Rising artist GRiZ (legal name Grant Kwiecinski) from Detroit recently wrote a blog post for the Huffington Post detailing his struggle with accepting his sexuality. And what better time to make such a thing public than during Gay Pride month!
GRiZ writes about always knowing there was something different about him since he was younger. He goes into depth about repressing those emotions out of fears that others wouldn’t accept him and wanting to fit in.
“For most guys, thoughts about girls went from “gross” to “I wonder what boobs feel like,” from “ew, koodies” to “let’s mack on some cuties,” GRiZ writes. “But for me, I just wasn’t interested. I told myself I wasn’t ready, or that the right one hadn’t come along yet. So I waited. Years. And without warning, high school came in full force. Everything seemed to balance except for one big thing. I was definitely…definitely gay, and I didn’t want to accept it or want anyone to know.”
He talks about having girlfriends, taking girls to prom, and even losing his virginity all in order to keep up an appearance that he was straight. He also describes how he suffered from anxiety and depression because of the stress of keeping the act up.
During his college years, he explains, he started to slowly make gay friends and become more comfortable with himself. Those who have been fans of GRiZ and follow him on social media probably know that he had a boyfriend who he frequently posted photos with on social media. However, this is the first time GRiZ openly reaffirms his sexuality.
As final words in his blog post, GRiZ talks about how gay representation in our culture is pretty minimal, but it always getting better. Perhaps his bravery in publicly coming out will inspire other closeted gays who are into the EDM scene to be true to themselves and follow his footsteps.
