They have recently released their debut album 'Big Disgrace' and have swiftly become the hottest thing in pop music. Just ask their new biggest fan, Lady Gaga. So, those are the facts. Now here is the real Haute & Freddy story.

Haute & Freddy are circus escapees who have set off on their own fantastical journey of self-expression. Haute & Freddy are built on lore and fantasy, with their baroque dressing and gloriously exuberant 80s pop sounds, all burnishing the theatrical persona they inhabit. The lore basically begins from their debut single, 'Scantily Clad', in 2024.

"'Scantily Clad' felt like that crystallising moment," explains Buzz. "That song became a real part of the lore of Haute & Freddy. We escaped the circus, and this was the first time we had an opportunity in the town, but the queen hated it, and, oh my god, everyone got upset, because it was so indecent. That was how this renfaire language started, because there were so many characters to reference within 'Scantily Clad'. I think that's why everyone started being like, 'Oh my lord'" - imagine this said with an Elizabethan accent with a sassy flourish; think Downton Abbey crossed with Drag Race and you get the vibe - "And then the royal court and the humble jesters, all that rhetoric emerged from 'Scantily Clad'."

So, the Royal Court are Haute & Freddy's fans. A loyal group with whom the duo fiercely identify and celebrate on the album highlight 'Freaks'. "It's the queer community," says Buzz as she proudly explains who Haute & Freddy are lionising in 'Freaks' and the sort of people who make up the Royal Court. "It's the whole underground club scene," she continues. "It's everyone who uses art and music or just self-expression as a therapeutic tool. It's campy and playful.

"We were so inspired by drag, and to see the drag community pick that song up and actually perform to it is absolutely insane. We love playing with gender in kind of an eye-roll way. There are multiple songs that say, like, pretty girls and pretty boys, but it's not meant to be serious, you know? I will get out there and have a shimmy and a slap your butt and purposely grin a grinchy grin that says it's not for everyone. You either like it here, or if you don't, then get on out."

Haute & Freddy is intended to be maximum fun. The antithesis of the soulless experience of the grind of being jobbing songwriters. "We both hit a low at the same time of writing songs for other people," says Lance. "Haute & Freddy was just a hobby. It was fun because we hadn't been having fun making music. It's just like, do this hobby, let's put some costumes together. Let's put a mood board together. Let's make some songs. Let's post it."

The pressure was firmly off, and it allowed the two gloriously creative characters to live out all their creative fantasies. "It's a full-blown escape for me," enthuses Buzz. "It's all the things I loved as a kid, being able to have a place."

While a lot of Haute & Freddy is about embracing ridiculousness and over-the-top exuberance, it's also about something fundamentally important: community and connection. An implacable bond between the artist and the fans. "I think it's what we were craving," says Buzz. "I was craving community. The music heals me, too, and reminds me of my happy places."

The community bond is most clearly visible in the way that the Royal Court play along and match the band with their own creativity. They come to shows with their own distinct looks and styles. "Oh, man, I think we were in Chicago, and this person came in with an all-tuxedo where they affixed flowers to their shoulders, it was almost like two hoops that went all the way up to their ears, and it was just this arch of pink flowers," gushes Lance as he recalls one of the most memorable fan looks. "Our fans now come up to us, and they're like, please let us know what the dress code is. We need some lead time because it takes us a while to make these outfits," laughs Buzz.

The classically influenced period costume drama style that is the Haute & Freddy primary aesthetic is driven by Buzz and her vision for the band's look. "That might be like, the most fun part for me," she smiles. "She can spend it all day," adds Lance. "We go to this costume house called Western Costume Company a lot. She could literally spend 6 to 7 hours in the costume house just sourcing clothes."

"For 'Showgirl', our video that came out with the album, I styled it," continues Buzz. "Four days wasn't enough. Y'all don't understand. I need to be there from open to close, touching everything." She is truly living out her childhood fantasies. "I think it comes from my introduction to musicals as a kid, my grandma showed me Cats and Chicago. That was like, wow, you know, out of control obsession. I was 12 or something when I became aware of Phantom of the Opera, and that's very inspired by 16th-century opera. It's just pulling shapes and materials from certain long-time-agos, and then making it all, ultimately, feel very playful, and play into the lore of Haute & Freddy are circus escapes that are just grabbing whatever the queen might have thrown out that she didn't think were snooty enough."

"We're going to open a thrift store called The Queen's Dumpster," laughs Lance.

The circus theme does actually take on a wider, deeper resonance for the duo. "Circus came from this emotional place of me truly climbing out of a long depression," reflects Buzz. "Literally just me and the universe, vibing on this fantasy of life as this circus, and the fairy tale that is Haute & Freddy. It just gave me this playground out of depression, and it still makes me feel like things make sense. It wasn't that long ago that Lance was like, yeah, I think the circus was a literal metaphor for our careers. I never put that together, but it does feel like you want to be an artist amongst these artists, but your skill set isn't the tightrope, and it's not juggling. These things that other people are really good at, I didn't feel like I was good at. The circus story is from a true emotional journey."

The album 'Big Disgrace' is the endpoint of that journey, but it's also just the beginning of a world that Haute & Freddy are building for themselves and for their community. The album's opening track, 'Symphony For A Queen', encapsulates that. "It's the show tune of the album," says Buzz proudly. "It's very much about getting the look you want and embodying if no one understands me or if society is pushing against what makes me true and beautiful, then I'm going to do that for myself. That stage is metaphorical, but it's an emotional, imaginary place of going and feeling like you're cheering yourself on. I'm beautiful and perfect here." In pop music in 2026, there are few things more beautiful and perfect than Haute & Freddy. Lose yourselves in the madness. ■

Taken from the May 2026 issue of Dork. Haute & Freddy's album 'Big Disgrace' is out now.