Dressed in a plain white tank and jean-blue turban, Gavin Rayna Russom is on a new journey that is separate from the world tour her band, LCD Soundsystem, is set to go on this year.
The 43-year-old musician revealed in an interview with Grindr that she is transgender.
“This is my fifth decade being alive, and in each of those decades, there’s been a time where I’ve tried to say, ‘Hey, I think I’m transgender!’ This was even before that word existed,” she told Grindr.
After touring and recording wrapped up with LCD Soundsystem last year, Russom took time off to focus on caring for herself, which also led to her finding support in New York City’s diverse atmosphere of trans women.
According to an article posted on Pitchfork, that self-care led her to this point of self-acceptance where she posted: “A new photo that reflects how I feel comfortable expressing myself, feminine pronouns, and I’m using my old name.”
In the article, Russom revealed she experienced a lot of “violence and harassment” from men hitting on her when she tried to transition in her early 20s.
“Sometimes, if they happened to be walking behind me at enough distance where they would read me as feminine, they would catcall me,” she said. “Getting closer to me, they would see me as masculine and then become very angry. I was assaulted on a number of occasions.”
However, the turban-rocking producer and DJ admitted this is “the happiest I’ve ever been.”
Russom has a lot to be excited about. Her band, LCD Soundsystem, has confirmed details of their first new album in seven years, which will be called American Dream and will be released in September.
The group’s lead singer, James Murphy, confirmed the band was working on new material in a Facebook post, which accompanied an announcement that two singles were being unexpectedly released last month.
In the post, he said that the finished album would not be released until a vinyl version was ready. “I insist that there is vinyl on the day it’s released (because … well … because I’m an old person).”
The new record, which is the band’s first since 2010’s “This Is Happening,” will be accompanied by a world tour, which will include two dates at the Warehouse Project in Manchester, UK.
The iconic band’s synth master Russom comes out as transgender right before the release of a new album and tour — telling Grindr that she “could not imagine” pretending to be someone she is not anymore.
“The general feeling in the group is that [my coming out] will make the band better,” she said proudly.
