Rob Halford Details Hiding His Sexuality on Tour in New Memoir Excerpt
Rob Halford will be releasing his highly-anticipated new memoir, Confess, on September 29, and in a preview excerpt, he details hiding his sexuality while on the road with Judas Priest.
Published via Metal Hammer, The Metal God details the struggle of being gay while touring writing about how as the band got more popular, they naturally started attracting groupies.
“Well, I didn’t,” clarified Halford. “None of our fans knew that I was gay at this point, of course. If any misguided girls made a play for me, I could politely brush them off. But if I wanted some action on the road – and I really, really did – how the hell was I supposed to go about it? For straight blokes, the ritual was easy. They could invite a girl to come backstage. Would you like a drink? Would you like to come to our hotel? Would you like to see my room? I couldn’t do any of that.”
Halford continued, “If I fancied a guy in the crowd, how did I go about it? What were the chances of him being gay (or, if he was, of admitting it)? What if I got it wrong, made a misjudged pass and got a smack in the mouth? And, of course, the overriding fear that was to limit my existence for decades: What if it got out that I was gay, fans didn’t want anything to do with a band fronted by a queer, and it killed Judas Priest stone dead? Priest was the most important thing in my life, and even if I were willing to sacrifice it for my sexuality – which I wasn’t – I simply couldn’t do it to Ken, or Glenn, or Ian. It wouldn’t be fair on them. It was my problem, not theirs.”
The excerpt also details Priest adopting their iconic leather look.
Halford writes, “The biggest myth about this new stage gear is that I had somehow masterminded the image as a cover and a vent for my homosexuality – that I was getting a thrill from dressing on stage as I’d like to dress in the street, or the bedroom. This is utter bollocks. I had no interest in S&M, domination or the whole queer subcult of leather and chains. It just didn’t do it for me. My sexual preference was for men, sure, but I was – and still am – pretty vanilla. I’ve never used a whip in the boudoir in my life.”
He then cheekily adds, “Or, have I? Hang on, let me think for a minute…”
Confess is currently available for pre-order at HachetteBooks.com
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