Claud is a queer/nonbinary artist from in Highland Park, the Chicago suburbs where they began songwriting at 14 and have since released a handful of bedroom/indie pop hits! They got their start as a musician at rock and roll camps where they bonded with other music nerds over classic rock legends. Claud began uploading demos to SoundCloud and to their surprise, complete strangers started listening. Claud’s new fans led to playing house shows around town.

They began college in 2017 at Syracuse University where they met Josh Mehling who would later become part of the musical duo Toast. The dream-pop duo released a self-titled EP in 2018 via Terrible Records. Claud also released a self-titled EP in 2018 and ultimately dropped out of college to pursue their blossoming music career as a solo artist. 

A lot of fans were introduced to Claud in 2019 with their collection of eight indie-pop songs titled ‘Sideline Star’. Including stand-out track “Wish You Were Gay”, the music video to go with it is a queer version of the famous ‘Expectations vs Reality’ scene from 500 Days Of Summer. It would be rude to not recognize the song as a new queer anthem that can be found on practically any indie playlist. 

Claud was announced as support on Tegan and Sara’s North American tour, but due to the pandemic, all of the shows were canceled. Somewhere amongst the hiatus of live music Claud became the first artist signed to Phoebe Bridgers’s record label, Saddest Factory. 

Under the new label, Claud released their debut album Super Monster, an album that mostly harps on coming-of-age stories. Claud describes the record as coming together like a collage. They spent every day writing a song with no particular project in mind. Then spent two weeks picking the best ones and piecing them together. The album also features collaborations with Joshua Mehling, Clairo (who they recently started a band called Shelly with), and Jake Portrait from Unknown Mortal Orchestra. The production of the album is excellent, the lyricism is quirky and funny as well as comforting. It’s a synth-filled alt-pop album that is full of bittersweet moments. The debut album gained Claud a lot of attention in the indie world and LGBTQ+ community.

The thing that is so appealing about Claud’s artistry is their unapologetic honesty. They address their own issues with mental health, their fear of rejection, their problems with girls! I think Claud is a relatable person among queer people as well as teenagers who have shared experiences. They have a sense of awkwardness about them that’s really endearing. Claud is a self-described romantic and they bring this to their writing with a balance of realism and idealism. Claud describes their music as “pop music that goes well with a late-night snack”.