Orville Peck

Daniel Pitout, known professionally as Orville Peck, is a South African country musician based in the United States and Canada. Born on January 6, 1988, in Johannesburg, South Africa, he is widely recognized for wearing a mask that hides his face publicly. His musical style features a deep bass-baritone vocal delivery and guitar riffs spanning rockabilly, blues, and shoegaze, drawing inspiration from classic 1970s country music alongside rock and pop influences.

Raised in a mixed-race family in Johannesburg, Peck taught himself music on an acoustic guitar and keyboard as a child. He also did voice-over work for cartoons through his father, a sound engineer, took ballet classes for 12 years, and performed in musical theater. After immigrating to Canada in 2003, he went on national tours of musicals. In 2014, he moved to London to earn a foundation degree in acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, later appearing in Peter Pan Goes Wrong at the Apollo Theatre in 2016.

Peck developed his signature mask in 2018 and self-produced his debut studio album, Pony, on Gabriola Island. Released in 2019 through Sub Pop, the album earned a longlist nomination for the 2019 Polaris Music Prize and a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year in 2020. That same year, he launched the annual Orville Peck's Rodeo event to highlight emerging country artists and made a televised musical appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Following his debut, Peck released the EP Show Pony in August 2020 and recorded a cover of "Smalltown Boy" for Spotify Singles. In 2021, he appeared on Trixie Mattel's EP Full Coverage, Vol. 1 and recorded a country cover of "Born This Way" for Lady Gaga's tenth-anniversary release. He released his second studio album, Bronco, in 2022, and subsequently served as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race and a coach on My Kind of Country in 2023.

After a self-imposed hiatus in 2023, Peck returned in 2024 with his third studio album and first duets project, Stampede, marking his first release on Warner Records. The record was led by the single "Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other," recorded with Willie Nelson. He promoted the album with The Stampede Tour and released additional duets featuring Noah Cyrus, Kylie Minogue, and Diplo.

In addition to his music releases, Peck made his Broadway debut in March 2025 as the Emcee in Cabaret at the August Wilson Theatre. He was cast as Vega in the 2026 Street Fighter film reboot and made his Grand Ole Opry debut in July 2026, performing his song "Dead of Night" and a cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You."

Peck is openly gay and was honored with the Cultural Icon Award by the Tom of Finland Foundation in 2022. As of July 2024, he resides in Los Angeles, California.