Brian Vaughn Bradley, Jr. (born September 27, 1996), better known by his stage name Astro or The Astronomical Kid, is an American rapper and actor. Mostly known for being a contestant on the first season of The X Factor USA in 2011. Astro took the judges with his original song shot at Simon, for looking at his mom. His mentor was L.A. Reid, the mentor for the boys. Astro was seventh place in the competition. After his appearance on The X Factor, he starred in an episode of Person of Interest. In 2014, he co-starred in the major films Earth to Echo and A Walk Among the Tombstones, and the Fox series Red Band Society.
Early life
Astro was born Brian Bradley on September 27, 1996 in Brooklyn, New York. There, he lived in a single parent household with his Jamaican mother, Cascia Thomspon, and younger sister. He began rapping professionally at the age of ten when his mother promised him studio time if he began to do better in school. He soon released his first single, "Stop Looking at My Moms" and created his first mixtape "B.O.A. (Birth of Astro)." He later started composing instrumentals of his own that pertained to the hip hop music genre.
Some of his musical influences include Marvin Gaye, Jay-Z, Stevie Wonder, Biggie Smalls, Boyz II Men, Mary J. Blige, Fu-Schnickens, Tupac Shakur, Nas, and other artists from the 80s and 90's time period. His music is also inspired by the notable film director and fellow Brooklynite Spike Lee.
Music career
2011-2012: The X Factor USA and Post-X Factor
At the age of 14, Astro went to audition for the X-Factor. For his audition, he performed "Stop Looking At My Moms" and stole America's attention by becoming one of the few rappers to perform on such a show. He gained four yeses and proceeded on and into the top seven before getting eliminated.
Performances on The X Factor
Astro performed the following songs on The X Factor:
After leaving The X Factor, Astro released his fourth mixtape entitled Loser. It was based around his experiences on the show. He also put out two beat tapes called "Masterminds" and "New World Art" under the alias of Basquiat. The tapes included productions from both him and his friend Laron (a.k.a. ThatLoserLaron) who went under the name of Keith for the tapes.
He was then nominated for a BET Award in the Young Stars category, asked to present an award at the 43rd Annual NAACP Image Award Show with Keke Palmer, and featured in an episode of Person of Interest.
He put out many singles. One of them was "Stop Looking at my Moms", released under the name The Astronomical Kid. The music video was released on YouTube.
2013-present: Deadbeats & Lazy Lyrics and Starvin' Like Marvin
For most of 2012, Astro went on a hiatus for a while. When in an interview with Sway, he mentioned that he used this time to find himself, musically. He returned releasing a song called Deadbeat and another called Methods, then releasing a visual to his song He Fell Off. Those songs were all included on his mixtape Deadbeats & Lazy Lyrics. He made sure to state that the tape would be nothing like what he has done before with a "gritty hip-hop sound that oozed Brooklyn." Astro released his next EP entitled, Computer Era December 2 with his lead single "Champion" following, earlier that year, he previewed non-album cut 88 on August 26. He was also featured on the fifth edition of Drank and Dank's groundbreaking mixtape series Dripped Up, a major co-sign for new rappers.
Acting career
Astro made his acting debut with his role as Darren McGrady in Person of Interest. He then played Tucker "Tuck" Simms in the sci-fi adventure Earth to Echo, which was released on July 2, 2014, and TJ in A Walk Among the Tombstones, a film with Liam Neeson, released on September 19, 2014. He was Dash Hosney in a FOX series called Red Band Society which premiered on September 17, 2014.
Discography
Mixtapes
- B.O.A (Birth Of Astro) (2010)
- The Chosen One (2010)
- The Chosen One Reloaded (2011)
- Loser (2011)
- Deadbeats & Lazy Lyrics (2013)
- Starvin Like Marvin For A Cool J Song (2013)
EPs
- The Astronomical Kid - EP (2009)
- Computer Era (2014)
Singles
Features
Music Videos
Filmography
Films
Television
Awards and Nominations
References
External links
- Official Website
- Astro at the Internet Movie Database
- The Astronomical Kid at SoundCloud