Hayley Kiyoko launched a new fragrance, Hue, on Feb. 3 via an Instagram announcement, and fans are going crazy over it. Shortly before the official launch, Kiyoko posted a picture of herself telling fans to “follow my baby” and tagging @huefragrance, which fans did immediately. Fans also flocked to the comments showering the singer with excitement about this project and, of course, a million gaydar jokes.
Shortly after this initial teaser, Hayley Kiyoko and @huefragrance started posting more about the product and its creation, including snippets of interviews with the singer about her personal journey making this fragrance. While celebrities are making fragrances left and right, Kiyoko stands out from the crowd by making it clear that this project is close to her heart.
Kiyoko on fragrance as identity and armor
Hayley Kiyoko is never afraid of sharing her story with the world and making bold statements. In an interview with Vogue, the singer reflected on the role of perfume in her queer experience, noting that she felt famous when girls would tell her she smelled good and that she’d always wear her favorite scent as a suit of armor against the world. Having a signature scent is something that helps define a person on their own terms, which Hayley understands entirely. On Kiyoko’s Instagram post from Feb. 5, the singer writes “I hope this perfume can be an armor for you. Whatever life challenge you have ahead, know you’ve got a little extra courage. A little extra love. A little extra support.”
Kiyoko has focused much of her music and career on being boldly unapologetic about her identity, but recognizes that it takes a lot of courage to express yourself in this way. Hue aims to evoke this courage and boldness that the singer embodies by combining the fruity scents of blood orange, lychee, with floral scents of peony, rose, magnolia and the warm scents of cacao blanc and skin musk. Hue’s website defines the combination of these scents as “an expression of liberation, freedom, and self empowerment,” which has been Kiyoko’s motif throughout all of her art.
Will Hue fragrance become the official scent of queer women?
While fans appreciate Kiyoko’s thoughtful creation of fragrance, they were also quick to make loving jokes about what the scent will mean for the LGBT community going forward. On Kiyoko’s first instagram teaser, posted on Jan. 29, fans quickly took to the comments saying “now we can officially say we smell the gay” (@sccnl) and “Everyone’s Gaydars boutta become 100x more accurate” (@melaniebaime). Being able to spot a fellow member of the LGBT community in the wild can be difficult, but through these jokes fans were quick to point out that this may very well become the official scent of women who like women soon.
Colloquially, fans of the singer have named her “lesbian jesus,” for her creation of music that have become women who love women anthems, such as the song “Girls Like Girls.” This title clearly shows the importance to Kiyoko for queer women, and how excited fans are to follow her example. Some fans have already taken it upon themselves to order it stating that it’s their “lesbian duty” to order this new perfume. With Kiyoko’s strong influence, she may have very well created the unofficial scent of queer women by creating Hue.
