Michael Geier, better known as his

Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, 'Clowns') is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who mu ...

-inspired clown

alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I") means an alternate Self (psychology), self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original Personality psychology, personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other ...

Puddles Pity Party, is an American singer and entertainer based in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Georgia, U.S. Geier now performs almost exclusively as Puddles, and he also refers to Puddles in

third person Third person, or third-person, may refer to: * Third person (grammar), a point of view (in English, ''he'', ''she'', ''it'', and ''they'') ** Illeism, the act of referring to oneself in the third person * Third-person narrative, a perspective in p ...

when speaking about the character.

Biography

Geier was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, United States, the fifth of seven children of "Big Oz" and Peg Geier. He says that he "grew up in a houseful of giants", with his two brothers and four sisters all growing to at least in height. Geier is tall. He grew up in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

. Geier, known as Big Mike Geier, fronted the band Useless Playboys in Richmond. He moved to Atlanta in 1995 and formed the band Kingsized soon after. The band performed swing, rock, and soul covers. Other entertainment projects he founded in Atlanta included Dames Aflame, a burlesque revue that became a part of Kingsized shows. Elvis Royale was an Elvis Presley-themed act fronted by Geier with Kingsized as the band. Other projects were Bogey and the Viceroy, the Kingsized Jazz Trio, and Tongo Hiti. He originated the Puddles character in the band Greasepaint.

Puddles Pity Party

In 1998, Geier decided to found a clown-themed band with several other Atlanta-based musicians. Having named himself Puddles in the band, this collaborative project eventually broke up, but laid the foundation for his solo project Puddles Pity Party. Puddles' original appearance was mostly nonspecific, but eventually developed into donning a whiteface clown costume. Geier refers to Puddles in third person while speaking about the character, and will also refer to himself as Mike in third person while performing as Puddles. Like Geier himself, Puddles has a

baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

singing voice, and sings mostly covers of songs. Puddles has a depressed persona and refrains from speaking on stage or giving interviews. His shows include a mix of silent prop comedy, mime, and audience participation with songs interplayed throughout creating a narrative structure. Puddles Pity Party's first performance as an independent act was an experiment for ''

Aqua Teen Hunger Force ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'' (also branded with different #Alternative titles, alternative titles for seasons 8–11), is an American adult animated television series created by Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro for Cartoon Network's late night progra ...

''s 2010 tour. Initially skeptical if his singing clown character would be well-received, Geier stated that his wife convinced him to continue with the act after his premiere performance garnered an overwhelmingly positive response from the audience. In 2011, Geier appeared regularly at the Manderley Bar in New York's immersive theater show '' Sleep No More''. In 2012, he moved to Seattle to appear in a European-style

vaudevillian Vaudeville (; ) is a theatre, theatrical genre of variety show, variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comic ...

cabaret, Teatro ZinZanni. In 2013, he opened for

Eels Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order (biology), order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 20 Family (biology), families, 164 genus, genera, and about 1000 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the earl ...

during their U.S. and European tour. Since 2014, Geier has toured the world, playing concerts in the United States, United Kingdom, Belgium, and Australia. In 2017, Geier, as Puddles, participated in season 12 of the reality series ''

America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is an American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distributed by) and ...

''. He advanced to the quarterfinals at the

Dolby Theatre The Dolby Theatre (formerly known as the Kodak Theatre) is a live-performance auditorium in the Ovation Hollywood shopping mall and entertainment complex, on Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue (Los Angeles), Highland Avenue, in the Holly ...

, where he performed his version of "Royals" and received an "X" from

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality and businessman. He has judged on the British television talent competition shows ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003), ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor UK ...

. He was ultimately eliminated the following night. In October 2017 Geier, as Puddles, made an appearance in a

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (CN) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the Cartoon Network, Inc., a sub-division of the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks division of Warner Bros. Discovery. It launched on ...

ad promoting new episodes of ''

Teen Titans Go! ''Teen Titans Go!'' is an American animated television series developed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic for Cartoon Network. It premiered on April 23, 2013, and is based on DC Comics' fictional superhero team the Teen Titans. The series ...

'' and '' OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes''. Geier previously collaborated with Cartoon Network's Sunday Pants series writing music for the show as well as playing the Slacks' band leader in the live action segments. In January 2019 Geier, as Puddles, began a headline act residency at

Caesars Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesar ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, Nevada. In 2022, Geier, as Puddles, made a guest appearance on the season 4 season finale of ''

The Conners ''The Conners'' is an American television sitcom created by Matt Williams and developed by Bruce Helford, Bruce Rasmussen, and Dave Caplan for ABC as a direct continuation of the series '' Roseanne''. The series is produced by Werner Enter ...

''. In April 2024, he performed with

A Perfect Circle A Perfect Circle is an American Rock music, rock Supergroup (music), supergroup formed in Los Angeles, California in 1999 by guitarist Billy Howerdel and Tool (band), Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan. A Perfect Circle released three of their ...

, singing the song "The Hollow," as part of

Maynard James Keenan Maynard James Keenan (born James Herbert Keenan; April 17, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, philanthropist, record producer, and winemaker. He is best known as the singer and primary lyricist of the rock bands Tool (band), Tool, A Perfe ...

's Sessanta tour. In August 2024, Puddles performed Dio's "

Holy Diver ''Holy Diver'' is the debut studio album by the American heavy metal band Dio, released in 1983. The album was acclaimed by the music press and is the band's most successful album. History Released on May 25, 1983, the album has been hailed ...

" with Primus at shows in Big Flats, New York, Saratoga Springs, New York, Portland, Maine, Richmond, Virginia, and Birmingham, Alabama. In September 2024, it was announced that Puddles would be touring as a special guest with

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American comedy musician, writer, and actor. He is best known for writing and performing Comedy music, comedy songs that often Parody music, parody specific songs by contempo ...

on his "Bigger & Weirder 2025 Tour".

Discography

With Postmodern Jukebox

* 2014: ''Clubbin' with Grandpa'', Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox, "

Chandelier A chandelier () is an ornamental lighting device, typically with spreading branched supports for multiple lights, designed to be hung from the ceiling. Chandeliers are often ornate, and they were originally designed to hold candles, but now inca ...

" * 2015: ''Top Hat on Fleek'', Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox: "

Mad World "Mad World" is a 1982 song by British band Tears for Fears. Written by Roland Orzabal and sung by bassist Curt Smith, it was the band's third single release and first chart hit, reaching number three on the UK Singles Chart in November 1982. ...

" and "

Viva la Vida (, ; ) is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their fourth album, ''Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends'' (2008). The lyrics contain historical and Christian references (King Louis XVI of ...

" * 2016: ''The Essentials'', Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox: " Royals" * 2016: ''Squad Goals'', Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox, "

Stressed Out "Stressed Out" is a song written and recorded by American musical duo Twenty One Pilots. Produced by Mike Elizondo and recorded at studios in Los Angeles and London, it was released as a promotional single from their fourth studio album, ''Blu ...

" * 2017: ''Fake Blues'', Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox: "

All the Small Things "All the Small Things" is a song by American rock band Blink-182. It was the second single and eighth track released from the band's third album, '' Enema of the State'' (1999). The track was composed primarily by guitarist and vocalist Tom De ...

As Puddles Pity Party

;Albums * ''Live at Joe's Pub'' (Puddles Pity Party self-released), 2015 * ''Holiday Jubilee'' (Puddles Pity Party self-released), 2018 * ''You Down?'' (Puddles Pity Party self-released), 2018 * ''Unhappy Hour at the Loner's Lounge'' (Puddles Pity Party self-released), 2020 * ''Songs That Got Me Through the Plague'' (Puddles Pity Party self-released), 2021 ;Singles & EPs * "Royals" (Postmodern Jukebox, featuring Puddles Pity Party), 2014 * "The Shadow of Your Smile", Insect Queen Music, 2015 * "

Space Oddity "Space Oddity" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was first released on 11 July 1969 by Philips and Mercury Records as a 7-inch single, then as the opening track of his second studio album, ''David Bowie''. Produce ...

Life on Mars The possibility of life on Mars is a subject of interest in astrobiology due to the planet's proximity and similarities to Earth. To date, no conclusive evidence of past or present life has been found on Mars. Cumulative evidence suggests that ...

Sympathy for the Record Industry Sympathy for the Record Industry (also known as Sympathy Records or Sympathy 4 the R.I.) is a mainly independent garage rock and punk label formed in 1988 by John Mermis, known as Long Gone John. Notable artists who started on Sympathy and went ...

, 2019 * "The Spy and the Liar" (Puddles Pity Party self-released), 2021

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Geier, Mike Living people 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singers American baritones American clowns American mimes America's Got Talent contestants Musical groups from Atlanta Year of birth missing (living people) YouTubers from Philadelphia