astn

Hailing from Los Angeles, R&B singer and songwriter ASTN—pronounced Austin—has built a following around his hypnotic, soul-infused pop that feels deeply personal. Shaped by a mix of sounds from the 1990s and 2000s, he first connected with listeners through a string of EPs, then reached a wider audience after his 2021 cover of Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever” spread rapidly online. He has kept refining his romantic, slow-jam approach, issuing projects such as the 2023 EP Where Do We Go from Here? alongside tracks like “The Makeup Song.”

Born Austin Sanders in Panama City, Florida, he began playing drums at age three under his father’s guidance and later taught himself piano and guitar during his teenage years. After relocating to Los Angeles, he introduced himself with the 2017 EP Tell Your Friends, which featured the track “Love No More.” A follow-up, Leave Me Before I Love You, arrived in 2019.

That same year he issued his third EP, It’s Not That Serious, yet the Billie Eilish cover ultimately brought him broader notice. Capitalizing on the momentum, ASTN put out his fourth EP, the slow-jam-heavy You’re Almost There, highlighted by the dusky and romantic “Gradually.” In 2023 he released Where Do We Go from Here?, an effort led by the yearning “How Soon” that examined heartbreak and longing in the aftermath of a breakup. Additional resonant slow jams appeared in 2024 with the arrival of “The Makeup Song” and “Soul, Body & Mind.”