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What were the chances of him being gay (or, if he was, of admitting it)? In fact, it might just be the only thing capable of bringing humanity together.
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Early in the writing of this article, I stumbled across a question on a RateMyMusic message board.
Both men’s binges frequently led to bouts of violence. I had no interest in S&M, domination, or the whole queer subcult of leather and chains. Halford grew up ashamed and disgusted by his sexuality, a feeling that only worsened when he’d hear people say that gay men should be locked away. The pair were looking for a new lead singer for their Birmingham-based band named Judas Priest, which was among the many groups inspired by Black Sabbath, the first true heavy metal band (and also based out of Birmingham).
All sites belong to their prospective owners, publishers, and editors etc. These winks and nods in Halford’s songwriting did nothing to assuage his isolation and shame as his substance abuse escalated.
By the 1980s, heavy metal had become one of the most popular genres in music, but true mainstream acceptance still eluded metal bands.
“Don’t be deceived, homosexuality is a sin,” lead singer Mike Reynolds wrote on Twitter. Hearing their music for the first time was a life-changing experience. The album laid the foundation for heavy metal as we know it today, without which bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, and Pantera would never have come to be.
Looking to take that next step, the band left their small-time record label and signed with the much larger and more established CBS Records.
It must have been a surreal site for metalheads to see a Parton-Halford duet, but it demonstrates that the love of music can transcend not only genres, but all human categories including sex, race, and sexuality. Along with that shift in aesthetics also came an increase in conservative, patriarchal values.
Nikki Six, he of Motley Crüe fame, slowly came to represent the slick new misogynistic face of the genre.
Meanwhile, metal acts like Judas Priest were still dressing in the hippie-inspired clothing bands had been wearing since the late 1960s.
Whereas once upon a time, it would be his sexuality discussed with an othering, reductive fascination by the press and some metal fans, now it’s his pro-church burning stance. On both sides of the Atlantic, songs like“Breaking the Law” and “Living After Midnight” were in the regular rotations of rock radio stations.
Despite Judas Priest establishing themselves as heavy metal’s premiere band, Rob Halford was well on his way to becoming another one of rock and roll’s great tragedies.
In 1954, over a thousand men in England and Wales were in prison for the crime of being gay or bisexual.
Underground, But Out and Proud
At LGBT Metalheads, we recognize a future where both metal music and LGBT rights are more accepted.
Halford loved the idea, and he and Downing went to an S&M shop in London to buy outfits and then model them to the other band members who agreed that the new look would solidify their image.
In 1979, when Judas Priest first donned their leather-and-metal-stud look, Rob Halford knew the moment they stepped on stage that the band had finally found their identity.