What can the lived experience of a white, nonbinary, queer musician tell us about the intersections of place, queer identity, and embodiment in the late 20th and early 21st century United States?

Raised in a conservative religious household in the Northeastern United States, singer songwriter and music professor Jessye DeSilva (they/them/theirs) narrates their journey from childhood, exploring how they navigated their adolescence and adulthood as a queer person, poet, musician, academic, and spiritual agnostic.

Traversing religious trauma, eating disorders and body dysmorphia, postsecondary education, and a mid-life return to the music industry, Jessye uses recollection, song lyric, and story to examine the intersections of place, queer identity, and embodiment in the late 20th and early 21st century United States.

Tackling themes of identity, isolation, relationships and self-image, this book is ideal reading for students of Queer and LGBT+ Studies, Gender Studies, American Studies, Psychology, Religious Studies, and Music.

Jessye Dylan DeSilva (they/them/theirs) is Assistant Professor of Voice at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee School of Music