ABOVE: Jason Mraz, photo via Mraz’s Facebook page.
Singer Jason Mraz has opened up more about his sexuality in a new interview.
The recording artist, who identified publicly as bisexual last year, told The Daily Telegraph that it had been hard for him to come out after his upbringing in the conservative town of Mechanicsville, Virginia.
“I saw how [gay and lesbian people] get harassed and I heard the language around it and that scared me,” the 42-year-old Mraz said. “I thought ‘if I’m gay, what does that mean for me, my community, my family and career?’
“It was a struggle. I was nervous about what my family would think.”
Though he only came out officially in 2018, Mraz has spoken vaguely about his sexuality several times over the years. He described himself as “bisexually open-minded” in a 2005 interview with Genre, and in a chat with Pride Source in 2010, made a sly comment that experimenting with his sexuality made him realize he’s “not really into facial hair.”
Then, during Pride 2018, he came out in an interview with Billboard, saying, “I’ve had experiences with men, even while I was dating the woman who became my wife. It was like, ‘Wow, does that mean I am gay? And my wife laid it out for me.
“She calls it ‘two spirit,’ which is what the Native Americans call someone who can love both man and woman. I really like that.”
He also contributed a poem for Billboard’s Pride series:
Love Poem to the LGBTQ Community
Dear You,
Thank you.
You have inspired me.
Re-wired me.
You showed me what strength is.
You demonstrated courage over and over again.
You risked so much for love.
You never compromised your expression
Even when
Your rights and freedoms were being compromised.
You stood up for me.
You stood up for the world.
And now the world is better because of you.
We still have a long way to go
But know
I am bi your side.
All ways.Jason Mraz
