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Flamy Grant

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Flamy Grant
Born
Matthew Blake Lovegood

May 1982 (age 44)
Asheville, NC
EducationAsheville Christian Academy, King College
GenreChristian music
OccupationsDrag queen, Christian singer, former worship leader

Flamy Grant, real name Matthew Blake Lovegood (born May 1982) is an American drag queen, Christian singer, and former worship leader. She[a][1][2] is best known for her Christian songs, for which she became the first drag performer to top the iTunes Christian charts. She has released three albums: one, Back As Far As We Can Go, prior to drag, and two, Bible Belt Baby and CHURCH, in drag. She has emphasized themes of religious deconstruction in her music. Her fourth album, Gloryhound, is set to release in Fall 2026.

Biography

[edit]

Grant was born in May 1982[3] in Asheville, North Carolina[4] as Matthew Blake Lovegood. They grew up in a family that was part of the Plymouth Brethren, and they wrote a Christian song for the first time at the age of 9. They began to realize their queer identity at a young age, between grades 3 and 4, and have stated that at that time they "worked extra hard to make it right."[5] They were elected student body chaplain at their Christian high school before attending King College, where they earned a BA in English emphasizing creative writing and theater.[2]

During their time in college, they founded a Christian band called "Eco Chamber", and came out as gay for the first time as a bandmate. They have recounted pointing at Romans 1 and stating that this is what they struggle with. They subsequently continued to discuss it as a "struggle" with friends before joining Exodus International, where they sought to "evaporate" their queerness. They went on to work as a church planter and as a worship leader.[5] They released their first album, Back As Far As We Can Go, in 2007.[6]

In 2010, they settled on the fact that they were, in fact, gay, and told their pastor, who was also their best friend. He immediately told them that they could no longer serve as a worship leader. By 2014, they had moved to another church in San Diego which was open to them being gay and were in a relationship with a man. In 2017, they launched a podcast called Heathens, focused on Christian deconstruction.[5]

Their first appearance in drag as Flamy Grant was in a video promoting Heathens during the 2020 COVID-19 epidemic, and they continued to appear in drag since. Several months later, they were invited to another church to lead worship in drag. Their post while preparing went viral, and they ultimately decided drag could be their career.[5] They took the name Flamy Grant in honor of Amy Grant, who they view as a personal hero,[7] and have stated that members of Amy Grant's orbit have been in touch with them and informed them that Amy is aware and supportive.[6] They collaborated with Jennifer Knapp, Derek Webb, and Semler.[7]

After a post of Webb, Knapp, Grant, and Plumb posing together was put up by Webb, they were mocked by vocally conservative and anti-LGBTQ+ singer Sean Feucht, who followed up by falsely asserting that drag queens shove "perversion" at children.[6] He also claimed she was "sick, twisted and yes demonic".[8] The four ultimately decided to use it to their advantage to garner attention, and Grant took to TikTok to try to rally her audience to prove Feucht wrong by getting her song "Good Day", a worship song which she had written in 2016, somewhere on the iTunes Christian Charts.[9] Within 24 hours, it had briefly hit No. 1, and the album to which it was the lead single, Bible Belt Baby, Grant's debut album as a drag queen, spent seven days topping the iTunes Christian Album Chart.[6] The album was described as having "the delicate yet powerful range of a worship band leader".[7] This made her the first drag performer to top the iTunes Christian Charts.[10] It included a cover of an Amy Grant song, Takes A Little Time.[11] In September of that same year, she left her day job to become a full-time singer-songwriter.[12]

She submitted that album for consideration to the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album, but it was recategorized to consideration in the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album without her knowledge.[13][14] The Recording Academy stated that this was due to profanity in the song, but Grant has claimed "suspicions" that "a drag queen in that (Christian) category would be too much".[15][16] She also stated that she "never expected to encounter religious gatekeeping at the Grammies."[17] She also chose to attend the Dove Awards that year despite the award's refusal to consider LGBTQ+ singers in the past and refusal to consider Grant, stating "I see value in taking up space in this world as a queer person" and asserting that she would bring "queer joy" to "our little corner of the room".[18]

Her album CHURCH appeared on the iTunes Country Charts in 2025.[10] The album discussed religious trauma, and was called a sign of "the end times" by a fellow Christian singer.[19] She has since frequently performed at churches, and has asserted in a year she performed at more than 40 different churches.[10] These church performances have had threats of protests, though the protests haven't always actually occurred.[20][21] Her songs have also been used at church worships.[22]

Her music largely includes themes of religious deconstruction and has been described as part "queer anthem", part "Christian worship song".[7] She is an exvangelical and has been described as "unexpectedly maternal".[23]

In 2023, she was nominated for a QueerX award for Best Drag Artist. In 2024, she was nominated for a Queerty Award for Drag Royalty. In 2025, she was nominated for Best Artist at the International Folk Music Awards, and at the same awards in 2026 she was nominated for Album of the Year.[24]

In 2023, she was a plaintiff in a case against the Blount County Police Chief and DA, who had sent a letter to a pride parade she was to perform at threatening prosecution if Grant or any other drag performers were to appear.[25] In 2026, she criticized gay rights activist Matthew Vines's op-ed, which claimed being gay "is not a rebellion against ordinary life", asserting "there is no such thing as an ordinary gay person" and "our subversion of social norms is our power".[26]

Her fourth album, Gloryhound, is set to be released in Fall 2026.[8]

Footnotes

[edit]
  1. ↑ Grant utilizes both they/them and she/her pronouns, principally using she/her when in drag and they/them when out of drag.

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Grant, Flamy (January 20, 2025). "I'm nonbinary and genderfluid, use they and she pronouns, and live a happy, full life in that reality". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  2. 1 2 "Flamy Grant". LGBTQ Religious Archives Network. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  3. ↑ Grant, Flamy (May 20, 2023). "Literally forgot it's my 41st birthday weekend 🤪🥳". Instagram. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  4. ↑ Arnaudin, Edwin (2024-07-10). "Interview: Flamy Grant". Asheville Stages. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Post, Kathryn (2023-08-16). "Flamy Grant: A drag queen's journey from church kid to chart-topping Christian artist". RNS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Daw, Stephen (2023-08-03). "Meet Flamy Grant, the Drag Queen Carving Out Her Own Lane in Christian Music". Billboard. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Hesse, Josiah (2023-08-13). "Meet the drag queen who hit No 1 on the Christian music charts – with help from a Trump ally". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  8. 1 2 Wakeman, Jessica (2026-06-30). "Small Town, Big Pride". The Assembly NC. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  9. ↑ Blistein, Jon (2023-08-01). "A MAGA Preacher Condemned a Drag Queen. Then Her Album Topped the Christian Charts". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  10. 1 2 3 Despres, Tricia (January 13, 2025). "Flamy Grant Is Playing Country Music in Churches: 'I'm Just Planting My Stiletto in the Sanctuary Now' (Exclusive)". People. Retrieved October 1, 2026.
  11. ↑ Gerhardt, Jessica. "Flamy Grant is the first drag queen to hit No. 1 on Christian music charts". National Catholic Reporter. National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  12. ↑ "Drag queen Flamy Grant tops Christian music chart: 'This is a huge moment'". TODAY.com. 2023-08-02. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  13. ↑ Millman, Ethan (2023-10-31). "A Christian Artist Sang 'Cock' on Their Album. The Grammys Bounced Them Out of Their Category". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  14. ↑ Factora, James (November 1, 2023). "The Grammys Cut Drag Queen Flamy Grant's Chart-Topping Album From Consideration for a Christian Music Category". Them. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  15. ↑ Russell, John (November 3, 2023). "The Grammys bumped this drag queen's album from the Christian category. She's got a lot to say". LGBTQ Nation. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  16. ↑ Jackson, Josh (October 30, 2023). "Drag Queen Flamy Grant Removed from "Contemporary Christian" Grammy Category". Paste Magazine. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  17. ↑ Daw, Stephen (2023-11-02). "Why Drag Artist Flamy Grant's Album Was Removed From the Grammys' Contemporary Christian Category". Billboard. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  18. ↑ Davis, Cynthia Vacca (2023-10-10). "Why will Semler and Flamy Grant attend the Dove Awards, where neither is accepted?". Baptist News Global. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  19. ↑ "Drag musician Flamy Grant discusses religious trauma with new album "Church"". The Independent Florida Alligator. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  20. ↑ Brusven, Sam; Morgan, Amaya (2026-02-01). "Drag queen Flamy Grant performs at First Baptist Church". Columbia Missourian. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  21. ↑ "Christian drag queen Flamy Grant with No. 1 album rebukes religious bigots' 'terrible theology'". EW.com. Archived from the original on 2025-01-20. Retrieved 2026-10-03.
  22. ↑ Orme, Maia (2026-02-01). "First Baptist Church in Columbia hosts Flamy Grant drag show, sets up lawn party". KRCG. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  23. ↑ Watson-Fore, McKenzie (December 2, 2025). "Singing the Newsboys with Flamy Grant". The Christian Century. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  24. ↑ "Ten Pound Fiddle: Flamy Grant". Michigan Public. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  25. ↑ "ACLU of Tennessee Files Appeal Brief to Protect Free Speech Rights of Blount County Pride". ACLU of Tennessee. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  26. ↑ Wingfield, Mark (2026-07-01). "Matthew Vines sets off a debate over what it means to be 'queer'". Baptist News Global. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
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