Out Loud: LGBT Stories of Faith

LGBTQIA+ individuals tell their stories about faith, community, and the divine, hosted by Greg Thompson.

Justin Hiltner is a queer banjo player, songwriter, journalist, and activist living here in Nashville. We talk about how his faith has been tested throughout his life so far, from coming out to his conservative evangelical family in rural Ohio to his fight against cancer more recently. His journey toward healing has been one of an evolving worldview starting with accepting those who have not accepted him along the way, and gradually learning how to accept himself.

Despite these hardships, Justin is flourishing as a bluegrass musician here in Middle Tennessee. He writes for theBluegrass Situation, an online publication covering bluegrass, roots music. Justin’s also the Chair of the Board for Bluegrass Pride, an organization that promotes inclusion in bluegrass music. And he’s the first openly gay man to receive a nomination from the International Bluegrass Music Association. And if that weren’t enough, Justin’s working on his debut solo record set to come out in 2021.

Learn more at justinhiltner.com and find him over on Instagram @hiltnerj.

For Reflection:Consider a time when someone has made a judgment about you. How did you respond to it in the moment, and have you been able to rise above it? How do you make sense of suffering you’ve experienced in your own life? What coping mechanisms do you have for moving on?

Resources: We played “If I Were a Praying Man” during one of the breaks and “What I Miss the Most” as we closed the show. Both tracks are off of the album “Watch it Burn” by Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger which you can find on Apple Music and Spotify.

And be sure to check out some of the publications and programs that Justin mentioned during the show. There’s The Bluegrass Situation and the article Justin mentions, “Letting Go of Time: My Soundtrack for a Year with Cancer.” And be sure to check out Bluegrass Pride, the Shout and Shine Showcase 2020, and Gilda’s Club of Middle TN.

Out Loud is a podcast by and for queer people of faith in the South. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and join our mailing list for updates. Support the show financially by becoming a Patreon member, or by leaving a one-time donation on our website. Hosted by Greg Thompson. Edited by Cariad Harmon. Theme music by JP Rugierri.