.gay Music Monday Interview with Logan Lynn

It’s Music Monday once again and this week we are featuring a new collaboration from our own Logan Lynn and Yellow Trash Can.

Logan Lynn is a songwriter, producer, filmmaker, television personality and activist who Billboard writes “has made a career out of crafting catchy, disorderly songs that almost all include big beats, fun melodies and cheeky lyrics”.

He has been producing and releasing music for the past two decades, and has albums and singles on Caroline Records, EMI Records, The Dandy Warhols’ Beat The World Records, Greyday Records, Mohr Media, Banana Stand Records, his own label imprint Logan Lynn Music, and Kill Rock Stars.

Logan was also one of the earliest .gay supporters and helped spearhead the launch of the domain, as well as launching one of the first-ever .gay domains to ever come online with LoganLynn.gay!

Recently Logan teamed up with production duo Yellow Trash Can to create the “Distracted” EP and short film, which you can pre-save now at YellowTrashCan.gay! So far Kill Rock Stars has released the first two singles from the record, with “I Got A Man” dropping earlier this week.

Watch the video and read our convo with Logan Lynn below. 

What first inspired you to start playing and making music?

Honestly, my songwriting began as therapy and continues to be my primary source for making sense of my life, my feelings, my relationships, my queerness, and the world around me. I spent the first decade of my career writing songs about addiction, then songs about recovery from said addiction for several years after that. Now I feel like my songs are much less about struggle and more about wanting love, finding peace, and finally feeling like I am part of something.

What are the parts of creating music that you like most?

I like how free I feel in my songwriting. It has always been an outlet for me to explore things I’m afraid of, or to say things out loud that I could never have brought myself to say aloud otherwise. I like how songs can fix things. And I like how songs can break things. Music is powerful. I’m into that. 

How would you describe the music that you make for someone who has never heard it?

I think ultimately I make music for crybabies. Always have. But it’s pop. The gayest pop.

Why do you think it’s important to be out and proud in the music industry?

I’ve never been anything else as an artist. Got my first record deal at age 17 and was already as openly gay as the day is long. It was really hard back then and so important — much more important and radical than I realized at the time. 1998 was a very different time in the world. It’s important to be out because we need people to see us thriving. We need people to know and love us. We deserve to be celebrated as our entire selves, in music and in life.

As an LGBTQ+ artist, what do you want to convey with your songs?

GAY. YES HOMO. 

We are so excited for new LL tunes. Tell us about your latest release!

I am so excited, too! I have this EP and short film with Yellow Trash Can coming out in July and we’ve been releasing singles and sneak peek scenes from the movie monthly since March. That will continue until the thing comes out this summer. These songs are all about me meeting a man and then moving from Portland, Oregon to Boise, Idaho.

I’ll be going on tour a little this fall, but haven’t announced that yet. It’s coming soon. Also wrapping up a full length album for Kill Rock Stars that will be out next year. Lots going on!!

Both you and the label you are signed to have active .gay domains — why does helping to create a safer internet for LGBTQ+ people matter to you?

I think the best way to understand how deeply important this all is to me, is to read this piece I wrote just ahead of launching .gay into existence. In many ways, this has been my dream for as long as I can remember.

Anything else you’d like the .gay audience to know before we go?

Just that I hope you will all join me, the label, and so many of my Kill Rock Stars labelmates, in registering your .gay domain names! Hate sucks. Love rules. That’s basically it.