Grace Gaustad | Advocate Now

"One of the biggest things that art allows you to do is express yourself at the highest degree possible," they tell Sonia Baghdady of Advocate Now. "In creating music, I did a lot of self-discovery. And so throughout these past few years, I've done a lot of self-reflection... and through my craft, being able to connect with other people who feel the exact same way as I do has been a really magical thing."

Being open about their nonbinary identity can be especially daunting in today's political climate, but Gaustad chooses to focus on the positivity that can come from queer life instead.

"There's definitely been moments of fear, but there's also been moments of bravery in that this should be shared, and you shouldn't be afraid of it and you shouldn't be ashamed," they explain, adding, "As you get older, you start to care less and less what people think and you start to just feel more empowered by your own being."

Gaustad adds, "I think that a lot of people maybe don't realize that there's this huge difference between sex and and gender. There shouldn't be one set of rules for one person, and then a new set of rules for someone else. You should just be able to sort of express exactly how you want to and participate in the things you love."

As for their advice to nonbinary people still discovering themselves, Gaustad says to be patient and kind to yourself.

"I think you have to just sort of enjoy the ride. You have to give yourself room to breathe. You know, sometimes we get hurt. Sometimes we have to recover," Gaustad says. "[Mental health] is no different than just a physical injury. You have to be able to heal and take care of it and take whatever steps you may need to take in order to sort of heal that space in yourself."

Gaustad's newest song "Nothing to Me" is available to stream online now. For more interviews like these, watch Advocate Now on The Advocate Channel.