Gigi Perez

Gianna Brielle Perez (born February 2000), known professionally as Gigi Perez or simply Gigi, is an American singer-songwriter. Born in New Jersey and raised in Florida, she went viral on TikTok for her songs "Celene" and "Sometimes (Backwood)" and spent a period signed to Interscope Records, on which she released the 2023 EP How to Catch a Falling Knife. After leaving the label, she released "Sailor Song", which peaked at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Sailor Song" topped the charts in Ireland, Latvia, and the United Kingdom, and peaked within the top ten of the charts in various countries, including New Zealand and Norway. She has also supported Coldplay on their Music of the Spheres World Tour, Noah Cyrus on her The Hardest Part Tour, and D4vd on his The Root of It All Tour.

Gigi Perez
Birth name	Gianna Brielle Perez
Born	Hackensack, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres	Indie folk indie pop
Occupations	Singer-songwriter musician
Instruments	Vocals guitar
Years active	2018–present
Labels	Mogul Vision Interscope
Member of	Wendy Lane
Website	gigiperezmusic.com

Life and career

Gianna Brielle Perez was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida.^: 0:49 She spent a year at a comprehensive before moving to a Christian school.^: 8:39 Perez is a lesbian and has credited "Girls Like Girls" by Hayley Kiyoko with helping her accept her sexuality. She began writing songs aged fifteen and began releasing music in 2018 while in high school as part of the band Wendy Lane. Perez attended Berklee College of Music but left due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. She had an older sister, Celene, who died in July 2020, shortly after which her partner broke up with her.^: 29:34 To cope with her grief, she began uploading videos to TikTok to kill time. She went viral in early 2021 after releasing "Celene" and then "Sometimes (Backwood)", both of which went viral on TikTok, prompting Interscope Records to sign her.

Perez released a further single, "The Man", in June 2022, a track about expectations faced by men. She supported Coldplay on their Music of the Spheres World Tour later that month at their Florida stadium show. She has stated in interviews to have received the offer to do so on her 22nd birthday and in February 2022. She then released "When She Smiles", a song about a toxic relationship inspired by Ariana Grande, Imogen Heap, and "When Jamie Smiles" from the Ryan Reynolds film Just Friends, and "Glue", a track written in late 2020 about clinging to a relationship after bereavement. In October 2022, she supported Noah Cyrus on her The Hardest Part Tour and released "Figurines". In February 2023, she supported D4vd on his The Root of It All Tour. In March, by which time she was based in Brooklyn, she released "Sally" and announced an EP, How to Catch a Falling Knife, which comprised eight songs composed three years earlier. The EP took its title from the stock market term "never try to catch a falling knife", as she felt it represented what she had put into the project, and was released in April 2023 alongside a music video for focus track "Kill for You".

In March 2024, after being released from Interscope Records, she released "Normalcy", a queer love song she had first promoted in December 2022 on TikTok; she followed this a month later with "Please Be Rude". In July 2024, she released the single "Sailor Song", an acoustic queer ballad about a woman who looked like Anne Hathaway. The track went viral on TikTok, and peaked at number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100. Some conservative Christian communities complained about the line "I don't believe in God, but I believe that you're my saviour," prompting Perez to remind her followers that her songwriting was "not a democracy". She signed to Island Records in September 2024.

Discography

Extended plays

Title	EP details
How to Catch a Falling Knife	Released: April 28, 2023 Label: Mogul Vision, Interscope Format: Digital download, streaming

Singles

Title	Year	Peak chart positions										Certifications	Album
		US	US Rock	AUS	CAN	LTU	NOR	NZ	SWE	UK	WW
"Sometimes (Backwood)"	2021	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album single
"The Man"	2022	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		How to Catch a Falling Knife
"When She Smiles"		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Glue"		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Figurines"		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Sally"	2023	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Normalcy"	2024	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album singles
"Please Be Rude"		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Sailor Song"		28	3	10	20	8	3	3	9	1	16	BPI: Silver RMNZ: Gold
"Fable"		—	19	—	—	—	—	—	—	55	—

As part of Wendy Lane

Title	Year	Album
"Dreams"	2018	Non-album singles
"February Face"
"Vertigo"	2020
"Witches"	2022

Music videos

Title	Year	Director	Ref.
"The Man"	2022	Amber Padgett & Open The Portal
"When She Smiles"		Svenja Krautwurst
"Sally"	2023	Leaf Lieber
"Kill for You"
"Sailor Song"	2024	Coco Mendez

Notes

1. "Fable" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number six on the NZ Hot Singles Chart.

References

1. "Perez Gianna Brielle". www.ascap.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
2. Bringin' it Backwards (November 23, 2022). Podcast Interview with gigi. Retrieved September 4, 2024 – via YouTube.
3. "How Gigi Perez turned her pain into Sailor Song, her first UK Number 1 single". Official Charts. November 1, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
4. Gomez, Adrian (September 28, 2022). "Songwriter gigi finds a place for comfort with music, being on stage". Albuquerque Journal. Archived from the original on March 12, 2024. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
5. Huffer, Carson (August 31, 2022). "gigi on Her Latest Release "When She Smiles" and Her Life as an Accidental Mysterious Internet Girl". Unpublished Magazine. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
6. "Gigi Perez : "Parfois, je succombe au chaos"". Rockenseine (in French). Retrieved September 3, 2024.
7. Balding, Taylor (June 19, 2023). "Gigi Perez Reveals "How to Catch a Falling Knife"". Musaholic Magazine. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
8. Daly, Rhian (April 28, 2023). "Brooklyn's Gigi Perez shares new EP 'How To Catch A Falling Knife'". NME. Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
9. "Q&A: From Going Viral on TikTok to Playing with Coldplay, gigi Discusses Her Journey in Music". THE LUNA COLLECTIVE. Retrieved September 2, 2024.
10. "Who is Gigi Perez? New artist blowing up with viral hit Sailor Song". Official Charts. August 28, 2024. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
11. "Lineup: Coldplay anuncia shows em SP e outro no RJ, além do Rock in Rio". Folha de S.Paulo (in Brazilian Portuguese). April 7, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2024.
12. "Exploring vulnerability and catharsis with Gigi Perez". The Rodeo Magazine. July 5, 2023. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
13. "Introducing: gigi drops new single 'Figurines' External Inbox • WithGuitars". www.withguitars.com. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
14. "Artist d4vd takes crowd "to the sun" in sold-out LA show". Annenberg Media. February 24, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
15. "gigi announces debut EP, shares new single + video 'Sally' External Inbox • WithGuitars". www.withguitars.com. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
16. Zellner, Xander (August 27, 2024). "Hot 100 First-Timers: Gigi Perez Debuts With Queer Love Ballad 'Sailor Song'". Billboard. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
17. Barton, Hannah (April 3, 2024). "Gigi Perez's haunting new single understands sapphic heartbreak | The Brock Press". Retrieved September 4, 2024.
18. "The Big Indie Playlist: The best new music of the week". faroutmagazine.co.uk. May 11, 2024. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
19. Daw, Stephen (October 3, 2024). "How Gigi Perez Turned Queer Longing Into a Breakout Hit: 'Representation Gives People the Ability to Dream'". Billboard. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
20. "Gigi Perez - Discography". Spotify. Retrieved September 3, 2024.
21. "Billboard Hot 100: Week of October 26, 2024". Billboard. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
22. "Hot Rock & Alternative Songs: Week of November 9, 2024". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
23. "ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. November 4, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
24. "Billboard Canadian Hot 100: Week of November 2, 2024". Billboard. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
25. "2024 38-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. September 20, 2024. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
26. "Singel 2024 uke 42". VG-lista. Retrieved October 19, 2024.
27. "Official Top 40 Singles". Recorded Music NZ. November 1, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
28. "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 44". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
29. "Gigi Perez songs and albums | full Official Chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
30. "Billboard Global 200: Week of October 26, 2024". Billboard. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
31. The Man, June 3, 2022, retrieved September 3, 2024
32. When She Smiles, August 12, 2022, retrieved September 3, 2024
33. Glue, September 16, 2022, retrieved September 4, 2024
34. Figurines, October 28, 2022, retrieved September 4, 2024
35. Sally, March 10, 2023, retrieved September 4, 2024
36. "British certifications – Gigi Perez". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 31, 2024. Type Gigi Perez in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
37. "New Zealand single certifications – Gigi Perez – Sailor Song". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
38. "Hot 40 Singles". Recorded Music NZ. November 1, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
39. "Wendy Lane - Discography". Spotify. Retrieved September 3, 2024.
40. Gigi Perez (June 2, 2022). Gigi Perez – The Man [Official Music Video]. Retrieved September 4, 2024 – via YouTube.
41. Gigi Perez (August 11, 2022). Gigi Perez – When She Smiles [Official Music Video]. Retrieved September 4, 2024 – via YouTube.
42. geeguscrustVEVO (March 9, 2023). Gigi Perez - Sally [Official Music Video]. Retrieved September 4, 2024 – via YouTube.
43. geeguscrustVEVO (April 27, 2023). Gigi Perez - Kill For You [Official Music Video]. Retrieved September 4, 2024 – via YouTube.
44. Gigi Perez (August 7, 2024). Gigi Perez - Sailor Song [Official Music Video]. Retrieved September 4, 2024 – via YouTube.

External links

• Official website