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
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Language
Soul/Funk/R&B - Released by Ghostly International on Feb 23, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Crucial
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Mar 18, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Forever
Soul - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on Jun 19, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live at National Sawdust (Live)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Mar 15, 2019
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Songs from The Cauldron, Pt. 1
Pop - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on Oct 1, 2023
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Spooked
Pop - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on Oct 31, 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Language
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Jan 17, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mood
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Jul 18, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Hangin On
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Nov 16, 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Slammin' Mannequin
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Jan 25, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tape (feat. Toro y Moi)
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on May 26, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ophelia's Room
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Feb 7, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Can I Come Over?
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Feb 21, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
All My Lovers
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Oct 13, 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Woman's Dress
Alternative & Indie - Released by Ghostly International on Feb 23, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Silent Disco (feat. Rosehardt)
Soul - Released by New Romantic World, LLC on Jun 9, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo