BIOGRAPHY
Perfume Genius is the stage name of Michael Alden Hadreas, born September 25, 1981, in Des Moines, Iowa, and raised in Everett, Washington, where he was bullied for being gay and turned to painting, writing, and artists like PJ Harvey and Liz Phair. He began his music career in 2008 after returning to Seattle, setting up a MySpace page under a name borrowed from Tom Tykwer's film Perfume: The Story of a Murderer. His 2010 debut Learning, released via Matador, drew immediate critical praise for its naked, eviscerating songs. Subsequent albums, including Put Your Back N 2 It, Too Bright, the Grammy-nominated No Shape, Set My Heart on Fire Immediately, Ugly Season, and 2025's Glory, trace an evolution from fragile piano ballads to swaggering glam rock, with longtime collaborator and partner Alan Wyffels central to his songcraft.