Rufus Wainwright

Biography

22 July 1973, Rhinebeck, New York, USA. The son of singer-songwriters Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle, Rufus was raised by his mother in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, following his parents’ separation. He began studying piano at the age of six, and by his early teens was touring with his mother, aunt and sister in the McGarrigle Sisters And Family. At the age of 14, Wainwright earned a Juno nomination as Most Promising Young Artist and a Genie nomination for his performance of his own song ‘I’m A-Runnin’’ in the television film, Tommy Tricker And The Stamp Traveller. He attended Millbrook school in upstate New York and briefly studied piano and composition at Montreal’s McGill University, before electing to try his hand as a performer on the Canadian and American club circuits.

A recording contract was offered after Wainwright’s demo tape found its way to Lenny Waronker at the fledgling DreamWorks...

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