The Try Guys’ Eugene Lee Yang Comes Out as Gay in This Powerful Dance Video
Would that we could all live in Taylor Swift’s Pride-topia, booty-popping with Todrick Hall and sharing Sno-Cones with Adam Rippon in our rainbow-flag-bedecked RV park. But much as we’re loving “You Need to Calm Down” and other similarly upbeat celebrations of Pride month, this is also a time to recognize the battles the members of the LGBTQIA+ community have fought—and are still fighting. That’s one of the reasons why “I’m Gay,” a new dance video by Eugene Lee Yang of The Try Guys, is so important.
The dark, deeply personal video is Yang’s coming-out moment. We see Yang being rejected by his family, condemned by a preacher, and attacked by a hostile mob after attempting to express himself as a gay man. Though not a professional dancer (as we found out in “The Try Guys Try Ballet“), Yang is a gifted mover; he choreographed the project himself, and gathered a group of talented performers to bring the story to life.
“I created this music video as my personal way of coming out as a proud gay man who has many unheard, specific stories to tell,” Yang said on Twitter. “I withheld because of fear and shame shaped by my background but I promise to give my full truth in the rest of my life’s work.”
“I’m Gay” is, pointedly, a fundraiser for The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQIA+ youth. Donate to the cause on the video page, or through The Trevor Project’s website.