Darren Hayes will release his first-ever memoir in late 2024.
Penguin Books has acquired rights to publish the book by the singer, songwriter and former Savage Garden frontman, which arrives off the back of his solo comeback with his fifth album, ‘Homosexual‘, after a decade away.
“I’ve been secretly telling stories about my life, through my music, since the very first Savage Garden single,” Hayes said in a statement.
“Back then my innermost thoughts were shrouded in lyrical metaphor and deeply embedded within the visuals and stage costumes of a fantastical pop career. The reality of my life was much more complicated than the constraints of a 3-minute radio song would allow.
“Almost 30 years later I feel free for the first time in my life and so grateful to partner with Penguin to truly tell my authentic story.”
Alison Urquhart, Non-Fiction Publisher at Penguin, added she was “thrilled to bits” to be working with Hayes on the project.
“Darren and I have a mutual love of 80s pop music and gothic, twisted tales and he is a remarkable and natural storyteller,” she added. “I know that he will create something so special and a reflection of who he is both as an extraordinarily gifted artist and a remarkable human being.”
Last year, Darren appeared on the cover of RETROPOP and opened up about returning to music after a decade away, admitting that being a pop star is much more enjoyable now.
“My experience of being a pop star in the ‘90s was, ‘You’re fine as long as you’re not gay.’ You had all these boybands and teen heartthrobs but god forbid if you’re gay,” he explained. “It was incredibly suffocating and for me, as someone who was literally buried by a major label the minute I came out, it was incredibly stifling.”
The hitmaker added: “There was a huge pressure back then to ‘out’ people and the misconception about me is that I was in the closet, but nothing could have been further from the truth. I was out, I tried to be so much more out because I thought, if I just came out, it would solve all my problems.
“It took me a long time to have self-love and get rid of the toxic shame in the internalised homophobia that a lot of gay men have to go through to come out on the other side and love themselves. I was very depressed and had suicidal thoughts during that period and, had social media been around that time, I don’t know if I’d be here. It was a really tough time for me. I did as well as I could, I’m proud of the fact that I lived an authentic life and throughout my music, even during the Savage Garden days, I was really desperately trying and asking for help in my songs.”
Now, however, things are different, and it’s a relief for the superstar to return to the stage in 2022 and feel liberated to present his authentic self.
“It’s much more vibrant and liberating to be an artist today… I never fell out of love with music, I think it was the industry actually,” he believes, adding, “I’m sure a 23-year-old will listen to my story and be surprised there was a time when you couldn’t be gay.”
READ MORE: Darren Hayes: ‘The ‘90s was stifling – it’s much more liberating to be an artist today!’
