Chet Faker
Nicholas James Murphy (born 23 June 1988), known professionally as Chet Faker, is an Australian singer and songwriter. In 2012, as Chet Faker, he issued an extended play, Thinking in Textures, and signed to Downtown Records in the United States.[1][2] In October 2012, he won Breakthrough Artist of the Year and Thinking in Textures won Best Independent Single/EP at the Australian Independent Records Awards.[3] In January 2013, the work won Best Independent Release at the Rolling Stone Australia Awards for 2012.[4]
Nick Murphy
Nicholas James Murphy
Chet Faker (2011–2016, 2020–present)
- Singer
- songwriter
- Vocals
- piano
- keyboards
- bass guitar
- synthesizer
- percussion
- programming
- guitar
2011–present
- Opulent
- Remote Control
- Chess Club
- Downtown
- Future Classic
- MapleMusic
- Detail
Murphy's cover of Blackstreet's "No Diggity" was featured in a 2013 Super Bowl commercial for Beck's Sapphire.[5] In April 2014, Built on Glass, his debut studio album, was released to generally positive reviews and debuted at number one on the Australian ARIA Charts.[6][7] Three tracks from the album were voted into the top ten of Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2014, including the number one spot for "Talk Is Cheap".[8]
In September 2016, Murphy dropped the Chet Faker name to start performing and releasing material under his birth name, beginning with the release of a pair of singles later that year, and the Missing Link extended play in 2017.[9] Murphy's second studio album – the first under his birth name – Run Fast Sleep Naked was released in April 2019.[10] This was followed up by a surprise instrumental album, Music for Silence, in March 2020, initially released via the Calm meditation app.[11]
In October 2020, four years after dropping the moniker, Murphy revived the Chet Faker name for the release of a new single, "Low".[12]
Career[edit]
Early career[edit]
Murphy played under his stage name after people came to his shows thinking he was a different and already established musician, Nick Murphy. He settled on the name as a homage to Chet Baker: "I listened to a lot of jazz and I was a big fan of ... the way he sang, when he moved into mainstream singing. He had this really fragile vocal style—this really, broken, close-up and intimate style. The name is kind of just an ode to Chet Baker and the mood of music he used to play—something I would like to at least pay homage to in my own music."[13] Other influences he has cited include Bob Dylan, as well as his mother's Motown albums and his father's "chilled out Ibiza CDs".[13][14]
Thinking in Textures and collaborations (2011–13)[edit]
He first rose to prominence after his cover of Blackstreet's "No Diggity" went viral online, reaching number one on the Hypemachine chart in May 2011.[13] He released his first extended play, Thinking in Textures, on 22 March 2012 to positive reviews, being described as "wonderfully loungey" and praised for its ability to "mix subtlety with impressive beauty".[15] The EP was also popular with fans, with its second single, "I'm into You", landing at number 24 on Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2012.[16]
Murphy has collaborated with Flume and remixes of songs by MS MR and The Temper Trap. He was a featured vocalist on Say Lou Lou's "Fool of Me", which was named Best New Track by Pitchfork in May 2013.[17]
