Dan Reynolds, frontman of the pop rock band Imagine Dragons, has opened up about his decision to leave the Mormon church.
The singer, who was brought up in a “really conservative” Mormon family and even served a two-year mission in Nebraska, has been vocal about his departure from the church, reports mirror.co.uk.
Talking to People magazine, he said: “There’s obviously parts of the Mormon religion that I feel pretty strongly are harmful, especially to our gay youth.”
He added: “I’m on a different path. I have to love myself enough to follow my truth.”
In 2018, Reynolds founded the LOVELOUD Foundation to support young LGBTQ+ individuals, stating that he has “always struggled” with religion.
Reflecting on his past, he said he spent his 20s and early 30s feeling “really angry” at religion, believing he’d been “duped” by the Mormon church.
He acknowledged: “I saw a lot of the harm that came from it for me personally, but it also seemed to work incredibly well for my family, and they’re all healthy, happy individuals.”
Reynolds is no longer angry about his religious past, saying: “As I’ve gotten older, I’m not angry about it anymore. If something works for someone, that’s really wonderful and rare, and I don’t want to mess with it.”