Janelle Monae hopes to help people "feel more comfortable" with themselves after coming out as pansexual.
The 32-year-old singer and actress revealed earlier this year that she identifies as pansexual – a term usually used to characterise a person whose sexual preference is not limited by biological sex, gender, or gender identity – and now says she hopes other people can now "walk in their truths" after being inspired by her coming out story.
Speaking about her experience with coming out, she said: "It’s been beautiful. I think that it’s been a very warm and loving time for all of us who are walking in our truths. And I’ve always hoped, by sharing my stories that people will feel more comfortable walking in their truths. And feel like it’s not a heavy burden, you know, that you do have support."
The ‘Make Me Feel’ singer has a strong support system in her large family, and says she’ll be using the upcoming holiday season to spend quality time with her loved ones.
Speaking to People magazine, she added: "I’m gonna get some rest. I told my mom, I told my aunts, I told my sister, I was like, I have to get some rest when I come back. All I want do is just smile, and eat food, and give hugs."
Meanwhile, Janelle recently said she hopes to encourage other women to be "empowered" about their own sexuality through coming out.
She said: "It’s a conversation that I want to have with us as a society, as human beings, about what it means to tell somebody that the way they’re programmed – their existence – whether they’re queer, LGBTQ, IA (intersex or asexual), in that community – whether they are minorities, whether they’re bugs or viruses, whether being a woman, whether being poor, makes you have bugs and viruses. What is it like to live in a society that is constantly trying to cleanse you, and tell you that you need to conform, you need to be reprogrammed … deprogrammed? And so I just wanted to talk about my own bugs and viruses, and how I’m choosing to deal with it.
"I just feel like my sexuality, my women’s desires are one with God, it’s all one it’s all a beautiful thing, and I just hope that women feel more free, feel more empowered. I do."
Janelle Monae: I want people to ‘feel comfortable’ with their sexuality
