Grammy winner Chris Martin, of the band Coldplay, has opened up about questioning his own sexuality, and about the homophobic bullying, he endured in school.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, 42-year-old Martin recalls attending boarding school in his native UK, and feeling a bit homophobic himself.
“When I went to boarding school I walked a bit funny and I bounced a bit and I was also very homophobic because I was like, ‘If I’m gay, I’m completely f*cked for eternity’ and I was a kid discovering sexuality. ‘Maybe I’m gay, maybe I’m this, maybe I’m that, I can’t be this,'” Martin said.
The singer went on to detail his own experiences with bullying when classmates would call him “‘definitely gay’ in quite a full-on manner.” The harassment only added to his own confusion over his sexuality.
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Fortunately for Martin, his thinking has progressed beyond that of a bullied 15-year-old. Over time, he began to question his own homophobia and why being gay was so bad in the first place.
“I don’t know what happened, I was like, ‘Yeah, so what?’ and then it all just stopped overnight,” he recalls. “It was very interesting. Once I was like, ‘Yeah, so what if I’m gay.'”
As a result, he also began to question his religious beliefs.
“[It] made me question, ‘Hey, maybe some of this stuff that I’m learning about God and everything — I’m not sure if I subscribe to all of this particular religion,'” he says.
“So for a few years, that was a bit wobbly and then eventually I just was like, ‘OK, I think I have my own relationship with what I think God is and it’s not really any one religion for me.'”
Martin’s admissions come just ahead of the release of Coldplay’s latest album, Everyday Life.
Related: Andrew Garfield French Kisses Chris Martin While Emma Stone Watches
Cam
So why was he questioning? Is he attracted to guys? If not, then what was the question? In other words, is he coming out as Bi? IF not it’s kind of a weird thing to say.
dali
I agree. It’s like if a kid is being bullied for being short. If he’s not, he won’t question it.
Catholicslutbox
BS PR.
He was bullied for not being gay, but acting like what the bullies felt a gay would act.
Donston
I think he made it clear that he was bullied for “acting gay”. It seems as if the bullying and the “questioning” didn’t last for very long.
ScottOnEarth
He’s coming out as wanting publicity.
Donston
When you’re a kid (and hell, even sometimes in your teens or twenties) you are often driven by groupthink, sociology and people’s perceptions of you. That can cause some self-reflection. While puberty can set off a lot of instincts and confusions. Interests or some degree of curiosity can go away as an adult. Fluidity can have some legitimacy for some. And the sexual, affection, romantic passions, emotional investment, relationship spectrum is a very particular thing. Let’s just not be quick to judge people’s stories and journeys because it doesn’t align with your agenda. It is nice to see more men in the spotlight who are “straight”, hetero, overall hetero-leaning, primarily date women admit their own prejudices against “gay”.
Jacob
I think on some level we all have the tendency to at least question our sexuality regardless of whether or not we may actually have same sex attractions. Good on Chris Martin for being open and honest about himself.
Heywood Jablowme
Wait… what? “Gay” hazing at an English boarding school? Who ever heard of such a thing? Shocking. Next you’ll be telling us about college fraternities.
iminheatlikeacat
Instead of hazing, it was fagging… truly, truly shocking (and before this comment gets deleted or moderated as most of mine do on this site these days, this is not hate speech or mocking, ‘fagging’ is what it was called)
maleficent
hotpus*sy, your post remains… I think he’s probably trying to say su*cking di*ck comes naturally to him and being bug*gered is the best!!…but gave it up (yeah right) for success in his musical career.
Smith David
He’s so handsome. But, this story is fa da birdsssssss…..
ScottOnEarth
He walked with a limp, so everyone – including him – thought he was gay? That’s not really how it works but, ok……