Darren Hayes Sets It Straight

Local News, By Tim D, 2nd June, 2008

Does coming out affect your public career? It’s the question countless number of closeted musicians, actors, sports people, politicians and other public figures spend many sleepless nights worrying about.

Now someone who has experienced it first hand has had his say. Darren Hayes, former front-man of Savage Garden who sold over 23 million albums and member of the Same Same 25 last year, would know.

Speaking to Triple J’s Hack program on Friday, Hayes was candid with his response. “Does coming out affect your career? I would say yes and no. I think to my audience, honestly, I don’t think it’s affected me one bit. The only possibly negative aspect to it from my point of view has been I’ve felt marginalized. I have felt categorized within the music industry. It’s the thing that every artist wants to avoid, because you are suddenly viewed from through this prism, which is ‘Gay!’.

“I’ll give you an example from a record company point of view. When I came out to the head of Sony Records, or Columbia Records in New York City, the only difference is in meetings before hand, the President would shake my hand – and then after the fact, he would kiss me on the cheek. And that kiss on the cheek to me felt patronising. It used to remind me that suddenly I was viewed as somebody else.”

Using examples like Mika and Jake Shears, Hayes goes on to say that the public are a lot more accommodating if an artist is upfront about their sexuality from the beginning. “Where you run into issues is that people don’t necessarily like change. If somebody first appears and knocks on your door and says that are A. If they then say, maybe I’m not A, I’m also B, I don’t know why but people have trouble with that.”

The more honest you are upfront, like new singer Sam Sparro who proudly wears his gayness on his sleeve, the less the public feels like they’ve been lied to. And therein lies the answer.

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