3|
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| "Natural Blues"
| Best Video
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| Play
| Best Album
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| rowspan=2 | 2002
| rowspan=5|Himself
| Web Awards
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| rowspan=2|
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| rowspan=2|Best Dance
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| 2003
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| 2005
| Best Male
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!scope="row"|MTV Russian Music Awards
|2005
| Best International Act
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!scope="row" rowspan=3|MTV Video Music Awards
| 2000
| "Natural Blues"
| rowspan=2|Best Male Video
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| 2001
| "South Side"
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| 2002
| rowspan=2|"We Are All Made of Stars"
| Best Cinematography
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!scope="row"| MTV VMAJ
| 2003
| Best Dance Video
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!scope="row" rowspan=9|MVPA Awards
| 2000
| "Run On"
| Electronic Video of the Year
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| rowspan=4|2001
| rowspan=3|"South Side"
| Pop Video of the Year
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| rowspan=4|
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| Best Colorist/Telecine
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| Best Hair in a Video
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| "Porcelain"
| Alternative Video of the Year
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| rowspan="2" | 2003
| rowspan="2" | "In This World"
| Best Directional Debut
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| rowspan=2|
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| rowspan=2|Best Electronic Video
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| rowspan="2" | 2007
| rowspan="2" | "New York, New York"
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| Best Choreography
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! scope="row" rowspan=4|Music Television Awards
| rowspan=3|2000
| rowspan=2|Himself
| Best Male
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| rowspan=3|
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| Best Dance
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|-
| "Natural Blues"
| Best Video
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| 2008
| rowspan=2|Himself
| Best Dance
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!scope="row" rowspan=3 | My VH1 Music Awards
| rowspan=3|2001
| Best Male
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| rowspan="2" | "South Side"
| Best Collaboration
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| rowspan=2|
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| Favorite Video
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! scope="row" rowspan=4|NME Awards
| rowspan=2|2000
| rowspan=5|Himself
| Best Solo Artist
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| rowspan=2|
|-
| rowspan=2|Best Dance Act
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| rowspan=2|2001
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| rowspan=2|
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| Best Live Act
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|-
!scope="row" rowspan=3|NRJ Music Awards
| rowspan=2|2001
| International Male Artist of the Year
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| Play
| International Album of the Year
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| 2007
| Himself (with Mylene Farmer)
| Francophone Duo/Group of the Year
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!scope="row" rowspan=1|Online Music Awards
| 1999
| rowspan=3|Himself
| Best Electronic Fansite
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!scope="row" rowspan=2|Q Awards
| 2000
| Best Live Act
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| 2002
| Best Producer
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!scope="row"|TMF Awards
| 2000
| Play
| Best Album International
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|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Teen Choice Awards
| 2001
| "South Side"
| Choice Dance Track
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| 2002
| rowspan=2|Himself
| Choice Male Artist
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!scope="row"|Top of the Pops Awards
| 2002
| Best Dance Act
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|-
!scope="row" rowspan="3"|UK Music Video Awards
| rowspan=2|2018
| rowspan="2"| "ASAP Forever" (with ASAP Rocky)
| Best Urban Video - International
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| rowspan=2|
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| Best Colour Grading in a Video
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| 2020
| rowspan=1|"My Only Love"
| rowspan=1|Best Animation
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!scope="row"|VH1/Vogue Fashion Awards
| rowspan=4|2000
| "Natural Blues"
| Visionary Video
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! scope="row" rowspan=3|VIVA Germany
| "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?"
| Best International Video
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| rowspan=3|
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| rowspan=3|Himself
| Best Live Act
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| Viva Zwei Audience Award
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!scope="row"| Veggie Awards
| 2015
| Person of the Year
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!scope="row"|Webby Awards
| 2017
| "Are You Lost in the World Like Me?"
| Animation
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!scope="row" rowspan=14|Žebřík Music Awards
| rowspan=4|1999
| Himself
| Best International DJ
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| rowspan=13|
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| Play
| Best International Album
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| "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?"
| Best International Song
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| "Bodyrock"
| Best International Video
|
|-
| rowspan=4|2000
| "Porcelain"
| Best International Song
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|-
| rowspan=5|Himself
| Best International Instrumentalist
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| Best International Personality
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| rowspan=3|Best International DJ
|
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| 2001
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| rowspan=3|2002
|
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| 18
| Best International Album
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| "In This World"
| Best International Song
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| 2003
| Himself
| Best International DJ
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| 2005
| Hotel
| Best International Album
|
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See also
Sources
External links
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/a> – an online service to freely license Moby's music
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/a>
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