Person · Male
Rufus Wainwright
Canadian‐American singer‐songwriter and composer
- From
- Rhinebeck, Montréal
- Since
- 1973–present
- Rating
- ★ 4.3
- Releases
- 59
- alternative rock
- chamber pop
- folk
- indie rock
- singer-songwriter
About
Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded eleven studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical operas and set Shakespeare's sonnets to music for a theatre piece by Robert Wilson.
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Wainwright's self-titled debut album was released through DreamWorks Records in May 1998. His second album, Poses, was released in June 2001. Wainwright's third and fourth studio albums, Want One (2003) and Want Two (2004), were repackaged as the double album Want in 2005. In 2007, Wainwright released his fifth studio album, Release the Stars, and his first live album, Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall.
His second live album, Milwaukee at Last!!!, was released in 2009, followed by the studio albums All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu (2010) and Out of the Game (2012). The double album Prima Donna (2015) was a recording of his opera of the same name. His ninth studio album, Take All My Loves: 9 Shakespeare Sonnets (2016), featured nine adaptions of Shakespeare's sonnets. Rufus' 10th studio album, Unfollow the Rules, was released on July 20, 2020. His eleventh, Folkocracy, was released on June 2, 2023.
Wainwright is the son of musicians Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle, the older brother of singer Martha Wainwright, the half-brother of singer-songwriter Lucy Wainwright Roche, the nephew of singer-songwriters Sloan Wainwright (paternal) and Anna McGarrigle (maternal), and the grandson of writer Loudon Wainwright Jr..
Discography
Albums
-
Rufus Wainwright Apple Music
-
Sessions at West 54th
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Poses Apple Music
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Want One Apple Music
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Want Two
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Release the Stars Apple Music
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All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu Apple Music
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Out of the Game Apple Music
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Prima Donna
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Take All My Loves: 9 Shakespeare Sonnets Apple Music
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Unfollow the Rules Apple Music
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Folkocracy Apple Music
-
Dream Requiem
Singles
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Happy Together
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Old Tom Bombadil
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Harvest
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Natasha
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Heading for Home
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A Wanderer in the Sleeping City
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The Loneliest Time
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Wolves
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Trouble in Paradise
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Sword of Damocles Apple Music
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Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours) Apple Music
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Hallelujah Apple Music
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Sometimes You Need
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Out of the Game Apple Music
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Hallelujah Apple Music
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Rules and Regulations
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Going to a Town
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Selections from "Release The Stars"
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Tiergarten (Supermayer remix)
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The One You Love
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I Don't Know What It Is
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I Eat Dinner (When the Hunger's Gone)
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Oh What a World
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Across the Universe
Live
-
I'm a Stranger Here Myself – Wainwright Does Weill
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Rufus Does Judy at Capitol Studios Apple Music
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Rufus Wainwright and Amsterdam Sinfonietta Live
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Unfollow the Rules (The Paramour Session) Apple Music
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Roadtrip Elegies: The McCabe's Live Sessions
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Northern Stars
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Live at Coventry
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Live From the (((Artists Den)))
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Milwaukee at Last!!! Apple Music
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Rufus! Rufus! Rufus! Does Judy! Judy! Judy! (Live From The London Palladium)
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Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall Apple Music
-
Alright, Already: Live in Montréal
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Black Session #199
Compilations
Links
Official
Concerts
Involved with
Married
Parent
Sibling
Also known as
Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright · Rufus Wainright
Tags
- 2008 universal fire victim
- aln-sh
- american
- baroque chamber pop
- canadian
- queer
Identifiers
- MusicBrainz
- 78e46ae5-9bfd-433b-be3f-19e993d67ecc
- ISNI
- 0000000115767325
- IPI
- 00246144187
Data from MusicBrainz, saved 13 Nov 2026. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, covers from the Cover Art Archive and Apple Music.