Kim Petras is pulling back the curtain on the damage she did to her voice — and how she’s now fighting to protect it after seriously injuring her vocal cords on tour.
The 33-year-old Grammy winner, who skyrocketed to global fame with Sam Smith on their smash hit Unholy, revealed she wrecked her voice during her 2023–2024 Feed the Beast tour.
‘I had to learn vocal technique because I didn’t learn until I went on tour and blew out my voice and was like, “What the f— do I do?”’ Petras told People on Wednesday.
‘So I really had to wreck my vocal cords before I learned how to properly use my instrument.’
Even with the damage, she narrowly avoided surgery, admitting, ‘I got away with it, but I had to shut up for two weeks, not use my voice at all.’
That forced her into a new routine. ‘And then I learned about vocal resting and how I need to shut the f— up after shows; I need to not talk in bars and loud places.’
Kim Petras is pulling back the curtain on the damage she did to her voice — and how she’s now fighting to protect it after seriously injuring her vocal cords on tour; (pictured November 2025)
The 33-year-old Grammy winner, who skyrocketed to global fame with Sam Smith on their smash hit Unholy, revealed she wrecked her voice during her 2023–2024 Feed the Beast tour; (pictured June 2023)
Now she relies on techniques like singing in the mask to keep her voice safe.
‘There’s healthy placement when you place your voice in your mask,’ Petras said.
She added, ‘People sometimes perceive that as being fake when you talk from that voice, but it’s to protect your instrument… I also have to remind myself to speak high-pitched in my mask and not speak from my throat. I think that’s been the most important lesson.’
Petras even defended Ariana Grande, who has been criticized for her own vocal shift.
‘I feel like people need to back off Ariana Grande for using her healthy vocal placement because she’s not being fake — she’s just protecting her voice,’ the ‘Heart to Break’ singer said.
Despite the vocal scare, she credits touring with sharpening her songwriting.
‘It’s really been super formative for me,’ she said. ‘I think I used to write my songs really high-pitched before I went on tour, and then I realized, “Oh, I have to do this every night.”’
Petras is now gearing up for her next studio album, the follow-up to her 2023 major-label debut Feed the Beast.
‘I really had to wreck my vocal cords before I learned how to properly use my instrument,’ Petras said; (pictured June 2023)
Back in July, the German pop star stunned social media when she stripped down to a G-string, showing off a much slimmer frame
But her vocal-cord confession arrives as fans continue buzzing over her dramatic weight loss.
Back in July, the German pop star stunned social media when she stripped down to a G-string, showing off a much slimmer frame.
Fans sounded off immediately — and opinions were split.
One wrote, ‘Yes skinny legend!’
Another added, ‘Her thong straps look like they’re sliding down.’ A third said, ‘Not body shaming her at all, but genuinely concerned about her weight.’
Speculation has swirled for more than a year that Petras may be using Ozempic or a similar drug.
She hasn’t confirmed anything, but Dr. Adam Rubinstein previously told Daily Mail: ‘This is a pretty clear body change that happened over a year, and I think it is not unlikely that Kim used Ozempic or some similar weight-loss drug.’
He noted the dramatic physical shift: ‘To get your extremities looking thinner, that is a significant amount of weight loss.’
Speculation has swirled for more than a year that Petras may be using Ozempic or a similar drug
Petras fueled the chatter last April when she canceled all her summer festival dates, citing unspecified ‘health issues.’
Rubinstein explained that if Ozempic were involved, that could track.
‘These drugs can cause nausea… there have been reports of pancreatitis too,’ he warned, adding it would make performing extremely painful.
Regardless of the rumors, Petras’ rise has been historic.
Her feature on Unholy earned her a Grammy in February 2023, making her the first transgender woman ever to win Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.
