Sam Smith was ‘selfless’ and ‘brave’ for changing pronouns, says Munroe Bergdorf
Sam Smith in LA in September, 2019. (Steve Granitz/WireImage)
Sam Smith choosing to share their pronouns with the world was a “brave and selfless” move, says their friend Munroe Bergdorf.
The ‘Stay With Me’ singer, who came out as non-binary and genderqueer in March 2019, changed their pronouns to they/them in September 2019.
“It’s such an amazing, brave move for someone who is as successful and well known as them to come out and say, ‘You know what, this is how I want to be referred to’, and that has such huge implications for the non-binary community as well,” Bergdorf told the Metro.
After Smith confirmed their pronouns, it was reported that the Brit Awards were considering introducing a gender-neutral category. This, Bergdorf said, “is exactly the kind of thing that this kind of influence has”.
“Sam saying I am non-binary and my pronouns are ‘they and them’ and then the Brit Awards saying we’re going to scrap gender categories, that is the impact of being such a high profile, non-binary person that you can force the hands of institutions to do those kind of things,” she said.
The Brits has now confirmed that the categories of Best Female Artist and Best Male Artist – which Smith was nominated for last year – would remain for this year’s awards, but would be reviewed in time for the 2021 ceremony.
Bergdorf added that she was proud of Smith for coming out: “It’s a very daunting thing, especially when so many people are nasty about trans people and non-binary people, because it’s even less information out.
“So I just think Sam’s a very brave and selfless person because they didn’t have to do that. They’re in a very high pressure situation and I think it’s an amazingly selfless thing that they’ve done. And I’m all there for it.”
Sam Smith has received overwhelming support from the non-binary community, who hope that their announcement will bring greater awareness and understanding of non-binary people.
