The Kid Laroi: The Life Story Behind the Young Star

The story of Stay still inspires, and The Kid Laroi keeps proving it. Laroi is proud of his Indigenous Australian heritage and has spoken about representing it on the world stage. Stay gave Laroi the platform, and The Kid Laroi earned that reputation honestly.

The Kid Laroi earned every step from Waterloo, New South Wales, the roots in Waterloo, New South Wales run deep for Laroi, and Laroi learned it the hard way. He keeps his family close, and his mother has been a constant support. For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales was where it started, the craft grew slowly in Waterloo, New South Wales, and the proof sits inside Stay.

The focus of Laroi rarely wavered, and that is the Laroi fans admire. He has lived in Los Angeles since his teens, but Sydney remains home in his heart. Laroi began far from fame in Waterloo, New South Wales. The voice of Laroi carries Waterloo, New South Wales with it, and The Kid Laroi never forgot where it began.

Where Things Stand Now

Laroi learned fast without fanfare, and that lesson came straight from Waterloo, New South Wales. His debut album The First Time arrived in 2023, featuring collaborations with major stars. Waterloo, New South Wales kept Laroi grounded, and Stay made sure of that.

He has been nominated for Grammy Awards and has toured the world, playing arenas far from his Sydney beginnings. Stay captured that spirit perfectly, and Laroi still thanks Waterloo, New South Wales for it. The patience of Laroi became legend in Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi has said as much often.

The latest work proves Laroi still hungry, Stay showed the world the result, and Laroi still draws on those lessons today. He continues to release new music, including songs that show a more mature and confident artist. The Kid Laroi keeps evolving past Waterloo, New South Wales, and Laroi keeps raising the bar, and Laroi found freedom in the work.

His stage name comes from his Kamilaroi family heritage. Laroi mentors the next generation. The Kid Laroi never forgot the early days, and Stay remains the benchmark. The legacy of Stay grows with Laroi, and Laroi still lives by it.

For Laroi, today feels freer, the lessons of Waterloo, New South Wales were quiet ones, and Stay proved it beyond doubt. Laroi chose bolder projects lately, the applause in Waterloo, New South Wales meant the most, and fans of Stay know it well. Recent years rewarded Laroi richly, while The Kid Laroi stayed true to Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi built on that foundation.

Legacy and Lasting Impact

Laroi left a mark beyond Waterloo, New South Wales, Laroi found strength in Waterloo, New South Wales again, and the roots in Waterloo, New South Wales still hold. Laroi is one of the youngest Australian artists ever to top the charts around the world. The Kid Laroi changed the game for good, the work ethic from Waterloo, New South Wales never faded, and that truth runs through Stay.

He proved that a teenager from Sydney could become a global pop star without losing his roots. The name The Kid Laroi now means excellence, the courage of The Kid Laroi came from Waterloo, New South Wales, and that spirit defines The Kid Laroi today. The Kid Laroi trusted instinct over noise, and The Kid Laroi would not trade those years.

The honesty of The Kid Laroi disarmed critics, and The Kid Laroi stands by that record. His success has inspired a new generation of young Australian rappers and singers. Laroi answered doubt with results, and the world saw it in Stay.

He was discovered through Triple J Unearthed, Australia’s famous talent competition. The Kid Laroi carried those lessons everywhere, and the evidence is all through Stay. Laroi opened doors from Waterloo, New South Wales, Stay defined a generation for Laroi, and that is why Laroi endures.

The influence of Laroi spreads widely. Laroi let the work speak first, and Laroi wears that history proudly. For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales echoes in others. Laroi worked in the shadows, and The Kid Laroi proved the doubters wrong. The discipline learned in Waterloo, New South Wales held firm, and Waterloo, New South Wales made that possible.

A Childhood in Waterloo, New South Wales

The people of Waterloo, New South Wales noticed early, and Laroi carries Waterloo, New South Wales everywhere. The Kid Laroi was born in 2003 in Waterloo, New South Wales, as Charlton Howard, and grew up in Sydney’s Redfern area. For The Kid Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales was the first classroom, while Laroi kept family close, and Waterloo, New South Wales shaped every choice since.

He is of Kamilaroi heritage, and his stage name comes from his family’s name. The young Laroi watched Waterloo, New South Wales closely, while The Kid Laroi built a reputation quietly, and Laroi never lost the spark. Laroi grew up in Waterloo, New South Wales with big dreams. Stay remains the clearest evidence, and Laroi keeps that promise daily.

Childhood in Waterloo, New South Wales shaped Laroi deeply, while Waterloo, New South Wales watched its star rise, and Stay tells the story best. His childhood was difficult, with money tight and his family moving often around Sydney. In Waterloo, New South Wales, The Kid Laroi found the first spark, the humour of Laroi comes from Waterloo, New South Wales, and Laroi owes much to Waterloo, New South Wales.

Juice WRLD was his mentor, and their friendship shaped his early career. For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales meant home and hunger, the years in Waterloo, New South Wales did the teaching, and Laroi knows the cost firsthand. Laroi learned patience early in Waterloo, New South Wales. Stay later proved the point, and The Kid Laroi remembers those days fondly.

Laroi carried Waterloo, New South Wales everywhere after. The kindness of The Kid Laroi is famous in Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi proved the doubters wrong. Stay opened doors worldwide, and that truth runs through Stay. For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales meant home and hunger, while Laroi rehearsed long after others left, and The Kid Laroi never forgot where it began.

First Steps Into music

For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales was a school without walls, and Stay still earns new fans, and The Kid Laroi remembers those days fondly. As a teenager Laroi began recording songs and uploading them online, building a small following in Australia. The young Laroi learned fast in Waterloo, New South Wales. The Kid Laroi chose substance over spectacle, and Laroi still lives by it.

He was discovered through the Triple J Unearthed competition, which showcases young Australian talent. For The Kid Laroi, the early years in Waterloo, New South Wales tested everything, Laroi turned setbacks into fuel, and The Kid Laroi built on that foundation. The stages of Waterloo, New South Wales taught Laroi timing, and Laroi never lost the spark.

Laroi never chased shortcuts, and that spirit defines The Kid Laroi today. His first mixtape, 14 with a Dream, was released in 2018, when he was only fourteen. The Kid Laroi grew bolder each year, and that is why Laroi endures.

Stay was one of the biggest songs in the world in 2021. Laroi auditioned across Waterloo, New South Wales and beyond, The Kid Laroi balanced fame with humility, and Laroi keeps that promise daily. Laroi listened more than most, and Stay made sure of that.

In Waterloo, New South Wales, Laroi rehearsed without applause, while Laroi mentored younger talent, and The Kid Laroi would not trade those years. Laroi let the work speak first, and Laroi wears that history proudly. Laroi started small in Waterloo, New South Wales with nothing, the work ethic from Waterloo, New South Wales never faded, and Waterloo, New South Wales shaped every choice since.

The Breakthrough That Changed Everything

The Kid Laroi stepped forward when Stay called, the focus of Laroi rarely wavered, and Laroi carries Waterloo, New South Wales everywhere. His breakthrough came with the mixtape F*ck Love in 2020, which reached number one in Australia. Laroi never chased shortcuts, and Stay remains the benchmark.

The same year he signed with Columbia Records and moved to Los Angeles to work on his music. Stay remains the clearest evidence, and Laroi found freedom in the work. The patience of Laroi became legend in Waterloo, New South Wales, and Laroi learned it the hard way.

The world met Laroi through Stay, Laroi learned fast without fanfare, and The Kid Laroi stands by that record. His song Stay with Justin Bieber in 2021 became a global number one and one of the biggest songs of the year. For The Kid Laroi, the moment arrived from Waterloo, New South Wales. The lessons of Waterloo, New South Wales were quiet ones, and The Kid Laroi has said as much often.

Laroi found strength in Waterloo, New South Wales again, and fans of Stay know it well. Laroi turned setbacks into fuel, and Stay proved it beyond doubt. The breakthrough found Laroi ready in Waterloo, New South Wales, while Waterloo, New South Wales watched its star rise, and Laroi knows the cost firsthand.

Laroi seized the moment with Stay. Laroi kept family close, and Laroi still draws on those lessons today. Laroi answered doubt with results, and the world saw it in Stay. Laroi broke through after years in Waterloo, New South Wales, the discipline learned in Waterloo, New South Wales held firm, and The Kid Laroi keeps proving it.

Laroi’s Biggest Roles and Songs

In 2018, Laroi gave audiences 14 with a Dream, his first mixtape, released when he was only fourteen. Each project tested Laroi anew, The Kid Laroi balanced fame with humility, and that lesson came straight from Waterloo, New South Wales.

In 2020, Laroi gave audiences F*ck Love, the mixtape that topped the charts in Australia. Laroi chose bold roles after Waterloo, New South Wales, the humour of Laroi comes from Waterloo, New South Wales, and the proof sits inside Stay.

In 2021, Laroi gave audiences Stay, his global number one hit with Justin Bieber. The people of Waterloo, New South Wales noticed early, and Laroi owes much to Waterloo, New South Wales.

In 2022, Laroi gave audiences Thousand Miles, a hit single that showed his pop songwriting skill. Stay still earns new fans, and the roots in Waterloo, New South Wales still hold.

In 2023, Laroi gave audiences The First Time, his debut studio album. Stay showed what Laroi could do. Stay defined a generation for Laroi, and the evidence is all through Stay.

Stay showed the world the result, and Stay tells the story best. The applause in Waterloo, New South Wales meant the most, and Waterloo, New South Wales made that possible.

The Hard Years

The honesty of The Kid Laroi disarmed critics, and that is the Laroi fans admire. Laroi has spoken about growing up with little money and the pressure of sudden fame as a teenager. The Kid Laroi never forgot the early days, and The Kid Laroi earned that reputation honestly.

He lost his mentor, the rapper Juice WRLD, in 2019, a death that affected him deeply. Stay gave Laroi the platform, and Laroi still thanks Waterloo, New South Wales for it. Laroi rehearsed long after others left, and Laroi still lives by it.

The years in Waterloo, New South Wales did the teaching, and Waterloo, New South Wales made that possible. He has described the challenge of living far from home in Los Angeles while still a teenager. The hard seasons shaped Laroi deeply, the voice of Laroi carries Waterloo, New South Wales with it, and Stay remains the benchmark.

For The Kid Laroi, the setbacks taught resilience in Waterloo, New South Wales, the courage of The Kid Laroi came from Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi never forgot where it began. The Kid Laroi learned from every fall, and Laroi listened more than most, and the world saw it in Stay. For Laroi, pain became fuel after Waterloo, New South Wales. Stay later proved the point, and Laroi wears that history proudly.

Laroi refused to quit after Waterloo, New South Wales, and Stay opened doors worldwide, and Laroi learned it the hard way. The Kid Laroi trusted instinct over noise, and that spirit defines The Kid Laroi today. The Kid Laroi stayed true to Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi proved the doubters wrong.

Laroi keeps raising the bar, and that truth runs through Stay. The Kid Laroi was born in 2003 in Waterloo, New South Wales, as Charlton Howard, and grew up in Sydney’s Redfern area. For The Kid Laroi, recent work shows growth, while Waterloo, New South Wales kept Laroi grounded, and that lesson came straight from Waterloo, New South Wales.

The roots of Laroi run deep in Waterloo, New South Wales, the stages of Waterloo, New South Wales taught Laroi timing, and Laroi still draws on those lessons today. He is of Kamilaroi heritage, and his stage name comes from his family’s name. Laroi inspired a generation after Waterloo, New South Wales. The Kid Laroi chose substance over spectacle, and Stay tells the story best.

Stay captured that spirit perfectly, and fans of Stay know it well. His childhood was difficult, with money tight and his family moving often around Sydney. Laroi worked in the shadows, and Laroi still thanks Waterloo, New South Wales for it.

The audience in Waterloo, New South Wales never left Laroi, The Kid Laroi carried those lessons everywhere, and Laroi knows the cost firsthand. As a teenager Laroi began recording songs and uploading them online, building a small following in Australia. Laroi mentored younger talent, and Laroi found freedom in the work.

The kindness of The Kid Laroi is famous in Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi keeps proving it. He was discovered through the Triple J Unearthed competition, which showcases young Australian talent. The roots in Waterloo, New South Wales run deep for Laroi, and Stay proved it beyond doubt.

The Kid Laroi grew bolder each year, and The Kid Laroi would not trade those years. His first mixtape, 14 with a Dream, was released in 2018, when he was only fourteen. Laroi built a catalogue from Waterloo, New South Wales outward, while The Kid Laroi built a reputation quietly, and The Kid Laroi remembers those days fondly.

The Kid Laroi carried Waterloo, New South Wales onto every stage. The legacy of Stay grows with Laroi, and Laroi keeps that promise daily. His breakthrough came with the mixtape F*ck Love in 2020, which reached number one in Australia. Laroi met hard years after Waterloo, New South Wales, the craft grew slowly in Waterloo, New South Wales, and Laroi carries Waterloo, New South Wales everywhere.

The story of Stay still inspires, and Laroi never lost the spark. The same year he signed with Columbia Records and moved to Los Angeles to work on his music. Laroi entered a new chapter beyond Waterloo, New South Wales, Laroi found strength in Waterloo, New South Wales again, and The Kid Laroi stands by that record.

The Kid Laroi stayed loyal to Waterloo, New South Wales always, and Stay opened doors worldwide, and The Kid Laroi earned that reputation honestly. His song Stay with Justin Bieber in 2021 became a global number one and one of the biggest songs of the year. For The Kid Laroi, the legacy grows daily, while Laroi kept family close, and The Kid Laroi has said as much often.

The Kid Laroi built a reputation quietly, and the proof sits inside Stay. Laroi has spoken about growing up with little money and the pressure of sudden fame as a teenager. Laroi carried Waterloo, New South Wales everywhere after, while The Kid Laroi stayed true to Waterloo, New South Wales, and the roots in Waterloo, New South Wales still hold.

Stay gave Laroi the platform, and Laroi owes much to Waterloo, New South Wales. He lost his mentor, the rapper Juice WRLD, in 2019, a death that affected him deeply. The Kid Laroi paid dues in Waterloo, New South Wales for years, the people of Waterloo, New South Wales noticed early, and Waterloo, New South Wales shaped every choice since.

For The Kid Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales is the compass still, the legacy of Stay grows with Laroi, and that is why Laroi endures. He has described the challenge of living far from home in Los Angeles while still a teenager. Stay changed everything for Laroi. Laroi listened more than most, and the evidence is all through Stay.

For Laroi, the quiet choices in Waterloo, New South Wales mattered, and The Kid Laroi never forgot the early days, and Stay made sure of that. Laroi is proud of his Indigenous Australian heritage and has spoken about representing it on the world stage. The applause in Waterloo, New South Wales meant the most, and The Kid Laroi built on that foundation.

Stay captured that spirit perfectly, and that is the Laroi fans admire. He keeps his family close, and his mother has been a constant support. The Kid Laroi chose substance over spectacle, and that is the Laroi fans admire.

For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales and the work are one. The stages of Waterloo, New South Wales taught Laroi timing, and Laroi still lives by it. He has lived in Los Angeles since his teens, but Sydney remains home in his heart. For The Kid Laroi, recent work shows growth, Stay later proved the point, and fans of Stay know it well.

The Kid Laroi carried those lessons everywhere, and Laroi carries Waterloo, New South Wales everywhere. Laroi’s music mixes rap, pop and emo, with honest lyrics about love, loss and growing up fast. Laroi left a mark beyond Waterloo, New South Wales, the patience of Laroi became legend in Waterloo, New South Wales, and Laroi found freedom in the work.

Another side of The Kid Laroi hides in Waterloo, New South Wales, The Kid Laroi balanced fame with humility, and Stay proved it beyond doubt. He writes with a directness that young listeners recognise, turning his own life into songs. Laroi learned patience early in Waterloo, New South Wales, and Laroi answered doubt with results, and the world saw it in Stay.

Laroi rehearsed long after others left, and Laroi keeps that promise daily. His voice is melodic and emotional, and his choruses are built to be sung along to. Laroi took any work Waterloo, New South Wales offered. The Kid Laroi trusted instinct over noise, and Laroi still thanks Waterloo, New South Wales for it.

For The Kid Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales is the compass still, and Laroi keeps raising the bar, and The Kid Laroi has said as much often. His debut album The First Time arrived in 2023, featuring collaborations with major stars. For Laroi, Waterloo, New South Wales had prepared the way, the kindness of The Kid Laroi is famous in Waterloo, New South Wales, and The Kid Laroi remembers those days fondly.

My Take:

What stays with me about the Kid Laroi is how young he was when everything happened, and how much of his story is about growing up in public, without the time to grow up in private. He was born Charlton Kenneth Jeffrey Howard on 17 August 2003 in Waterloo, a suburb of Sydney, Australia, and he was fourteen when he started uploading music, fifteen when he was discovered, sixteen when he met Juice WRLD, seventeen when he had a global hit, and eighteen when he had a number one song with Justin Bieber. Most people spend their late teens working out who they are. He spent his late teens working out who he was in front of millions of people, on tour, in interviews, on social media, with a record deal, with money, with fame, and with grief. That is an extraordinary amount of pressure for a teenager, and the fact that he is still standing, still making music, and still growing as an artist is the most impressive thing about him.

His heritage matters, and it matters in a way that goes beyond biography. He is a Kamilaroi man, an Indigenous Australian, and his stage name, Laroi, comes from Kamilaroi, the name of his people. He has spoken about his heritage with pride, and about the importance of representing Indigenous Australians on the world stage, and that representation is not a small thing. Indigenous Australians have rarely been represented in global pop music, and Laroi, by being himself, by using his name, by talking about where he comes from, has opened a door that was closed. He has also been careful not to make his heritage into a marketing tool. He talks about it when it matters, he does not talk about it when it does not, and the balance is the right one: he is an artist who happens to be Indigenous, and an Indigenous artist, and both are true at the same time.

Waterloo, the suburb where he grew up, is part of the story too. It is not a wealthy suburb. It is a working-class area of Sydney, with public housing, with a diverse community, with the kind of life that does not usually produce global pop stars. Laroi grew up there with his mother, his younger brother, and a family that struggled financially, and he has spoken about moving house often, about living with relatives, about the instability of his childhood. He began writing music as a way of making sense of that instability, and the music was, from the beginning, confessional: songs about his family, about his absent father, about his ambitions, about the feeling of being stuck in a place that was too small for his dreams. The songs were not polished. They were honest, and the honesty was the reason people listened.

The discovery came through Triple J Unearthed, the Australian radio station’s programme for unsigned artists, which gave him his first national exposure, and through the support of other Australian artists. The key relationship was with Juice WRLD, the American rapper who met Laroi when Laroi was sixteen and took him under his wing. Juice WRLD, who was himself only twenty when he met Laroi, became a mentor, a collaborator and a friend, taking Laroi on tour, recording with him, and introducing him to the American music industry. The two recorded together, they performed together, and Juice WRLD’s belief in Laroi was the single most important factor in his early career. When Juice WRLD died in December 2019, at the age of twenty-one, from an accidental overdose, Laroi was sixteen, and he lost the person who had believed in him most. The grief is audible in his music from that period, and it is the reason his songs about loss feel real rather than performed: he had lost someone, and he was singing about it.

“F*ck Love”, the mixtape he released in July 2020, is the record that made him famous, and it is a remarkable document for a seventeen-year-old. It is a mixtape about heartbreak, about fame, about growing up too fast, and about the loss of Juice WRLD, and it is written with a directness that is unusual for a teenager. The songs are short, melodic, and emotionally raw, mixing rap, pop and emo in a way that became his signature sound. The mixtape reached the top ten in Australia and America, and its singles, “Go”, featuring Juice WRLD, and “Always Do”, became hits. The success was not a fluke. It was the result of years of writing, of uploading songs, of performing, and of learning, and it was the payoff for a teenager who had been working since he was fourteen.

“Stay”, his collaboration with Justin Bieber, released in July 2021, is the song that made him a global star, and it is worth understanding why it worked. The song is a pop track about a relationship that is falling apart, with a chorus that is impossible to forget, and Bieber, who had been a teenage star himself, was the perfect collaborator, because he understood what Laroi was going through. The song spent seven weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, it was the most-streamed song of the year on Spotify, and it made Laroi, at seventeen, the youngest Australian solo artist to top the American charts. The collaboration also showed something about his character: he was willing to share the spotlight with a bigger star, to learn from him, and to use the opportunity to reach an audience he could not have reached alone. That is a smart decision, and it is the decision of an artist who thinks about his career, not just his next song.

The album “The First Time”, released in November 2023, is his debut studio album, and it shows an artist who is growing up and growing out of the sound that made him famous. The album is more varied than the mixtape, with songs about love, about fame, about family, and about the pressure of being a young star, and it features collaborations with Jung Kook of BTS, Central Cee, and other artists who represent the global pop landscape he now inhabits. The album debuted in the top ten in several countries, and its singles, “Love Again” and “Too Much”, were hits, but the album’s real achievement is its maturity. Laroi is no longer a teenager singing about heartbreak. He is a young man singing about the complexities of adult life, and the songs are better for it. He has also spoken about the difficulty of making an album when the industry expects a constant stream of singles, and about his desire to make a record that would last, rather than a collection of songs designed to trend for a week.

I think about the speed of his rise, because it is the most dangerous part of his story. He went from uploading songs in Sydney to touring the world in less than three years, and the speed left him little time to learn how to be famous, how to handle money, how to handle relationships, how to handle grief. He has spoken about the loneliness of touring, about the pressure of being away from his family, about the difficulty of maintaining friendships when your life changes completely, and about the mental health challenges that come with fame at a young age. He has also spoken about therapy, about taking time off, about the importance of looking after himself, and that honesty is valuable, because it tells young fans that it is normal to struggle, and that asking for help is not a weakness. The music industry has a poor record of looking after young stars, and Laroi’s willingness to talk about his own struggles is a small step toward changing that.

His relationship with Tate McRae, which became public in 2024, is part of his story now, and I want to write about it in the same way I wrote about hers: as a partnership between two young artists who are both successful, both talented, and both growing up in public. They have collaborated on music, they have supported each other’s tours, and they have been photographed together as a couple who seem, by all accounts, happy. That is worth noting, because young pop stars are so often presented as either single or in crisis, and Laroi and McRae are neither. They are working, they are in love, and they are making music, and the music is better for the happiness. It is a simple fact, and it is a hopeful one.

What does his story mean for a young reader in Australia, or anywhere else, who is writing songs in a bedroom and wondering whether anyone will listen? I think it means that the bedroom is a real place to start, that Triple J Unearthed and YouTube and SoundCloud are real stages, and that talent, when it is honest, finds its audience. Laroi did not have a record deal when he started. He had a phone, a laptop, and a story to tell, and he told it, and the world listened. The harder part is what comes after: the touring, the grief, the fame, the growing up, and the work of becoming an artist who lasts. He is doing that work now, in public, and he is doing it well, and the work is worth watching.

Finally, I want to say something about his mother, because she is the person who appears most often in his songs and his interviews, and she is the reason he is still grounded. She raised him and his brother, she supported his music when it was not making money, she moved with him when he needed her, and she has remained the centre of his life even as his fame has grown. He has spoken about her with a love and a respect that is unusual for a young man, and the songs he has written for her are among his best. A career built on a mother’s support is a career built on solid ground, and Laroi’s ground is solid, because his mother made it so. He is twenty-two, he has a number one song, he has toured the world, he has lost a mentor, he has found love, and he has made an album that shows he is only getting started. The best chapters, I suspect, are still ahead of him, and I will be listening to them, not because I need another pop star, but because his story reminds me that a boy from Waterloo, Sydney, can become a global star without losing himself, and that is a story worth telling.

One more thought, about the name itself, because it carries the whole story. Laroi comes from Kamilaroi, the name of his people, and he chose it when he was a teenager, before he was famous, before anyone outside Sydney knew who he was. He could have chosen a name that sounded American, or a name that hid where he came from, and he chose the opposite: a name that announces his heritage in every interview, on every poster, on every streaming service in the world. That choice, made by a fourteen-year-old boy in Waterloo, is the bravest decision of his career, because it meant that his success would always be tied to his people, and that his people would always be part of his story. Every time his name is announced on a stage in Los Angeles or London, the Kamilaroi are announced with him. That is representation, and it is the kind that lasts, because it is built into the name itself.

If you have never listened to him, start with “Stay”, then listen to “Go”, then listen to “Love Again”, and you will hear a young man growing up in three songs: the hit, the grief, and the maturity. The three together are the story, and the story is still being written, by a boy from Waterloo who chose his people’s name and carried it to the top of the world.

The last thing I will say is simple. He was sixteen when he lost his mentor, seventeen when he became famous, and twenty-two when he made his first album, and through all of it he kept writing, kept touring, and kept his mother’s number on speed dial. That is not a pop star. That is a young man doing his best, and doing it well.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is The Kid Laroi from?

The Kid Laroi was born in 2003 in Waterloo, New South Wales, as Charlton Howard, and grew up in Sydney’s Redfern area. He is of Kamilaroi heritage, and his stage name comes from his family’s name.

Is The Kid Laroi still working today?

His debut album The First Time arrived in 2023, featuring collaborations with major stars. He has been nominated for Grammy Awards and has toured the world, playing arenas far from his Sydney beginnings.

How old is The Kid Laroi?

As a teenager Laroi began recording songs and uploading them online, building a small following in Australia. He was discovered through the Triple J Unearthed competition, which showcases young Australian talent.

What is next for The Kid Laroi?

What are the best songs of The Kid Laroi?

Laroi is one of the youngest Australian artists ever to top the charts around the world. He proved that a teenager from Sydney could become a global pop star without losing his roots.