# Teddy Sinclair
**Teddy Sinclair** is a British-born singer, songwriter, and actress based in New York City, known professionally for most of the 2010s under the stage name **Natalia Kills** before recording with the band Cruel Youth under her legal name[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/). Her legal name is Teddy Natalia Noemi Sinclair; "Sinclair" is the surname of her husband, the British musician [Willy Moon](https://www.edgepedia.org/willy-moon), which she adopted from her maiden name Cappuccini when they married in 2014[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair). She was born in 1986 in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kills-mn0002400625).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1986, Bradford, West Yorkshire, England[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kills-mn0002400625) |
| Legal name | Teddy Natalia Noemi Sinclair, born Cappuccini; adopted her husband Willy Moon's surname on marriage in 2014[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair) |
| Earlier stage names | Verbalicious (from age 16), then Natalia Kills for two albums on Interscope[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair) |
| Natalia Kills albums | *Perfectionist* (2011), peaked at #134 on the Billboard 200; *Trouble* (2013), peaked at #70[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair) |
| Current band | Cruel Youth, formed with Willy Moon; debut EP *+30mg* released 7 September 2016[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/) • [4](https://atwoodmagazine.com/30mg-cruel-youth-review/) |
| Best-known songwriting credit | Co-wrote Rihanna's "Kiss It Better" on *ANTI*; also wrote "Holy Water" on Madonna's *Rebel Heart*[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/) • [2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair) |
| Base | New York City, where she has lived for roughly a decade[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/) • [2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair) |
## Name and early career
Sinclair's professional name changed several times before settling on her legal name. AllMusic lists her among the aliases Natalia Cappuccini, Natalia Keery-Fisher, and Teddy Sinclair, and describes the Natalia Kills project as theatrical dance-pop drawing on 1940s film noir and electro-gloom[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kills-mn0002400625). According to a PAPER Magazine profile, she first hit the scene as **Verbalicious** when she was 16, recording demos that merged poetry and spoken word with hip-hop-inspired pop, and had minor success with the single "Don't Play Nice"[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair).
She has described learning to write songs as a child by writing letters, poems, and essays to her father while he was in prison, visiting him on weekends; she calls herself a "collector of words" who spent more time writing poetry than writing melodies[5](https://teddysinclair.fandom.com/wiki/Interviews/Ones_to_Watch). She left Bradford for London after being admitted to the [National Youth Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-youth-theatre) at 13, several years younger than the usual admission age[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair).
## The Natalia Kills era
As Natalia Kills, Sinclair released two albums on Interscope. *Perfectionist* (2011) produced singles including "Mirrors" and "Free" with will.i.am, and its videos and imagery leaned on materialism, high fashion, and film-noir aesthetics[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair). *Trouble* (2013), recorded with producers [Jeff Bhasker](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeff-bhasker) and [Emile Haynie](https://www.edgepedia.org/emile-haynie), was substantially more autobiographical, trading dance-pop for moodier electronic production; the single "Saturday Night" chronicled the chaos of her home life and teenage years[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair). AllMusic characterizes *Trouble* as her final album under the pseudonym, with electric guitars and resonant percussion driving the melodies[6](https://www.allmusic.com/album/trouble-mw0002569612).
**The X Factor incident.** In March 2015, Sinclair and Moon appeared as judges on the second season of *The X Factor New Zealand*, where footage showed them harshly criticizing a contestant; the episode made international headlines and, in PAPER's account, abruptly ended the Natalia Kills project[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair). Sinclair later described the episode as a "really bad 48 hours" and said the reaction included roughly 20,000 death threats directed at her and her family[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair). She has said the Natalia Kills social media presence and projects stopped because her Interscope contract had ended, not because she was hiding[2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair).
## Cruel Youth
In 2016 Sinclair launched **Cruel Youth** with her husband Willy Moon. Although the project takes the form of a girl group on stage, the music comes from the two of them, with a sound she described as retro-meets-hip-hop with fringes of beach rock[7](https://www.vogue.com/article/singer-teddy-sinclair-cruel-youth-first-ep). The debut EP *+30mg* was released on 7 September 2016 and was reviewed as a cohesive, confessional record opening with the voicemail-based piece "Everything Was Beautiful"[4](https://atwoodmagazine.com/30mg-cruel-youth-review/).
The project quickly accumulated millions of Spotify plays and press coverage in The Fader, BBC, PAPER, Nylon, and Ladygunn, and Sinclair opened for Kiiara's sold-out headline tour[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/). The Cruel Youth song "Diamond Days" accompanied [Gigi Hadid](https://www.edgepedia.org/gigi-hadid)'s runway walk at [Tom Ford](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-ford)'s New York Fashion Week show, and Sinclair's projects have received more than 50 sync licenses over recent years[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/).
## Songwriting for other artists
Sinclair's post-Kills career has centered substantially on writing for others. She co-wrote Rihanna's "[Kiss It Better](https://www.edgepedia.org/kiss-it-better)" on *ANTI* and wrote the [Kanye West](https://www.edgepedia.org/kanye-west)-produced *Rebel Heart* deep cut "Holy Water" for Madonna[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/) • [2](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair). Her publishing roster at Concord lists singles for Madonna, Kiiara, DJDS featuring Khalid, and Nessly, among others[1](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/).
AllMusic credits show the range continuing into the late 2010s and 2020s: composer credits on [Rich Brian](https://www.edgepedia.org/rich-brian)'s *The Sailor* (2019, as composer and producer), Cautious Clay's "Swim Home" (2019), [Fat Joe](https://www.edgepedia.org/fat-joe)'s *What Would Big Do 2021*, BlackPink's *Born Pink* (2022), UMI's *Forest in the City* (2022), and [Swizz Beatz](https://www.edgepedia.org/swizz-beatz)'s *Godfather of Harlem: Season 4* soundtrack (2025, as composer and lyricist)[8](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/teddy-sinclair-mn0003480971). Her own bio describes her as a Grammy-nominated songwriter and notes her music's use in the HBO Max series *Godfather of Harlem*[9](https://cruelyouthforever.com/pages/bio).
## References
1. [Teddy Sinclair, Publishing Roster, Concord](https://concord.com/publishing-roster/teddy-sinclair/)
2. [Most Misunderstood: Teddy Sinclair Is Finally Free, PAPER Magazine](https://www.papermag.com/teddy-sinclair)
3. [Natalia Kills, Biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kills-mn0002400625)
4. [Our Take: Experience the Euphoria of Cruel Youth's "+30mg", Atwood Magazine](https://atwoodmagazine.com/30mg-cruel-youth-review/)
5. [Interview, Ones to Watch, Teddy Sinclair Wiki (Fandom)](https://teddysinclair.fandom.com/wiki/Interviews/Ones_to_Watch)
6. [Trouble, Tracks and Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/trouble-mw0002569612)
7. [Keeping Up With Teddy Sinclair: The Singer Talks Her New Project, Cruel Youth, Vogue](https://www.vogue.com/article/singer-teddy-sinclair-cruel-youth-first-ep)
8. [Teddy Sinclair, Credits, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/teddy-sinclair-mn0003480971)
9. [Bio, Cruel Youth Forever](https://cruelyouthforever.com/pages/bio)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Pop and R&B singer-songwriters › Pop singers, 2000s to present › Dance-pop and electropop singers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license