The Unholy singer says that while their family and close friends have been accepting of their gender identity, the same can not be said for others
(Picture: Getty Images)Sam Smith has spoken about the abuse they received since coming out as non-binary, claiming one person even spat at them in the street.
The Unholy singer, 30, took the plunge back in 2019 and while they say their friends and close family were accepting, the same cannot be said for others.
Speaking to Zane Lowe in a new interview for Apple Music 1, the London-born star said: “In my personal life, there’s not one negative.
“I feel lovable. I feel comfortable in my skin, but I wear what I want to wear," they continued. “Since changing my pronouns, it felt like a coming home ... It is who I am, and it’s who I’ve always been,” they continued.
“The amount of hate and s***-ness that came my way [from others] was just exhausting," they said, adding that it was hard to avoid people talking about it in the news.
“It was really hard, and it’s not like, this isn’t me sitting at home Googling my name. … It was in the f*****g news. It was hard not to look.”
While they said they could handle the abuse online, what they were not prepared for was getting it when they went outside.
They explained: “What people don’t realise with trans [and] nonbinary people in the UK is it’s happening in the street. I’m being abused in the street verbally more than I ever have.
“So, that was the hardest part, I think, was being at home in the UK and having people shouting at me in the street. Someone spat at me in the street. It’s crazy.”
They also voiced their concern for other people grappling with their identity who are not famous and what they must be going through.
“What I find hard about it is, it’s like, if that’s happening to me and I’m famous, I’m a pop star, can you imagine what other kids, like queer kids are feeling," they said.
Smith added: “And it’s just so sad that we’re in 2023 and it’s still happening. It’s exhausting and especially in England."
