Demi Lovato’s Coming Out is Extremely Important
Though Pride month may be over, Demi Lovato’s coming out as non-binary is something to continue celebrating.
In late May, the majority of my online news feed was covered with stories and videos of Demi Lovato. This grabbed my attention right away. I watched Demi’s career unfold in the film and music industries. Reading through the different articles, even just their headlines, I was extremely overjoyed with the news. Demi Lovato announced that they were officially coming out as nonbinary.
Demi first spoke about their “healing and self-reflective” work over the past year and a half on their new podcast 4D.
Demi states that “living in the 4th dimension means living consciously in both time and space. But for me, it means having conversations that transcend the typical discourse. I want to take moment to share something very personal with you. Over the past year and a half, I’ve been doing some healing and self-reflective work, and through this work, I’ve had the revelation that I identify as nonbinary. With that said, I’ll officially be changing my pronouns to they/them.”
Demi posted on their Twitter page the 4D podcast with their official coming out as nonbinary on May 19, 2021. Alongside this announcement, thousands of people retweeted it, and hundreds replied. Some of the support included:
Oscar Raymundo — “Demi! Your honesty will help so many people live their authentic truths. proud of u”
conor — “DEMI I’m so proud of you. I struggle constantly with getting people to respect my gender, but rest assured I’ll set everybody straight on your pronouns! Welcome to the cool kids club my them friend”
J. Walker — “My wife came out as non-binary a bit over a year ago after struggling with it for so long, and has never felt more comfortable with themself. Thank you for speaking your truth, and thank you for the representation you’re providing for those still in the shadows.”
nicholas — “I COULDN’T BE PROUDER OF YOU, BABE. I LOVE YOU UNCONDITIONALLY AND I CAN’T STOP CRYING BECAUSE I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU FOR YOUR BRAVERY. as a nonbinary person, you are more than welcome in the community babyyyyy”
nova — “i’ll be coming out as non-binary to my family today because of you. you’ve give me this empowerment. i’m so proud of you demi, you’re so valid <3”
Though I do not identify as nonbinary myself, their coming out was extremely important to me. I grew up as a young woman who didn’t always have much confidence in myself and who I was. However, I would look to celebrities like Demi for inspiration through the characters they would play in shows. They were one of the biggest influences that inspired me to be true to myself and confident.
I first started seeing Demi’s work when they entered into the light of Disney Channel. The most relevant role I saw them take on was as Mitchie Torres in the Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam movies. Later in 2008, Demi took on one of the main roles in filming the Disney Channel Original Movie Princess Protection Program. They took on a starring role in the Disney Channel television show Sonny with a Chance. This series debuted in 2009 and ran until 2011.
These were their three roles that had the biggest impact on me. I was a young girl at the age of 10 at this point in time, and I was very nervous about becoming a teenager; there are many pressures and expectations of teenagers. Their role in these different films portrayed three different teenagers who had to overcome obstacles and challenging situations. One of my favorite examples of this was in the movie Princess Protection Program when Lovato’s character, Rosie, was stuck in a messy frozen yogurt situation but shows confidence and pride.
During her time, they also released 4 albums in total: ‘Don’t Forget,’ ‘Here We Go Again,’ ‘Unbroken,’ ‘Demi,’ ‘Confident,’ and ‘Tell Me You Love Me’ between 2008 and 2011. Confident was my all-time favorite song of theirs. In 2012, they took a new path of joining other judges, Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid, and pop star Britney Spears, on The X Factor. Lovato once again took to acting in 2013 when they accepted a role in the musical series Glee. Demi was led to serve as a judge in 2015 on RuPaul’s Drag Race along with Project Runway in 2017.
These are only some of the accomplishments I’ve seen of theirs in the past. However, they serve as such an important role model. When any person, like myself, watches an individual throughout the media as they grow up, that person can leave an impression on them. Demi started off as someone that I knew from movies and music.
However, they became more of an inspiration for me to be myself as I worked my way tirelessly through high school and into college. Many people in my life have always been so quick to judge me on my actions and who I was as a person. It is extremely hard to stay self-confident when people are constantly making remarks and mocking you just for being yourself. Lovato’s career and personal growth over time was a reassuring influence for me that I should not allow anyone else to determine my own worth. They had the courage to be themself, so I knew that I had the strength to be me.
On May 28, 2021, Demi appeared as a guest on Jane Fonda’s Fire Drill Friday podcast to speak about their activism and how people are starting to speak up about issues regarding the climate and LGBTQIA+ rights.
Demi stated in the podcast, “If I had listened to the patriarchy, my life would’ve never changed. My gender, my pronouns would’ve never changed. I would’ve probably been married to a man with kids, doing the thing that I was raised to believe that I should do. Growing up in Dallas, Texas, in the south being Christian, there was a lot of norms that were already pushed onto me when it came to sexuality and gender. I’m a very fluid person; I’m a very free-spirited open person.” Later in the podcast, they stated that “No matter what choices men thought I should make for myself, I just started listening to me.”
So many people experience these types of pressures to conform to society’s norms. It is not always easy for people to express their gender and sexuality in front of others who do not find it as ‘acceptable.’ With well-known celebrities coming out in today’s culture, other people have someone they can look up to for support and encouragement.
Alongside Demi, there are other nonbinary influencers and celebrities that people can look up to. Some of these amazing people include:
Devin-Norelle is a professional model, trans advocate, public speaker, and opinion writer. Ze has walked in New York Fashion Week shows for Chromat and dapperQ and was featured in the 2019 Stonewall 50 Pride Campaigns for New York City Pride. Ze was awarded the Callen Lorde Transcendence Award in 2019 for advocacy of trans and nonbinary communities. You can find more information on Devin-Norelle on ze’s linktr.ee page.
Gabriel Resendez is a nonbinary personal trainer and nutrition coach. They speak actively about fitness, mental health, and trans issues while providing gender-affirming training for trans individuals around the world. Along with their social media profiles, you can find more information on their services at the @transjesus linktr.ee page.
Amandla Stenberg is an American actress who identifies as nonbinary and as an intersectional feminist.
In an interview for Elle’s September 2016 issue, they stated “Bisexual is a word I am not too attached to it implies a dichotomy that doesn’t take into account trans people. So maybe pansexual is more accurate for me.”
In 2015, the Ms. Foundation for Women named Amandla “Feminist for the Year.” You can always find more information about them on their different social media accounts.
Sam Smith is a British singer who expresses their gender through their music and career. In 2020, Sam Smith spoke with Jameela Jamil in an I Weigh Interviews about body image, self-acceptance, and gender.
Smith stated, “I recently was looking into and reading stories about people who come out as genderqueer and non-binary, and I’ve always had a bit of war within my body and my mind about how you define yourself.” Later they said, “Non-binary genderqueer is that you do not identify in a gender. You are just you. You are a mixture of all different things. You’re your own special creation. That’s how I take it. It’s not, I’m not male or female, I think I float somewhere in between.”
It is not always easy for people to express their gender when many society standards tell you that you are wrong. If anyone were to feel this way, know that there are many people out there who know what you are going through and support you for who you are. Demi Lovato stands alongside these celebrities and other influencers to help give you a voice in a world that does not always listen.
I know that I do not personally understand how Demi Lovato feels coming out as a nonbinary person. However, they have only fueled my knowledge of the importance of allyship. Despite any differences, I understand that people deserve respect and support for expressing who they are. As an ally, it is crucial for me to listen and remain open to those who may not have much support otherwise.
