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, fever, abdominal distension, and weight loss. Complications outside of the ...

, domestic abuse, and the dangers faced by

gay men Gay men are male homosexuals. Some bisexual men, bisexual and homoromantic men may dually identify as ''gay'' and a number of gay men also identify as ''queer''. Historic terminology for gay men has included ''Sexual inversion (sexology), in ...

in contemporary society.

Early years

Hadreas is of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

descent and was born in Des Moines, Iowa, and moved to the suburbs of

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, at age 6 or 7. He 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. 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 later, he was attacked by several young men in his neighborhood. He moved to

Williamsburg, Brooklyn Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordered by Greenpoint to the north; Bedford–Stuyvesant to the south; Bushwick and East Williamsburg to the east; and the East River to the west. It was an independe ...

, 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 Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

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 Sto ...

'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, Attitude (psychology), attitudes, and preferences. The ability to learn is possessed by humans, non-human animals, and ...

'', was released on June 21, 2010, through Turnstile Records in Europe and

Matador Records Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of mainly indie rock, but also punk rock, experimental rock, alternative rock, and electronic acts. History Matador was created in 1989 by Chris Lombardi in his New York City ap ...

in the United States. Many of the tracks for ''Learning'' were recorded in Hadreas's home. The album received critical acclaim, including an 8.2 out of 10 score from

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

. 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 (city), Groningen, Netherlands. The name Vera comes from the phrase Veri Et Recti Amici, which is ...

in Seattle, where he opened for A Sunny Day in Glasgow. Hadreas brought on pianist Alan Wyffels to play for the album tour; the two would later date. Wyffels has continued to perform with Hadreas live and on recordings. Hadreas's second album, '' Put Your Back N 2 It'', was released on February 20, 2012. Again, Hadreas received praise from music critics and fans alike. The promotional video for the album, featuring Hadreas and pornographic actor Arpad Miklos embracing each other, was deemed unsafe for family viewing by YouTube. In 2013 he featured on Cate Le Bon's album '' Mug Museum'' performing guest vocals on "I Think I Knew".

''Too Bright''

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

Too Bright ''Too Bright'' is the third studio 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 Billboard 200. Critical reception ' ...

'', which was co-produced by

Adrian Utley Adrian Francis Utley (born 27 April 1957) is an English musician, record producer, and a member of the band Portishead.Jurek, ThomAdrian Utley Biography, Allmusic. Retrieved 31 December 2016 Career Born in Northampton,Mejia, Paula (2015)In Sea ...

of Portishead and Ali Chant. 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." Hadreas supported the album with a successful tour. On October 30, 2014, Perfume Genius appeared on ''

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

'', 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-ad ...

'' Hadreas collaborated with

Sharon Van Etten Sharon Katharine Van Etten (born February 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress. Originally from New Jersey, and currently based in Los Angeles, Van Etten's music is noted for its indie rock aesthetic and personal lyric ...

to contribute a cover of

the Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in Palo Alto, California, in 1965. Known for their eclectic style that fused elements of rock, blues, jazz, folk, country, bluegrass, rock and roll, gospel, reggae, and world music with psyc ...

'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 supported the global fight against HIV/AIDS and related health issues through the Red Hot Organization. On September 16, 2016, Hadreas released a cover of Elvis Presley's "

Can't Help Falling in Love "Can't Help Falling in Love" is a song written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss and published by Gladys Music, Inc. The melody is based on " Plaisir d'amour", a popular French love song composed in 1784 by Jean-Paul-� ...

" 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 ...

. 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'' is a magazine established in 1999 as an outlet for Cornerstone Agency, a marketing and public relations firm established by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. History and work It is owned by T ...

'', 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 voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...

collaborator Andrew Thomas Huang. The single was designated "Best New Track" by ''

''. 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 Mathew Simon Mills (born September 21, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and composer based in California. He is known for production and guitar work on albums and singles by many artists, including Fiona Apple, ...

(

Fiona Apple Fiona Apple McAfee-Maggart (born September 13, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter. She released five albums from 1996 to 2020, all of which reached the top 20 on the U.S. Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200 chart. As of 2021, she has sold over ...

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He began his musical career working behind the scenes for other artists, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Every ...

Alabama Shakes Alabama Shakes are an American rock band formed in Athens, Alabama, in 2009. The band currently consists of lead singer and guitarist Brittany Howard, guitarist Heath Fogg, and bassist Zac Cockrell. The band began its career touring and perfor ...

) and mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer Shawn Everett. The album was praised by critics.

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 Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' commented that "No Shape sounds like a unique talent coming into full bloom." On May 9, 2017, Hadreas 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 includ ...

. 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. This festival was founded by Bob van Heur and Johan Gijsen. It ...

Festival in

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

in November, for which he invited among others

Aldous Harding Hannah Sian Topp (born 1990), known professionally as Aldous Harding, is a New Zealand indie folk singer-songwriter, based in Lyttelton, New Zealand. Career One of the first musicians who came across her was New Zealand folk-pop singer-songwrit ...

Mount Eerie Mount Eerie is the musical project of American songwriter and producer Phil Elverum. Elverum (also of the Microphones) is the principal member of the band, but has collaborated with many other musicians on his records and in live performances. ...

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

, and Bulgarian women's choir Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares. 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'', released on May 15, 2020. On June 17, 2022, Hadreas released his sixth studio album, '' Ugly Season''. The album was originally composed as a musical accompaniment for choreographer Kate Wallich's contemporary dance piece ''The Sun Still Burns Here.'' In February 2024, Hadreas contributed a cover of What a Diff'rence a Day Makes—produced by

Jack Antonoff Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is the lead vocalist of the rock band Bleachers, and previously the guitarist and drummer for the pop band Fun and the lead vocalist of t ...

and originally popularized by

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (; born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, one of the most popular black female recording artists of the 1950s. Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performed and recorded in a ...

—to the soundtrack of the

Apple TV Apple TV is a digital media player and a microconsole developed and marketed by Apple. It is a small piece of networking hardware that sends received media data such as video and audio to a TV or external display. Its media services include ...

series The New Look.

''Glory''

On January 15, 2025, Hadreas announced his seventh studio album, '' Glory'', and released the single, "It's A Mirror." The single was named "Best New Track" by ''

''. The album, released on March 28, 2025, was produced by

, co-written with Hadreas's partner Alan Wyffels, and features artists including

Jim Keltner James Lee Keltner (born April 27, 1942) is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. He was characterized by Bob Dylan biographer Howard Sounes as "the leading session drummer in America". Howard Sounes. ''Do ...

Meg Duffy Meg Duffy is an American musician and guitarist who has played as a Session musician, studio musician on records by The War on Drugs (band), The War on Drugs, Weyes Blood, Perfume Genius, Sasami, and William Tyler (musician), William Tyler, amo ...

, and Gregory Uhlmann.

Musical style

Hadreas's musical style has been described as

art pop Art pop (also typeset art-pop or artpop) is a loosely defined style of pop music influenced by art theory, art theories as well as ideas from other art mediums, such as fashion, fine art, film, cinema, and avant-garde literature. The genre dra ...

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

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 a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

chamber pop Chamber pop (also called baroque pop and sometimes conflated with orchestral pop or symphonic pop) is a music genre that combines rock music with the intricate use of strings, horns, piano, and vocal harmonies, and other components drawn from t ...

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

, pop, and

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...

Awards and nominations

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Dorian Awards The Dorian Awards are general and LGBTQ-themed accolades for excellence in film, television and Broadway / Off-Broadway, as voted by the members of GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics. GALECA is an association of professional jour ...

, 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 album cover art. The nomination process begins in November and the winners are announced in January, and are exhibited at venues across the United Kingdo ...

, '' No Shape'' , 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 a US accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding portrayals of LGBTQ people and the issues that affect their lives. In addition to film and television, the Awards ...

, '' No Shape'' , 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=8, 2021 , rowspan=2, GAFFA Awards , Himself , Best International Solo Act , , rowspan=2, , - , rowspan=4, '' Set My Heart on Fire Immediately'' , Best International Album , , - , rowspan="5", Libera Awards ,

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...

, , rowspan="5", , - , Creative Packaging , , - , Marketing Genius , , - , Himself , Best Live Act , , - , "Describe" , Video of the Year , , - , Queerty Awards , "

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...

" , Anthem , , , - , 2022 ,

, '' Ugly Season'' , Best Vinyl Art , , , - , 2023 ,

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

, " Spitting Off The Edge Of The World" (with

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are compleme ...

) , Best Alternative Music Performance , ,

Discography

* ''

'' (2010) * '' Put Your Back N 2 It'' (2012) * ''

'' (2014) * '' No Shape'' (2017) * '' Set My Heart on Fire Immediately'' (2020) * '' Ugly Season'' (2022) * '' Glory'' (2025)

References

External links

Perfume Genius
at

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