Lawrence Gowan was born in 1956 in Glasgow, Scotland, but grew up in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, specifically in the eastern part of the city of Toronto. According to Gowan himself, his high school academic performance was not exactly stellar, leading him to pursue a career in music, which he jokingly referred to as "Rockstar".
Gowan's early musical training took place at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, where he honed his skills in classical piano. After graduating in 1976, he spent five years playing with his local band "Rhinegold", before going on to play with cover band "FUNN" and as a keyboard player for Ronnie Hawkins.
In 1982, Gowan submitted a demo tape to CBS Records (Sony Music Canada),which led to him being signed to a contract. His self-titled debut album was released that same year, but it was his second album, "Strange Animal", released three years later, that brought him commercial success.
Throughout his career, Gowan has won numerous Canadian music awards and received critical acclaim from both critics and his peers. He has also made appearances in his own music videos, as well as in a 2005 music video cover of his hit single "Strange Animal" performed by Canadian hip-hop artist Maestro. Additionally, he has appeared on MTV's "Cribs" and VH1's "Behind The Music" shows.
Gowan's musical success continued when he joined the band Styx as lead singer in 1999, a position he still holds to this day.
