I think the reason I've been so committed to advocacy is because I see so many people in pain.
Olly Alexander
My lyrics are about same-sex relationships, because that's who I am. It was important to me that I felt comfortable expressing myself.
Justin Tranter is an incredible queer voice in pop music and he's writing for Justin Bieber: it's genius.
I like how it presented this contradiction because traditionally gay people have been shut out from the church, so 'Sanctify' was claiming a bit of that back and saying, 'My sexuality is holy.'
School was like a hostile place. I just hated being at school. I think some people really thrive in that environment. I was a good student, but I just didn't enjoy school. I found it really tough.
When I was younger I thought that if you were famous and successful, it would mean that you just felt happy all the time. That you would become, like, this mystical creature that people just adored. And so you would adore yourself.
I think the word 'twink' is pejorative. There's something endemic about the gay community where we praise masculinity more than anything else.
I was never diagnosed with an eating disorder but I definitely had a difficult relationship with food.
Let's let our men be happy, be sad, be trans, be questioning, be bisexual, be non-conforming, be feminine, be masculine!
I'm a real left-winger. I fancy Jeremy Corbyn!
I was a fan of Belle and Sebastian. I didn't really know a lot of their music - I only knew the kind of bigger songs because I had a friend, when I was younger, who was really into them. But I have always really respected Belle and Sebastian for what they are, what they do. Yeah, they're just great.
If you're making something tangible, whether it's clothing, a song, a piece of art... when you create something that's outside of yourself you take a bit of the pain and it's released, you let it out a little bit. That's my Oprah Winfrey moment.
What's great about being gay is that you can celebrate all types of sexualities, because we understand that being queer means you might also be gender nonconforming or bi or whatever.
My mum's super Labour, and my gran. We all love Jeremy Corbyn in the family. Those are very deep roots and I feel like I could never not vote for Labour. Or I could never vote for the Tories because of that.
I love being alone.
You can't have a nuanced debate on Twitter, it's just people shouting.
I just listen to true-crime podcasts, do some weights and pretend I know what I'm doing.
I think music can be therapeutic and a really positive thing, but that seeing a therapist is the best form of therapy you can get.
The first artist I really loved was Stevie Wonder. That opened the doors to other soul singers like Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin.
For a long time - when we first started getting a much higher level of attention - I really struggled with feeling like I was letting people down. Because when you do a show, there are, like, a hundred fans waiting to see you afterwards, and sometimes you can't see them.
There was just this stage where I realised that people were listening to what I was saying and I could actually say something I believe in and, like... why wasn't I doing that? It's not because I think I have a responsibility as a pop star or whatever; it's because I think I have a responsibility as a human being.
I've done bits of writing for other people but when I'm writing music as Years & Years, I'm using my life and my stories and my experiences. I want it to be authentic and real but also to work as a pop song - I never want to just put in a cheesy line.
I've been writing a lot of songs about my personal life and identity. That can be a real healing process.
I don't know if there's ever a point where you go, 'Oh, I'm successful now. Look at all this great stuff I've done,' because I don't think it can be tangible in that way.
I get trolled. The usual stuff - sometimes it's homophobic, like gay hate.
Well, I moved around quite a lot so I was born in Yorkshire and then I moved to Blackpool, which is like North England.
We are traumatized by growing up in a world that doesn't really accept us. Obviously, we've made great leaps and bounds, but I think there's a tendency to force a narrative onto queer people that once you come out... you have to be really happy and really successful and proud all the time.
Most of the pop videos I've seen that have any male/female interaction are usually centered around a romance - and that's great, I am all for romance. But let's face it, there are a lot of other sexualities and identities that are well-deserving of some shiny pop video love.
Everyone has a different definition of what they find sexy, so why do we so often get given one version of what sexy is time and time again?
Pop music has a pretty good track record of embracing queer culture.
The word queer first started being used in the late 1980s by members of the community who wanted to reclaim something negative and turn it into a positive. It's still a painful word for some, and lots of people don't identify with it. But for me it's a helpful and empowering term that unifies an ever-growing community.
I can't play guitar well at all, so I had to learn that.
Blackpool is a hilarious place. It's kind of like the Las Vegas of the U.K. It's by the sea and there's a lot of casinos and resorts.
If you look at pop stars through the ages, we've had camp, glam popstars from the 80s - your George Michaels and what have you - but then people went back to the closet a bit, and became more homogenised and generic.
When I meet gay kids and they know who we are, I remember that's amazing because literally every gay person in every gay story I knew growing up was doomed to die. There weren't any positive gay stories and it's incredible that has changed.
So many queer people come out constantly for the rest of their lives, ya know? To the people they work with, to people in taxi cabs. Whatever it is, it isn't the one day.
I feel sorry for straight people.
I love TLC and Aaliyah and all those early-millennial R&B singers.
I would love it if less bands were hetero.
When I was a bit younger, I loved Rufus Wainwright - just the fact that he existed.
I want to feel sexy with the body I have.
Dating shows should exist for people who aren't straight. They're out there, there aren't enough of them. Whether you try and squeeze a format that already works into something else. I don't know.'
We can't police the way people express their sexuality.
I used to be scared of people thinking I was gay but now I'd be shocked if they didn't.
I get a real thrill for being 'overtly queer' in my aesthetic.
With anxiety and depression, what's been most helpful to me has been learning a toolbox - a set of skills I can use when I'm in periods of low mood or feel an anxiety attack coming on. When Years & Years took off it felt like I needed that toolbox really quickly.
I think there's strength in being honest and open about yourself and your struggles. But it can also be a challenge. This is my life, I live with my own mental health, and that is happening to me every day. I can talk about it from a position of 'Oh, I've done this' but I'm still living that existence.
I am obsessed with Matt Healy.
I want to do a song with Rihanna - we need to make that work.
I hear bands say they don't know what country they are in at times. Now I understand because we sleep at weird times and are always in different places - but I'm not moaning. It's all fun.
