Starchild & The New Romantic
Starchild, aka Starchild & the New Romantic, isn't the alien of the same name introduced on Parliament's fourth album, but the New York City-based alternative R&B artist is somewhere down that creative bloodline, closer in relation to Prince, and cousins in an artistic sense with the likes of Blood Orange, Solange, and Sampha, among many other musicians with whom he has collaborated. Since recording for Ghostly International, an association that crested with the full-length Language (2018), the singer, writer, multi-instrumentalist, and producer has self-issued a second studio album, Forever (2020).
Born in Washington, D.C., Bryndon Cook had his early musical outlook expanded and enriched by singing in choirs and listening to local Black radio station WPGC. He learned saxophone and picked up guitar, and at the age of 17 planted seeds for his future when he sent demos to the encouraging Dev Hynes, aka Blood Orange. Cook debuted as Starchild in 2012 with the digital Night Music EP, and followed up with a handful of cuts scattered across the next couple years, during which he began working closely with Solange and eventually became her musical director and bandleader. In 2014, he uploaded the aching ballad "All My Lovers" and premiered its video on the website of The Fader. By the end of the year, he contributed "Relax" to the soundtrack for Dear White People. "All My Lovers" was given an official release the following year on Ghostly International, which issued the first commercial Starchild & the New Romantic EP, Crucial, that March. Cook continued to aid other artists while developing more solo material. Along with another early supporter, Chairlift's Patrick Wimberly, he was involved with Blood Orange's Freetown Sound and Solange's chart-topping A Seat at the Table -- he co-produced "Don't Touch My Hair" for the latter -- and also contributed to Porches' The House.
Language, Starchild & the New Romantic's debut album, arrived on Ghostly in February 2018. Polished and predominantly up-tempo with a sound inspired by early-'80s R&B rooted in funk, it featured singles such as the title track and "Can I Come Over," while the Newark Boys Chorus were featured on another highlight. Live at National Sawdust, a document of a Brooklyn gig between Crucial and Language, appeared the next March. After Blood Orange and Kindness offered Cook-assisted recordings, respectively Angel's Pulse and Something Like a War, Starchild returned in November 2019 with the self-released VHS 1138, an EP with Porches, James Pants, and Toro y Moi among the collaborators. The second Starchild & the New Romantic LP, Forever, arrived on Juneteenth 2020 and expanded Cook's network with the likes of Fabiana Palladino, Nick Hakim, and London O'Connor all taking part.
© Andy Kellman /TiVo
Discography
16 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
-
Language
Soul/Funk/R&B - Released by Ghostly International on 23 Feb 2018
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Crucial
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 18 Mar 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Forever
Soul - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on 19 Jun 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Live at National Sawdust (Live)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 15 Mar 2019
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Hectic/Lover Letdown
Pop - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on 1 Oct 2023
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Tape (feat. Toro y Moi)
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on 26 May 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Language
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 17 Jan 2018
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Mood
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 18 Jul 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Hangin On
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 16 Nov 2017
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Slammin' Mannequin
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 25 Jan 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Spooked
Pop - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on 31 Oct 2022
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Ophelia's Room
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 7 Feb 2018
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Can I Come Over?
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 21 Feb 2018
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
All My Lovers
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 13 Oct 2015
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Woman's Dress
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on 23 Feb 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Silent Disco (feat. Rosehardt)
Soul - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on 9 Jun 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo