Sam Smith reveals Lady Gaga helped them come to terms with their non-binary gender identity

Last September, Sam Smith publicly stated that they are non-binary and go by they/them pronouns.

And now, the singer, 28, has revealed that it was fellow singer Lady Gaga, 34, helped them to come to terms with their non-binary gender identity.

Sam credited the Born This Way songstress with giving them: ‘permission to be proud of their queerness!’ 

Speaking in a video for Vogue, Sam explained how LGBTQ rights activist Lady Gaga helped them to accept themselves.

Sam said: ‘Gaga is probably the reason why I actually came to terms with my gender. I was 15 when ‘The Fame’ came out and I was obsessed with Lady Gaga.

‘She gave me complete permission to be myself and to be proud of my queerness. It was a form of expression, but it was also weirdly a form of protection.’

Sam – who is also openly gay – said Gaga’s music helped them tell his school bullies to ‘stay away’ from them, because they knew they could be ‘confident and powerful’ in their own body.  

Elsewhere in the video for Vogue, Sam also discussed how makeup has become a key part of their journey as a non-binary performer.

They said: ‘It doesn’t matter what gender you are, makeup is a form of expression, and it feels nice. For me, makeup just became more of a way to express my gender.

‘Last year, when I changed my pronouns and really spoke out about my gender expression and my gender fluidity, I started falling in love with makeup all over again.’ 

Last September, the Too Good At Goodbyes hitmaker revealed they are non-binary, when they said they had decided to ’embrace’ their gender identity after ‘a lifetime of being at war’ with themselves.

Sam wrote on social media at the time: ‘Today is a good day so here goes. I’ve decided I am changing my pronouns to THEY/THEM. 

‘After a lifetime of being at war with my gender I’ve decided to embrace myself for who I am, inside and out… (sic)’