Brittany Talia Hazzard, professionally known as Starrah, is an American songwriter, singer and rapper. She has written over 14 singles thus far that have reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100, three of which went number one, Camila Cabello's "Havana", Maroon 5's "Girls Like You" and "Savage" by Megan Thee Stallion, and five peaking in the top 10. She also has co-written songs such as Rihanna's "Needed Me", The Weeknd – "Wasted Times", Halsey – "Now or Never", Kevin Gates' "2 Phones, and Nicki Minaj's "No Frauds". She has also contributed to studio albums including Travis Scott's Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight and five songs on Calvin Harris's Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1, including "Feels" featuring Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry, and Big Sean.
As an artist, Starrah released a collaborative project with Diplo, titled Starrah x Diplo (2017). She released her debut single, "How It Goes", on August 12, 2020, and her debut album, The Longest Interlude, on March 15, 2021.
Contents
editEarly Life and Career
editStarrah grew up in Delaware as the youngest of nine siblings. She has stated that she "grew up in the ghetto" and has written lyrics about police raids she experienced as a child. Her songwriting grew from writing short stories and poems. She attended Delaware State University and moves to Los Angeles after graduation to pursue a music career. After a period of uploading music to SoundCloud and selling samples through Instagram, a manager in the industry reached out to her. He connected her to more songwriters which led to Starrah writing "Be Real" by Kid Ink in 2015, which reached No. 43 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 2016, Starrah wrote several songs that became top 40 hits. "2 Phones" by Kevin Gates reached double platinum status. Rihanna's single "Needed Me reached number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 42 weeks on the chart total.
On September 22, 2017, Starrah released a joint EP with producer Diplo titled Starrah x Diplo.
In April 2019, Starrah formed a partnership with Hipgnosis Songs Fund. She worked closely with Madonna for her 2019 album Madame X, writing on six tracks.
Starrah released her debut single "How It Goes" on August 12, 2020. Her debut studio album "The Longest Interlude" was released on March 15, 2021.
Artistry
editStarrah stated that she writes lyrics first, and then finds a melody and production to fit them. In her early career, she was sometimes turned away from studio sessions for being "too urban," but later found success with urban crossover into mainstream pop music.
Personal Life
editDue to a mixture of social anxiety and wishes for privacy, Starrah avoids being photographed and recognized in public.
The Longest Interlude (album)
editThe Longest Interlude is the debut studio album by American singer, songwriter, and rapper Starrah. The album was announced on March 3, 2021 via Instagram and was preceded by the promotional single entitled Miss This which officially released on February 24, 2021. The single was also accompanied by a music video that was uploaded via Youtube coinciding with the albums release. The Longest Interlude was officially released independently through Starrah Inc. on March 17, 2021. The production on the album was handled by a handful of various producers including Starrah herself as well as being mixed and mastered almost entirely by Alex Tumay, Brad Bustamante, and Rich Costey.
The Longest Interlude debuted at #87 on the iTunes Chart and reached its highest position on March 28, 2021 at #21 on the Apple Music Charts for multiple countries including Canada, Finland, India, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Arab Emirates.
| The Longest Interlude | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by
| |||||||||
Track-listing
edit| No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Miss This" |
|
1:42 |
| 2. | "Made For You" |
|
3:01 |
| 3. | "Make Time" |
|
1:37 |
| 4. | "Interlude" |
|
2:01 |
| 5. | "Home Alone" |
|
2:40 |
| 6. | "Forever" |
|
1:35 |
| 7. | "Love Mania" |
|
2:12 |
| 8. | "Who Decides War" |
|
2:31 |
| 9. | "Thought Wrong" |
|
2:42 |
| 10. | "8 Days a Week" |
|
1:24 |
| 11. | "Distance and Time" |
|
2:01 |
| 12. | "Twenty 4 (feat. Skrillex)" | 2:57 | |
| 13. | "56 Nights" |
|
2:48 |
| Total length: | 28:13 | ||
Discography
editStudio Albums
edit- 2021: The Longest Interlude
EP
editSingles
editAs lead artist
edit- 2014
- Starrah – "Low" prod. Noah "40" Shebib
- 2016
- Starrah – "Rush / Rush (Remix)" featuring Kehlani
- Starrah – "Dirty Diana"
- 2017
- 2018
- Starrah – "Codeine Cowgirl" prod. Aleksei
- 2020
- Starrah – "How It Goes" prod. June Nawakii
- Starrah – "Keep Calm"
- 2021
- Starrah - "Miss This"
As featured artist / guest appearances
edit- 2015
- Kid Ink featuring Starrah – "Blowin' Swishers Part. 2"
- Jeremih featuring Starrah – "Pass Dat"
- The Weeknd featuring Starrah and Jeremih – "Pass Dat (Remix)"
- G-Eazy featuring Starrah – "Order More"
- 2016
- Belly featuring Starrah "It's All Love"
- Travis Scott with Young Thug featuring Quavo -"Pick Up the Phone" (Additional vocals)
- Cashmere Cat featuring Starrah, 2 Chainz, and Tory Lanez – "Throw Myself a Party"
- The Weeknd – "True Colors" (Additional vocals)
- 2017
- Charli XCX featuring Starrah and Raye – "Dreamer"
- Big Sean featuring Eminem – "No Favors" (Additional vocals)
- Big Sean – "Jump Out the Window" (Additional vocals)
- Big Sean featuring Starrah and Flint Chozen Choir – "Bigger Than Me"
- Calvin Harris featuring Young Thug, Pharrell Williams and Ariana Grande – "Heatstroke" (Additional background vocals)
- Halsey- "Now or Never" (Additional vocals)
- Kid Ink featuring Starrah – "No Strings"
- Major Lazer featuring Quavo, Travis Scott and Camila Cabello – "Know No Better" (Background vocals)
- Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug – "Havana" (Additional vocals)
Songwriting Credits
editReferences
edit- ^"Credits / Charli XCX / Number 1 Angel". Tidal. March 10, 2017. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- ^"Meet Starrah, The Hit Songwriter Who Has Her Own Summer Anthem". PigeonsandPlanes. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Zidel, Alex (August 12, 2020). "Starrah Releases Debut Single "How It Goes"". HotNewHipHop.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g Coscarelli, Joe (December 28, 2017). "Why Every Pop Star Wants a Piece of Starrah". The New York Times.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Hockley-Smith, Smith (June 13, 2019). "How Starrah Went From Working Retail to Writing For Madonna". Billboard.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Lyle, Ashley (April 6, 2017). "Starrah, the Hitmaker Behind Songs From Drake, Rihanna and Nicki Minaj, Is Ready For the Spotlight". Billboard.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Phillips, Yoh (December 7, 2016). "Meet Starrah, the Songwriter Behind Drake, Travis & Rihanna's Biggest 2016 Hits". DJ Booth.
- ^ Bein, Kat (September 22, 2017). "Starrah & Diplo's New EP Is Full of Slow Rumble Sensuality". Billboard.
- ^ Stassen, Murray (April 23, 2019). "Hipgnosis Songs Fund Acquires Catalog From Camila Cabello Co-Writer Starrah". Music Business Worldwide.
- ^ Paine, Andre (April 23, 2019). "Hipgnosis acquires Starrah catalogue". Music Week.
- ^ Angermiller, Michele Amabile (August 11, 2020). "Hitmaker Starrah Releases Debut Single as a Solo Artist". Variety.
- ^ Darville, Jordan (January 18, 2018). "Starrah on homophobic rappers: "Their hooks be written by me and I'm LGBT af"". The Fader.