Don+: Hip Hop, Islam and The Golden Girls

Gay Music: In the Key of Q

In the Key of Q is a weekly podcast featuring Queer musicians from around the world as they share stories, inspirations and of course their music.

Don+ is an independent artist and writer who has been writing and making music since 2013. He gained recognition with his first EP Raw Rhythm and Words (Apple / Spotify), which debuted in the top 40 on the iTunes RnB charts.

He grew up in a house surrounded by music, from Luther Vandross to gospel and learned to make peace with the homophobia in some of Hip Hop. With loved artists such as R Kelly it was tough to separate the music from the man.

Christianity and Islam were highly influential, not an easy combo for a Black kid growing up in America's South. Despite attacks from many religious sides, he went on to find peace in his own sense of spirituality.

After testing HIV+ in what he thought was a monogamous relationship, Don+ took this news and ran with it. He became an advocate for people with HIV, giving lessons in schools to fight ignorance and stigma.

Additional Material

• Don+ on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube
• Don+ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram
• Advice for newly diagnosed HIV-positive people from THT.
• Managing being LGBTQ and Muslim.

If you enjoyed this episode why not take a listen to Blake Mundell.

In the Key of Q is a weekly podcast featuring inspiring Queer musicians from around the world as they share stories, inspirations and of course their music.

Theme tune is by Paul Leonidou and many thanks to Moray for his continued support.

The podcast can be reached on email with the main website here. Would you like to appear on the show? Or have an artist you'd like to recommend, please tell them to get in touch via email.

Presenter and Producer Dan Hall is a documentary producer / director, and his showreel can be found here.