Michael Alden Hadreas (born September 25, 1981), better known by his stage name Perfume Genius, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Hadreas's music explores topics including sexuality, his personal struggle with

Crohn's disease Crohn's disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that may affect any segment of the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms often include abdominal pain, diarrhea (which may be bloody if inflammation is severe), fever, abdominal distension ...

, domestic abuse, and the dangers faced by

gay men Gay men are male homosexuals. Some bisexual and homoromantic men may also dually identify as gay, and a number of young gay men also identify as queer. Historically, gay men have been referred to by a number of different terms, including ' ...

in contemporary society.

Early years

Hadreas is of Greek descent and was born in Des Moines, Iowa, moving to the suburbs of

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

at age 6 or 7. Hadreas studied painting in school and took piano lessons as a child. His mother was a special education teacher, and is now an assistant principal at a middle school. His parents divorced when he was a teenager. Growing up, Hadreas was the only openly gay student at his school, and he received death threats that were ignored by the school administration. He dropped out of high school during his senior year. Two years after dropping out, he was attacked by several young men in his neighborhood. He moved to

Williamsburg, Brooklyn Williamsburg is a Neighborhoods in Brooklyn, neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn, bordered by Greenpoint, Brooklyn, Greenpoint to the north; Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bedford–Stuyvesant to the s ...

, and worked as a doorman for a club in the East Village. In 2005, Hadreas returned home to Seattle and began recording music. In 2008, Hadreas set up a MySpace page under the name Perfume Genius, beginning his music career. The moniker comes from the genius perfume-maker in

Tom Tykwer Tom Tykwer (; born 23 May 1965) is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing the thriller films ''Run Lola Run'' (1998), ''Heaven (2002 film), Heaven'' (2002), ''Perfume: The St ...

's 2006 movie '' Perfume: The Story of a Murderer''.

Career

Early releases

Hadreas's debut album, ''

Learning Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviors, skills, value (personal and cultural), values, attitudes, and preferences. The ability to learn is possessed by humans, animals, and some machine learning, machines ...

'', was released on June 21, 2010, through Turnstile Records in Europe and Matador Records in the United States. Many of the tracks for ''Learning'' were recorded in Hadreas's home. The album quickly received critical acclaim, including an 8.2 out of 10 score from Pitchfork. He performed his first live show at

The Vera Project The Vera Project, or VERA, is an all-ages, non-profit youth arts organization in Seattle, Washington. Overview Based on the Vera club in Groningen, Netherlands. The name Vera comes from the phrase Veri Et Recti Amici, which is Latin meaning "tr ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, where he opened for

A Sunny Day in Glasgow A Sunny Day in Glasgow are an American shoegazing band formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 2006, the band has undergone many line-up changes since then, with Ben Daniels as the only constant member. Background A Sunny Day in Glasgow ...

. Hadreas brought on pianist, Alan Wyffels, to play for the album tour. Hadreas would go on to date Wyffels. Wyffels has continued to perform with Hadreas in recordings and live shows. Hadreas's second album, ''

Put Your Back N 2 It ''Put Your Back N 2 It'' is the second album by American musician Perfume Genius Michael Alden Hadreas (born September 25, 1981), better known by his stage name Perfume Genius, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Hadreas's music ...

'', was released on February 20, 2012. Again, Hadreas received praise from music critics and fans alike for the sonic intimacy his music achieved. The promotional video for the album, featuring Hadreas and pornographic actor Arpad Miklos embracing each other, was deemed unsafe for family viewing by

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

''Too Bright''

On September 23, 2014, Hadreas released his third album, ''

Too Bright ''Too Bright'' is the third album by American singer Perfume Genius, released on September 23, 2014. The album reached number 77 on the UK Albums chart and peaked at number 83 in the United States. Critical reception ''Too Bright'' has recei ...

'', which was co-produced by Adrian Utley of Portishead and Ali Chant, to critical acclaim. The album was a transformative leap for Hadreas and marked a new trajectory in his career. The album received rave reviews from an array of publications. Pitchfork gave the album an 8.5 and commented that "these songs feel less like songs and more like treasures, ones that fill you with power and wisdom." Following the release of the album, Hadreas toured it and played sold out headline shows. On October 30, 2014, Perfume Genius appeared on ''

The Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

'' performing "Queen". In April 2015, Hadreas was featured on the cover and in the pages of ''

Hello Mr. ''Hello Mr.'', stylized as ''hello mr.'', was a semiannual American lifestyle magazine focused on topics of interest to gay men. The magazine described itself as being "about men who date men," though the magazine tackled both queer and queer-adj ...

'' Hadreas collaborated with Sharon Van Etten to contribute a cover of The Grateful Dead's "To Lay Me Down" to ''Day of the Dead'', a charity tribute album curated and produced by members of The National and released by 4AD on May 20, 2016. All profits from the album are helping to fight HIV/AIDS and related health issues around the world through the Red Hot Organization. On September 16, 2016, Hadreas released a cover of Elvis' "Can't Help Falling in Love" in collaboration with

Prada Prada S.p.A. (, ; ) is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1913 in Milan by Mario Prada. It specializes in leather handbags, travel accessories, shoes, ready-to-wear, and other fashion accessories. Prada licenses its name and branding t ...

. The song was featured in the ad campaign for Prada's La Femme and L'Homme fragrances.

''No Shape''

Hadreas was featured on the cover of the March/April 2017 issue of ''

The Fader ''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes. It is o ...

'', which included a lengthy feature on Hadreas and his work on his next album. In the weeks following the article, Hadreas posted a number of video and audio clips teasing new music. On March 21, 2017, Hadreas announced his fourth studio album ''No Shape'' and released the first single "Slip Away", which was accompanied by a music video directed by frequent

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...

collaborator Andrew Thomas Huang. The single was designated "Best New Track" by '' Pitchfork''. On April 19, Hadreas released another single from the album called "Go Ahead" during a live Twitter Q&A with fans. ''No Shape'' was released via Matador on May 5, 2017. It was produced by

Blake Mills Blake Mills (born September 21, 1986) is an American songwriter, guitarist, producer, and composer based in California. Biography Blake Mills was born in Santa Monica, California, United States, and grew up in Malibu, where he attended Malibu ...

(

Fiona Apple Fiona Apple McAfee-Maggart (born September 13, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released five albums from 1996 to 2020, which have all reached the top 20 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Apple has received numerous awards an ...

, John Legend, Alabama Shakes) and mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer

Shawn Everett Shawn Everett (born July 6, 1982) is a Canadian music engineer and producer best known for his work with Alabama Shakes, Kacey Musgraves, The War on Drugs, The Killers, and Julian Casablancas. Everett has won six Grammy Awards. Early life Ever ...

. The album was praised by critics. Pitchfork awarded it an 8.8 and named it "Best New Album", deeming it "his most realized album yet, a tender and transcendental protest record of love and devotion." ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' commented that "No Shape sounds like a unique talent coming into full bloom." On May 9, 2017 Perfume Genius released the video for "Die 4 You", directed by

Floria Sigismondi Floria Sigismondi (, born 1965) is an Italian-Canadian film director, screenwriter, music video director, artist, and photographer. She is best known for writing and directing '' The Runaways'', for directing music videos for performers includi ...

. That same month, it was announced that Perfume Genius would curate a part of the line-up for

Le Guess Who? Le Guess Who? is a Dutch music festival featuring different music genres: from avant-garde, jazz, hip hop, electronic, experimental, noise rock, indie rock, world music and others. The festival, founded by Bob van Heur and Johan Gijsen, has ...

Festival in

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

in November, for which he invited amongst others

Aldous Harding Hannah Sian Topp (born 1990), known professionally as Aldous Harding, is a New Zealand folk singer-songwriter, based in Lyttelton, New Zealand. Biography Harding comes from a musical family in Lyttelton, New Zealand. Her mother is folk singer ...

, Mount Eerie,

Weyes Blood Natalie Laura Mering (born June 11, 1988), known professionally as Weyes Blood (pronounced ), is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. She was primarily raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. She has been performing her own material under ...

, and Bulgarian women's choir

Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares ''Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares'' (translated as "The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices") is a compilation album of modern arrangements of Bulgarian folk songs featuring, among others, the Bulgarian State Radio & Television Female Vocal Choir, with s ...

. In 2019, the track ''Otherside'' was used in the trailer for the film ''The Goldfinch'', adapted from the Donna Tartt novel of the same name.

''Set My Heart on Fire Immediately'' and ''Ugly Season''

On February 25, 2020, Hadreas released the single, "Describe". On March 16, he released another single, "On the Floor". Both songs were included on his album, ''

Set My Heart on Fire Immediately ''Set My Heart on Fire Immediately'' is the fifth studio album by American musician Perfume Genius, released May 15, 2020 through Matador Records as the follow up to 2017's ''No Shape''. The album received critical acclaim upon release, with som ...

'', released on May 15, 2020. On June 17, 2022, Hadreas released his sixth studio album, ''

Ugly Season ''Ugly Season'' is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Perfume Genius, released June 17, 2022, by Matador Records. The album was originally composed as a musical accompaniment for choreographer Kate Wallich's contemporary dance p ...

''. The album was originally composed as a musical accompaniment for choreographer Kate Wallich's contemporary dance piece ''The Sun Still Burns Here.''

Musical style

Hadreas' musical style has been described as art pop,

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

baroque pop Baroque pop (sometimes called baroque rock) is a fusion genre that combines rock music with particular elements of classical music. It emerged in the mid 1960s as artists pursued a majestic, orchestral sound and is identifiable for its appropria ...

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and sub ...

, chamber pop,

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

, and glam rock.

Awards and nominations

{, class=wikitable , - ! Year !! Awards !! Work !! Category !! Result !! Ref. , - , rowspan=2, 2014 , rowspan=2, Rober Awards Music Poll , Himself , Best Pop Artist , , - , rowspan=2, "Queen" , Best Promo Video , , - , 2015 , Dorian Awards , Music Video of the Year , , - , rowspan=4, 2017 , Music Week Sync Awards , "I Can't Help Falling in Love" , Best Sync Online Viral Advert , , - , Rober Awards Music Poll , Himself , Best Songwriter , , - ,

Best Art Vinyl Best Art Vinyl is an annual award that began in 2005. It celebrates artists and designers of vinyl record cover art. The nomination process begins in November and the winners are announced in January, and are exhibited at venues across the United K ...

, ''

No Shape ''No Shape'' is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Perfume Genius, released on May 5, 2017, through Matador Records as the follow up to ''Too Bright'' (2014). Background Hadreas was featured on the cover of the March–April 20 ...

'' , Best Art Vinyl , , - , rowspan=3, A2IM Libera Awards , Toyatathon 2016 Ad Spot , Best Sync Usage , , - , rowspan=3, 2018 , "Wreath" Video Contest , Marketing Genius , , - , "Die 4 You" , Video of the Year , , - ,

GLAAD Media Awards The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their live ...

, ''

'' , Outstanding Music Artist , , - , 2019 , rowspan=2, A2IM Libera Awards , "Eighth Grade" Trailer , rowspan=2, Best Sync Usage , , , - , rowspan=4, 2020 , Goldfinch trailer , , , - , rowspan=3, Rober Awards Music Prize , rowspan=2, Himself , Best Male Artist , , rowspan=3, , - , Songwriter of the Year , , - , "Describe" , Best Music Video , , - , rowspan=3, 2021 , rowspan=2, GAFFA Awards , Himself , Best International Solo Act , , rowspan=2, , - , ''

'' , Best International Album , , - , Queerty Awards , " Jason" , Anthem , , , - , 2023 ,

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

, " Spitting Off The Edge Of The World" (with Yeah Yeah Yeahs) ,

Best Alternative Music Performance The Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums in the alternative genre at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Ho ...

, ,

Discography

*''

'' (2010) *''

'' (2012) *''

'' (2014) *''

'' (2017) *''

'' (2020) *''

'' (2022)

References

External links

Perfume Genius
at Matador Records {{Authority control 1981 births Living people American male singer-songwriters American rock singers American rock songwriters American people of Greek descent American gay musicians LGBT people from Iowa LGBT people from New York (state) LGBT people from Washington (state) LGBT songwriters Matador Records artists Musicians from Seattle People from Everett, Washington Singers from New York City Chamber pop musicians Singer-songwriters from Washington (state) 21st-century American singers 21st-century American male singers Nettwerk Music Group artists LGBT singers from the United States Art pop musicians 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people Singer-songwriters from New York (state)