Queer Pop Star Betty Who On Inspirations, Coming Out, and New Music
In honor of National Coming Out Day, The Advocate spoke with queer pop star Betty Who about coming out, queer musicians, and her new album "Big!" which comes out on October 14.The Advocate: Twenty years ago, the theme of the annual day was "Coming Out Rocks" which celebrated gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender musicians.
Have we progressed since 2002?Betty Who: We’ve come unimaginably far since 2002 as far as representation and support for LGBTQIA+ musicians and artists — even thinking about queerness in the 90s when I was growing up, how it felt so much more like a rebellion then.
It always takes so much bravery to be yourself, but especially twenty years ago. Let alone before that! There are so many incredible queer and gender nonconforming artists whose bravery cleared the path for artists like me to be able to experiment and push the boundaries of my self and identity. The Advocate: Do you think the general public is more accepting of LGBTQ+ musicians?BW: The internet has played such a huge role in giving so many marginalized communities a less dismissible voice.
There’s strength in numbers so once everyone had a phone in their pocket that connects them to billions of other phones in other people’s pockets, all of a sudden we could reach out to each other — feel less alone.
