Los Angeles-based alt-pop duo Haute & Freddy are rewriting the rules of music and performance with their audacious blend of 18th-century baroque flair and ’80s synth energy. Recently crowned by Rolling Stone as an “Artist You Need to Know,” the duo—Michelle Buzz and Lance Shipp—have captivated a devoted fanbase known as “The Royal Court” with their fearless storytelling and theatrical live shows. Their latest single, “Shy Girl,” is a rebellious anthem with the heart of a coming-of-age film. It's both a personal liberation and a glittering act of defiance. With visionary director Amalia Irons by their side, they crafted a cinematic world where misfits reclaim the night—and themselves, expertly capturing the perfect chaos and raw energy the song embodies.

From their debut sold-out New York City show at The Slipper Room earlier this week to upcoming festival performances at Electric Forest, Portola, and Austin City Limits, Haute & Freddy’s momentum is unstoppable. Their love for underground club culture, obscure synths, and dramatic storytelling pulses through every note and every performance, making each experience feel like a wild escape into an alternate universe.

“Shy Girl” has been described as a “rebellious anthem” and feels like it belongs in a coming-of-age film. What was the original inspiration behind this track?

We wrote “Shy Girl” as a kind of unfiltered permission slip—for ourselves and anyone who’s ever felt the need to shrink themselves to fit in. It started with writing from a place of frustration, like, why am I still scared of being myself? That feeling of finally saying: no more hiding. “Shy Girl” became this soundtrack to stepping into our own weird, wonderful magic.

You mentioned wanting to “get into Shy Girl’s head” — can you walk us through how that concept shaped the narrative and visuals for the music video?

The visual world of the song felt like this band of misfits trapped in a castle in which they aren’t in charge. They play dress up in the noble’s thrown out and worn clothes, late at night in secret, in the remains of a lavish party that’s been left to rot. The more we thought about this escapade, the more we felt this night that the video takes place on was the night she escaped, so she had nothing to lose. The usual hushed soiree could be loud, her and the others had planned how the escape would go down. They had distracted the guards and readied the horses. It felt like Shy Girl was Cinderella but instead of wanting to go to a ball and meet a prince she just wanted to run away with her friends.

What was the most surprising or spontaneous moment on set during the “Shy Girl” shoot?

When we shot in the big room, the dance was adjusted in real time to make sense in the space and once the cameras started rolling it wasn’t long before we heard props crashing and breaking and the dancers simply kept looking fabulous and making magic happen and it made it wild in the way this party really would have happened. Although, we say RIP to the antiques that didn’t make it to the finished cut due to a fabulous fan kick here and there.

How did working with Amalia Irons as director elevate your vision? Was there a moment where you felt everything clicked?

From the first conversation, Amalia understood our world and the world of Shy Girl. She had lived and breathed our film inspirations like Cabaret and Donkey Skin. There was no explaining ourselves with her, she knew it was wild and unhinged and gritty, not polished and pristine. She really got how to holistically bring our vision to life.

Your style has been called “baroque 18th-century meets '80s synth” — how do you both approach crafting the visual identity of Haute & Freddy?

I think for us it’s all about the runaway carnie thing. In our lore, we are freshly outside the carnival grounds at this point in time. Full of rebellion. What would we be wearing? What would we be riding around in or on? What drives us as these characters as we crash into society. It’s less about certain time periods for us and more about a made up land where we get to combine as many fabulous and theatrical themes as we want.

The Royal Court is such a unique fanbase — how did that theme of theatricality and Ren Faire elegance come to define your shows and community?

I think it all started with our first song, Scantily Clad. The lyrics and characters of that song laid out this world of knights and kings and queens. That, and always telling the fans that “the carnival raised us”, and “we are your humble jesters”, the fans aka the Royal Court just ran with it. So much so that sometimes our fans comment in better renaissance language than we could ever muster, and it delights us to no end.

We heard fans show up in jester hats and a mime clown twists balloon crowns during your shows — what’s the wildest fan-made costume you’ve seen so far?

It’s a tie between the man who showed up on stilts and full circus garb, and the pair of friends who crafted these authentic period jester hats that we will never forget.

Your New York debut at The Slipper Room is sold out — how does it feel preparing to bring your world to life on stage for the first time in NYC?

Absolute bliss. The show sold out in like four days so we feel really excited and honored to meet these extremely vigilant courtiers! In typical Haute & Freddy fashion, balloon crowns will be crafted for those who desire and colorful mustaches and clown noses will litter the tables. We are bringing our runaway carnie experience to NYC in full force.

You’re playing Electric Forest, Portola, and Austin City Limits — what can fans expect from your festival performances?

An extravagant, bizarre, madcap time.

What do you want new fans who see you live for the first time to walk away thinking or feeling?

Like you just got swept into a traveling spectacle that wasn’t on the map — part rebellious opera, part synth-fueled fever dream. You stumble out like you’ve just escaped the Queen’s dungeon with glitter in your wounds, twirling down an alley, and howling at the moon. We want you to feel ungovernable, ecstatic, and seen.

“Scantily Clad,” “Anti-Superstar,” “Fashion Over Function” — each track feels like a chapter. Do you see your music as part of a larger story or universe?

Absolutely. We love building this world. In a way, our first songs are reactions to crashing into this unknown land after being surrounded by the circus, and bringing our outlandish energy into the town, raising eyebrows from the noblemen.

There’s so much theater and narrative in your work — have you considered expanding Haute & Freddy into other media like film, musicals, or graphic novels?

Oh yes! We have dreams of such things and can’t wait to unfold them in the most spectacular ways.

What can you tease about what’s coming next after “Shy Girl”? Any surprises fans should brace themselves for?

We shall leave you with a poem - a watchful courtier knows what awaits, a feast fit for a jester, a broken heel in the corner, the heat of the spotlight while you hit the high note, lilacs dried in a vase, their smell long forgotten. On the plate, half eaten cake. The guestlist, a fabulous cast of weirdos and freaks. When you look in the mirror, you see a pair of cinnamon eyes staring back at you beckoning you to dance out in the rain. Forget the castle, we need not, for the land is far and wide and our reign is unpolished. All the rage, all the terror. And still, we curtsy—lipstick smudged, hearts ablaze—behind the curtain for now, but not for long.