Rex Orange County is Alexander O'Connor, the English singer-songwriter born in Hampshire in 1998 who came up through SoundCloud bedroom pop and the BRIT School. Pony (2019) is the usual starting point, with the self-released Apricot Princess (2017) close behind for the jazzier, homespun side. Shop Rex Orange County vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Alexander James O'Connor, performing as Rex Orange County, was born in Hampshire, England on May 4, 1998. He attended the BRIT School in London (alongside fellow alumni including Adele, FKA twigs, and Olivia Dean). The stage name Rex Orange County was derived from a nickname given by a teacher. He launched his recording career in the mid-2010s with bedroom pop and indie pop material via SoundCloud. His 2017 album Apricot Princess and 2019 follow-up Pony - featuring Tyler, The Creator collaboration (features on Tyler's 2017 Flower Boy album) - established his foundational role in the contemporary bedroom pop and indie pop scenes. He has struggled with public legal issues - October 2022 sexual assault allegations were dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service in January 2023, with finding of no realistic prospect of conviction. He has continued releasing material across multiple decades.
Rex Orange County's sound combines indie pop, bedroom pop, alternative R&B, jazz pop, soul pop, indie folk, and singer-songwriter with his distinctive vocal delivery (use of intimate, conversational phrasing), multi-instrumental production approaches, and arrangements drawing on 1970s soul and jazz pop alongside contemporary bedroom pop influences.
RCA Records and Sony Music pressings of the Rex Orange County catalog have been issued in multiple color variant editions and limited deluxe pressings.
Listeners new to Rex Orange County typically start with Pony (2019) or Apricot Princess (2017).
