Emerging Alt-R&B singer Forest Claudette has released their new single, “Moonlight.”
The contemplative track was inspired by the 2016 Oscar-winning film, which stars Mahershala Ali and Trevante Rhodes. Claudette says they watched the movie for the first time four years ago, and it was life-changing.
“Afterward, I picked up my guitar, and this idea sort of poured out of me. I’d never felt like I had the space to hold that side of myself before, and even still, it’s taken all this time to feel comfortable, safe, and secure enough to share it with the world,” Claudette shares.
“One of my many favorite things about this song is that my parents agreed to play strings on it. Being able to immortalize them on something so deeply personal feels like an incredibly loud stamp or mark of their acceptance and support of who I am. It’s such a special feeling. My mom said something after watching the music video for ‘Moonlight,’ she said she felt like she could see me better, as if somehow I was revealed in a new light.”

As Claudette indicates above, “Moonlight” is accompanied by a video directed by Quinn Cavin, which can be watched below.
“Moonlight” comes a month after Claudette’s latest EP, Jupiter. Released May 3 via Warner Records, the four-track project includes the lead single, “Kobe Beef,” which has nearly 240,000 streams on Spotify.
Regarding Jupiter, Claudette told Rated R&B: “This EP is a summary of my life over the last three years. It was birthed from the concept that if men are from Mars and Women are from Venus, then maybe I could be from Jupiter. Realizing and then accepting that I am non-binary (they/them) took a long time.”
In 2023, Claudette released their sophomore EP, Everything Was Green.
Stream Forest Claudette’s new song “Moonlight” below.