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David Michael Brings New Ears to Country Music’s Past

David Michael Brings New Ears to Country Music’s Past

David Michael

Openly gay and openly HIV-positive, David Michael represents the change of what it means to be an authentic country music entertainer.

In addition to using his bravery and platform to help end the stigma and serve as an active voice in AIDS/HIV Awareness communities, he also hopes to breathe fresh life into country music’s past. His debut EP, which will most likely come out in June, is a six-track tribute to the iconic trailblazer Patsy Cline.

Michael released the first single, “He’s Got You,” on January 9. The song debuted 60 years to the day that Cline performed the song’s original rendition, “She’s Got You,” at the Grand Ole Opry in 1962, and a portion of the single’s proceeds has been donated to Nashville CARES and AID Upstate.

OFM caught up with Michael to talk more about the EP as well as the significance of being openly gay and HIV positive in country music, highlighting other past artists, and how he hopes to be an example and encouragement to others.

Congrats on your debut EP! Let me begin by asking, what inspired you to make it full of Patsy Cline covers?

Some little gays had their Beyoncés, and some had their Britneys, but mine was Patsy, all the way, through and through. I thought for my first record, for this opportunity, I wanted to give lineage and legacy to her as this boisterous, incredible, ahead-of-her-time, feminist woman who really changed a lot, not only for the country music scene but also for women and music.

Unfortunately, she was taken away from us far too early at the age of 30, but she was the first female to ever cross over into pop. She was also the first and only female country music artist to write a letter to the Grand Ole Opry asking for an audition. In the entire existence of the Grand Ole Opry, she’s the only person to do that. So, I thought, if I’m going to burst my way into Nashville, I may as well do it with a woman who I’ve loved musically from a child but also someone who really knew how to shake things up and do it for her advantage.

The first single is Patsy’s rendition of “She’s Got You,” but you changed the lyrics to “He’s Got You.” Can you talk more about that?

One of the reasons why I wanted to do Patsy is because, in a way, I’m super non-traditional. Not only in terms of who I am as a person, but also what I represent in country music. However, I wanted to do a super traditional song, so we have this beautiful juxtaposition between a non-traditional performer and a traditionally recorded, old-school country music song. These songs are 62 years old, believe it or not, and I want to be a shepherd for new ears to hear all these amazingly orchestrated older country songs.

They are very different from what you hear on the radio today. They are very orchestral, and they’ve got full strings. My band is full of Grammys, and we recorded in an iconic recording studio on Music Row here in Nashville. It meant a lot to me to lean into the tradition, and like I said, be the person to maybe bring some new ears to some beautiful, classic country music that should still be on the radio today.

David Michael

Have you always had a passion for singing?

My dad was a professional musician, and I joke that if your dad’s an insurance salesman or a rock star, it doesn’t matter. It’s still not cool (laughs). So, we always had a recording studio growing up in any house that he lived in, and he asked me plenty of times to record with him. I think he probably knew that I had more talent than even I did. I always like to say I’m great at karaoke; I’m a shower singer; I’m a road trip singer, but this opportunity came about and really solidified a couple days after his passing last year in October.

I truly believe that this is his way of connecting with me, and I cannot tell you that I’ve had a more divinely led project than this in my life. It feels like it’s me and my dad, and as a team, I think we’re truly going to make something happen.

What particularly drew you to the country genre?

I’m from Greenville, South Carolina, so I’m a country boy. Every Saturday and Sunday, I was out hunting. I worked on farms; I worked on cars; I was at a racetrack for most of my childhood, so it wasn’t much of a reach. Country music is my passion. It’s what I tune in and listen to on Pandora, Spotify, or iTunes. There’s just something about country music, and although it has not necessarily been the most welcoming to LGBTQ performers in the past, I do feel like that’s taking a change, as well as what they consider to be non-traditional artists, like Black or Brown people.

Last year at the CMA Awards with the Brothers Osborne, T.J. came out of the closet the same year he won “Entertainer of the Year.” So, I do think that the industry is beginning to change, but it’s only going to change when someone like myself, or someone like Mycale Guyton, who sang the National Anthem at the Super Bowl this year—she’s a Black country music artist—begin to walk through those doors and exemplify what it is to be a country music artist today and not be the typical. I’m looking forward to being an example, and hopefully lessen the stigma around HIV at the same time.

That was my next question. How significant is it for you to be the only publicly HIV-positive, gay country music entertainer?

I come from a PR background in terms of my profession, so my team and I were looking to see what was going to make me special and stand out as an entertainer in a sea of amazingly talented people, all of which should probably be famous. As we began to look, we saw that there was one artist in the late 90s that was bisexual and HIV-positive who came out in the country music scene. He was decently well received, but nobody really heard anything from him after that.

When we started to realize that I was currently the only publicly HIV-positive, gay country music entertainer, we knew that was something we were going to be able to walk into and really own. Although it’s a bit scary to hold that title, I’m also very honored about it. I hope it’s going to be able to, again, lessen the stigma, as well as be an example and an encouragement for others. If I can make one person more comfortable about their identity and health status, then I know that I’ve done my job.

Can you talk more about how you are going to use your platform to help end the stigma and serve as an active voice in AIDS/HIV awareness communities?

Absolutely. I’ve been working to be very transparent for the last two to three years. I struggled with my diagnosis for about four to five years, wondering who was going to love me, if I was going to get a job, if I was going to lose a job, and if I’d ever have children. The more I researched those things, the more I realized if I didn’t know those things as someone who had been diagnosed, then other people didn’t know these things.

I received support from my family, my mom, all my friends, but this was something I was going to need to be transparent about. So, I actually came out as HIV-positive on World AIDS Day on my local Channel 4 News, and the amount of people, HIV-positive or not, that reached out and gave me support was the fuel in the fire to continue to be that person, and then to kind of shepherd that story.

Now that I’m here in Nashville, I’m very excited to partner with Nashville CARES, which is a local organization that helps people living with HIV find housing, therapy, medication. They want you to not just survive but thrive. I’ll be working and lobbying with them, and one of the best things about Nashville is that it’s the capital city of the state of Tennessee.

There are a lot of local boots on the ground lobbying and supporting HIV/AIDS research, destigmatization, making sure people know about PrEP, and making sure that the laws are in accordance with a more modern, enveloping, and accepting legal world, where in the past, it has not been. I’m looking forward to working with Ken, who’s the director of Nashville CARES, to champion all those things here in Tennessee.

What more are you going to do to breathe fresh life into country/folk Americana?

Oh, gosh. That’s a good question, and I think I’m going to let the industry influence me. I don’t try to think that I know anything or everything about this industry. I’m still very much green behind the ears, but I hope the industry knows that I’m going to be loud, proud, and I know there are a ton of people who are going to be championing not only me, but the cause. I think it’s the industry’s responsibility to be changed or influenced, and I’m going to be along for the ride the entire time. I hope everybody will join me.

Are you currently working on any original music?

I am, thank you so much for asking. About two months before my father passed, I had the opportunity to address some of the wounds that he and I had over the years. Unfortunately, he died from complications from alcoholism. When I spoke to him the very last time, and also through prayer, while he was kind of exiting, I would say, if you can be the dad that you weren’t here, there, then we’ll be square. I started thinking, here, there, we’ll be square—It has this kind of lyrical sensibility to it.

I’m going to be working with my friend Doug, who is a songwriter here in Nashville, and I’m excited to put pen to paper. I know I’ve got stories to tell, but that’s probably going to be the first one that I tell. This connection to fatherhood and how it was imperfect on Earth, but it’s perfectly divine now that he’s passed on.

What are some future goals you hope to accomplish as a country artist?

David Michael

Frankly, I hope to have the respect of the industry, and I want ears on old country music. Like I said, these songs are 62 years old, but they are beautiful and perfect. When we were in the studio, and again, I’ve got to give a huge shout-out to the band that I recorded with here in Nashville, we went in with the concept of, let’s make it a bit more modern. Let’s step it up and change it a bit. Once we got in there and got into making the music, we were like, this stuff is perfect. There’s no reason to change these beautiful, old, orchestral country songs.

I’m also going to be looking into spotlighting other artists from that era who may not have the cachet of Johnny Cash or Loretta Lynn but still showcased what it was to be storytelling back in 1950, 1960, 1970. I want new ears to hear that old foundation of music, and of course, I want to be an example of what it is to be an LGBTQ performer in a traditionally more conservative space.

When you see a healthy, vibrant, excitable, gay guy on stage that also happens to have HIV, maybe that’s not the first, second, or third thing you think of. I want you to hear the music and see my passion. I want you to dance and enjoy yourself. Then you can be like, “Oh yeah, he’s HIV positive.” That is a huge goal for me.

Before we wrap up, are there any other upcoming projects or anything else you would like to mention or plug?

I don’t think so. Just keep up with me on Instagram, and if you got some old country song you’d like for me to record, please let me know. Also, make sure to follow OUT FRONT Magazine! I cannot thank them enough for the platform and making sure that these stories and my voice gets heard.

Stay up-to-date and connect with Michael by following him on Instagram @davidmichaelhawkins, or visit his official website, davidmichaelhawkins.com. “He’s Got You” is available on SoundCloud and all other digital streaming platforms.

Photos courtesy of David Michael

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