Daniel Richter, frontman for Canadian pop band Eleven Past One, wants you to call him Valdii.
The singer revealed his new musical moniker last week via social media.
“I’ve got some BIG NEWS to share!!! I have been working on some solo music projects and am really excited to showcase myself as an independent artist!,” Richter wrote. “From now on, I’m going by the name VALDII.”
Richter explained that Valdii is his middle name. “It comes from my German background,” he said. “I inherited the name from my Opa who always loved to hear me sing and play the piano.”
As Valdii, Richter has launched new profiles on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Soundcloud. In its first week, the @ValdiiOfficial Twitter account attracted 40 followers. (He has close to 25,000 followers with @danielwrichter.)
Eleven Past One had a breakthrough hit with “The World Is Ours,” the title track from their major label debut, but alienated many fans with declarations about their faith. No longer signed to Warner Music Canada, Eleven Past One – which lost bassist Dan Beattie and guitarist Kyle Bykiv – hasn’t released an album since 2014.
Richter told iHeartRadio.ca on Monday that Eleven Past One isn’t finished (they released several singles in 2017 and performed shows last year) and insisted he is “just focusing more on my solo career for now.”
When can fans hear music from Valdii? "Probably in the next couple months," said Richter, "if not sooner."