The singer “came out” in 1998 during an interview with MTV to change people’s views that heavy metal fans are homophobic.
However the singer knows not everyone is comfortable with this and lost some followers because he confronted topics that they did not want to deal with.
He tells San Diego Gay and Lesbian News: “There are areas of music that are more compassionate, more tolerant, more open, more accepting and more aware. Heavy metal now is a completely different world compared to heavy metal in 1980. The gay and lesbian world is very different now to what it was in 1980. We have all grown to some extent. There is still a long way to go. There are still a lot of issues that need to be addressed, but I think slowly but surely our lives are getting better.”
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