Gavin Russom Of LCD Soundsystem Comes Out As Transgender

By Stephen Gossett in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 6, 2017 6:10PM

LCD Soundsystem's Gavin Russom has come out as transgender in a pair of a interviews, with Pitchfork and Grindr's INTO.

In addition to her own solo work and DJ sets, Russom plays synthesizers for the popular and critically esteemed indie-dance group, which reunited in 2015. She's well-known and respected in music circles for her expertise with analog-synth gear.

Russom recounted her transition with Britt Julious of Pitchfork in a talk published on Thursday. “Over the last year and a half, I went from my trans identity being something I was in touch with and worked through in one way or another, to suddenly this shift where it’s on the front burner," she said. "Now it's time to become a whole person."

Russom told INTO that she "could not imagine" going on as she did in years prior. "My body rejected it in the same way that it now utterly rejects going into a men’s bathroom or when somebody calls me ‘sir,’” she told Nico Lang in INTO.

The LCD veteran said she has known for years that she is transgender and had often made efforts in the past to make her identity known. "What makes this time different is that I'm in a stable moment in my life," she told Pitchfork. "Working with LCD Soundsystem all last year and then having a solid block of time off to focus on self-care was really important for me. This is what came out of that.

Russom announced her coming out a little over a week before she's set to take the stage with LCD Soundsystem at Chicago's Pitchfork Music Festival, where the band will headline Friday night. Russom's first appearance since announcing her transition will come one day ahead of that slot: She'll perform a DJ gig on Thursday, July 13 at the monthly queer dance party Femme's Room, at Berlin in Chicago. They should both be celebrations to remember.