Chris Brokaw was born on August 1, 1964, in New York City. After college, he moved to Boston, Massachusetts, relocating to Seattle, Washington in 2011.

He began recording and performing with Codeine (on drums & guitar) in 1990. In 1992, he left that band to pursue songwriting, singing and guitar playing with Come. In addition to his solo recordings, he has performed with a lot of artists (as a member or a guest) such as The Willard Grant Conspiracy, The Empty House Cooperative, Cobra Verde, Manta Ray, Karate, Via Tania, Steve Wynn, Evan Dando, Thalia Zedek, Tara Jane O'Neil, The Lemonheads, Thurston Moore, Hugo Race, etc.