Australian singer/songwriter
Nick Murphy is known for crafting atmospheric electronic productions under his real name as well as the moniker
Chet Faker. First gaining recognition for his haunting trip-hop cover of
Blackstreet's "No Diggity," he released several additional singles under the pseudonym, including charting collaborations with
Flume and
Kilo Kish, before his sensual, restrained debut full-length, Built on Glass, arrived in 2014. The album was a major success, topping the charts and earning a platinum certification in his home country. After reverting to his birth name, he took a more soulful, organic approach for the release of his sophomore full-length, 2019's Run Fast Sleep Naked. However, he later revived the
Chet Faker project for the 2021 full-length Hotel Surrender.
Growing up on his dad's chillout compilations along with vocal albums from the jazz great
Chet Baker, Australian electronica artist
Nick Murphy launched his career with a downtempo cover of
Blackstreet's "No Diggity." Looking to avoid any confusion with the Australian singer of the same name,
Murphy dubbed himself
Chet Faker when he made "No Diggity" his first upload to the Internet in 2011. After the song became a viral hit,
Faker released his debut EP,
Thinking in Textures, on the Opulent label in 2012. A year later he partnered with fellow Aussie
Flume on the Lockjaw EP, released on
Future Classic, while 2014 saw Downtown Records co-release his slow and serene debut album, Built on Glass, which debuted at number one on the Australian ARIA Charts. Work, an EP produced with English DJ
Marcus Marr, was released by
Murphy's own Detail Records in late 2015.
Despite his success,
Murphy felt his sound was changing, and in 2016 he announced he was dropping the
Chet Faker name and moving forward as
Nick Murphy. That year, he released the tracks "Fear Less" and "Stop Me (Stop You)." In 2017
Murphy delivered the
Missing Link EP, featuring the single "Your Time," with
Kaytranada. His second full-length, the shape-shifting Run Fast Sleep Naked, arrived in 2019. The release featured a more soulful, even gospel-tinged energy and was inspired by
Murphy's self-examination on his solo travels around the world. In 2020,
Murphy released the ambient full-length Music for Silence as well as three limited cassette EPs of more experimental material. He also reactivated his
Chet Faker social media accounts and released "Low," his first single under the moniker in five years. Additional tracks like "Get High" and "Whatever Tomorrow" followed in the front half of 2021 leading up to the July release of Hotel Surrender,
Murphy's second full-length as
Chet Faker. ~ David Jeffries & Matt Collar