Louis the Child

Louis the Child is an American electronic music group formed by Robby Hauldren and Frederic J. Kennett. Hauldren, born on September 7, 1996, and Kennett, born on October 19, 1997, both attended New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois, but met at a Madeon concert in 2012. Hauldren, who performed as Haul Pass making mashups, and Kennett, who focused on production as Fatboy, decided to collaborate. Their partnership began when Hauldren entered a DJ competition for Chicago’s Spring Awakening Music Festival. Kennett reached out to collaborate, leading to their first song recorded at Kennett’s home. The duo adopted the name Louis the Child through Wikipedia’s “random article” feature, marking their official formation.

The group started performing at smaller venues between 2013 and 2014. A significant turning point came in 2015 with the release of their single “It’s Strange,” featuring K.Flay. This track gained recognition, with Taylor Swift including it in her “Songs that Will Make Life Awesome” list. “It’s Strange” was also featured on the FIFA 16 soundtrack and later in a 2019 Nissan Kicks commercial. This period saw them opening for artists such as Madeon and The Chainsmokers. In December 2016, Hauldren and Kennett formed Pellican Child with artist Pell, releasing the single “Turn Me Down.” In late 2017, their song “Go” was featured in a TV commercial for the Apple iPad Pro, further increasing their exposure.

Louis the Child continued their career progression with a headlining 32-show tour in 2017, supported by artists like Joey Purp and Lauv. They performed at major festivals, including Lollapalooza South America in 2018. The same year, they released “Better Not” featuring Wafia, which achieved over 100 million streams on Spotify by April 2019 and was certified Platinum by the RIAA and ARIA. They performed at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre and for the X Games in 2019. Their debut full-length album, “Here for Now,” was released in 2020 via Interscope Records, featuring collaborations with Foster the People and Chelsea Cutler. They continued to release EPs like “Kids at Play” (2018), “Euphoria” (2021), and “To Believe” (2022), alongside instrumental beat tapes such as “Candy” and “Black Marble.”