Stephen Samuel Wrabel (born January 7, 1989), known mononymously as Wrabel ( ), is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer 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
Albums Studio albums + List of studio albums Title Year These Words Are All for You Released: September 24, 2021 Label: Big Gay, Nettwerk Formats: CD, digital download, streaming Based on a True Story Released: November 17, 2023 Label: Big Gay, Nettwerk Formats: Digital download, streaming Up Above Released: February 13, 2026 Label: Big Gay, Nettwerk Formats: Digital download, streaming
Live albums + List of live albums Title Details One Nite Only (Live) Released: January 25, 2019 Label: Big Gay Formats: Digital download, streaming
Extended plays + List of extended plays, with selected chart positions Title Year Peak chart positions USHeat. Sideways Released: June 24, 2014 Label: Island Formats: Digital download, streaming 10 We Could Be Beautiful Released: May 12, 2017 Label: Epic Formats: Digital download, streaming — One of Those Happy People Released: September 13, 2019 Label: Big Gay Formats: Digital download, streaming — Piano Released: May 15, 2020 Label: Big Gay Formats: Digital download, streaming — Chapter of Me Released: April 21, 2023 Label: Big Gay Formats: Digital download, streaming — Chapter of You Released: August 25, 2023 Label: Big Gay Formats: Digital download, streaming — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Singles As lead artist + List of singles as lead artist, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name Title Year Peak chart positions Album USBub. USAC USAdultPop USDance CANAC "11 Blocks" 2016 18 21 12 — 31 We Could Be Beautiful "Bloodstain" 2017 — — — — — "It's You" — — — — — rowspan="3" "The Village" — — — — — "First Winter" 2018 — — — — — "That's What I'd Do" 2019 — — — — — One Nite Only "I Want You" — — — — — "Woman" — — — — — "Oh Love" — — — — — rowspan="2" "I Want You" — — — — — "Love to Love U" — — — — — One of Those Happy People "The Real Thing" — — — — — "Magic" — — — — — "Flickers" — — — — — "Flying" — — — — — "Happy People" — — — — — "Too Close" — — — 40 — rowspan="6" "(It Wouldn't Be) Christmas Without You" — — — — — "Somebody New" 2020 — — — — — "Hurts Like Hell" — — — — — "Since I Was Young" — — — — — "Big Love" — — — — — "Good" 2021 — — — — — These Words Are All for You "Nothing But the Love" — — 33 — — "Back to Back" — — — — — "London" — — — — — "Worst Kind of Hurt" 2022 — — — — — Us "Happier" 2023 — — — — — Chapter of Me and Based on a True Story "On the Way Down" — — — — — "One Drink Away" — — — — — "Turn Up the Love" — — — — — "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" — — — — — "At Least I Tried" 2024 — — — — — A Chosen Family "Buried Alive, Again" — — — — — "Future" 2025 — — — — — Up Above "Up Above" — — — — — "Greener" — — — — — "Garden" — — — — — "Surrender" — — — — — "—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
As featured artist + List of singles as featured artist, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name Title Year Peak chart positions Album US USPop USDance CAN CANCHR "Ten Feet Tall"(Afrojack featuring Wrabel) 2014 100 22 9 — 43 Forget the World "Ritual"(Marshmello featuring Wrabel) 2016 — — 11 82 — rowspan="2" "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 — — — — — "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 — — — — — "—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Guest appearances + List of non-single guest appearances, with other performing artists, showing year released and album name Title Year Other artist(s) Album "Silent Night / Light of the World" 2012 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