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Biography
Steven Zhu, known mononomously as ZHU, (/dʒuː/or /tʃuː/, stylized in all caps) (born April 28, 1989) is an American musician and singer who has been active since the beginning of 2014, signed to Mind of a Genius Records. Until mid-2014, Zhu remained anonymous, asking to be judged by his music alone. His debut album, Generationwhy, was released on July 29, 2016.
Early life
Zhu is of Chinese descent and grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. He played in jazz bands and orchestral practice at school, and later studied music at the University of Southern California.
Career
Zhu's first track, "Moves Like Ms Jackson", a mashup of several songs by Outkast, was released anonymously in February 2014 and was positively received by blogs and reviewers covering electronic music. Other tracks appeared on the music streaming site SoundCloud throughout February and March, followed by an EP titled The Nightday in April 2014, which earned a number 1 play of the week on Triple J.
The first single from The Nightday, titled "Faded", drew support from Pete Tong, who named it an "Essential New Tune" on his radio show on BBC Radio 1. "Faded" was released in March 2014, and quickly climbed the global charts, peaking at number 3 in Australia and the UK, and number 12 on the US Dance/Electronic chart. "Faded" was certified platinum in Australia in 2014 and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards.
In a November 2014 interview, Zhu's manager Jake Udell described the current music climate as "very black and white" and acknowledged that Zhu's race played a role in the decision to release and market his music anonymously, saying: "Some of us don't even know the limitations of our own prejudice. Rather than put those limitations to the test, we've created an engaging way for fans to focus on the music rather than who's behind it." Zhu stated in a February 2015 interview that "the project [Zhu] is all about art, and we try to make it about the songs and the response."
On May 15, 2015, Zhu appeared on Pete Tong's "After Hours" show and performed a 40-minute DJ mix, mostly consisting of unreleased remixes, and also announced the Nightday Collection clothing line. On November 6, 2015, Zhu released a collaborative EP titled Genesis Series. It featured appearances from Skrillex, AlunaGeorge, A-Trak, and Bone Thugs N Harmony, among others. The EP received critical acclaim for its diverse sound and diverse range of talent. "Working for It", the lead collaboration with Skrillex and THEY., reached the top 40 and was certified platinum in Australia. It also charted on the US Dance/Electronic chart.
In 2016, the single "In the Morning" was released. After his Neon City Tour, he announced that his debut album, Generationwhy, would be released on July 29, 2016 and that "In the Morning" was the first single from the album. On June 13, 2016, Zhu released the title track, "Generationwhy", as the second single from the album. He first premiered the record at Coachella 2016 during his closing set in the Sahara Tent. Zhu's Coachella performance was praised, with a writer for the New York Observer suggesting that he could be "the next Daft Punk".
Zhu's success carried over into 2017, where he was a featured performer in Ultra Music Festival 2017 in Miami on the live stage on March 24, 2017. His performance was positively received. Also in March, he released the single "Nightcrawler", which was followed by a second single "Intoxicate". Additionally, Zhu provided remixes of "Andromeda" by Gorillaz, "Bad and Boujee" by Migos, and "Feel It Still" by Portugal. The Man. That same year, he released his third EP, titled Stardustexhalemarrakechdreams, on August 18. The EP's lead single, titled "Dreams", is a collaboration with electronic music trio Nero. The EP's single Chasing Marrakech was featured by Apple in an ad for the iPhone XS and XS Max on September 14, 2018.
On April 26, 2018, Zhu released the first installment of his second studio album, Ringos Desert, as an extended play. The full album was made available five months later on September 7, comprising 14 tracks featuring Tame Impala, Majid Jordan, and TOKiMONSTA. An accompanying North American tour was announced in support of the album.
In 2019, Zhu released the song "Came For The Low", the music video for which featured 2020 United States presidential candidate Andrew Yang.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | USDance | AUS | CAN | ||
| Generationwhy |
| 109 | 1 | 35 | 88 |
| Ringos Desert |
| — | — | — | — |
| "—" denotes an album that did not chart or was not released. | |||||
Extended plays
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USDance | USHeat. | AUS | ||
| The Nightday |
| 11 | 5 | 6 |
| Genesis Series |
| 11 | — | — |
| Stardustexhalemarrakechdreams |
| — | 10 | — |
| Ringos Desert Pt. 1 |
| 19 | 23 | — |
| "—" denotes an extended play that did not chart or was not released. | ||||
Singles
As lead artist
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Dance | AUS | BEL(FL) | DEN | IRE | NL | UK | |||
| 2014 | "Faded" | 12 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 39 | 69 | 3 | The Nightday |
| 2015 | "Automatic" (with AlunaGeorge) | 19 | 97 | 59 | — | — | — | — | Genesis Series |
| "Working For It" (with Skrillex & THEY.) | 11 | 30 | — | — | — | — | 71 | ||
| 2016 | "Generationwhy" | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Generationwhy |
| "Hometown Girl" | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017 | "Nightcrawler" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles |
| "Intoxicate" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Dreams" (with Nero) | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Stardustexhalemarrakechdreams | |
| 2018 | "My Life" (with Tame Impala) | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Ringos Desert |
| "Coming Home" (featuring Majid Jordan) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019 | "Mi Rumba" (with Sofi Tukker) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles |
| "Man's First Inhibition" (with Nghtmre) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Zoning" (with The Bloody Beetroots) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Came for the Low" (with PartywithRay) | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020 | "Only" (with Tinashe) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released. | |||||||||
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "My Blood" (AlunaGeorge featuring ZHU) | 2016 | I Remember |
