Grace VanderWaal to Release Sophomore Album 'Childstar' in April; Listen to a New Single

Internationally acclaimed artist and actress Grace VanderWaal has announced the release of her highly anticipated sophomore studio album, CHILDSTAR, due April 4 via PULSE Records. Undoubtedly, her most personal body of work to date, on CHILDSTAR VanderWaal amplifies the sound of healing scars, shedding skin, and stepping into her power, channeling her inspiration from artists like Fiona Apple and Björk and exploring her experience growing up in the limelight.

Alongside the album announcement, Grace releases a brand new song, "Proud." An old music box plays a lilting lullaby in the song's opening. "Promise I'll be small. I won't take up space at all...Ground yourself. Remember your place. You don't have a voice yet. You don't get to say," she sings. Strings hang over a wave of distortion, climaxing on an affirmation, "'Cause you're so special."

"As a kid, you have an undying need for validation," Grace explains. "In some cases, you abandon yourself, and you aren't granted what you need mentally. You're choosing to be strong, only because it's your responsibility to be strong. You're adopting strength when it's not appropriate. It was important for me to use phrases like, ''Cause you're so special', because they're weaponized words to control children. Since you're young, you want to feel strong, mature, and grown up, but no kid should have to do all of those things. Proud is the story of the 'golden child' archetype. A child who neglects their needs in order to be seen as valued, loved, or mature. It's the first song off my new album CHILDSTAR."

Grace will be taking CHILDSTAR on the road, with a six city North American Tour, marking her first tour since 2019. CHILDSTAR - ON TOUR kicks off May 4 in Chicago, and includes dates in Toronto, Washington, DC, New York City, and Los Angeles, before concluding May 21 in San Francisco. The official Artist Presale begins on Monday, March 24 at 10am local time, with the general on sale starting Friday, March 28 at 10am local time. For more information and to register for the pre-sale, please visit here.

"Proud" follows the release last month of "Babydoll," an unabashedly bratty pop anthem featuring Aliyah's Interlude, which earned praise from the likes of Teen Vogue, who hailed the track as "Pure, playful, unabashed pop girl form," while, with PAPER Magazineadding "VanderWaal has grown into a fearless, self-assured artist, shedding the wide-eyed innocence of her early music and stepping into a sound that feels entirely her own." A fun and up-tempo follow up to her deeply introspective "What's Left Of Me," "Babydoll" arrived alongside an official music video directed by Sophie Hur.

The announcement of CHILDSTAR follows a whirlwind 2024 for Grace VanderWaal, which included a spine-tingling performance at the 2024 Kennedy Center Honors (WATCH) and a featured role from the legendary Academy Award-winning filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, in his epic, "Megalopolis," starring alongside Academy Award nominees Adam Driver and Laurence Fishburne. The film, which made its premiere at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, received a seven-minute standing ovation for the famed director's work.

VanderWaal's debut EP, Imperfectly Perfect was the biggest selling EP in 2016, entering the Billboard 200 albums chart at number nine. The following year, she released her first full-length studio album, Just The Beginning to vast critical acclaim. Between releasing music, she has toured with everyone from Florence + the Machine to Imagine Dragons. Among many accolades, she earned a Teen Choice Award in addition to receiving the Billboard "Women in Music" Rising Star Award and becoming "the youngest person ever" to be featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 music list. Not to mention, she starred as the title character in the Disney+ film series Stargirl and Megapolis.

NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES

05/04 - Lincoln Hall - Chicago, IL
05/07 - The Great Hall - Toronto, ON
05/09 - Atlantis - Washington, DC
05/10 - Racket - New York, NY
05/18 - The Roxy - Los Angeles, CA
05/21 - Brick & Mortar - San Francisco, CA

Photo Credit: Ally Chen