interview
Fragrance influencer
Mr. Fragrance, are you a right-wing extremist?
Right: Jeremy Fragrance, 34, doing a one-arm push-up
© Rolf Vennenbernd / DPA
Six weeks after his scandalous appearance with supporters of the right-wing extremist scene, Jeremy Fragrance is returning to the public eye. The fragrance influencer talks about racism, his migrant family – and a second career in politics.
At 10:30 a.m. New York time sharp, Jeremy Fragrance appears on the computer screen. He appears for the interview with his upper body bare. “Sorry, I’m in the gym,” he says, “The internet connection is best here.” You can see treadmills and weight benches in the background. The gym is in the same building as his apartment. The address: 55 Wall Street, in the middle of New York’s Financial District. “The meeting in December also took place here,” says Fragrance.
The meeting in question refers to a gala of the conservative New York Young Republicans Club, which the fragrance influencer attended. The main speaker of the evening was Donald Trump. But instead of getting pictures with the presidential candidate, Fragrance posed with representatives of the right-wing extremist scene from Austria and Germany. He was seen alongside Alex Malenki, a well-known activist of the “Identitarian Movement”, as well as David Bendels, the editor-in-chief of the AfD-affiliated magazine “Deutschlandkurier” and chairman of the now defunct “Association for the Preservation of the Rule of Law and Civil Liberties”. . Fragrance was then accused of sympathizing with right-wing extremist circles. Many partners – a TV station, a book publisher, several celebrities – then distanced themselves from him.
Mr. Fragrance, are you a right-wing extremist?
No, I am 100 percent against racism, but 100 percent for Christian values. I don’t sympathize with the AfD.
How did it come about that you became a prominent figurehead for the AfD in December?
I didn’t know the people. I came to the event by chance; I didn’t even have an invitation. A friend I know in the fragrance industry convinced me to go there. It was in the same building. Since Donald Trump was one of the speakers, I thought it would be a good opportunity to give him one of my fragrances.
Nevertheless, we didn’t see any pictures of you with Donald Trump, but rather with right-wing extremists from Germany and Austria.
That’s true, but anyone who knows me knows that I always have my photo taken with people who ask for a photo. Many Americans had their photo taken with me that evening. I am very well known here. Next to Heidi Klum, I am probably the best-known German in the USA. At some point someone told me that some of my compatriots were also at the event. That’s how I met David Bendels, who introduced himself as editor-in-chief of the “Deutschlandkurier”.
Loves the camera: Jeremy Fragrance during a TV interview
© Jeremy Fragrance
That didn’t make you suspicious?
I don’t read the news, the paper didn’t tell me anything. It wasn’t called Heil-Hitler-Kurier or AfD-Kurier. Bendler asked me to tag him. I did that because I do it that way a lot. I didn’t think anything of it.
You have been living in the USA for some time, sometimes in Miami, sometimes in New York. How much are you aware of what is happening in Germany?
I live here in my American bubble, I don’t hear anything from Germany.
Then you haven’t heard about the remigration plans of some AfD supporters and right-wing extremists, which were revealed by the research group “Correctiv”?
No, but my family comes from Poland. When I was born we were already living in Germany, but of course I come from a migrant family. Germany is my home, even though I now commute between Munich, Miami and New York. Expelling people from the country is inhumane.
Are you actually a member of a party?
No, but I’m thinking about joining the CDU or the CSU. I also live in Bavaria. I could also imagine going into politics at some point. Maybe even become Chancellor.
But didn’t you say you weren’t interested in politics?
I am still very well known, especially among a very young target group. I could inspire them. Arnold Schwarzenegger was governor of California. Why shouldn’t I also be able to become Federal Chancellor?
What would your political vision look like?
Someone once told me that a country works well when you strengthen the middle, support the lower classes and don’t let the upper classes become too decadent. I would also forego a salary myself.
Mr. Fragrance, that probably won’t be enough for a political career…
That doesn’t matter. I am so successful too. I am the most famous fragrance expert in the world. Nobody is fooling me about this. I reach a target group that many people have to cut their teeth on. What politics can’t do, I could easily do.