Selena Gomez thinks gay bars playing her song helped kickstart her music career
Selena Gomez. (Axelle/ Bauer-Griffin/ FilmMagic)
Selena Gomez has credited the LGBT+ community for kickstarting her music career and supporting her before anyone else.
In an interview with the Grammy Awards, Gomez recalled when she first transitioned from Disney star to recording artist.
In 2009, when her second single “Naturally” was released, she said the song was “played in gay bars before anywhere else”.
“I would hear from older friends that they heard it when they went out,” said Gomez.
“I was so jealous that I was too young to be out and dancing to it with everyone.”
She added that she has always felt connected to queer people, continuing: “The LGBT+ community has been there for me and I don’t take them for granted.
“Growing up in Texas, I remember when I was a kid, my mother had a group of gay friends and I loved being around them.
“There was no talk about anyone being ‘different’. It was all pure and genuine love for one another and I’ll never forget that.”
Gomez added that she hopes her queer fans “hear in my music the importance of self-love and the strength that comes through vulnerability”.
Selena Gomez thinks the debate over the Equality Act is ‘absurd’
Selena Gomez also used her Grammy Awards interview to advocate for the Equality Act, which would expand the Fair Housing Act and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and provide federal protection against discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation in education, employment, housing and public spaces.
The act passed through the House of Representatives in February but has not yet reached the Senate floor, and is the subject of ongoing debate by Republicans who believe protecting LGBT+ people from discrimination will infringe upon their religious freedom.
“We’ve come a long way in the last 10 years, but we have so much further to go,” Gomez said.
“The Senate must pass the Equality Act. It’s absurd that this is even being debated in 2021.”
