Daniel Pitout is a South African singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known for his songs and albums such as Spit Gifting, That’s My Man and Eat Your Mind. He is the former drummer of the famous Canadian band Nu Sensae.
This band is synonymous with queercore or queer rock. In recent years, however, Pitout has taken on a new image, covering his face with an exemplary mask. His current fascination, under the new name Orville Peck, has recently become the subject of much independent country music and American talk.
The current incarnation has succeeded in garnering a cult following. The singer, who performs with his face hidden behind a fringed mask, seems like a personality destined to stay on the fringes of pop culture.
Critics and fans alike are always ready to mistake his fashionably atmospheric music mixed with western imagery. However, Peck/Pitt, who now never appears without a mask, is quite coy about his age and upbringing.
Read more about him in the breakdown below; starting with deciphering the mysterious answer to the question of whether Daniel Pitout and Orville Peck are the same people. Find out all about his early life, music, popularity, and more.
Daniel Pitout Is Orville PeckÂ
Some sources indeed claim that Orville Peck is Daniel Pitout and vice versa. And some internet-curious people have identified Peck as Daniel Pittout, former drummer of the Vancouver punk band Nü Sensae.
At a Troubadour concert in 2016, Peck’s manager called him Daniel – the first half of the name that appears in published reports from London’s West End, where Pitout performed in a musical comedy based on Peter Pan in 2016.
Now, as Peck, Pitout always wears a mask, at least when performing. And Peck’s mask and theatrical stage presence really catch the audience’s attention right away.
The top half of the mask is made of leather, and hanging from the bottom is a row of long fringes which he sometimes braids on either side to reveal his rough chin – his unforgettable look is something between a Lone Ranger and a BDSM enthusiast.
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Why Does Pitout Wear A Mask?
Pitout once said of his famous mask that he studied them as an art form for two years and believes there is a misconception about face coverings. The artist, who is about 12 centimeters tall, claims that his mask allows him to go on stage. It also makes it easier for the queer music icon to be open, honest, and vulnerable with what he sings about and what he says.
Daniel Pitout Is A Native Of Johannesburg, South Africa
Born on 6 January 1988, Pitout grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa, and he still considers the city his home. Daniel says he grew up in South Africa north of Sophiatown (an enclave of black youth devastated by apartheid). Peck lived there until age 15.
Pitout had no formal musical training as a child, he taught himself music by playing acoustic guitar and an old Casio keyboard. Daniel is a sound engineer’s son.
As a child, Pitout did sound design for cartoons and other media. Growing up, he also trained in ballet and performed in musical theatre for 12 years.
By the age of 20, Pitouts was touring nationally in musicals. In his mid-20s, the gay cowboy of South African and Canadian origin moved to London to study acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and later starred in a West End production.
When he was young, his grandfather was a horse sheriff in [the South African province of] KwaZulu-Natal. Peck says his grandfather was like a real cowboy, and so as a kid Pete was obsessed with all cowboys.
Daniel Was A Drummer In Two Bands Before Becoming Orville Peck
Before the mask and the name Orville Peck Peck, Pitout was the frontman of the alt supergroup Eating Out and the drummer in the scuzzy punk band Nü Sensae. With Eating Out, Daniel released the album Burn in 2013. It was accompanied by a stellar video reminiscent of the 90s and the brilliant track “That’s My Man”.
He then performed in the show “The Buddy Holly Story” in Chemainus, British Columbia.
Nu Sensae formed when drummer Daniel Pitout and bass guitarist Andrea Lukić met in high school in Vancouver and first performed when they were 18 or 19 years old.
In the original Sensae line-up, Pitout played Vancouver house concerts. After some time, the band joined guitarist Brody Mcknight and played a total of 12 shows at the sweltering South by Southwest in 2013. In late 2012, Nü Sensae released their first three-piece record, Sundowning, on the respected Northwest label Suicide Squeeze.
Daniel Pitout After Becoming Orville Peck
Pitouts first found success as the drummer of punk and grunge trio Nü Sensae, but he found new fame in 2017 when he decided to transform into gay indie country singer Orville Peck, who masquerades as a fringe mask.
Since then, he has topped the indie music charts with his debut album “Pony” in 2019 and its follow-up “Show Pony” in 2020. In July 2020, Orville announced that the release of “Show Pony” would be postponed until 14 August 2020 in recognition of the Black Lives Matter movement and protests against police brutality in the US.
After Pony and Show Pony, Pitout covered seemingly every other magazine; he appeared at Dior shows in a tailored suit and mask. Pitout or Peck has also collaborated with Canadian star Shania Twain on the song “Legends Never Die”.
In addition, the group performed at Coachella and the Stagecoach Festival in 2022. In April of the same year, he released his second studio album Bronco on Columbia records.
The South African-born, Toronto-based singer released Bronco in three “chapters” – the first on 5 March, the second on 11 March, and the last on 8 April. He has also collaborated with former Sub Pop labelmate Bria Salmen on another album, All I Can Say.
Daniel has also lent his voice to albums by White Lung and Hunx and His Punx. He has also hosted an episode of the Netflix documentary series This Is Pop and is signed to Sony Music.
Daniel Pitout Or Orville Peck Other AchievementsÂ
In January 2019, Peck performed the song “Dead of Night” on the television show Jimmy Kimmel Live. A month after that, in June 2019, Peck’s Pony was longlisted for the inaugural 2019 Polaris Music Prize.
The album additionally received a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year at the 2020 Juno Awards. In April 2021, the vocalist/guitarist was featured on American drag queen and singer Trixie Mattel’s EP Full Coverage, Vol. 1.
Pitout has also been featured in a cover version of the duet “Jackson” by Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash.
In June 2021, Orville Pitt will become the sixth artist on Lady Gaga’s Born This Way The Tenth Anniversary album, on which he will cover the country-style song “Born This Way”.
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Daniel Also Speaks For Aids AwarenessÂ
Pitout has always been a supporter of AIDS awareness. Once Daniel revealed that he had lost friends and family to AIDS.
He has also used his musical networking skills to help raise money for AIDS research. In addition, he has set up the AIDS Day Music Project, a non-profit organization that promotes HIV/AIDS awareness through music and art.
The Toronto-based goth-country singer founded the AIDS Day Music Project in 2012. Pitout is also one of the few openly gay members of the DIY punk music scene and is very active and forward-thinking.
Pitout Struggled With Mental Health Issues
Daniel also struggled with depression. In fact, he wrote his second studio album, Bronco, while recovering from a very, very deep depression. In March 2022, Pitout revealed that he was very unhappy during the making of Bronco.
Apparently, he was almost ready to stop making music altogether. Moreover, he was basically in the worst state. But as soon as he decided to start writing Bronco, he felt incredibly cathartic, liberating, and “kind of like therapy”.
Pitout says that he cried a lot while writing Bronco.
Other Facts
- Daniel Pitout loves 90s teen movies and admits to watching a lot of them as a child.
- In fact, Pitouts drew inspiration from these periods for his music video That’s My Man.
- In 2013, he was one of the OUT 100 most eligible bachelors.
- He has also worked in the theatre, having been a professional actor for a long time at the West End Theatre in London. Before that, Pitout worked as a professional dancer. He admits that he has almost always worked exclusively in the creative field.
- He is also a big fan of John Waters and Gus Van Sant.
- Pitout has also composed the soundtrack for the 2022 film Scream, the HBO series Euphoria and others.
Quick Facts About Daniel Pitout
| Real Name | Daniel Pitout |
| Nick Name | Daniel |
| Famous As | Singer |
| Age | 40-years old |
| Birthday | NA |
| Birthplace | United States |
| Birth Sign | NA |
| Nationality | American |
| Sexuality | Gay |
| Ethnicity | Mixed |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Height | approx. 6 ft 2 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight | approx. 68 Kg (158 lbs) |
| Body Measurements | approx. 44-32-38 inches |
| Eye Color | Black |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Shoe Size | 10 (US) |
| Girlfriend | Single |
| Wife/Spouse | NA |
| Net Worth | approx. $1.2 m (USD) |