Hayley Kiyoko dances around in this shot from her cover story with them. magazine.
Here’s what the 28-year-old musician shared:
On being asked for relationship advice: “Just because I’m gay doesn’t mean that I’m a professional at it. I get flustered. I get nervous and I overthink things, and to be honest, I could count on my fingers how many dates I’ve been on. I’ve never been on the Hinge or the Tinder. I haven’t even done the online dating thing, so I don’t even know what that’s like.”
On backlash to her criticism of Rita Ora’s song “Girls”: “I don’t regret speaking my mind, because for me, I take my sexuality and what I do very seriously, and it’s been really hard to get people to take me seriously… But I also feel like everyone has the right to be who they are, too. It’s difficult to navigate that at times because I do accept everyone and I do support everyone and all artists and who they are and where they are in their lives.”
On the importance of allies, including Taylor Swift: “[Allies] are just as important as people in the community supporting their community because they are taking the time to fight someone else’s fight. I think that exposure and validation goes a very long way no matter where it comes from… I can only speak for myself, but [Taylor Swift] has been very supportive of my music and she doesn’t have to be. It means a lot because she’s letting people know, ‘Hey, she’s gay, but she’s also really cool and normal.’ I’m very grateful for her friendship.”
For more of Hayley‘s interview, head to them.us.
READ MORE: Hayley Kiyoko Criticizes the Lyrics of Rita Ora’s ‘Girls’: ‘Just Downright Tone-Deaf’
