Andreas Wijk Embraces Being Queer In New Song “If I Was Gay”
Andreas Wijk is a Swedish singer, fashion model and social media influencer who has opened up with his fans about his LGBTQIA+ journey. Wijk has written a song called If I Was Gay, a personal reflection on his upbringing and his fears for coming out and he’s ready to share it with the world., reports Attitude.
“IF I WAS GAY” IS A LOVE LETTER TO TO OTHER YOUNG LGBTQIA+ FOLKS
Wijk talks about his upbringing with his religious family and how it shaped who he thought he had to be. His father is a pastor and the family was devoutly Christian, which made Wijk confused about how to come out, reports Attitude. When he was 15-years-old, Andreas came out to his parents.
“At the time, they were like, ‘We love you so much Andreas, but if you’re going to hell for this, we want to help you, because we love you so much,’” he says. “My mom and dad would go to hell for me if they could. But they weren’t the gay people, I was. So that was the reason for them to do everything in their power to help me to change.”
In a snippet of If I Was Gay that Wijk posted on TikTok, his parents can be seen reacting to the song for the first time and they can be seen crying and showing support for him. “It really feels like you are reflecting your whole life story in this song,” says Wijk’s father in the video.
Since coming out at 15, Wijk reports that both he and his parents have experienced a lot of learning and have come to a place of love and understanding. This journey may be familiar for other young LGBTQIA+ folks and offers glimpses of hope if they are struggling at this current time. Andreas Wijk tells Attitude that he wishes he had music like If I Was Gay when he was young.
Andreas says: “You’re loved. You’re perfect just the way you are, and we are in this together. I know exactly what you’re going through, every single thought that you’ve had, every single doubt, all the shame, I felt the exact same thing. We’re in this together. And I hope that the love of my parents and where they were and where they are today will give you some kind of hope that anyone can change.”
