Orville Peck

Peck was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and lived there until he was 15.^[6] He grew up in a mixed-race family, and is "part-white, part-Indian".^[7] As a child, he taught himself music by playing an acoustic guitar and an old Casio keyboard.^[8] His father is a sound engineer and Orville did voice-over work for cartoons and other media as a child.^[9] Growing up, he took ballet classes for 12 years and performed in musical theater productions. Peck immigrated to Canada in 2003.^[7] By his early 20s, he had been on national tours of musicals.^[9]

Orville Peck moved to London for a foundation degree in acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in 2014.^[10] He played Jonathan Harris/Peter Pan in the Mischief Theatre production of Peter Pan Goes Wrong at the Apollo Theatre in 2016.^[11][12]

Orville Peck developed his signature mask in 2018. Peck self-produced his debut album Pony at The Noise Floor recording studio on Gabriola Island,^[13][14][15] and released it in 2019 through a collaboration with Sub Pop.^[16] He has noted that he "wrote, produced and played every instrument he could" on the album while working in a coffee shop and living with his parents.^[17] In June of that year, he performed his songs "Dead of Night" and "Take You Back" live on CBC Radio One's Q.^[18] Pony was named to the initial longlist for the 2019 Polaris Music Prize in June 2019.^[19] The album received a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2020.^[20]

Also in 2019, Peck started an annual Orville Peck's Rodeo, which takes place in different cities across the US and brings in up-and-comers in the country music genre.^[21] He performed "Dead of Night" on Jimmy Kimmel Live on January 29, 2020.^[22] Peck announced a tour of selected cities in the United States including performances at the Coachella and Stagecoach festivals.^[22] In May 2020, he announced the follow-up to his debut album, an EP titled Show Pony, with a release date of June 12, 2020. In June 2020, he announced the delayed release of Show Pony until August 14, 2020, in recognition of the Black Lives Matter movement and the George Floyd protests.^[23][24] Peck recorded a cover of "Smalltown Boy" for the 2020 pride edition of the Spotify Singles series. The song was released exclusively on Spotify on June 29, 2020, and everywhere else on July 31, 2020.^[25]

In April 2021, Peck was featured on American drag queen and singer Trixie Mattel's EP, Full Coverage, Vol. 1. Peck appeared on a duet cover of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash's "Jackson".^[26] Although not credited in the liner notes for the EP, Trixie Mattel has confirmed that the whistle part in "Video Games" is Peck's whistle.^[27] In June, Peck was revealed to be the sixth artist on Lady Gaga's Born This Way The Tenth Anniversary, with Peck reimagining the song "Born This Way" in a country style.^[28]

On March 16, 2023, Peck made an appearance as a guest on the judge's panel on MTV's RuPaul's Drag Race, alongside RuPaul Charles, Michelle Visage, and Ross Mathews.^[29] In 2023, Peck was a coach and judge on My Kind of Country.^[30] On April 5, 2024, he released a cover of Ned Sublette's "Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other" with country singer Willie Nelson as the lead single from Stampede, Peck's third studio album and first duets album. The single marked his first release on Warner Records.^[31] He announced a headlining North American tour, The Stampede Tour which began on May 28, 2024, in Asheville, North Carolina.^[32] In May 2024, Peck released the duet "How Far Will We Take It?" with singer Noah Cyrus, the sister of Miley Cyrus. On June 7, 2024, Peck released the single "Midnight Ride" alongside Kylie Minogue and Diplo.^[33]

On March 31, 2025, Peck made his Broadway debut as the Emcee in the revival of Cabaret at the August Wilson Theatre opposite Eva Noblezada as Sally Bowles.^[34] In 2026, he will make his film debut as Vega in the upcoming Street Fighter reboot.^[35]

Peck is gay.^[37][45] A shirtless selfie of Peck appeared in Out in April 2024,^[46] and an interview in the July 2024 issue of Paper was accompanied by semi-nude photos.^[47]

In 2008, Pitout posed unmasked for Gayletter.^[48] He has given various accounts of how he came to adopt a mask:

• In a 2019 interview with Vogue: "I just woke up one day and it was on my face, and it has always been there."^[49]
• In 2020: "The only reason I don't talk about it in depth is not because I want to dodge any questions, but because I want people to have their own take on it. I don't want to lay it out and pin it down. I just don't think that's important."^[50]
• In 2023: "fringed mask? I grew up loving country where there was an intersection between theatricality and very honest songwriting. Dolly's a perfect example—the big wigs, the crazy outfits, but it's her. For me, I was obsessed with the Lone Ranger, cowboys hiding their face, so that's what I wanted to do."^[51]

As of July 2024^[update], Peck lives in Los Angeles.^[52] His home was featured in Architectural Digest in 2023.^[53]

In June 2020, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the first LGBTQ pride parade, Queerty listed him among the 50 heroes "leading the nation toward equality, acceptance, and dignity for all people".^[64][65]

In June 2022, Peck was given the Cultural Icon Award by the Tom of Finland Foundation, "for artistic achievement and immeasurable contributions to the art and culture of our community"; the award was previously presented to Rob Halford, Henry Rollins, Clive Barker, and John Waters.^[66] The USPTO registered "Orville Peck" trademark (serial number 88665699) on June 2, 2020.^[67]

• LGBTQ representation in country music