‘YOU’RE A SINNER’ CHIMANO SPEAKS ON COMING OUT AS GAY

Sauti Sol band member Willis Austin Chimano, popularly known as Chimano, has spoken about his experience of being forced to come out as gay.

In an interview with The Guardian, Chimano revealed that during his time with the award-winning band, he felt compelled to wear a mask, carefully curating how he acted, spoke, and dressed in public while embracing his queer identity only in his private life.

“I had to do everything in my power to keep my sexuality hidden. I was scared that it could ruin our chances at becoming bigger. I just wanted to keep a clean representation of me. My queerness would have been a scandal,” he explained.

This changed abruptly in 2018 when a photograph of him with his partner was posted on social media and subsequently republished by mainstream media. The incident outed him as gay and ignited a firestorm on social media.

“There was vitriol, oh my God, so much. People were saying ‘you’re a sinner’, ‘it goes against the laws of nature’, ‘it’s against African culture’. There’s a larger society belief that what [queer people] are doing is wrong. People don’t understand,” Chimano recounted.

The singer remains hopeful for the future and is optimistic for the repeal of laws criminalising the queer community in Kenya. “There’s a lot more straight people who have friends in the queer community and I hope when the time comes, when we’re talking about allyship, they speak up and show up for us,” he says.