Class Actress

Elizabeth Vanessa Harper (born 1982 or 1983), known professionally as Class Actress, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Class Actress was originally conceived as a trio, consisting of Harper, Mark Richardson, and Scott Rosenthal. She formed Elizabeth Harper & the Matinee,

Harper later contacted Philadelphia-based producer Mark Richardson, who had remixed a song from her debut album. She preferred Richardson's version to the original, and the two began recording songs at her house, trading Harper's previous guitar-based sound for electronic music, which she had long been interested in exploring. The New York Times described it as "an alluringly precise recapturing of the winning chill of early '80s electro-pop". The EP also drew comparisons to New Order, The Human League, and Depeche Mode, while Harper's vocals were likened to those of Blondie's Debbie Harry and Saint Etienne's Sarah Cracknell.

The trio's debut studio album, Rapprocher, was released on October 18, 2011, by Carpark Records. Harper stated that the title—which means "to come closer" in French —was inspired by "a French lover who broke [her] heart". The album received generally positive reviews from music critics, obtaining a rating of 69 out of 100 based on 16 critics on review aggregate site Metacritic. AllMusic named it one of the best indie pop and rock albums of 2011. Rapprocher reached number 21 on Billboards Dance/Electronic Albums chart and number 27 on the Heatseekers Albums chart. The song "Keep You" was used in an episode of the fifth season of the teen drama television series Gossip Girl.

2013–2015: Movies As a solo artist under the moniker Class Actress, Harper signed to Casablanca Records in 2013. That same year, she moved into a bungalow at The Beverly Hills Hotel in order to write and record songs. Class Actress premiered the track "More Than You" on May 20, 2015, and on June 2, it was announced that her EP Movies would be released on June 23 via Casablanca and Republic Records. The EP was executive-produced by Giorgio Moroder and Evan Bogart, and features production by Harper herself, Moroder, Neon Indian, and Mess Kid.

Discography

Studio albums Title Album details Notes Rapprocher Released: October 18, 2011 Label: Carpark Formats: CD, LP, digital downloadTrack listing headline = Track listing Label: Terrible Formats: CD, 10", digital download Movies Released: June 23, 2015 Label: Casablanca, Republic Format: Digital downloadTrack listing headline = Track listing "Adolescent Heart" Jessica Lauretti "Let Me Take You Out" 2011 Brett Haley "Weekend" Bek Andersen "Bienvenue" 2012 Clement Gino and Gregory Faure "Need to Know" Jessica Lauretti "More Than You" 2015 John Merizalde "GFE" Rachel Maude and Gabriel Reilich