Bryndon Cook

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. Cook is a multidisciplinary artist, actor, and music director. Composing and recording music as Starchild & The New Romantic, Cook released his sophomore LP, Forever, in 2020. Previous creative work includes collaborations with Solange Knowles, the Guggenheim Museum, Sydney Opera House, and Hollywood Bowl. Television and film credits include season three of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon, 2020) and Lin Manuel Miranda's Tick Tick Boom (Netflix, 2021).