Wrabel
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Stephen Samuel Wrabel (born January 7, 1989), known mononymously as Wrabel (/ˈreɪbəl/ RAY-bəl), is an American singer, songwriter and musician based in Los Angeles.
Life and career
Wrabel attended private high school at The Kinkaid School in Houston, Texas. After high school, he studied at the Berklee College of Music for a semester until he left Boston to move to LA and focus on songwriting. He got his first big break when he was signed to Pulse Recording as a songwriter.
In 2010, Wrabel recorded the theme song for the NBC game show Minute to Win It, "Get Up", produced by Eve Nelson.
Wrabel was signed to Island Def Jam in 2012 by Island Def Jam Music Group chairman and CEO Barry Weiss and Executive Vice President/Head of A&R Karen Kwak.
In 2014, Dutch DJ Afrojack released a version of Wrabel's song "Ten Feet Tall", resulting in an international hit. The song premiered in the United States during Super Bowl XLVIII in a Bud Light commercial and was viewed by around 100 million viewers. Wrabel later released the original piano-based version of the song on May 19, 2014. BuzzFeed named the Afrojack version of "Ten Feet Tall" one of the "35 Best Pop Songs You May Have Missed This Summer".
On June 24, 2016, Wrabel released his single "11 Blocks", which was heavily supported and promoted by Kesha. He also released both a lyric video and a music video for the song. He released his second single, titled "Bloodstain", on March 10, 2017. A lyric video for the song was released the same day. In May 2017, he released an EP titled We Could Be Beautiful.
In July 2017, he released a song titled "The Village", the song dedicated to show support for transgender people. The video shows a teenage trans boy living with his closed-minded family while the lyrics explain the difficulties in being transgender and a part of the LGBT community. The video ends with "#trans_rights_are_human_rights". The song was written in February 2017 after the removal of federal protections for trans students in public schools, and was quickly released after Donald Trump tweeted about banning transgender individuals from the military.
In 2025, Wrabel announced his third studio album Up and Above, scheduled for release on February 13, 2026. The album's title track and thematic direction were inspired by Annie Jacobsen's 2024 book Nuclear War: A Scenario, which Wrabel read while conceptualizing the project. The album explores themes of mortality and the fragility of human existence, with Wrabel describing the work as examining "if you knew the world was ending tomorrow, how much more would the person you love matter today?" The album's visual aesthetic, directed and photographed by Dana Trippe, features post-apocalyptic imagery including mushroom clouds and decaying landscapes, with Wrabel drawing inspiration from the works of René Magritte and confronting what he described as "the chilling silence that follows imagined devastation."
Achievements
On the April 22, 2019, episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Pink praised Wrabel and his video for "The Village", stating, "The song 'The Village' will break your heart into many little tiny pieces... he's great."
Billboard named Wrabel their Pride Artist of the Month in August 2019 saying "For the last decade, the 30-year-old singer-songwriter has been working with big names like Kesha and Adam Lambert while slowly building up his solo career. Now, he's ready for his breakthrough."
People magazine called Wrabel One to Watch in October 2019, saying "in 2019 he went from behind-the-scenes player to pop star."
In September 2019, The Huffington Post said Wrabel is "One of pop's unsung talents", adding "Recommendation from an artist of Pink's stature, on a huge platform like The Ellen DeGeneres Show, was an overdue acknowledgment of a prolific, if still overlooked, talent."
Wrabel was named to the OUT100 in 2017 and is a GLAAD Media Award Nominee for Outstanding Music Artist.
Nylon says Wrabel's debut EP Sideways is "stocked with the soulfulness of a Sia or Sam Smith, and a melodic pop DNA that throws back to icons like Paul Simon, the title track twists heartbreak into something, well, beautiful."
BuzzFeed named "I Want You" one of "The Most Criminally Underrated Pop Songs of 2015".
MNDR released a remix of Wrabel's "I Want You" on October 21, 2015, which premiered on Noisey.
His songwriting credits include releases by Pentatonix, Pink, Kesha, Louis The Child, Kygo, Marshmello, Backstreet Boys, and Ruel.
Usage of songs in other media
- In 2016, the song "Sideways" was featured in the first season finale of Quantico.
- In 2017, the song "We Could Be Beautiful" appeared in the 2017 reboot of Dynasty in the first season episode "Our Turn Now", during the wedding preparation scene. In 2020, this song also makes an appearance in the Hulu series Love, Victor, in the pilot episode "Welcome to Creekwood".
- In 2023, the song "On the Way Down" was featured in season 19 episode 8 of Grey's Anatomy.
Personal life
Wrabel is openly gay. He is invested in promoting LGBTQ+ rights as a member of this community. His song "11 Blocks" is autobiographical describing his feelings about his first love who had moved 11 blocks away from him in California. The music video for his song "Bloodstain", directed by Isaac Rentz, depicts suffering and heartache in a relationship, while the star Wrabel is fighting for his life.
The music video to his 2017 song "The Village", directed by Dano Cerny, depicts a trans teenager struggling with gender dysphoria, using a binder to flatten his chest and dealing with hostile family members, with the lyrics discussing the same topics. The video includes a caption "In nature, a flock will attack any bird that is more colorful than the others because being different is seen as a threat" and ends with a caption "Dedicated to all the colorful birds" and the hashtag "#TransRightsAreHumanRights". In an interview about the song and video with Billboard, he described it as "the most important thing to me that I have ever done and probably will ever do. It's the closest thing to my heart." He wrote the song in February 2017, shortly after Donald Trump removed federal protections for trans students in public education, and asked his management to rush the release of the video after Trump announced a ban on trans military personnel, with the video including a visual reference to Trump's ban.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| These Words Are All for You | Released: September 24, 2021 Label: Big Gay, Nettwerk Format: Digital download, streaming |
| Based on a True Story | Released: November 17, 2023 Label: Big Gay, Nettwerk Format: Digital download, streaming |
| Up Above | Released: February 13, 2026 Label: Big Gay, Nettwerk Format: Digital download, streaming |
Extended plays
| Title | Year | Peak positions |
|---|---|---|
| US Heat. | ||
| Sideways | Released: June 24, 2014 Label: Island Format: Digital download, streaming | 10 |
| We Could Be Beautiful | Released: May 12, 2017 Label: Epic Format: Digital download, streaming | — |
| One of Those Happy People | Released: September 13, 2019 Label: Big Gay Format: Digital download, streaming | — |
| Piano | Released: May 15, 2020 Label: Big Gay Format: Digital download, streaming | — |
| Chapter of Me | Released: April 21, 2023 Label: Big Gay Format: Digital download, streaming | — |
| Chapter of You | Released: August 25, 2023 Label: Big Gay Format: Digital download, streaming | — |
Live albums
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| One Nite Only | Release date: January 25, 2019 Label: Big Gay Records Format: Digital download |
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Bub. | US AC | US Adult Pop | US Dance | CAN AC | |||
| "11 Blocks" | 2016 | 18 | 21 | 12 | — | 31 | We Could Be Beautiful |
| "Bloodstain" | 2017 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "It's You" (with Magical Thinker) | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |
| "The Village" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "First Winter" | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "That's What I'd Do" (Live) | 2019 | — | — | — | — | — | One Nite Only |
| "I Want You" (Live) | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Woman" (Live) | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Oh Love" (with Parson James and Vincent) | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |
| "I Want You" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Love to Love U" | — | — | — | — | — | One of Those Happy People | |
| "The Real Thing" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Magic" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Flickers" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Flying" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Happy People" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Too Close" (with Louis the Child) | — | — | — | 40 | — | Non-album singles | |
| "(It Wouldn't Be) Christmas Without You" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Somebody New" | 2020 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Hurts Like Hell" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Since I Was Young" (with Kesha) | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Big Love" (with Klingande) | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Good" | 2021 | — | — | — | — | — | These Words Are All for You |
| "Nothing But the Love" | — | — | 33 | — | — | ||
| "Back to Back" (with Duncan Laurence) | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "London" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Worst Kind of Hurt" (with Laura Marano) | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | Us |
| "Happier" | 2023 | — | — | — | — | — | Chapter of Me and Based on a True Story |
| "On the Way Down" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "One Drink Away" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Turn Up the Love" | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Abstract Art" | — | — | — | — | — | Chapter of You and Based on a True Story | |
| "We All Could Use Some Help" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Beautiful Day" | — | — | — | — | — | Based on a True Story | |
| "Lost Cause" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Buried Alive, Again" (with Renforshort) | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Future" | 2025 | — | — | — | — | — | Up Above |
| "Up Above" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Greener" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Garden" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Surrender" | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released. |
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US Pop | US Dance | CAN | CAN CHR | |||
| "Ten Feet Tall" (Afrojack featuring Wrabel) | 2014 | 100 | 22 | 9 | — | 43 | Forget the World |
| "Ritual" (Marshmello featuring Wrabel) | 2016 | — | — | 11 | 82 | — | Non-album singles |
| "Another Side" (Matisse & Sadko and Robert Falcon featuring Wrabel) | 2019 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Resentment" (Kesha featuring Brian Wilson, Sturgill Simpson and Wrabel) | — | — | — | — | — | High Road | |
| "Mean It" (Cash Cash featuring Wrabel) | — | — | — | — | — | Say It Like You Feel It | |
| "Moon Rider" (Jai Wolf featuring Wrabel) | 2020 | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Mirror" (Illy featuring Wrabel) | 2021 | — | — | — | — | — | The Space Between |
| "Feel Again" (Armin van Buuren featuring Wrabel) | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | Feel Again, Pt. 1 |
| "Something I Could Never Be" (Tony Ann featuring Wrabel and Nour) | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released. |
Guest appearances
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Silent Night / Light of the World" | 2012 | —N/a | Dream Christmas |
| "We'll Be Okay" | 2014 | Afrojack | Forget the World |
| "You Know It's About You" | 2015 | Magical Thinker | Leap! (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) |
| "With You" | 2017 | Kygo | Kids in Love |
| "Written in the Scars" | Galantis | The Aviary | |
| "90 Days" | 2019 | Pink | Hurts 2B Human |
| "BFF" | 2020 | Kesha | High Road |
| "Mirror" | 2021 | Illy | The Space Between |
| "When You Need It" | 2022 | Tenille Townes | Masquerades |
Songwriting credits
| Title | Year | Artist(s) | Album | Written with |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Shine" | 2011 | Stan Walker | Let the Music Play | Jon Asher, Drew Pearson |
| "Loud" | ||||
| "Nirvana" | 2012 | Adam Lambert | Trespassing | Oligee, Josh Abraham, Adam Lambert |
| "So Easy" | Phillip Phillips | The World from the Side of the Moon | Pete Amato, Pete Salis | |
| "Kiss Kiss" | 2013 | Prince Royce | Soy el Mismo | Fernando Garibay, Dougy Mandagi, Amanda Warner |
| "Crazy Ass B*tch" | 2015 | Rozzi Crane | Space | Crane, Kendrick Lamar, Adam Levine, Ali Tamposi, James Valentine |
| "Blue" | Will Young | 85% Proof | Jim Eliot, Dan McDougall | |
| "Break" | Katharine McPhee | Hysteria | McPhee, Pearson | |
| "Rose Gold" | Pentatonix | Pentatonix | Scott Hoying, Avi Kaplan, Pearson | |
| "Devotion" | Ellie Goulding | Delirium | Goulding, Ali Payami, Klas Åhlund | |
| "In Our Bones" | 2016 | Against The Current | In Our Bones | Tommy English, Tamposi, Chrissy Costanza, Will Ferri, Dan Gow |
| "Cold" | Citizen Four | Cold | Pearson, Makeba Riddick | |
| "Everybody Knows" | Idina Menzel | idina. | Greg Wells | |
| "Tough" | Goldroom | West of the West | Josh Legg, MoZella, Nico Stadi | |
| "You Know It's About You" | 2017 | Magical Thinker | Leap! (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | Christopher Braide |
| "Crave" | Dia Frampton | Bruises | Frampton, Stadi | |
| "Hey You" | Lea Michele | Places | Michele, Tamposi, Nick van de Wall | |
| "Run to You" | Michele, Tamposi | |||
| "Surround Me" | Leon | Surround Me | Jon Mills, Kurtis McKenzie, Léon | |
| "True Feeling" | Galantis | The Aviary | Candy Shields, Bloodshy, Henrik Jonback, Jimmy Koitsch, Linus Eklow | |
| "Written in the Scars" | ||||
| "Woman" | Kesha | Rainbow | Pearson, Kesha Sebert | |
| "Emotional" | ||||
| "With You" | Kygo | Kids in Love | Pearson, Erik Hassle, Kygo | |
| "Better Not" | 2018 | Louis The Child | Robby Hauldren, Frederic Kennett, Rogét Chahayed, Wafia | |
| "Joshua Tree" | Rozzi | Bad Together | Eric Leva, Rozzi Crane | |
| "Bad Together" | Rozzi | Bad Together | Eric Leva, Rozzi Crane | |
| "Baby" | Bishop Briggs | Sarah Grace McLaughlin, John Hill, Sean Douglas | ||
| "LY4L" | Katelyn Tarver | Kool Aid | Tarver | |
| "Water" | Bishop Briggs | Church of Scars | John Hill, Sean Douglas, Briggs | |
| "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" | Backstreet Boys | DNA | Jamie Hartman, Stuart Crichton | |
| "Healing Hands" | Conrad Sewell | Ghosts & Heartaches | Sewell | |
| "Still Good" | DNCE | People to People | Eric Leva, Crichton & Robin Hannibal | |
| "I'm Good" | Wafia | Wafia | ||
| "Here Comes The Change" | Kesha | Pearson, Kesha Sebert | ||
| "Rich, White, Straight Men" | 2019 | Kesha | Pebe Sebert, Kesha Sebert, Crichton | |
| "Best Day" | Kesha Sebert, Scott Harris, Ryan Lewis, Joshua Robert Rawlings, Elan Wright, Phillip Peterson, Saba Samakar | |||
| "Raising Hell" | High Road | Kesha Sebert, Ajay Bhattacharya, Sean Douglas | ||
| "Flowers and Superpowers" | Wafia | Wafia, Roget Chahayed, Hitboy | ||
| "Hard Sometimes" | Ruel | Free Time | Mark Landon, Ruel Vincent Van Dijk | |
| "call the police" | the three of us | Madi Diaz, Jamie Floyd | ||
| "for months now" | the three of us | Madi Diaz, Jamie Floyd | ||
| "Where We Started" | Bailey Bryan | Perspective | Scott Harris, Rick Markowitz, Bailey Bryan | |
| "Space" | Yoshi Flower | Peer Pleasure | Joshua Smith, Danny Parra, Adam Comstock | |
| "Strange" | Celeste | Not Your Muse | Celeste Waite, Jaime Hartman | |
| "All The Feels" | Fitz and the Tantrums | All the Feels | Michael Fitzpatrick, Morgan Dorr, Jeremy Ruzumna, Noelle Scaggs, John Wicks, Joseph Karnes, James King | |
| "Bad Habit" | Ben Platt | Sing to Me Instead | Jesse Thomas, Ben Abraham, Ben Platt | |
| "Chateau" | Backstreet Boys | DNA | Stuart Crichton/Michael Pollack/James Newman/Cole Citrenbaum | |
| "Don't Let It Break Your Heart" | 2020 | Louis Tomlinson | Walls | Louis Tomlinson, Stuart Crichton, Cole Citrenbaum, James Newman |
| "Dream on Me" | Ella Henderson & Roger Sanchez | Gabriella Henderson, Jordan Riley, Roger Sanchez, Uzoechi Emenike | ||
| "Kid Again On Christmas" | Tori Kelly | A Tori Kelly Christmas | Tori Kelly | |
| "Side" | 2021 | Pentatonix | The Lucky Ones | Kevin Olusola, Madi Diaz, Matt Sallee, Mitch Grassi, Stuart Crichton |
| "20 Minutes" | 2022 | Years & Years | Night Call | Olly Alexander, Jesse Shatkin |
| "Muscle" | Olly Alexander, Joel Little | |||
| "Lost Cause" | 2023 | Pink | Trustfall |