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What is something youve never told anyone else?
asked her co-writer Lily Mae Young at the time.
Well, Kiyoko responded, Ive never told any of my writing partners this, but Im gay.
Up until that point, no one had asked me.
Everything changed, she says.
Six years later, the 32-year-old singer is revisiting that moment with her debut novel,Girls Like Girls.
Girls Like Girlsis a continuation of the story you started telling in 2017 with the Girls Like Girlsmusic video.
What was it like building that out into a novel?It was a very long process.
That ended in heartbreak, but I wanted the video to end in hope.
What was it like revisiting those memories?It was very healing and therapeutic for me.
You know, Id fallen in love with my best friend and got my heart broken.
When Coley and Sonya go to have that first kiss all these things are real experiences that I had.
A lot of internal dialogue from Coley is from my journal.
Even though I knew who I was, I hadnt been able to put that in writing.
So you went through your old journals for the book?Absolutely.
I went on a whole deep dive.
That moment when Coley goes to get her jacket and gets denied, I have that whole memory verbatim.
The drama and the energy and the passion of that heartbreak in that moment were so real.
Her feelingsarevalid, and thereisa space for her to thrive, eventually, in her life.
Ive been trying to direct a feature for seven or so years.
Thats why I kind of pivoted to the novel because it just didnt happen.
So doing this novel was me being able to share the story and hopefully help people in the meantime.
You just wrapped yourPanoramatour earlier this month.
Prior to that, it had been four years since you were last on the road.
What was it like getting back out there?I was severely depressed on my last headlining tour.
It was all very unknown for me.
What was running through your mind during that interaction?I mean, it was a very intense day.
Ive always had a safe space at my shows, and Ive never had an undercover cop there.
It was very challenging to navigate because I feel very responsible to keep my community and people safe.
But also theres a fine line of the government trying to silence us.
So where is that line?
And how do you navigate that as an artist and an activist?
Youve describedPanoramaas a big-picture view of where you were at in your life and owning that.
You recently released the singleGreenlight.What direction do you feel youre headed in now?Im just following my heart.
I needed to manifest that ease to help me get to where I needed to be.
Ive been trying to process that and navigate that grief, and I realized how challenging that was.
I wrote the song to hopefully help others find peace in really challenging moments.
Thats kind of the sentiment of the song.
Art, music, any form of expression ignites hope because it makes you feel seen and less alone.
Art is imperative right now, especially during this extremely challenging time for our community.
My hope is that this book is able to help someone continue to believe in a brighter future.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
