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Thrill yourself with the Dins rendition of Copacabana!
Watch the full version on YouTube to find out how the story ends!
This has all happened so quickly.
When I started getting fan art, I was like,Holy shit.
But its very meaningful, especially being who I am.
I really like that people are seeing a trans person in a cappella.
Copacabana sounds so jaunty, but the lyrics are pretty tragic.
Whats on your mind when youre singing it?
My music director, Carolyn Hao, really helped me through that.
Therewassomebody who sort of cornered me backstage as I was heading back to the greenroom.
She was like, Oh, what are you doing tonight?
You should come to a bar with me … a bar in my house.
Obviously, I did not go.
But pretty much everybody else has been really lovely, very respectful.
Hundreds of thousands of strangers are calling you attractive.
The word that I got a lot was pretty or cute.
And then I cut my hair, and with that came a lot of confidence.
That also changed the way that people perceive me; I started getting handsome or hot.
Theres gender politics we could get into there.
But its strange, its very flattering.
Its nice to know that people find me attractive, I guess?
Some people are very forward about it.
I think that sells my dad short a little bit.
I have three siblings, and he loves all of us.
Hes proud of the people that we are and the people that weve become.
And Im proud of him, I think hes a great dad.
Both of my parents are really lovely.
I treated TikTok much more as a video journal then.
Top surgery was such an important event for me, as it is for many trans people.
I really didnt want to forget any of it, so thats why I posted a lot about it.
After I blew up, I started posting about before and after my transition.
That was more because I think there can always be more trans creators and queer representation.
I want to empower people to be themselves.
For some trans people, their voice is a source of gender dysphoria.
As a singer, is that something that affects you?
The music director transposed it up a fourth so I could sing it.
But then, you know, effeminate man, child, effeminate man.
Its been very dysphoric.
I was sort of spiraling.
I dont want it to change, especially because I do want to go into theater and singing professionally.
If I take testosterone, its probably going to make me into a baritone or bass.
For a long time and low-key still, I dont really identify with the label.
And it wouldnt be a political statement.
