Two weeks into Pride Month, Lzzy Hale of Halestorm described her process of becoming “unapologetically bisexual” after being asked to comment on Pride by unnamed press. Rather than interview with a handful of outlets, she took to Instagram and posted on her own page, deciding to give a response “straight from this lil bi – horses mouth.” 

Read the whole post here:

 

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A post shared by LZZY HALE (@officiallzzyhale)

While her post starts out tongue-in-cheek, Hale tells a heartfelt story of finding herself and learning about the sexuality that she hadn’t explored as a child. She says, “I understood there was something different about me from an early age. Growing up in a semi Christian household, all of the things I was feeling were inherently wrong. So I hid my bisexuality for a long time.”

This is a fairly common experience in the LGBTQIA+ community, as it’s often easier and safer to pass as the dominant identity (straight, cisgender, etc.) It was only after “trudging through the dark murky waters of life that [she] was then able to be truly comfortable owning all the things” that make her unique. 

Hale appears to have a strong support system in her band alone, which is currently composed of Lzzy Hale, her brother Arejay Hale on drums, her long-term partner Joe Hottinger on guitar and friend Josh Smith on keyboard and bass. 

In October 2015, Smith said to 103.9 The Bear: “At the end of the day, we’re all like family, and that’s more or less the road we take is… You know… Whatever the case may be relationship-wise, it’s not gonna break up our band… the big thing is the band is the marriage here.” 

For many people on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, chosen and found families play a crucial role in their lives. Rejecting the nuclear family allows for people who may have faced rejection from their birth families to find a sense of belonging and comfort. 

Hale signs off on her post by saying, “As far as I know…We only get one time around this ride. So Live and breathe every single part of you. The good the bad, the colorful and the queer. Rock on motherfuckers! I celebrate you!”