We Followed Jeremy Fragrance Around NYC as He Smelled Strangers

What better place to sniff strangers than the streets of New York? 

Jeremy Fragrance, the self-proclaimed “Number 1 Fragrance Icon That FOLLOWS The Teachings Of Jesus,” has become an increasingly controversial character on social media, where he shares his perfume picks, surprisingly lithe dancing, and thick German accent with over ten million followers. 

VICE walked the city with him, trying to make sense of his pure and confusing energy—and encountering some of his fans, who obliged him to let him smell them and guess which scent they were wearing. 

He spent most of his life as a musician, performing in the 2000s German boy band Part Six and 2010s group Golden Circle, to mixed results. After visiting an Abercrombie & Fitch store during a trip to Hawaii, he discovered his true calling: as a fragrance critic.

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He started creating lists like “best fragrances for men” and, in recent years, built a larger following on social media by mixing in dancing, dating commentary, and unexpected confessionals. By 2022, he was big enough to appear on Germany’s version of Celebrity Big Brother, where he never changed out of his signature white suit.

Increasingly, he uses his platform to share Christian messages with his audience.

“I sold my Ferrari about three and a half months ago. In my brain, I have experienced the peaks of financial, the peaks of sex, the peaks of social recognition,” he said. “The biggest thing for me now is the faith.”

“I have experienced the peaks of financial, the peaks of sex, the peaks of social recognition. The biggest thing for me now is the faith.” –Jeremy Fragrance

He says his main mission is to spread the word of Jesus on his Instagram, he shares photos and captions encouraging his followers to embody Christian ideologies, committing to one partner till death do you part.

Through his conversation with VICE, he said he craves exposure to further his impact on others, especially since most of his followers are impressionable young men, aged 17 to 25. 

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The interview inevitably became unhinged at some points—especially when politics got involved. His support for Donald Trump and a series of photos with right-wing extremists (he said he wasn’t aware of their views) cost him a few endorsement deals. In fact, streaming platform Sky TV went so far as to remove Power, Baby!, a docu-series that featured Jeremy, from its catalog.

Nevertheless, Jeremy stands by his beliefs, saying he’s unbothered by how the media portrays him.

“I know what I said, and if you make something bad out of it, that’s on you,” he stated. “I don’t know [much of what’s] happening, but I know what’s happening with me—and I like that.”