Hayley Kiyoko: Being gay is “my biggest strength”

21st September 2019

Hayley Kiyoko has spoken about how she uses her sexuality to empower herself.

In an interview on The Kelly Clarkson Show, lesbian Jesus, aka Hayley Kiyoko, has spoken about how she uses her sexuality to empower herself.

Opening up on the show, the singer said: “My biggest weakness growing up was that I was gay and I was different than everyone else, and now it’s become my biggest strength because it’s empowered me.”

She added: “I think I really feared growing up because I was like, ‘Life is going to be so difficult and people are just not going to understand.’ Going into my music career, I was just like, ‘If I’m scared, everyone else will be.’

“So, I have to embrace who I am, I have to be the brave one because if I take that first step, everyone else will follow and they will hopefully grow to feel inspired and know that they can have a good life.

“They don’t have to commit suicide, they don’t have to not love themselves, they can be loved.”

Watch the clip below, or follow the link here.

Earlier this year, Hayley Kiyoko spoke about how she initially didn’t want to take the label of lesbian, until she saw how it normalised it for others. “I didn’t want a label at all, but once I released my music, there was this out pour of support for the fact that I did like girls,” she said.

“I learned that by embracing my label as a lesbian, I was helping normalise that for so many other people.”

In an interview with GAY TIMES last year, Hayley reflected on her sending of a tweet that would define 2018. “It’s our year, it’s our time,” she wrote to her huge following. “To thrive and let our souls feel alive.” It read like a prophecy from Lesbian Jesus herself. And then came the hashtag that cemented the tweet as legendary. #20GAYTEEN.

“I had no idea that it was going to catch on and that people were going to continually post about it and talk about it,” Hayley tells us, reflecting on its undeniable popularity in LGBTQ internet culture. “It’s almost become the mantra of the year. It’s been a fun year. Obviously the world is going through hard times, so it’s been nice to have some lightheartedness with my fans and being able to share that mantra with them. It makes them feel good and proud of who they are.”