Gay Country Sgers - Out and Proud the South |

Contents:

• COUNTRY MIC HAS NEVER BEEN MORE GAY
• THE GAY SONGWRERS WHO SECRETLY LED THE UNTRY CHARTS ARE READY FOR THE SPOTLIGHT
• GAY WEDDG - WALK DOWN THE AISLE SONG

COUNTRY MIC HAS NEVER BEEN MORE GAY

That he’s gay is “the least tertg thg about [him], ” Peck said.

Sgg gay love songs once killed the reers of artists like Patrick Haggerty, whose band Lavenr Country 1973 released what’s wily nsired the first untry album rerd by an out gay performer. Osborne, one half of the Brothers Osbourne, me out last year, the first out gay artist signed to a major untry label. In 1973, years after the Peace Corps kicked him out for beg gay, he released his first rerd.

” His lyrics, fiant and heartwrenchg, nmned the racism and homophobia that supprsed Haggerty and his bandmat.

THE GAY SONGWRERS WHO SECRETLY LED THE UNTRY CHARTS ARE READY FOR THE SPOTLIGHT

In 2014, the producer end up rereleasg the rerd, once only available by orrg om the backpag of Seattle’s gay newspaper. He views Lavenr Country as a “revolutnary obligatn” he’s bound to, now that he’s fally got a platform and a willg dience for his songs about racism, homophobia and the fltl Amerin society.

The band’s first album, also lled “Lavenr Country, ” was one of the first untry albums wh outwardly gay them, acrdg to Billboard.

The album, origally released 1973, clus songs wh lyrics about queer sire and homophobia. hen Brandy Clark lnched a untry-mic rerdg reer 2013, there wasn’t any template to follow for an openly gay artist Nashville.

GAY WEDDG - WALK DOWN THE AISLE SONG

Clark has been at the foreont of that shift and creds her iendship wh Shane McAnally — one of Nashville’s most succsful songwrers, who is also gay — wh givg her the nfince to pursue a solo reer. “Who knows who’s gog to be listeng to me the flyover stat that’s gog to draw strength om ‘Oh, she’s gay too? Man, if she’s gay and dog that, maybe I uld do that.

“Gee Stra or Gee Gay, there’s no difference, ” sgs Homan, who now liv Nashville.

“Though a lot of people that work the dtry support me om a distance, there’s a difference between that and actually takg some steps to ph that further and sign some [gay artists], ” Homan says. After the wife of untry sger Jason Alan ma an ignorant post last year thankg her parents for not "forcg her" to be trans when she was a tomboy, other sgers, like Maren Morris, clapped back, sayg there's no room for homophobia and transphobia untry mic and that those clgg onto need to change or get out of the way. "But there's a very sid culture of people feelg very fortable beg transphobic and homophobic and racist, and that they n wrap a joke and no one will ever ll them out for .