Vlad Holiday (born May 24, 1989) is a Romanian American singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He began his solo artist career in 2017 in New York City, blending multiple genres including lo-fi, bedroom pop, psych rock, dream pop and jazz, often over hip-hop-inspired drums. He's also produced and written with other artists, including Cage The Elephant’s Neon Pill, which was nominated for Best Alternative Music Performance at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. His debut album "My Favorite Drug" saw collaborations with Matt Shultz of Cage The Elephant as well as Kacey Musgraves.

Early life

Holiday was born in Bucharest, Romania, on May 24, 1989, and moved to America with his family in September of 1999. He started as a self-taught guitarist at age 12, and began writing songs shortly after. He spent the majority of his career in New York City, before moving to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2023. Vlad is the grandson of the late Romanian actor Petre Gheorghiu who was a well-known figure in Romanian theatre and film.

Artist career

Early singles (2017–2019)

Channeling a downtown NYC lo-fi sound, while writing and producing everything by himself at his studio in Greenwich Village, Holiday started releasing songs as they were being written. Deliberately avoiding the pressures of full-length albums, EP's and other music industry constructs at the time, he began releasing singles independently, one by one. On July 28, 2017, Nylon premiered his debut track, "Quit Playing Cool".

His song "So Damn Into You", released July 12, 2019, has gathered over 18 million streams to date. The recording features background vocals by longtime friend and collaborator Charlotte Kemp Muhl.

First EP's (2020-2023)

Right around the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, on March 27, 2020, Holiday released his debut EP, "Fall Apart With Me," which featured songs like "Phonograph" and "Addiction." Many artists were hurt by releasing music as the pandemic hit since touring was no longer an option. After a few more single-only releases, on November 5, 2021, Holiday released his "Write Me Off The Show" EP, on which he toured a number of times across the US, as well as small club shows in Paris, London and Istanbul.

My Favorite Drug (2024-present)

On November 15, 2024, Holiday released his debut album "My Favorite Drug." The album features collaborations with Kacey Musgraves and Matt Shultz of Cage The Elephant.

Vlad Holiday crowd 2024

"My Favorite Drug (album)" peaked at No. 9 on the Sub-Modern Albums Radio Chart, while "Closer" peaked at No. 14 at Alternative Specialty Radio.

Holiday supported the album on national tours with Cage The Elephant, Declan McKenna, a festival slot at Austin City Limits 2024, as well as his first headline tours in the US, Canada, Europe and UK.

Additional Work

Vlad Holiday live 2024

While finishing his debut album, Holiday was also co-writing a number of songs for Cage The Elephant's album Neon Pill at Electric Lady Studios and Flux Studios in New York City. The title track was nominated for Best Alternative Music Performance at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. The band also landed their 11th and 13th No. 1 songs on Billboard's Alternative Airplay radio chart with "Neon Pill" and "Metaverse," both Vlad Holiday co-writes.

Selected Credits

YearArtistReleaseCredits
2024Vlad HolidayMy Favorite Drug (album)Producer / engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / violin / mellotron / percussion / drums
2024Vlad Holiday feat. Matt ShultzCloser (single)Producer / engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / mellotron / percussion
2024Vlad Holiday feat. Kacey MusgravesI Don't Wanna Party Anymore (single)Producer / engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / violin / mellotron / percussion / additional drums
2024Cage the ElephantNeon Pill (single)Co-writer, Background Vocals
2024Cage the ElephantMetaverse (single)Co-writer, Background Vocals
2024Cage the ElephantOver Your Shoulder (single)Co-writer
2024Cage the ElephantSame (single)Background Vocals
2023Vlad HolidayDowntown Baby (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / violin / mellotron / percussion / additional drums
2023Vlad HolidayTwo Steps Back (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / nylon acoustic guitar / mellotron
2022The BrummiesCosmic Space Girl (single)Co-writer / additional guitar
2021Vlad HolidayWrite Me Off The Show (EP)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / mellotron / additional percussion
2021Sunglasses For JawsEverybody's Made Of Bones (album)Moog bass synth / mellotron / additional guitar / additional bass / additional percussion
2020Vlad HolidayI'll Probably Never Be Somebody (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / mellotron
2020Vlad HolidayRain (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / mellotron / vibes
2020Vlad HolidayFall Apart With Me (EP)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2019Vlad HolidaySo Damn into You (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / mastering engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2019Vlad HolidayBad Influence (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / mastering engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2018Elanor FriedbergerAre We Good (Cate Le Bon remix) (single)Mastering engineer
2018Vlad HolidayLike in the Movies (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / mastering engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2018Vlad HolidayObscurity (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / mastering engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / Casio CT-370
2018Vlad HolidayTunnel Vision (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / mastering engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2018Lissy TrullieHere (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / co-writer / guitar / programming
2018Vlad HolidayChildren (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / mastering engineer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2018The BritanysWhen I'm With You (single)Mixing / additional production
2017Vlad HolidayQuit Playing Cool (single)Producer / engineer / mixer / songwriter / vocals / guitar / bass / drums / keyboards
2016Public Access TVNever Enough (album)Producer / engineer on "In Our Blood," "Sudden Emotion," and "Sell You On A Lie"
2015The VirginsRich Girls (single)TV mix
2015Donald CummingOut Calls Only (album)Producer / engineer / programming

External links