Following a turn in the pop music world which included touring with Ariana Grande, Fancy Hagood returns to Nashville to reconnect with his past as a gay country musician. The 33-year-old singer admits that his exploration of pop music was a result of him getting “sidetracked by people not being able to see someone like me, a queer, flamboyant dude, being successful in country music.” But Hagood is aiming to stay true to himself while returning to his country roots. Hagood’s sophomore album, American Spirit, was released on October 25, and it finds the singer reclaiming his country voice. “As I sit in therapy these days, I’m seeing the signs of that brave 17-year-old boy who moved to a city he barely knew to chase a dream,” Hagood says. “I’m seeing him in the mirror. He feels so [present] in the process of making this record. It makes me emotional, because I lost him trying to be something that other people wanted me to be.” (Variety)