LGBTQ+ ARTISTS TO WATCH

I’ll be honest. Just existing as a queer Tennessean has felt like a living hell lately. I’m grateful I have healthy ways to cope with this experience, and there’s no greater tool I’ve found to deal with this pain and frustration than sharing music with my LGBTQ+ family.

Ever since I started hosting Proud Radio on Apple Music Country in 2020, I’ve had the chance to platform LGBTQ+ artists from around the world. In that time, the queer space in country and Americana/folk music has exploded, and there is now more music than ever for me to choose from when I’m putting together my show and the 50-song playlist that accompanies it every month.

Working on this show is a balm for me. It’s an oasis and a healer when I feel the despair of living under a government that is actively working to strip me of my rights to live where I want to live, enjoy the legal protections of marriage with my husband, and ultimately force me back into the closet. Being unable to live my life publicly as a gay man af- ter I’ve known the freedom of being my authentic self is a fate worse than death, and the lawmakers in Tennessee know it. What’s worse, they welcome that hopeless outcome for our community.

The stakes could not be higher for queer people in our state right now, and I would not make it without the solidarity and encouragement I draw from queer artists living and making music right here in Nashville at this critical time. That’s why I want to platform five of those musicians who are showing up as their authentic selves at a time when the queer community needs to see themselves represented in the public sphere more than ever before. Follow them on social media. Go see their live shows. Stream their music. Tell your friends about them. Buy a t-shirt from them. And if you like what they’re doing, shoot them a DM or comment on their posts, sharing the inspiration you get from their music. Your kind words and feedback will also encourage them to keep sharing their experience in song.