Frank Ocean’s ‘Gayletter’ Interview: Talks Def Jam Spl & ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ Mag | Billboard – Billboard

Contents:

• FRANK OCEAN: ‘I CRIED THE NIGHT I ME OUT AS GAY’
• FUSE TV - TYLER, THE CREATOR KNEW FRANK OCEAN WAS GAY BEE OF HIS SNACK PREFERENC
• FRANK OCEAN IS GAY? FANS REACT AFTER LEARNG OF ALLEGED HOMOSEXUALY
• MAC MILLER STANDS BEHD FRANK OCEAN: “HIM COMG OUT & BEG GAY WAS COOL AS F*CK”
• TYLER, THE CREATOR ON HOW HE KNEW FRANK OCEAN WAS "GAY," AND WHY HE DON'T CARE
• FRANK OCEAN HELPED ME NORMALISE BEG GAY AS A TEENAGER
• HIP-HOP WORLD GIV GAY SGER SUPPORT

FRANK OCEAN: ‘I CRIED THE NIGHT I ME OUT AS GAY’

" "Frank Ocean Com Out and Be the First Gay Rapper History. " That last one is wrong on several levels: Ocean did not e the word "gay, " nor is he a rapper, nor would he be the first gay rapper if eher of those labels applied.

Especially black mic, which has long been sperate need of a voice like Ocean's to break the layers of homophobia.

FUSE TV - TYLER, THE CREATOR KNEW FRANK OCEAN WAS GAY BEE OF HIS SNACK PREFERENC

" At, Jaah Lemix noted that while few urban artists openly embrace homosexualy, many are "the closet wh the glass door, " livg a life they don't reveal their mic. "I hope that Frank Ocean don't bee 'the gay sger, ' for would be crimally unfair for him to wear that label as so many of his peers are sleepg wh and lovg same genred persons, while sellg imag of hyper-heterosexualy, " she wrote.

FRANK OCEAN IS GAY? FANS REACT AFTER LEARNG OF ALLEGED HOMOSEXUALY

Unlike the standard g out gture – newsman Anrson Cooper's public email to his iend Andrew Sullivan, "The fact is, I'm gay" — Ocean's prented sexualy as somethg that aris wh particular circumstanc, fed by shiftg sire and dividual enunters rather than solidifyg as an inty.

There is a leage of Ain Amerin artists who've prented broar fns of sexualy through their songs and their public personali, as well, though homophobia has certaly kept many more om livg fully hont liv. Gospel mic thory Anthony Heilbut's newly published book of says discs the impact of "the gay men of gospel, " om key mil archects like Jam Cleveland to crossover figur like Bayard Rt. (Kelefa Sanneh's 2010 New Yorker profile of the gospel artist Tonex explor how homophobia n impact an artist wh that muny.

MAC MILLER STANDS BEHD FRANK OCEAN: “HIM COMG OUT & BEG GAY WAS COOL AS F*CK”

) David Hajdu's bgraphy of De Ellgton's llaborator Billy Strayhorn shows how the lyricist's life as one of the few openly gay men mid-century jazz helped shape classic songs like "Lh Life.

TYLER, THE CREATOR ON HOW HE KNEW FRANK OCEAN WAS "GAY," AND WHY HE DON'T CARE

Though the "No Homo" meme rap tipped the discsn toward adolcent game playg and bigotry, even stubbornly straight pop scen, the trend is toward passn. While hip-hop and R&B, had been monly wrten off as herently homophobic, the rponse to Ocean’s emotnal letter was mostly posive, wh many praisg the one-of-a-kd talent for his bravens and honty.

As a young gay Black boy who grew up stgglg to reckon my love for hip-hop, rap, and R&B wh the homophobic sentiments often rattled off, Frank’s g out was a pivotal moment — one that let me know I wasn’t alone and that society uld be ready to accept others like me, too.

FRANK OCEAN HELPED ME NORMALISE BEG GAY AS A TEENAGER

Apparently, I wasn’t the only young gay Black boy who felt that sense of lmg support followg Ocean’s g out. Durg a recent holiday episo of Zane Lowe’s #AtHomeWhAppleMic show, Lil Nas X, an openly gay rapper himself, revealed how much Frank Ocean — and his close llaborator Tyler, The Creator, who is also openly queer — has meant for his reer.

On “We All Try, ” the third track om his 2011 but mixtape nostalgia, ULTRA, he voiced support for gay marriage four years before beme legal natnwi:.

HIP-HOP WORLD GIV GAY SGER SUPPORT

The night the album dropped, Frank appeared on Late Night Wh Jimmy Fallon to but the song “Bad Relign, ” which ntas the most overt discsn of a gay relatnship on the album.