Up-and-coming openly gay rapper Chapman is a New-York based artist with Chicago roots, having worked alongside the likes of producer Felix Snow (Eve, Shaggy) and Chippy Nonstop. His debut EP, "XL Life," is slated for release this upcoming fall.
Now, Chapman is debuting "Gay Rap Song," a track he was inspired to produce after this year's MTV VMAs. In a statement to The Huffington Post, Chapman said:
I kinda just started releasing music and wasn't sure if I wanted to put myself out there, but the song really does show my true feelings, and I felt it might be important for me to add my perspective, since I've never really heard anything like it in a rap song before. I've been making fun, less personal music for a while and kinda had all these opinions on the backburner, thinking I'd get to them as my career grew and I gained more listeners. But after the Jason Collins/ASAP intro to the Macklemore performance at the VMAs, it all just kinda came out impulsively and I recorded the rap on GarageBand in my apartment.
While rap and hip-hop have historically been considered heteronormative music genres and with little room or points of entry for LGBT artists, the nature of the industry itself seems to be changing. Though not gay himself, Macklemore's same-sex marriage anthem "Same Love" stole the VMAs this year, taking home the Moonman for "Best Video With A Social Message." Additionally, openly LGBT artists such as Le1f and Mary Lambert are also gaining traction within the mainstream entertainment industry, paving a path for other LGBT artists.
"The response [to 'Gay Rap Song'] has been almost entirely positive," Chapman said. "A lot of people telling me how much they relate, appreciating how vulnerable the song is and that these are type of things that need to be said in music."
For more on Chapman and his upcoming EP, check out the rapper's Tumblr and Twitter. And while you're at it, check out Chapman's video for "Baddest 1" below.
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