GAAHL's 'Close Friend' Says Singer Is 'Saving Gay Youths' In Black Metal Scene By Coming Out

November 3, 2008

GORGOROTH frontman Gaahl's close friend, 20-year-old Norwegian modeling agent Dan DeVero, has told Bergensavisen (a.k.a. BA),the second largest newspaper in Bergen, Norway, that he is happy that the black metal singer has chosen to publicly speak about his sexual orientation.

"It's absolutely fantastic," DeVero said. "By coming out, Kristian [Gaahl's real name is Kristian Espedal] is saving a lot of gay youths in black metal circles. He is an idol for many young people in the world."

In an interview that was published in the latest issue of Germany's Rock Hard magazine, Gaahl, 33, spoke for the first time about his sexual orientation, stating, "It doesn't feel to me as if I've outed myself because up until now the whole thing was a non-issue for me. All this evolved very naturally. I feel how I feel and I've never made any secret about it."

DeVero told iBergen.no in a July 2008 interview that he had a "close relationship" with Gaahl. However, the 20-year-old is quoted as saying in yesterday's (November 2) edition of Bergensavisen that "Kristian and I were never romantically involved. We were never officially together, but we had something going on. Now I'm being threatened because I helped him to come out as gay."

According to DeVero, he has been receiving threats on a daily basis since Gaahl publicly spoke about his homosexuality. "People send me e-mails and some of them have even knocked on my door," DeVero said. "It is frightening and scary to see this kind of reaction when you are so young."

DeVero did not want to elaborate on the exact nature of the threats, but made it clear that they were related to Gaahl's decision to make his sexual orientation public.

According to DeVero, he and Gaahl are still good friends. They have also have also since become partners in an unlikely venture — a wholly Norwegian clothing collection for women dubbed Wynjo, which, according to Gaahl, is an ancient Norse word meaning "the search for happiness."

Dan DeVero:

Gaahl:

Gaahl with Dan DeVero (photo displayed from iBergen.no):

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