Cody Simpson

“My new album Surfers Paradise is the first time that I've really known from the get-go exactly how I wanted the music to sound,” says Cody Simpson. “I wanted to show the world how I'm evolving and that I’ve really discovered who I am as an artist.” Surfers Paradise picks up where Cody’s previous 2012 debut full-length Paradise, left off, telling the story of how this talented teenage singer, songwriter, and musician, now 16, traded the sunny shores of his native Queensland, Australia, for the sunny shores of Los Angeles to pursue his dream of being a performer.

Cody co-wrote every song on Surfers Paradise, which brims with a mix of summery, upbeat and mellow pop tracks like La Di Da, Imma Be Cool (featuring rapper Asher Roth), Love (featuring Ziggy Marley) and the first single Pretty Brown Eyes — Cody’s fresh, new take on girls with brown eyes, like a Brown-Eyed Girl for 2013. Hailed by Billboard as a “happy-go-lucky summer anthem,” the song is a Radio Disney favorite, while the video, directed by Cameron Duddy (Bruno Mars, Cee Lo Green, P!nk), is a YouTube sensation, earning nearly four million views and climbing.

Surfers Paradise also shows how Cody has matured as an artist with reflective, acoustic guitar-driven tunes like Awake All Night, (which Cody wrote, produced, and performed himself), Sinkin’ In, Rainy Day, and the yearning, nostalgic Summertime of Our Lives, which Cody says is one of his favorites. Several songs have a distinct reggae vibe, like Love and No Ceiling, the latter featuring guest vocals by Ziggy Marley, Bob’s son and a beloved artist in his own right. “To have Ziggy on there is just insane,” Cody says. “It’s an honour to work with Ziggy, I have a deep respect for his music and the music his father gave to us.”

Music has played an integral part in Cody’s life since he was a child. Watching his dad sing and play guitar for friends and family at parties and backyard barbecues taught him the power that music has to bring people together. Inspired, he asked for his own guitar and began taking lessons at the age of seven. After learning a few chords, Cody wrote his first song. He continued practicing and soon began posting YouTube videos of himself performing his original songs alongside stellar covers by some of his favourite artists like Justin Timberlake, Jason Mraz, and Jack Johnson, racking up millions of views.

In April 2010, Cody released his debut single, iYiYi (featuring Flo Rida) and began to win over U.S. fans with a series of dynamic live performances including 2010. Cody and his family soon relocated to Los Angeles. Atlantic released his debut EP, 4 U, in December, which spawned the No. 1 Radio Disney hit All Day. In September 2011, Simpson made a stunning chart debut with Coast to Coast, which entered Billboard’s album chart at No. 12 and earned Cody his second Radio Disney No. 1, “On My Mind.” The “On My Mind” companion video — directed by Travis Kopach (Panic! At The Disco, 3OH!3, Boys Like Girls) - is also a certified YouTube blockbuster with over 18 million views. Cody currently has nearly 5 million Twitter followers and nearly five million Facebook likes, in addition to 150 million YouTube views on his official channel, Cody Simpson Music.

Cody has made a host of high-profile TV appearances, including The Today Show, Fox & Friends, Live! with Kelly & Michael, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Bucket & Skinner’s Epic Adventures, So Random, The Early Show, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show, not to mention as a performer and mentor on Radio Disney and the Disney Channel’s “N.B.T. (Next Big Thing)” talent contest. He was among the top stars featured at Nickelodeon’s 2012 Kids Choice Awards where he presented and took home the award for “Favourite Aussie Star,” and at Australian Nickelodeon’s 2011 Kids Choice Awards, where he won “Awesome Aussie,” “Aussie Muso,” and the prestigious “Super Fresh.” Cody showcased his latest tracks Pretty Brown Eyes and Awake All Night as part of a stellar live appearance at the 2013 Radio Disney Music Awards.

In 2012, Cody launched his first-ever European headlining tour and hit the road as support for Justin Bieber’s U.S. and European Believe Tour, playing to crowds of 20,000. “It was a great experience for me. I was really motivated to make my show even better by watching what Justin and his team were doing on the Believe Tour,” Cody says.

In 2013, HarperCollins published Cody’s official autobiography Welcome To Paradise: My Journey, which features never-before-seen photos and exclusive details about Cody’s life on and off stage, including his early years as a competitive swimmer. “I really wanted to tell my story in my own words and share my experiences,” Cody says. “Everything I do, whether it's the music, the live shows, and now the book, is about letting the fans get to know me better. I want them to feel as if we’re mates.”