By Jen Colleta for the Philadelphia Gay News:
“Step right up and you’ll hear a tale about a man who is never seen by your society. Step right up, I’ll create a scene about a man who is forced to hide his sexuality.”
The chorus to William Scott’s “Invisible Man” exemplifies the out singer-songwriter’s musical mission: encouraging acceptance and understanding of communities that are often the target of discrimination by shedding light on the damaging effects of racism and homophobia.
During its annual gala this month, The Attic Youth Center of Philadelphia will honor Scott with the Youth Inspiration Award for the strides he’s taken to become a positive role model for LGBT youth.
The Detroit native began singing at age 5 for his grandmother and hasn’t stopped since.
He has performed with such artists as Gladys Knight, Monifah and Dru Hill, and one of his songs is featured in the Sandra Bullock/Hugh Grant flick “Two Weeks’ Notice.” Scott was a top-50 finalist on this past season of “American Idol” after auditioning here in Philadelphia.
He released his first album, “Who’s Afraid of William Scott?” in 2006 and is set to release his second, “Starlight,” early next year.
Scott’s music is an unconventional fusion of several genres, including hip-hop, R&B and pop, and aims to educate listeners about the real-life struggles that stem from racism and homophobia, which Scott said he often deals with on both a personal and professional level.
“My family is the typical African-American family and is traditionally religious like many other similar families,” he said. “So that religion can sometimes be very, very limiting on their views when it comes to the LGBT community. And I do face a lot of issues when it comes to getting my material played on the radio and receiving the same fair amount of airplay or publicity or promotion that a heterosexual artist would receive.
“I think radio execs and record labels are afraid to push material that challenges traditional views; I think they’re very fearful of that.”
When he was getting started in the music industry, Scott said he was hesitant to characterize himself as an “out” singer because of the complications he knew he could face in his career. As he was penning lyrics for his songs, however, he knew that to be satisfied with his music, he first needed to be satisfied with himself.
“I realized that I needed to take more of a stand on who I am and what I’m comfortable with because I may be paving the way for people who come after me. What I’m really leaving is a footprint on this earth, so I looked at my music and I had to say to myself, ‘Is what I’m writing about truthful, honest and can someone benefit from it?’”
On his first album, Scott created a collection that not only addresses the personal obstacles he’s faced as an out African-American man, but also seeks to motivate young people to keep fighting to rise above adversity.
He said he hopes that listeners, especially those in the African-American and LGBT communities, can heed his message, as well as look to him as an example that perseverance pays off.
“Youth of color, as well as LGBT youth, don’t necessarily have a lot of examples to look up to,” he said. “They don’t feel like they can say, ‘I could be a news anchor or a singer,’ or just someone successful and be respected and be able to be masculine, feminine or in between. We don’t have a variety of examples for ourselves. When I was growing up, that was one of my main challenges: Where in my community are those examples of people whom I can strive to be like?”
In addition to using his music to inspire youth, Scott has dedicated time and energy to working directly with underserved youth.
He began his youth work at summer camps, conducting after-school arts programs when he was a young adult, and oversaw similar programs at LGBT youth centers when he got older. Scott spearheaded the creation of an ethical program at the Ruth Ellis Center, a Detroit LGBT youth agency, and worked to stabilize homeless LGBT youth and counsel teens on HIV prevention in both Detroit and New York City.
Scott said he hadn’t done any work with The Attic when they notified him that he was to receive the award, which he said makes the honor even more gratifying.
“I was very surprised that I was receiving it and very happy that I was being acknowledged,” he said. “It’s seldom that an organization reaches out to an artist like myself who’s very independent and who very much is in a grassroots kind of movement. It’s nice to know that someone appreciates what you’re doing. Acknowledgment is everything, especially when you’re working every day to make change. Sometimes I feel like people don’t really get what I’m trying to do with my music, but when someone, like the people at The Attic, do get it, it really feels amazing.”
For more information about Scott, visit Experience William Scott.
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