Country music performer Jake Owen recently released a cover of the 1998 Cher’s song “Believe” and dedicated it to the LGBTQ community. When one homophobic fan responded with negativity, he had an excellent and compassionate response.
In an Instagram post with a video clip of his Cher cover, Owen wrote:
I believe #loveislove
Some of my closest friends and coworkers, are part of the #lgbt community and I couldn’t be more happy for the progress they have made. I’m inspired by people loving people no matter who you are. I BELIEVE the world needs more love. No matter where it comes from.
So with that said, I googled “gayest” songs of all time and the boys and I decided to put our country spin on Cher’s “Believe.” Hope you dig. I plan on releasing all of these backstage random songs we’ve created very very soon. Stay tuned friends, and most importantly, love everyone. 🌈
Cher’s song was a comeback dance hit that resonated well with the gay community in 1998, a time when we were just emerging from the worst ravages of the HIV epidemic.
Here’s Owen’s Instagram post below:
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One fan responded, “Suddenly I feel sick that I have tickets to your show here on Thursday night.”
Related: Straight man’s pickup truck goes viral for supporting Pride in rural Oklahoma
And Owen wrote in response:
“I’m sorry you feel sick that you have tickers to my show Thursday night. Maybe it would do you good to come out, smile, laugh, sing along with a bunch of strangers that are all going through what we call “life.” I definitely didn’t delete your comment or anyone’s comment from this feed. It’s really only you and a few other ignorant people that make yourself look silly. If you make it out to my show, come give me a hug. You need one. If you decide not to come, trust me … we will all be okay. We like to share our shows with people that are kind, and loving.”
Owen isn’t the only country music star to advocate for LGBTQ people. In 2017, Country Music Television and iHeartRadio host Cody Alan came out as gay, and in March 2019, Country musician Cameron Hawthorn came out in a heartwarming music video.
Even though many people think of country music as a conservative southern phenomenon, country music is actually most popular in non-southern states like Hawaii, Idaho, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah and Wisconsin. As such, when country stars come out or support LGBTQ people, it affects attitudes all across America, not just in the states we normally think of as “country.”
