Boygenius has revolutionized the indie rock world with three Grammy wins and four nominations that showcase their remarkable work. The modern supergroup emerged when three solo powerhouses—Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker—came together to redefine creative partnerships in contemporary music. The band’s celebration of queer friendship has become central to their appeal, extending well beyond their performances.
The members of Boygenius bring unique talents to their collective. These artists excel at moody, sharp songwriting and create self-aware downer music that balances emotional depth with accessibility. The band’s original self-titled EP in 2018 paved the way for their debut album “The Record,” which sparked excitement among fans and critics.
The trio’s artistic journey runs deep—they attended group therapy sessions while creating their music. This approach earned them significant recognition: two Grammy Awards, a Brit Award for International Group, and iHeartRadio’s Alternative Album of the Year in 2024. Their achievements show how individual talents thrive when artists set aside their egos to pursue a shared artistic vision.
How boygenius came together
How boygenius started in 2016 at a performance in Washington DC. Julien Baker went backstage and found Lucy Dacus reading Henry James’s “The Portrait of a Lady.” They talked about everything from literature to religion and their shared experiences growing up in the American South—Baker from Tennessee and Dacus from Virginia. Dacus tore a blank page from her book and wrote her email address before leaving, which started their friendship.
The first meeting and early friendship
Their relationship grew into something between “an epistolary friendship and a roving book club.” Both musicians were in their early twenties and felt lonely while touring their debut albums. Baker introduced Dacus to Phoebe Bridgers—another friend from the road going through the same thing. The email book club grew to include all three artists, creating a support system that still exists today. Bridgers keeps a dedicated “Lucy section” on her bookshelves in Los Angeles, so Dacus can “pick out her own books” during visits.
The three built deep connections despite rarely being in the same place. Dacus said, “Phoebe and I only met this year and it was very quick friendship. The three of us have only ever been in the same space for recording.” They shared mutual admiration and respect—both professionally and personally. Baker called her bandmates “incredibly gifted performers” whom she looked up to “in character as much as in talent.”
The 2018 tour and EP that started it all
The three artists planned to record a simple seven-inch single to sell at their merchandise table after booking a triple-bill tour for late 2018. “It seemed obvious to record a 7-inch for tour, although many adult men will try to take credit for the idea,” Bridgers said with her typical wit. Something special happened once they got to the studio.
Their modest promotional item turned into something bigger. They created six complete songs during those few days together—the first time all three were in the same room. “When we got together, we had way more songs than we expected and worked so well together, that we decided to make a full EP,” Bridgers explained. Critics loved their self-titled EP, released in October 2018. NPR Music named it the 12th best album of 2018, even though it was just an EP.
Why they chose the name ‘boygenius’
The name “boygenius” started as both a joke and a creative tool among the three artists. Dacus said it refers to “boys and men we know who’ve been told that they are geniuses since they could hear.” The name makes fun of the inflated entitlement often given to male musicians.
Each member had dealt with overconfident male collaborators in their careers. Baker stated the stereotype as “the archetype of the tortured genius, [a] specifically male artist who has been told since birth that their every thought is not only worthwhile but brilliant.” They used this concept to encourage each other in the studio: “If one person was having a thought—’I don’t know if this is good, it’s probably terrible’—it was like, ‘No! Be the boy genius! Your every thought is worthwhile, just spit it out.'”
The name shows their rejection of how the music industry tries to make women compete. Dacus said, “I hope people see the three of us and know there isn’t competition. You don’t have to compete with your contemporaries. You can make something good with people you admire.”
Meet the members of boygenius
Great supergroups come from extraordinary individual talent. Each boygenius member brings their own artistic view to create something bigger than what they could do alone.
Phoebe Bridgers: haunting vocals and activism
Los Angeles native Phoebe Bridgers stands out with her ethereal voice and direct social advocacy. Her songwriting centers on acoustic guitars and blends atmospheric strings with electronic instruments. She spent much time busking at Pasadena farmers markets, which shaped her distinctive musical style well before fame came along.
Her voice for social issues has grown stronger with her rising platform. She spoke openly about her own abortion experience after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. She called it “just super nice” despite her anxiety about medical procedures. She led the crowd in protests against the ruling at Glastonbury Festival, showing she would use her platform for causes she believes in.
Joni Mitchell’s music shaped Bridgers’ foundation, especially the album Blue that inspired her to make music at age 11. You can hear this early influence in her delicate guitar tones and honest lyrics that strike a chord with listeners who seek genuine emotional expression.
Lucy Dacus: literary lyrics and emotional depth
Lucy Dacus, raised in Richmond, Virginia, adds remarkable literary depth to boygenius. She keeps multiple journals for “current thoughts, dreams, spiritual and philosophy” reflections. This careful recording of life experiences creates lyrics with striking clarity and compassion.
“Thumbs” illustrates her storytelling skills—a spare, weighty song about wanting to hurt a friend’s absent father as revenge for emotional damage. The track became central to her album Home Video, showing she could revisit tough teenage moments with both empathy and raw honesty.
Her take on vulnerability is different from other artists. “You can’t get too vulnerable with music,” Dacus explains. “People assume that being vulnerable means I’m going to tell my secrets or just vent, but that’s where artistry comes in, and you get to be subtle or ambiguous.” This thoughtful approach creates songs that feel personal yet universal.
Julien Baker: raw honesty and spiritual themes
Julien Baker rounds out the trio with emotional intensity and deep spiritual themes. Her music tackles big questions and inner battles with remarkable honesty. As she revealed in one song, “It’s not that I think I’m good, I know that I’m evil”—a line that shows her unflinching self-examination.
Boygenius changed Baker’s musical path significantly. “Playing with boygenius, it was this new environment where I had less mental blocks on the arrangement of a song and how wildly you can move it,” she explained. Working together helped her grow beyond minimal sounds to embrace distortion and amplified guitar solos.
Baker’s songs often explore where pain meets healing. In “Appointments,” she writes about missed therapy sessions against DIY guitar and piano backgrounds. The mood builds to surprising vocal power. She knows how to look at both sides of emotional experiences—seeing both the hurt and hope for healing—which makes her role in boygenius essential.
These three distinct artistic voices blend to create boygenius’ signature sound—where emotional intelligence, musical skill, and shared creativity come together perfectly.
The magic of collaboration
The creative chemistry among boygenius members exceeds their solo achievements and creates something completely fresh. These three indie powerhouses come together to form a distinctive fourth entity through their combined talents.
How their solo styles blend into one sound
Boygenius’s musical alchemy defies a simple explanation. “While our music is very different stylistically, I think we all have similar emotions and quandaries that we’re trying to get at with different literal vocabulary and musical vocabulary,” Baker explains. Their shared emotional core lets their different approaches enhance each other.
Dacus expands on their connection: “Not only do we bring what we’re able to bring to the equation, we can call upon the favorite parts of each other… Julien is an amazing instrumentalist with an incredible ear for tone and arrangement, and Phoebe is a super-creative idea machine. Both of them are incredible lyricists.”
The role of trust and vulnerability
Trust serves as the foundation of their creative process. “I trust y’all,” Bridgers told her bandmates. “We talk all the time about knowing how to leave the room and know that it’s not going to get f—ed up.” Their mutual confidence builds a safe space where ideas grow without judgment.
Baker feels liberated in this environment: “Because I can be one step removed from the identity, and I can contribute something creative where the whole stakes aren’t on me and my decisions. That’s freeing, and it makes shared creativity possible.”
Writing together: the Google Drive sessions
Their shared writing process starts in the digital space. Baker created a Google Drive folder titled “dare I say it?” during the pandemic to share potential songs. Bridgers sent a demo of “Emily I’m Sorry,” asking, “Can we be a band again?”
“We were all nervous to bring it up,” Bridgers admits. “We all thought that we were more excited than the other person.” The enthusiasm turned out to be mutual.
Why ‘We’re In Love’ almost didn’t make the album
Dacus’s heartfelt tribute to her bandmates, “We’re In Love,” almost missed the final cut. Bridgers shed tears after Dacus’s a cappella performance, but Baker pulled back initially.
“I was like, we should not have this song on the record,” Baker admits. “It felt too earnest for me. Our friendship meant so much that I couldn’t imagine putting it in a performance context.” Baker eventually saw its artistic value, showing how the band directs emotional vulnerability in their work.
Themes that define their music
Boygenius’ artistry centers on an array of deeply personal themes that appeal to fans beyond the music itself. Their lyrics create an emotional world that both challenges and comforts listeners.
Queer friendship and chosen family
The creative output of boygenius reflects the bond between its members, with queer friendship serving as the life-blood of their artistic identity. The members all identify as queer, and this shared experience produces music that celebrates chosen family—a concept embedded in LGBTQ+ communities where people build family-like connections outside blood relations. Dacus puts it beautifully: “My favorite thing about queerness is how undefined it actually is…having less allegiance to who I was, being willing to betray my idea of myself in service of what actually feels best”.
Mental health and emotional support
Their catalog consistently features themes of mental wellness. Dacus emphasizes “destigmatizing talking about your brain” as crucial, adding “everybody’s struggle would be less of a struggle if we could relate to each other more”. Their song “Not Strong Enough” delves into society’s contradictory expectations about gender roles and mental health, while addressing feelings of powerlessness.
Romantic vs platonic love in their lyrics
Boygenius stands out by refusing to separate romantic and platonic love into neat categories. Their friendship “remains platonic while crossing sexual and romantic boundaries in a way that may seem incomprehensible to those on the outside”. Fans describe this as a “secret third thing”—an intimacy that exceeds conventional relationship labels.
The importance of being seen and known
Their celebration of being truly recognized by others stands out remarkably. The line “It feels good to be known so well” from “True Blue” captures this sentiment perfectly. Recognition forms their music’s foundation—acknowledging that friendship can reveal someone’s complete truth. NPR noted that boygenius asks “Who would I be without you?” not to question dependence, but to “cherish our most formative relationships”.
What makes boygenius different
Boygenius shows a radical change in how musical collaborations can work, unlike traditional supergroups built on ego and competition. The trio’s unique approach has created something special in the music industry.
No ego, just art
Everything boygenius creates stems from equality. “Lifting each other up [is] how we create,” Bridgers explains. “We all get to be the lead. We all get the high of each other being in the front, which is so sick and has been the ethos of this band since day one”. Their performances reflect this democracy—no member stands out above the others.
Dacus expresses their dynamic perfectly: “I think of [Baker] as the musician, and [Bridgers is] the artist, and maybe I’m the writer. But we all are musicians, we’re all artists, and we all write”. Plus, their collective identity gives them creative freedom that solo projects sometimes can’t provide. Baker notes, “There’s a realm in which I feel permitted to be ambitious in this band, in a way that I can’t for my solo stuff”.
Group therapy and emotional safety
What’s interesting is that boygenius members keep attending “throuples therapy”—couples counseling for three—to maintain their relationships. These sessions help them discuss work frustrations and learn about their inner worlds.
Their therapist’s question about what they wanted to protect in their relationship made Bridgers and Dacus “immediately started crying”. This raw emotional openness creates what fans describe as “a safe space to be melancholic in a cathartic and enjoyable way”.
How they handle fame and fan expectations
The band faces fame’s challenges head-on. “I want to normalize talking shit about fans,” admits Bridgers, specifically about boundary violations like being filmed without permission. They still appreciate their respectful supporters deeply.
Their song “Leonard Cohen” speaks directly to fan expectations: “I can’t love you how you want me to”—acknowledging they can’t meet everyone’s needs. Boygenius proves that peer respect builds self-respect, creating music that strikes a chord because it values authenticity over pleasing everyone.
Boygenius shows what happens when artists put aside their egos and work together. These three solo artists became a supergroup that proves the power of real connection and mutual respect. They broke the typical supergroup mold by celebrating each other’s strengths instead of competing.
Bridgers, Dacus, and Baker always put authenticity before commercial success. They even attend group therapy sessions and make their friendship a priority. Their music strikes a chord with audiences because it comes from emotional honesty rather than calculated performance.
Their songs explore universal human experiences – queer friendship, chosen family, mental health – through their unique points of view. Their fresh take on platonic and romantic intimacy gives fans an alternative to traditional relationship stories. “It feels good to be known so well” captures why people love them: that deep feeling of someone truly understanding you.
Boygenius means more than just musicians working together. They show how creative partnerships can thrive on equality, vulnerability, and shared vision. Multiple Grammy wins, critical praise, and devoted fans prove what listeners already know – these artists created something special together.
These three talents flourish because they chose cooperation over competition. Each member gets “to be the lead.” Their soaring success proves that the most revolutionary act in an industry focused on individual stardom is creating art together.
Here are some FAQs about the Boygenius members:
Why are they called boygenius?
The name boygenius comes from a term the members used to describe boys in their music classes who were overly confident. The name reflects their reclamation of this term to celebrate female talent and collaboration in the music industry, which is central to the identity of all boygenius members.
Are members of boygenius dating?
No, the members of boygenius are not dating each other, though they share a deep platonic and creative bond. Questions about boygenius members dating often arise due to their close friendship and lyrical content, but they have consistently described their relationship as purely professional and sisterly.
Are Julien and Lucy dating?
No, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus are not dating; they are close friends and musical collaborators in boygenius. The speculation about boygenius members dating persists despite their clear statements that their connection is artistic and deeply platonic rather than romantic.
Is boygenius a guy or a girl?
Boygenius is a band consisting of three female musicians: Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus. The name plays with gender expectations, but the boygenius band members are all women who have achieved significant critical acclaim.
Are boygenius LGBTQ?
Yes, the members of boygenius are part of the LGBTQ community and have been open about their queer identities in interviews and through their music. This aspect of their identity is often celebrated by fans and is part of what makes the boygenius members relatable to many listeners.
What Travis Scott song says “Wibbly Wobbly”?
This question appears to reference a misheard lyric or different artist, as Travis Scott doesn’t have a known song with the phrase “Wibbly Wobbly.” This query is unrelated to information about members boygenius or their musical work.
Why did Travis and Kylie split up?
Travis Scott and Kylie Jenner’s relationship status involves personal reasons that haven’t been fully disclosed publicly. This celebrity gossip topic is completely separate from discussions about the boygenius members and their musical collaborations.
What is Lana Del Rey diagnosed with?
Lana Del Rey’s personal health information is private and hasn’t been officially disclosed. This question about a different artist is unrelated to the creative work or personal lives of the boygenius band members.
Is Samantha Logan mixed?
Samantha Logan is an actress known for her role in “All American,” and she has discussed her mixed heritage in interviews. This question about a different celebrity is unrelated to the musical group comprising the members of boygenius.
