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””’Childstar””’ is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter [[Grace VanderWaal]], released on April 4, 2025, by Pulse Records.<ref name=Hogan/> It is VanderWaal’s second full-length project. In advance of the album’s release, VanderWaal released several singles from the album and promoted it with live and broadcast appearances and a tour to major North American cities in May 2025.<ref name=Tour2025/> VanderWaal co-wrote each song on ”Childstar”.
””’Childstar””’ is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter [[Grace VanderWaal]], released on April 4, 2025, by Pulse Records.<ref name=Hogan/> It is VanderWaal’s second full-length . In advance of the album’s release, VanderWaal released several singles from the album and promoted it with live and broadcast appearances and a tour to major North American cities in May 2025.<ref name=Tour2025/> VanderWaal co-wrote each song on ”Childstar”.
==Production==
==Production==
2025 studio album by Grace VanderWaal
| Childstar | ||||
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| Released | April 4, 2025 (2025-04-04) | |||
| Genre | Indie pop | |||
| Label | Pulse Records | |||
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Childstar is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Grace VanderWaal, released on April 4, 2025, by Pulse Records.[1] It is VanderWaal’s second full-length album. In advance of the album’s release, VanderWaal released several singles from the album and promoted it with live and broadcast appearances and a tour to major North American cities in May 2025.[2] VanderWaal co-wrote each song on Childstar.
Producers on the album include Eren Cannata, who produced five of the nine songs. VanderWaal co-wrote each track.
Along with the album, VanderWaal released on her YouTube channel a choreographed short film, Childstar: Final Act, a short film co-directed by VanderWaal with Luca Renzi and Jacob Boehme, and co-choreographed by VanderWaal and Renzi. The video features performances of five of the songs from Childstar: “Proud”, “Brand New”, “Homesick”, “Behavioral Problems” and “Fade”.[3][4]
Of the album’s second single “What’s Left of Me”, one reviewer wrote: “Driven by her gripping vocals, it’s a raw track”.[5] Upon the release of Childstar, Olivia Hogan of Melodic magazine wrote: “I was astonished by the album’s production and lyricism. Grace … used it as a powerful vehicle to tell her story … with a wide range of sounds that keep listeners engaged throughout. … The album is vulnerable, courageous, and authentic.”[1] Khushboo Malhotra of CelebMix wrote: “Childstar is a hauntingly poetic excavation of identity, autonomy, and the aching complexity of coming of age under a spotlight you never asked for. … VanderWaal doesn’t just sing here – she aches, whispers, and claws her way”.
Of “Childstar: Final Act”, a reviewer for CelebMix wrote: “it’s part performance art, part soul exorcism.”[3] A reviewer from Prelude Press called the accompanying film “Heartbreaking, captivating and cathartic all at once, Grace bares her soul, sharing her experiences growing up in the public eye through song, dance and raw emotion in each of these five performances.”[4] The album and its accompanying film were a staff pick by The A.V. Club.[6]
VanderWaal promoted the album with a U.S. tour in May 2025 with shows in Chicago, Toronto, Washington, DC, New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The concerts included songs from Childstar as well as VanderWaal’s previous releases.[2]
| Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Proud” | 2:32 | ||
| 2. | “Brand New” | Cannata | 2:51 | |
| 3. | “Homesick” | Schadt | 2:35 | |
| 4. | “What’s Left of Me” |
|
Jack Riley | 3:15 |
| 5. | “Call It What You Want” |
|
Gerhart | 2:35 |
| 6. | “Babydoll (feat. Aliyah’s Interlude)” |
|
2:30 | |
| 7. | “Beg for It” |
|
Cannata | 2:26 |
| 8. | “Behavioral Problems” |
|
Cannata | 2:36 |
| 9. | “Fade” |
|
Cannata | 3:32 |
| Total length: | 24:55 | |||
- Grace VanderWaal – Vocals
- Aliyah’s Interlude – Vocals
- Eren Cannata – Percussion, keyboards, synthesizer, bass guitar, piano, drum, drum programming, electric guitar, background vocals
- Brittany Campbell – Electric guitar
- Nico Mansikka-Aho – Keyboards, drum programming
- Godfrey Furchtgott – Strings
- Doug Schadt – Acoustic guitar
- PomPom – Programming, keyboards, bass guitar, electric guitar, electric bass guitar, background vocals
- Max Margolis – Synthesizer, electric guitar
- Skyler Stonestreet – Background vocals
- ^ a b Hogan, Olivia. “Grace VanderWaal closes the curtain on childhood with self-defining new album Childstar“, Melodic, April 5, 2025
- ^ a b Pagani, Ben. “Grace VanderWaal’s Childstar Tour and the Art of Intimate Pop Concerts”, Beyond the Stage, May 2025
- ^ a b Malhotra, Khushboo. “Grace VanderWaal Reclaims Her Voice on New Album Childstar“, CelebMix, April 5, 2025
- ^ a b Vigil, Dom. “Grace VanderWaal Releases Sophomore Album, Childstar“, Prelude Press, April 4, 2025
- ^ McArthur, Amanda. “10 Big Things That Happened in Music the Week of September 20, 2024”, Sweety High, September 20, 2024
- ^ “Staff Picks: An Aussie artist and a sophomore album that’ll give you goosebumps”,
The A.V. Club, April 26, 2025
