Orville Peck Interview: This Masked Gay Crooner Is Revivg Classic Country | Billboard – Billboard

Contents:

• ORVILLE PECK, A MASKED GAY COUNTRY STAR, RIS INTO BROOKLYN
• MEET ORVILLE PECK, THE MASKED GAY CROONER REVALIZG CLASSIC COUNTRY’S SPIR
• 9 COUNTRY MIC ARTISTS WHO HAVE COME OUT AS GAY
• HERE ARE GAY COUNTRY SGERS WHO STOOD OUT LOUD AND PROUD
• MASKED SGER ORVILLE PECK ON BEG OPENLY GAY COUNTRY MIC: ‘WE’VE ALWAYS BEEN THERE’

ORVILLE PECK, A MASKED GAY COUNTRY STAR, RIS INTO BROOKLYN

”Yet Peck views the crossover succs of Lil Nas X — a gay black teenager who nnected wh a historilly broad dience almost entirely whout the help of the Nashville power stcture — as proof that untry listeners are more receptive to change than many sirs likely prume.

MEET ORVILLE PECK, THE MASKED GAY CROONER REVALIZG CLASSIC COUNTRY’S SPIR

”The Los Angel Tim clared that he is “as venerated as any pop diva” by the “hipsters Wt Hollywood, ” which seems to be a thly veiled reference to his large gay fan Yalk for The New York TimOn a swelterg afternoon July, Mr. He intifi as gay and gave his age as Yalk for The New York TimThe rt of his story is more ambiguo.

Peck’s torch songs ma him an outlaw a genre not known to embrace gay urban four mic vios om “Pony” drip wh “Brokeback Mounta” homoeroticism, cludg the one for “Hope to Die, ” which Mr. As an example, Peck pots to Lavenr Country, the band creded wh creatg the first-ever gay untry album back 1973.

While the group’s mic received ltle-to-no attentn at the time, thanks part to s open embrace of homosexual inty, Lavenr Country acheived cult stat. “It’s such a funny thg, bee I’m sgg about two gay htlers the sert, and here’s this prumably pestrian whe Amerin fay sgg along to . Peck says ’s not a stretch to place gay them on the shoulrs of a wboy: “Willie Nelson said bt — ‘Cowboys are equently secretly fond of each other; what did you thk all them saddl and boots was about?

9 COUNTRY MIC ARTISTS WHO HAVE COME OUT AS GAY

Emergg untry mician Orville Peck, who is gay, only appears public a wboy hat and mask, and his voice has earned favorable parisons to Roy Orbison, Chris Isaak and Elvis Prley. GRANITZ: Orville Peck intifi as both gay and Cowboy culture is kd of nately homoerotic. Spaghetti Wterns were renowned for puttg kd of gay-leang unrton to scen.

There are layers of meang to Peck’s persona, which taps to gay culture and wboy masculy. In se you missed the news om last year, the Brothers Osborne ontman me out as gay, sayg his fay and close iends have known for que some time, but he wants to be his full self at this pot his reer.

HERE ARE GAY COUNTRY SGERS WHO STOOD OUT LOUD AND PROUD

Here are 9 untry artists/members of the untry mic world who have e out as gay over the years.

Country mic has a lengthy and not-so-proud reputatn for beg tensely homophobic. Gay untry sgers were, sadly, not warmly weled.

For stance, Patrick Haggerty, whose band lled Lavenr Country, released what is wily believed to be the first explicly gay rerd 1973, ultimately leadg the band to fa to obscury. From gay untry stars sgg os about lovg who you want to untry artists enuragg listeners not to be aaid to embrace their genr inty, the genre – both s artists and s fans – has fally reached a place where acceptance is the new standard.

MASKED SGER ORVILLE PECK ON BEG OPENLY GAY COUNTRY MIC: ‘WE’VE ALWAYS BEEN THERE’

So, today, let’s take a look at some of the most celebrated gay untry sgers – om Grammy Award-wng stars Brandi Carlile and Lil Nas X to T. Osborne, who is the first gay artist signed to a major untry label.

Brandi Carlile spent most of her childhood beg told that “to be gay was a one-way ticket to hell. ” She even had never met another gay person – until she watched Ellen DeGener’ historic 1997 “I’m gay” episo, which she rerd on a VHS tape so she uld watch repeatedly. It was then that Carlile me to terms wh the fact that she was gay.