American singer-songwriter Jason Mraz said he’s done “broadcasting as hetero” and is now accepting of his queer identity.
In an interview with Advocate, Mraz said, “I admit that I probably spent the first close to 20 years of my career just broadcasting as hetero.” Growing up in a conservative environment and around homophobia, he used ‘girl’ in his songs and felt like he “needed to protect some secret.”
Eventually though, thanks to the music industry and expression, he allowed himself to get “closer and closer” to being himself.
Mraz, 46, came out as bisexual in 2018.
“It helps you peel the layers off of yourself,” Mraz said in the interview. “It helps you continue to express yourself and understand the lessons you’re learning in life and understand why you have the loves and the interests you’ve had in your life.”
“I was having these curiosities and experiences on the side that were starting to influence who I am and the kind of fun I wanted to have in the world and the kind of person I wanted to be in the world, which is more honest and more loving and more inclusive.”
