Questions about his sexuality didn’t stop Frank Ocean from releasing one of the year’s most critically acclaimed albums, or landing a feature story in GQ’s 2012 Men of the Year Issue. Ocean detailed his failed first romance in an open letter posted to his Tumblr in July. The subject of that romance was a man. The letter, along with some of the songs of his debut album Channel Orange sparked speculation over Ocean’s sexuality, and his reason for sharing possibly controversial personal experiences. In the GQ feature, Ocean made one thing very clear; his sexuality is not the message.
“I’m not a centerfold. I’m not trying to sell you sex. People should pay attention to that in the letter: I didn’t need to label it for it to have impact. Because people realize everything that I say is so relatable, because when you’re talking about romantic love, both sides in all scenarios feel the same sh-t,” he told the magazine.
“As a writer, as a creator, I’m giving you my experiences. But just take what I give you. You ain’t got to pry beyond that. I’m giving you what I feel like you can feel.”
The Oddfuture artist did admit that posting the letter sparked a range of emotion however, telling GQ “the night I posted it, I cried like a f—ing baby.” No doubt Ocean enjoyed being able to be honest about where his experiences had taken him.
“It was like all the frequency just clicked to a change in my head. All the receptors were now receiving a different signal, and I was happy. I hadn’t been happy in so long. I’ve been sad again since, but it’s a totally different take on sad. There’s just some magic in truth and honesty and openness,” he added.
Ocean’s music has survived and overcome any perceived controversy, and he continues to hold his music on a platform on a platform separate from his own image.
