Brittany Talia Hazzard, professionally known as Starrah, is an American songwriter, singer and rapper. She has written or co-written multiple songs that have reached the top 20 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, including

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

's "

Needed Me "Needed Me" is a song by Barbadian singer and songwriter Rihanna from her eighth studio album, ''Anti'' (2016). It was written by Rihanna, Brittany Hazard, Charles Hinshaw and Derrus Rachel together with its producer DJ Mustard and its co-prod ...

Normani Normani Kordei Hamilton ( ; born May 31, 1996) is an American singer and dancer. She auditioned as a solo act for the American television series ''The X Factor'' in 2012, after which she became a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which wen ...

's " Wild Side" (featuring

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, she appeared as ...

), Halsey's " Now or Never",

Kevin Gates Kevin Jerome Gilyard (born February 5, 1986), better known by his stage name Kevin Gates, is an American rapper, singer, and entrepreneur. He is currently signed to Bread Winners' Association with a partnership with Atlantic Records. His debut ...

' " 2 Phones",

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...

and

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman (rapper), ...

's "

No Frauds "No Frauds" is a song recorded by rappers Nicki Minaj, Drake, and Lil Wayne. The song is a diss track, made in response to Remy Ma's 2017 song "Shether", a nearly seven-minute-long diss track aimed at Minaj. Produced by Murda Beatz and Cube ...

", and Drake's " Fake Love". Three songs she's co-written have reached number one,

Camila Cabello Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao (; ; born March 3, 1997) is a Cuban-born American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which became one of the best-selling girl groups of all time. While in ...

's "

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

" (featuring

Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...

Maroon 5 Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. It currently consists of lead vocalist Adam Levine, keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine (musician), James Valentine, drummer Matt ...

's "

Girls Like You "Girls Like You" is a song recorded by American band Maroon 5 from their sixth studio album ''Red Pill Blues'' (2017). The track was written by lead singer Adam Levine, Starrah, Gian Stone, Cirkut (record producer), Cirkut, and Jason Evigan, wit ...

" (featuring Cardi B), and "

Savage Remix "Savage" is a song by American rapper Megan Thee Stallion. It was released on March 6, 2020, as part of her EP ''Suga (EP), Suga'' and later sent to US Contemporary hit radio, Top 40 radio formats on April 7, 2020, by 1501 Certified Entertainmen ...

" by

Megan Thee Stallion Megan Jovon Ruth Pete (born February 15, 1995), known professionally as Megan Thee Stallion (pronounced "Megan the Stallion"), is an American rapper and songwriter. Originally from Houston, Texas, she first garnered attention when videos of her ...

(featuring

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

), with the latter winning her the

Grammy award for Best Rap Song The Grammy Award for Best Rap Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rap music genre. Honors in several ...

. She also contributed to studio albums including Travis Scott's ''

Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight ''Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight'' is the second studio album by American rapper Travis Scott. It was released on September 2, 2016, through Grand Hustle Records and distributed by Epic Records. It exclusively premiered through Travis Scott and ...

'' and five songs on

Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris, is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter who has released six studio albums. His debut studio album, ''I Created Disco'', was released in June ...

's ''

Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 ''Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1'' is the fifth studio album by Scottish DJ and record producer Calvin Harris. It was released on 30 June 2017 by Columbia Records. The album features guest vocals by Frank Ocean, Migos, Schoolboy Q, PartyNextDoor, DRAM, ...

'', including the Top 20 single " Feels" featuring

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. Known for her influence on modern pop music and her Camp (style), campy style, she has been ...

, and

Big Sean Sean Michael Leonard Anderson (born March 25, 1988), known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. Anderson began his music career in 2007 and gained popularity in 2010 with his third mixtape '' Finally Famous Vol. 3: Big''. He then s ...

. As an artist, Starrah released a collaborative project with

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...

, 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.

Early life and career

Starrah 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 Delaware State University (DSU or Del State) is a public historically black land-grant research university in Dover, Delaware. DSU also has two satellite campuses: one in Wilmington and one in Georgetown. The university encompasses four col ...

and moved to Los Angeles after graduation to pursue a music career. After a period of uploading music to

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

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 Brian Todd Collins (born April 1, 1986), known professionally as Kid Ink, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer from Los Angeles. He released his debut independent album ''Up & Away (Kid Ink album), Up & Away'' in 2012, f ...

in 2015, which reached No. 43 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 2016, Starrah wrote several songs that became

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

hits. " 2 Phones" by

reached

double platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

status.

's single "

" reached number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and spent 42 weeks on the chart. On September 22, 2017, Starrah released a joint EP with producer

titled ''Starrah x Diplo''. In April 2019, Starrah formed a partnership with

Hipgnosis Songs Fund Hipgnosis Songs Fund is a British Guernsey-registered music IP investment and song management company founded by Merck Mercuriadis and Nile Rodgers in 2018. Focused on songs and associated musical intellectual property rights, it was founded ...

. She worked closely with Madonna for her 2019 album ''

Madame X ''Madame X'' (original title ''La Femme X'') is a 1908 play by French playwright Alexandre Bisson (1848–1912). It was novelized in English and adapted for the American stage; it was also adapted for the screen twelve times over sixty-five ...

'', writing on six tracks. Starrah released her debut single "How It Goes" on August 12, 2020.

Artistry

Starrah 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

Due to a mixture of social anxiety and wishes for privacy, Starrah avoids being photographed and recognized in public. Starrah identifies as queer.

Discography

Studio albums

*2021: ''The Longest Interlude''

EP

*''Starrah x Diplo'' (2017)

Singles

As lead artist

*2014 **Starrah – "Low" prod.

Noah "40" Shebib Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5– ...

*2016 **Starrah – "Rush / Rush (Remix)" featuring Kehlani **Starrah – "Dirty Diana" *2017 **Starrah and ''Diplo'' – "Imperfections" **Starrah and Diplo – " Swerve" *2018 **Starrah – "Codeine Cowgirl" prod. Aleksei *2020 **Starrah – "How It Goes" prod. June Nawakii **Starrah – "Keep Calm" *2021 **Starrah - "Miss This" **

Skrillex Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead sing ...

, Starrah and

Four Tet Kieran Hebden (born September 1977), known as Four Tet, is an English electronic musician. He came to prominence as a member of the post-rock band Fridge before establishing himself as a solo artist with charting UK albums such as '' Rounds'' ( ...

– "

Butterflies Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

As featured artist / guest appearances

*2015 **

featuring Starrah – "Blowin' Swishers Part. 2" **

Jeremih Jeremy Phillip Felton (born July 17, 1987), known professionally as Jeremih ( ), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. In 2009, he signed a record deal with Def Jam Recordings. Jeremih's commercial debut single, "Birthday Sex", ...

featuring Starrah – "Pass Dat" **

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...

featuring Starrah and

– "Pass Dat (Remix)" **

G-Eazy Gerald Earl Gillum (born May 24, 1989), better known by his stage name G-Eazy, is an American rapper. His first major-label album, '' These Things Happen'', was released on June 23, 2014, and peaked at number 3 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 ...

featuring Starrah – "

Order More "Order More" is a hip hop song by American rapper G-Eazy. It features vocals from Starrah. It was released on November 13, 2015 from his second studio album ''When It's Dark Out''. The song was produced by DJ Spinz. The official remix features ad ...

" *2016 **

Belly Belly may refer to: Anatomy * The abdomen, the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax; or the stomach ** A beer belly, an overhang of fat above the waist, presumed to be caused by regular beer drinking ** Belly dance * The fleshy, cent ...

featuring Starrah – "It's All Love" ** Travis Scott with

featuring

Quavo Quavious Keyate Marshall (born April 2, 1991), known professionally as Quavo (), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. He is best known as the co-founder and former frontman of hip hop group Migos. Quavo is the uncle of late fellow Migos m ...

– " Pick Up the Phone" **

Cashmere Cat Magnus August Høiberg (born 29 November 1987), known professionally as Cashmere Cat, is a Norwegian DJ, record producer, songwriter and musician. He is best known for producing songs for artists including Kanye West, The Kid Laroi, Selena Gomez ...

featuring Starrah,

2 Chainz Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz (or Tity Boi), is an American rapper. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he initially gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip hop duo Playaz Circle, al ...

, and

Tory Lanez Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson (born July 27, 1992), known professionally as Tory Lanez, is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter, and convicted felon. He received initial recognition from the mixtape ''Conflicts of My Soul: The 416 Story'', rel ...

– "Throw Myself a Party" **

– "True Colors" *2017 **

Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is an English singer and songwriter. Born in Cambridge and raised in Start Hill, Essex, she began posting songs on Myspace in 2008, which led to her discovery ...

featuring Starrah and Raye – "Dreamer" **

featuring

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

– " No Favors" **

– "Jump Out the Window" **

featuring Starrah and Flint Chozen Choir – "Bigger Than Me" **

featuring

and

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...

– "

Heatstroke Heat stroke or heatstroke, also known as sun stroke, is a severe heat illness that results in a body temperature greater than , along with red skin, headache, dizziness, and confusion. Sweating is generally present in exertional heatstroke, b ...

" ** Halsey – "Now or Never" **

featuring Starrah – "No Strings" **

Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. It originates from Kingston, Jamaica, and was founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after t ...

featuring

, Travis Scott and

– "Know No Better" **

featuring

– "Havana"

Songwriting credits

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Starrah Living people Musicians from California 21st-century American musicians Songwriters from California African-American songwriters American hip hop singers Grammy Award winners Mad Decent artists 21st-century American singers American pop musicians American women pop singers 1990 births 21st-century African-American women singers