Ben Platt says releasing his own music has given him a newfound freedom and allowed him to show his "actual self" to the world.
The 25-year-old singer-and-actor – who has won a Grammy, a Tony and an Emmy – released his debut studio album ‘Sing to Me Instead’ in March and he admits it’s been a thrill to separate himself from the "socially anxious and nerdy" characters he has portrayed on screen and stage.
In an interview with the new issue of Wonderland Magazine, he said: "[Characters I’ve played] are socially anxious and reserved and a bit nerdy. Not saying that I’m not those things also, but I think people generally assume that’s exactly how I am … what’s been nice about doing this new chapter and my own music is getting to decide how I want to portray myself and to show my actual self rather than this other character that someone else has created for me. It’s very easy to hide behind other people’s material and that’s what I’ve done my whole life."
Platt – who came out as gay to his family when he was 12 years old – used his romantic relationships as the inspiration for many of the songs on the LP.
And the ‘Pitch Perfect’ star – who has just released his new single ‘Rain’ -admits he finds it easier to sing about his real feelings and experiences than anything else.
He said: "Because I come from theatre, I come from the philosophy that you only sing about things that need to be musicalised, when it means enough to you and is deep enough for you and complex enough for you that you think you’re gonna process it or understand it better if you put it into song, I find it hard to write about going out or dancing in the club, that’s not quite my MO. Those experiences largely ended up being past relationships, and about my family, and about things I felt like I could write about."
Ben Platt proud to show ‘actual self’ to the world
