Kat Harlton
Lead Photo: Aimee Arreguin
Breakout alt-pop talent Chloe Star recently released her newest single, ‘Walking On The Sun,’ via Chloe Star Records. Star is a multi-talented Persian and Indigenous singer-songwriter, visual artist, and tribal advocate, whose bold and self-assured soundscape has been championed by global tastemakers like Rolling Stone, which included her track ‘Bad Habit’ in their 2025 Best New Music: Songs You Need to Know feature, METAL Magazine, CLASH Magazine, 1883 Magazine, EUPHORIA, and EARMILK. Chloe Star has performed at major festivals in the UK and the US, including on the main stage at London Pride, New York Pride Festival, Back Lot Bash in Chicago, as well as events such as Out & Abt in New York and The Dinah in California.
Chloe Star grew up between her family’s reservation in San Bernardino and Los Angeles. Her musical journey began as a pre-teen, when she started using journaling and other art forms to express her creativity and emotions, and was also influenced by her Persian and Indigenous roots, which were very musical. The 28-year-old artist burst onto the scene just three years ago in 2023 and has since built a career on unrivalled authenticity and raw emotion, which has resulted in her ever-growing influence and fanbase. Chloe Star is heavily influenced by an array of artists, including Amy Winehouse, Nirvana, Janis Joplin, and YUNGBLUD, and has drawn comparisons to Paramore, Billie Eilish, and YUNGBLUD.
With ‘Walking On The Sun,’ Chloe Star continues to hone her signature alt-rock palette, weaving together trap-heavy percussion and gritty, overdriven guitar work into a sonic experience that is as ethereal as it is volatile. The track develops with an intricate build-up of tension, culminating in an anthemic hook where raw rock energy meets contemporary urban rhythms, all anchored by Star’s fierce and magnetic vocal delivery. Infused with a sharp, modern vitality, the single is sure to strike a chord with fans of Julia Wolf, Machine Gun Kelly, and Sleep Token
I had the opportunity to chat with Chloe about her latest single, what she hope fans connect with and what’s next.
Kat: “Walking On The Sun” confronts your experiences with the treatment and rehab industry. What made you decide this was the right time to tell that story through your music?
Chloe: I just feel like it isn’t just my own story anymore. I have spent so much time processing my addiction and depression and I know that so many people have gone through treatment and also left feeling misunderstood, unheard, or even more broken than when they went in. If my experience can make someone feel less alone or encourage people to ask harder questions about the system, then its worth sharing.
Kat: The song critiques a system while also acknowledging that you eventually found a place that genuinely helped you. Was it important for you to balance frustration with hope rather than leave listeners with only one side of the story?
Chloe: Absolutely! I had experiences that hurt me, but I also eventually found people who genuinely cared and helped me heal. I wanted the song to reflect that complexity. Sometimes the system fails people, but there are still incredible individuals within it. I have seen both sides forsure.
Kat: Your music blends alt-rock, trap, and pop influences without fitting neatly into one genre. Do you think genre labels are becoming less relevant, or do they still help listeners understand your music?
Chloe: I feel like genres are very important because that’s the foundation of music but also feel like these days people listen to playlists rather than genres. I grew up listening to everything, so it never felt naturals to limit myself creatively. If a song needs heavy guitar, amazing. If it needs an 808 or a more poppy chorus then that’s amazing too! Id rather follow the feel and emotion that’s flowing rather then change up a song because it doesn’t fit into a genre.
Kat: You draw from both your Persian and Indigenous heritage, but you’ve also said your music begins with raw emotion. How do your cultural identities naturally show up in your songwriting, even when you’re not writing directly about them?
Chloe: It is in my perspective, my storytelling, and the way I value resilience, family, and identity. Even if I am writing about heartbreak or addiction, those experiences are filtered through who I am.
Kat: Before music became your career, journaling was one of your creative outlets. Do you still write privately for yourself, or has songwriting completely replaced that form of self-expression?
Chloe: 100% !! I still journal ! I actually just got a new journal the other day which I am really excited about. New journals are like a blank canvas. With songs I get to communicate with other people and eventually find people that can relate and understand me, and with journaling nothing has to make sense. I think its a great balance that I have in my life. A lot of my songs actually begin as journal entries and they eventually turn into lyrics.
Kat: You’ve cited artists like Amy Winehouse, Nirvana, Janis Joplin, and YUNGBLUD as influences. What do those artists have in common that speaks to you as both a songwriter and performer?
Chloe: They never felt like they were performing as a character. They were unapologetically themselves, flaws and all. No one has ever tried to be perfect or ever made that seem that way. I love when people are just so authentically themselves and doing this to just stay alive.
Kat: Many listeners connect with your music because of its honesty. Is there ever a point where sharing deeply personal experiences feels like too much, and how do you decide where that boundary is?
Chloe: I think the boundary is just knowing when I am 100% ready to be vulnerable. I don’t ever want to sabotage myself but reopening a wound if I am not ready to process it out loud. If I can talk about something without feeling like I am reliving it then I know its time for me to turn it into a song. My goal is healing and connection.
Kat: You’ve performed at major Pride festivals across the UK and the U.S. How does performing for those audiences differ from a traditional concert, and what have those experiences meant to you personally?
Chloe: As a queer artist, it is incredibly special and an honor to be on a stage during pride. Visibility matters and if someone in the crowd sees me and feel like they belong a little more because of it then there you go!! That’s the purpose!
Kat: As both a visual artist and musician, do you ever have a complete visual world in mind before you’ve even finished writing a song, or does that side of the creative process come later?
Chloe: Most of the time I see the visuals before I finish the song. Its kind of like watching scenes from a movie while writing. Music is way more than just sound to me, its every moment, feeling, image, its like every song is its own universe.
Kat: “Walking On The Sun” tackles a difficult subject, but it’s delivered with an anthemic, empowering energy. When listeners finish the song, what’s the one feeling or conversation you hope it inspires?
Chloe: I hope people feel seen. Whether they’ve struggled with addiction, gone to treatment, or just felt like they didn’t fit into the system that was supposed to help them, I want them to know they’re not alone. I also hope it starts conversations about how recovery isn’t one size fits all. Healing is different for everyone. If someone finishes the song feeling a little more understood or a little less ashamed of they story, then it did exactly what I hoped it would
Connect With Chloe:
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