Country singer Billy Gilman came out last November 20 in a five-and-a-half minute video that he posted on YouTube. The Rhode Island native is a country-music veteran who released his debut CD, One Voice, at the age of 12 in 2000. With more than 5 million records sold and five CDs under his belt, the 26 year-old is making music again. Gilman talked with Windy City Times about being a gay country singer, support from others and what's next.
Windy City Times: On Nov. 20 of last year, you came out in a video that you posted on YouTube. What led you to do this?
Billy Gilman: We were shooting the music video for the song "Say You Will" and there was a girl counterpart to the video, and I just had to come clean and be honest with my fans. At that time, I had been with my partner for about five months. I was at an outdoor food and music festival in my home state of Rhode Island and I asked a gentleman to take a picture of us. He asked me if I was Billy Gilman and I said, "Yup." And he said, "I'm doing an interview with you about your new music video next week."
WCT: Did you think that the journalist would out you?
Billy Gilman: It was in that moment I thought that it was just going to leak and come out, so I had to be on the forefront of this and I had to be the most humble person that I know I can be. I just technically wanted to tell them that I finally found my place, that I've never been happier and thank you for sticking by me.
WCT: Is it true that you were inspired to come out after fellow country artist Ty Herndon came out earlier that day?
Billy Gilman: I had one vision of what I was going to do and then I had another idea that I thought wasn't right. I went back and forth with this whole thing for a few weeks. Then I thought that I was just going to do it on my laptop, in my living room, very honest—quiet, with my hat on. And literally four hours before I released it Ty came out and I thought, "This is very, very strange." I know Ty and he was on the same label that I was on and he is a great artist and I thought, "What a coincidence." I'm proud of him and his journey.
WCT: Did you worry about how this would affect your career?
Billy Gilman: It's not the easiest thing to be a country artist as well a country gay artist and this has not been proven to be successful at this point. This is kind of crazy to me because it should only be about the music. I don't ask what someone does in their private life because that's exactly what it is—their private life. Who knows what the future lies with me. I love country music and I live and I breath it and I hope to God that I would still be able to make music and be respected by my peers in the industry.
WCT: How did your new song "Say You Will" come about?
Billy Gilman: I want to become part of an industry where I was always told to show up and sing. I want to sit down with the songwriters on the couch and say what I'm feeling and create songs that are about me. And that's how "Say You Will" was born. That is the very first song that I have released that has been co-written by me.
WCT: You have gotten support from Ricky Martin and LeAnn Rimes after coming out. Who else has reached out to you?
Billy Gilman: Ty Herndon, Chely Wright and Matt Bomer. It's a nice feeling and at the end of the day my coming out didn't come from a place of wanting to get on the national news or push a record. It came from a place of honesty and being real.
WCT: Has coming out effected your career in any way?
Billy Gilman: We just hired a new agent who is booking concerts that are in the country music industry. So far it looks like it's going to be a good 2015, which I'm very humbled and happy about. Country music is a very conservative genre of music, but I'm a very conservative person as well in many aspects. At the end of the day, if country doesn't accept me, I'm here to sing. Whatever avenue that takes me, I will be humbled and be loving the fact that I can do what I was put on earth to do.
WCT: At one point, you could not get record-label executives to sit down with you because there were whispers about your sexuality. Have things changed in that area?
Billy Gilman: I think that they are waiting to see my next move. We haven't really reached out to see what will happen. We have some new songs and "Say You Will" is being remixed and we have the new music video. We haven't gone back with our boxing gloves on yet. We're putting all our ducks in a row and we'll see what happens.
"Say You Will" is available on iTunes; find out more about Gilman at www.billygilman.net/ .
