Kim Petras
Kim Petras (/ˈpɛtrəs/, German: [ˈpeːtʁas]; born 27 August 1992) is a German singer and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California, United States. Between 2016 and 2020, she released music as an independent artist under her own imprint, BunHead Records, before signing with Amigo and Republic Records in 2021.[2]
Kim Petras
Petras began recording music as a teenager. Prior to releasing a full-length project, she independently released various singles from 2017 to 2019, including "I Don't Want It at All", "Heart to Break" and "1, 2, 3 Dayz Up", and has coined this series of singles as "Era 1". Several of these singles charted on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Songs chart. In 2019, Petras independently released her first two full-length projects, Clarity and Turn Off the Light.
Petras signed with Republic Records in 2021 and released the EP Slut Pop, her first project with Republic, the following year. Petras's collaborative 2022 single "Unholy" with Sam Smith topped charts internationally, including the UK Singles Chart and the Billboard Hot 100, making her the first openly transgender solo artist to reach number one in the United States.[3][4] Petras was the first openly transgender artist to receive a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (for "Unholy" in 2023) and the second transgender woman to win a Grammy following Wendy Carlos.[4][5][6]
Early life
Petras was born in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. Her mother is a choreographer and artist, her father is an architect, and her older sister is also a singer. The first song Petras wrote was "about this dude in second grade who didn't like me back".[7] In 2006, Petras, then aged 13, appeared on a German television current-affairs show in which she discussed her medical gender transition. At age 14, she appeared in a documentary and a talk show,[8][9] in a push to get permission for early sex reassignment surgery at age 16, before the minimum age of 18 in Germany. These appearances resulted in international media coverage of her transition, touting her as the "world's youngest transsexual".[10]
In September 2007, Petras was a model for a German chain of hair salons.[11] She was evaluated by the head of the psychiatric unit at Frankfurt Hospital, Bernd Meyenburg, and approved for gender-confirmation surgery at 16 years old.[12] In November 2008, Petras announced that the surgery was completed.[13] The Daily Telegraph claimed that Petras was the youngest person in the world to have had that surgery at the time.[14] Petras told The Telegraph a few months after the procedure: "I was asked if I feel like a woman now – but the truth is I have always felt like a woman – I just ended up in the wrong body."[14] Petras learned English by watching videos of Britney Spears.[15]
Career
2008–2015: Career beginnings
Between 2008 and 2009, Petras released a string of singles under Joyce Records: "Fade Away" (2008), "Last Forever", "Die for You", and "Boomerang" (all 2009). In 2009, she was featured on "Taste" by Sobertruth and in 2011 was featured on "Magnetic". Later in 2011, Petras released her debut extended play, One Piece of Tape, under the imprint Bionic Ballroom.
At 19 years old, Petras moved to Los Angeles, living in the garage of a producer in Redondo Beach.[16]
In 2013, Petras was featured on two singles named "Flight to Paris" and "Heartbeat" by German DJ Klaas. Throughout the next few years, Petras worked with producers including The Stereotypes, C.J. Abraham, Stephen Dresser, Johan "Jones" Wetterberg, Edward Ellis, and Aaron Joseph on a music career, releasing demos on her SoundCloud page, including one titled "STFU".[17] For her contributions to social media, Petras was ranked at number 19 on Billboard's Artist Chart, listing developing artists, in July 2013.[18] In 2015, Petras appeared on "You" by Isaac Phase for his album, Phase 00001.
2017–2019: Breakthrough with "Era 1"
In August 2017, Petras released her debut single "I Don't Want It at All",[19] The song went on to reach the Spotify Global Viral chart.[20] The accompanying music video for the song premiered in October on Vevo, and features a cameo appearance by Paris Hilton.[21] In the same month, she was picked by Spotify to be one of the four artists named as a RISE Artist, a "program designed to identify and break the next wave of music superstars."[22] During the end of 2017, Petras was dubbed "most likely to dominate the pop charts" by Paper magazine,[23] and appeared on Charli XCX's mixtape Pop 2 (2017) for the track "Unlock It" alongside Jay Park.
Artistry
Petras is a pop singer who also makes electronic dance music (EDM), dance-pop, electropop and bubblegum pop.[72][73] She credits the late 1990s and early 2000s pop scene,[74] as well as 1980s Italo disco,[23] as the primary basis for her sound. Petras describes herself as a 'Kylie Minogue stan first', citing Minogue as a key influence to her sound as a pop artist.[75] Petras's other inspirations include Katy Perry, Cher, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Beyoncé, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Madonna and the Spice Girls,[76][77][74] as well as Boy George, Debbie Harry, Queen, Freddie Mercury,[17] Judy Garland, Baby E, Lil Aaron, Liz Y2K,[25] and Kesha.[78] In an interview, Petras stated that "To me, pop music is an escape from my problems. I can put on my headphones and listen to it for three and a half minutes to forget about everything that's bothering me. It's always been that way for me. I feel like pop definitely saved my life in so many ways."[79]
On her songwriting, Petras told Noisey that "there's something about making a song that everybody can sing and remember, and when you listen to it the first time you already know the words by the second chorus, like you've always known the song. I'm obsessed with that idea."[74] She commented on themes, stating "I write about boys, heartbreak, sex, having fun and the things that I go through."[25]
Public image
Following her debut, Petras was dubbed as "the new princess of pop" by Nasty Galaxy.[17] The title was repeated by publications including Billboard,[80] ABC News,[81] V,[82] and Idolator.[83]
Following the release of her debut mixtape Clarity (2019), many reviewers praised the record but criticized her involvement with Dr. Luke, who had been accused of sexually and verbally assaulting Kesha in 2015.[84][85] The same controversy was reignited in 2022 with the release of her EP Slut Pop, also produced by Dr. Luke. After the release of the EP, "#FreeKesha" trended on Twitter and Petras faced further backlash over lyrics in the EP referencing Lady Gaga, a supporter of Kesha and a survivor of sexual assault herself.[86]
Petras has spoken several times about her experience with transphobia, both in her personal life and in her career, stating that many record labels turned her down over her being transgender and tried to get other labels to do the same.[87][88]
In 2023, Petras became the second trans woman to be featured on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.[89]
Studio albums
Headlining
Supporting
Special guest
