Garrett Clark Borns (born January 7, 1992), better known by his

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Børns (stylized in

all caps In typography, text or font in all caps (short for "all capitals") contains capital letters without any lowercase letters. For example: All-caps text can be seen in legal documents, advertisements, newspaper headlines, and the titles on book co ...

), is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Born and raised in

Grand Haven, Michigan Grand Haven is a city within the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Ottawa County, Michigan, Ottawa County. Grand Haven is located on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Grand River (Michigan), Grand River, for which ...

, Børns began performing in his youth. In 2012, he released his debut album, ''A Dream Between'', through REZidual Records. His first major label release was the ''Candy'' EP (2014), through Geffen and

Interscope Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...

. The EP peaked at number two on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Heatseekers chart. ''The Dopamine'' tour followed, preceding his debut studio album ''

Dopamine Dopamine (DA, a contraction of 3,4-dihydroxyphenethylamine) is a neuromodulatory molecule that plays several important roles in cells. It is an organic chemical of the catecholamine and phenethylamine families. It is an amine synthesized ...

'' in 2015. The album was a commercial success, peaking at number 24 in the US and generating numerous singles include the

platinum-certified In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) operates an awards program based on the certified number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets.Electric Love Electric Love is an electronic dance music festival held annually since 2013. It takes place at the second weekend in July at the Salzburgring in Plainfeld, Austria. Headliners have included Armin van Buuren, Hardwell, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mik ...

". Børns then embarked on tours with artists including

Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is a British singer and songwriter. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Re ...

Bleachers Bleachers (North American English), or stands, are raised, tiered rows of benches found at sports-fields and at other spectator events. Stairways provide access to the horizontal rows of seats, often with every other step enabling access to a ...

, and Halsey, as a supporting act, along with a set at the

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colora ...

in 2016. His second album, '' Blue Madonna'', was released on January 12, 2018. The record spawned several singles, including " God Save Our Young Blood" with

Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...

, which charted on the US rock chart. To further promote the LP, he headlined the MoneyMan Tour (2017–18) and supported Del Rey on her LA to the Moon Tour. Børns released his third EP titled ''Suddenly'' in July 2023.

Early life and education

Borns was born in

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

and grew up in Grand Haven. At the age of 10, he was paid to perform as a magician known as "Garrett the Great" at parties. At the age of 13, a seventh-grade student at White Pines Middle School, he received a Gold Key Award in the National Scholastic Art Awards along with an $8,000 college scholarship to the

Kendall College of Art and Design Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University (KCAD) is a college of art and design located in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1928 as a private art academy, the college merged with Ferris State University in 2000. Of ...

(a part of

Ferris State University Ferris State University (FSU or Ferris) is a public university with its main campus in Big Rapids, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1884 as Big Rapids Industrial School by Woodbridge N. Ferris and became a public institution in 1950. ...

) in

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

for his drawings and visual art. At the age of 14, he studied at Michigan's

Interlochen Center for the Arts Interlochen Center for the Arts ( '; also known as I.C.A. or Inty) is a Nonprofit organization, non-profit corporation which operates Visual arts education, arts education institutions and Music venue, performance venues. Established in 1928 b ...

' summer program. Børns has also associated with filmmaking during his adolescence. He attended Grand Haven High School and went on to both take classes in classical piano at

Grand Rapids Community College Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) is a public community college in Grand Rapids, Michigan. History Grand Rapids Junior College was established on September 21, 1914, after University of Michigan faculty passed a resolution encouraging the ...

and study jazz at

Muskegon Community College Muskegon Community College (MCC) is a Public college, public community college in Muskegon, Michigan. The college offers 49 associate degree programs and 33 certificate programs. The college's main campus is located on a 111-acre campus in Muske ...

Career

2012–14: ''A Dream Between'' and ''Candy'' EPs

During his time in high school, Børns briefly performed in a cover band known as "Brown Chicken Brown Trout". The group performed at the Waterfront Film Festival in 2010. In 2012, Børns performed with a guitarist and a drummer in The Garrett Borns Trio. Børns and his fellow band members collaborated on the early EP ''A Dream Between''., featuring several of Børns' earliest tracks, one of which was his single "Mitten". The album was recorded in the private studio of Bill Chrysler. Børns, managed by filmmaker Jeff Joanisse, was later signed to REZidual Records under the name Garrett Borns and took part in a

TEDx TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "Ideas Change Everything" (previously "Ideas Worth Sprea ...

event, performing a variety of music on his ukulele and showcasing his films from

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. In 2013, Børns took a vacation from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where he was living, to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Within weeks of relocating, Børns co-wrote his single "10,000 Emerald Pools" with producer

Jack Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

2015–2017: ''Dopamine'' and touring

On November 10, 2014, Børns released his debut single, "10,000 Emerald Pools", on

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...

and also his debut EP, ''Candy''. He made several television appearances and performed "10,000 Emerald Pools" on a number of talk shows, including '' Conan'' and ''Le Before du Grand Journal'' in France on March 5, 2015. He toured in support of

MisterWives MisterWives are an American indie pop band based in New York City, consisting of lead singer Mandy Lee (Amanda Lee Duffy), drummer and percussionist Etienne Bowler, bass guitarist William Hehir, guitarist Marc Campbell, and keyboardist and saxo ...

on MisterWives' Our Own House Tour. On June 24, 2015, he played a headlining show at the Electrowerkz in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In July and August, Børns accompanied

and

on their "Charli and Jack Do America Tour" and performed at

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...

on July 31, 2015. He also appeared at

Life Is Beautiful ''Life Is Beautiful'' (, ) is a 1997 Italian period comedy-drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, who co-wrote the film with Vincenzo Cerami. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian bookshop owner, who employs his imagin ...

festival and the

Austin City Limits Music Festival Austin City Limits (ACL) Music Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Zilker Park in Austin, Texas, on two consecutive three-day weekends and is inspired by the KLRU/PBS music series ''Austin City Limits''. The festival is pro ...

in October. At many concerts, Børns also performs songs entitled "Broke" and "Let You Down", which were never released on an album nor deemed as singles. On May 6, 2015, Børns'

Vevo Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...

channel on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

released a music video accompanying his new single "

Electric Love Electric Love is an electronic dance music festival held annually since 2013. It takes place at the second weekend in July at the Salzburgring in Plainfeld, Austria. Headliners have included Armin van Buuren, Hardwell, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mik ...

", placing as his most viewed song to date with well over 100 million views. On August 17, 2015, Børns' debut studio album, ''Dopamine'', featuring "Electric Love" and its cover art were revealed, while the release date for ''Dopamine'' was confirmed as October 16, 2015. On September 15, 2015, Børns' performance at the Iridium Jazz Club in New York City was filmed by the American Public Broadcasting Service (

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

) for its ''Front and Center'' concert series airing nationwide in February 2016. Børns performed at the

2016. He also appeared as a featured artist in "Fool's Gold" by Dagny for her EP ''Ultraviolet.''

2017–2023: ''Blue Madonna'' and hiatus

On July 28, 2017, Børns released the single "Faded Heart" through Interscope, which was featured on the ''

FIFA 18 ''FIFA 18'' is a association football, football simulation video game, simulation video game developed and published by Electronic Arts and released worldwide on 29 September 2017 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, ...

'' Soundtrack, and in the movie ''

Flatliners ''Flatliners'' is a 1990 American science fiction psychological horror film directed by Joel Schumacher, produced by Michael Douglas and Rick Bieber, and written by Peter Filardi. It stars Kiefer Sutherland, Julia Roberts, William Baldwin, Oliv ...

'' (2017). Then on September 29, 2017, Børns released his next single, "Sweet Dreams". Two promotional videos, "The Search for the Lost Sounds" and "The Faded Heart Sessions", were released on his YouTube channel along with the singles. After releasing his third single, "I Don't Want U Back", Børns released another promotional short entitled "Money Man Tour". The fourth and final single is " God Save Our Young Blood" featuring

, who also provided background vocals for the song "Blue Madonna", and whose sister provided photography for the album covers. Børns' second album, '' Blue Madonna'', was officially released on January 12, 2018. Following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, Børns went on an indefinite hiatus in September 2018; his sole appearance since then came in September 2020, when his cover of the T. Rex song " Dawn Storm" appeared on the tribute album ''AngelHeaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan and T.Rex''.

2023–present: ''Suddenly'' and ''Honeybee'' EPs

On July 10, 2023, Børns announced his third EP titled ''Suddenly'', which was released on July 28. On October 25, 2024, Børns released "Letting Myself Go" as a single. The song "Grateful For" was released on December 7 as the second single for Børns' EP ''Honeybee'', released on January 17, 2025.

Personal life

After Børns wore a

Gucci Guccio Gucci S.p.A., doing business as Gucci ( , ), is an Italian Luxury goods, luxury fashion house based in Florence. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and ...

-inspired outfit on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

'', Gucci took notice of the singer, and the two have since formed a partnership. Børns is a participant in a " gender-bender" movement, by flaunting nail polish and crop-tops on social media and during performances. He admits that his

androgynous Androgyny is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex or gender expression. When ''androgyny'' refers to mixed biological sex characteristics in humans, it often r ...

vocals and appearance have led many to mistake him for a woman at first listen. Børns met his close friend

Zella Day Zella Day Kerr (born March 13, 1995) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Day independently released her debut album, ''Powered by Love'' (2009), at age 14. Following the success of her cover of "Seven Nation Army", Day worked as a ...

in Los Angeles, and the two have collaborated on numerous projects. Day made appearances in videos on Børns'

channel, and in turn has included him in videos of her own, such as her in '' DayxDay'' series for example. The two were previously roommates. Before the release of his first album ''

'', Børns moved to

, where he still resided as of January 2018. Børns is vegetarian like other members of his family.

Allegations of sexual misconduct

In September 2018, Børns was accused of sexual misconduct by several young women, leading to a Washington D.C. music festival named All Things Go Fall Classic dropping him from its lineup. The allegations against Børns included manipulation, grooming, and sexual aggression toward underaged fans, with the youngest accuser detailing her account of the alleged abuse which began when she was 16 years old. Børns released a statement calling the allegations "disturbing and false", also saying that "All of the relationships I have had were legal and consensual. They ended abruptly and that obviously caused hurt feelings, but for anyone to suggest anything beyond that is irresponsible." The young women took to Twitter to recount their alleged experiences of being manipulated by him. In February 2024, Børns, now an independent artist, released a second statement regarding the allegations, acknowledging and apologizing for having "brief relationships" with fans while on tour and denying all allegations of grooming; he emphasized that the relationships were consensual and "the accusations implying otherwise are extremely damaging and false, and I've lived with the effect of them for years."

Discography

* ''

'' (2015) * '' Blue Madonna'' (2018)

Concert tours

;Headlining * Dopamine Tour (2015) * Summer Tour 2016 (2016) * Fall 2017 Tour (2017) * Money Man Tour (2017–18) * Fruit of Dreams Tour (2018–19) * The Decade of Dopamine Tour (2025) ;Supporting *

– Our Own House Tour (2015) *

–

Charli and Jack Do America Tour The Charli and Jack Do America Tour (also known as The America Tour) was a co-headlining tour by Charli XCX and Bleachers in support of their respective albums ''Sucker'' and '' Strange Desire'' during the summer of 2015. As the second leg of t ...

(2015) * Years & Years - Fall 2015 Tour (2015) * Halsey –

Badlands Tour The Badlands Tour was the first headlining concert tour by American singer-songwriter Halsey, launched in support of her debut album, ''Badlands'' (2015). The tour began on September 30, 2015, at the House of Blues in San Diego, California, and ...

(2016) *

The Lumineers The Lumineers are an American alternative folk band based in Denver, Colorado. The founding members are Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Schultz and Fraites began writing and performing to ...

– Cleopatra World Tour (2016) *

Mumford & Sons Mumford & Sons are a British folk rock band formed in London in 2007. The band consists of Marcus Mumford (lead vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, drums), Ted Dwane (vocals, double bass, bass guitar), and Ben Lovett (British musician), B ...

– An Arrow Through the Heartland Tour (2016) *

– LA to the Moon Tour (2018)

Filmography

Web

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Borns, Garrett 1992 births Living people 21st-century American writers American indie pop musicians American male pop singers American male singer-songwriters Ferris State University alumni Interscope Records artists People from Grand Haven, Michigan Musicians from Grand Rapids, Michigan Psychedelic musicians Singers from Los Angeles Singers from New York City Writers from Los Angeles Writers from New York City Singer-songwriters from Michigan 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from California Singer-songwriters from New York (state) Androgynous people