After catapulting to stardom with a haunting cover of Blackstreet's "No Diggity" in 2011, Nick Murphy (known then by his alias Chet Faker) appeared to have everything. The Australian singer-songwriter went from having a viral hit to a platinum-selling album with 2014's Built On Glass, resulting in over a billion streams, seven ARIA Music Awards and sold-out shows around the globe. But that was just it: Everything happened so fast, Murphy needed a chance to grasp his rapid success – and more importantly, not lose sight of the artist behind the stage name.
With that realization came a pause on the Chet Faker persona, as the singer relocated to New York and prepared to introduce the world to Nick Murphy. In late 2016, Murphy announced that "there's an evolution happening," revealing a more experimental sound with "Fear Less." Since then, the multi-instrumentalist has gone on a journey that's spawned two albums, an EP and a number of singles. Yet, as Murphy himself declared in a cryptic social media post in Sept. 2020, "old projects die hard." Slowly but surely, Chet Faker had found his way back into Nick Murphy's musical sphere.
Chet Faker's return single, "Low," marks the rebirth of Murphy's alter ego, reminding fans that the two have always coexisted. Murphy shared his big news with a picture in a sweatshirt that read, "Who the f*ck is Chet Faker?" Now that Nick Murphy has had the opportunity to explore that question, this next chapter may be the answer.
– Taylor Weatherby
