It’s no secret that there’s been a longstanding stigma when it comes to homosexuality in hip-hop. Some artists have even had their rap careers tarnished by rumors that they were connected to someone of the same sex. As a new generation of hip-hop consumers emerge and artists are living in their truth when it comes to their sexuality, the culture is proving to be more open-minded than ever before.
One of the biggest examples of hip-hop’s growth when it comes to LGBTQ+ acceptance is Lil Nas X. The Georgia-bred artist had the biggest song on the planet when he came out on the last day of Pride Month in June of 2019. Since then, the “Old Town Road” rhymer has continued to wave the flag for rappers in the queer community, helping push the movement further into the mainstream.
Young M.A has been forthright about her sexual orientation from the jump, speaking freely about her sexual preferences often in her music. She’s even embraced it on a new level, having come out with a line of sex toys called Play NYCe in 2020.
And most recently, Yung Miami of the City Girls confirmed her bisexual orientation during an interview with Jason Lee in May 2022. Miami has teased her preference before through the lyrics in her solo records like “Rap Freaks.” But it was during this conversation on The Jason Lee Show that she fully set the record straight, all while confessing her attraction to collaborator and friend Megan Thee Stallion.
With so many rappers, singers and producers in hip-hop coming out of the closet and being embraced rather than shunned by their peers, it seems the genre might finally be letting go of its prejudice. Here’s a look at hip-hop artists who embrace being gay, lesbian or bisexual.