Colin Meloy is a musician and writer from Montana who became famous as the lead singer and main songwriter for the band The Decemberists. He was born in Helena, Montana, on October 5, 1974, and grew up there in a family that encouraged reading, music, and creativity.

After high school, Meloy first went to the University of Oregon, but he missed Montana and moved back to study creative writing at the University of Montana in Missoula. While in Missoula, he formed college bands such as Happy Cactus and then Tarkio, playing indie and folk-style music around town and across the state.

In his songs, Meloy sometimes mentions real places in Montana. For example, "The Apology Song" includes the Orange Street Food Farm grocery store and Frenchtown Pond, both located near Missoula. He has said in interviews that he loved Montana's mountains and open spaces, even though he later moved away to find more chances to play music.

After graduating, Meloy moved to Portland, Oregon, where he started The Decemberists with other musicians he met there. The band has released many albums and toured around the world, but Meloy is still proudly known as a musician who got his start writing stories and playing music in Montana.

Meloy also brought his love of storytelling to children's literature as the author of the Wildwood trilogy: Wildwood, Under Wildwood, and Wildwood Imperium. Illustrated by his wife, artist Carson Ellis, the books tell a fantasy adventure set in a mysterious forest near Portland. The first book also became the basis for LAIKA's stop-motion animated motion picture Wildwood, directed by Travis Knight.