Todrick Hall has spoken about breaking into entertainment as a black, gay man
Singer Todrick Hall (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for 2016 Essence Festival)
Multi-hyphenate entertainer Todrick Hall has opened up about breaking into the industry as a black, gay man.
The singer, dancer and YouTuber rose to fame after reaching the semi-finals of American Idol in 2010.
At the time, Hall explained that he faced a lot of obstacles because of his ethnicity and sexuality.
By far the most surprising and difficult thing he encountered was somebody he idolised saying that the “worst thing a person could be was black and gay”.
The singer, who has made a whole host of parodies including “Britney and The Beast”, explained that the comment made him doubt his future in entertainment.
He said: “Hearing it from someone I idolised so much was awful, I couldn’t believe I was hearing this guy say that.
“It made me question a lot of things and wonder if there was a place for me in the industry, but then something changed.
“I realised a beautiful thing: you don’t have to wait for permission or a hall pass to break through.”
Hall has certainly done just that.
He has worked on Broadway, appeared on MTV and appeared a number of times as a guest judge on RuPaul’s drag race.
Currently, Hall is touring Australia with his production, Straight Outta Oz, a spin on the classic Wizard of Oz.
The musical follows the story of Hall’s own life starting in a small town in Texas to his current time in “Oz Angeles”.
The star explained that he was motivated to pave the way for future generations of young, black, gay men.
He said: “I want to be the first gay black man to do things so that gay black men 15 years down the road won’t even have to think about them and can just be themselves.”
Hall explained that he feels America is in a “critical” state and he wants to help be a part of the “solution”.
“I hope and pray the mindset held by a lot of middle American white men is abolished, and I hope to be part of the solution.
“I can believe in myself now, it’s the only way I got out of that dark place.
“We all need to learn how to love each other, every single person has a voice,” he says.
Hall also spoke about the current fight for marriage equality in Australia, where he performing at the moment.
He explained that he wants to one day be able to tell a younger generation that he was part of history
He added: “I’m praying for the entire country and I can’t wait to be down under and to do what I can do to make people feel like they can be themselves.
“You have the ability to one day look at your grandkids and say, I fought for the right for you to marry the person you love. I’d love to be a part of history.”
