Tyler Glenn, the frontman for the
Utah-based rock band Neon Trees who came out gay in 2014 with the
tweet “I'm a happy and healthy Mormon gay pop star,” says he's
had suicidal thoughts.
In an interview with Michigan gay
weekly PrideSource, Glenn, 32, said that his church's vocal
opposition to LGBT rights – last
year it said gay members were no longer welcome – has provoked
thoughts of “leaving.”
“When were you having these suicidal
thoughts and what kept you from taking your life?” Glenn was asked.
“To be honest, it was earlier this
year,” Glenn
answered. “For me, I believed in Mormonism, and I knew I was
gay, and then I tried to merge the two together. Then, when the
church put out a policy that clearly put same-sex couples in their
place and in a marginalized box, it was just clear to me it was a
toxic space. I started looking at things that I thought I knew were
true my whole life and really began to see that those things weren't
true. I looked deeper and I fell down a rabbit hole. I felt the rug
had been pulled out from under me, and I didn't know what to believe
in. It became really dark, and I realized how it feels to want to
sort of, you know, leave. And, to be honest, even two months ago I
felt this thought and saw my life sort of – I don't know. It's been
a long road. I totally recognize now what it's like to be that dark
and to think that that might be an option, and it freaked me out. “
On his solo debut album
Excommunication, Glenn deals with some of his feelings.
“So, I feel really bonded to my
gayness,” Glenn said. “I feel really bonded to the community
more than I ever have, and I'm really exploring that. That, I think,
is one of the most rewarding things about this record so far for me.”