Peter Gabriel's flamboyant and unpredictable stage persona was a key part of Genesis's early appeal, helping to draw audiences even before the band achieved mainstream commercial success. In a 2023 interview with Prog magazine, Gabriel reflected on the thinking behind his elaborate costumes and characters, revealing that his theatrical choices sometimes put him at odds with his bandmates in the years before he left Genesis in 1975.

Gabriel recalled shaving his head for the band's 1978 tour, a striking look at a time when a bald head was strongly associated with skinhead and far-right subcultures, deliberately clashing this image with softer, more whimsical props such as a pink teddy bear used during the song "Me and My Teddy Bear" — reportedly the first song he ever performed live. He explained that such contrasts were intentional provocations, and that his more daring on-stage decisions often went ahead only because there was insufficient time before a show for other band members to intervene, describing at least one instance as "a close-run thing" where he narrowly got away with a contentious costume choice.