For Kim Petras, 2022 was a big year: the German singer-songwriter received her first Grammy nomination, made her acting debut in the HBO series The Spookies and released a single with acclaimed pop producer Max Martin.
Inspired by the irreverent attitude of their Grammy-nominated duet, Unholywhich she and Sam Smith will present at this weekend’s awards show, Petras decided to delve into the waters of religious language and its themes by working with Martin to compose If Jesus Was a Rockstar.
”I never had the opportunity to learn about spirituality or to be accepted by God. It’s like mythology to me. For me it is like a fairy tale or any other story, ”she said during a recent interview with The Associated Press.
Petras, who is transgender, understands that his involvement with religion is subversive and a way of processing trauma. ”From an early age it was like ‘I’m going to hell.’ That was my experience growing up,” he said. “If I had had the chance to be a part of the religion, maybe I would have. And maybe I would have lived more the way the people protesting at my concerts want me to live.”
Though he’s been making music for over a decade, Petras’ rise to fame didn’t happen overnight. And while she’s grateful for her success, she acknowledges that this level of celebrity makes her and her music more vulnerable to criticism.
”Now it is more serious. It’s more like now people are really watching, and there’s really a lot of eyes out there that maybe aren’t my fans, that maybe aren’t as nice to me,” she said. “But I feel that since I’ve been building steadily, I can handle it.”
Before his career took off, Petras released music as an independent artist under his own label. She credits artists like Robyn and Charli XCX, who have also released music independently, for inspiring the creation of BunHead Records, whose name is a nod to Sailor Moon’s bow hairdo.
In addition to reaching various career milestones in 2022, Petras also reached a personal best, turning 30. But the pop star said his philosophy on age is very much in line with that of legendary musician Prince, who was famous for not celebrating his birthday.
“Age doesn’t matter to me,” he said. “I’m never going to stop going to nightclubs or loving and going to gay clubs. That is what I am”.
Maintaining its essence, his new single brrr, which will be part of their first full-length album, has very sensual lyrics and many touches of electronic music. But Petras hopes to do more with her music than provide a catchy beat to get people dancing on the floor.
“This is a scary time for trans kids and trans people and I think there are a lot of things that really need to improve,” she said. “I’m afraid for the trans community and I hope that I can be the person to make them forget about those problems and make them have fun for a while.”