SYFY celebrates Pride Month, fandom, and finding 'your tribe' with performer Todrick Hall

As SYFY continues to celebrate Pride Month 2021, we asked creator and performer Todrick Hall to join in and share his thoughts on the value of fandom and how it brings people together.

"I think that being a part of a fandom is so cool because as human beings we are all so different, so I think everybody is just desperately searching for reasons and similarities... to unite each other," Hall shares. "Because at the end of the day, as human creatures, we want to feel like we are part of a community. I think fandoms do a really good job of bringing people together in that way."

Hall, a multi-hyphenate musician, actor, director, and choreographer, has never shied away from incorporating his identity as a queer Black man into his work, from his time on American Idol Season 9 to his international tours and time on Broadway. His brand new album Femuline (released June 8) — which includes the upbeat track "Parade," featured in the video short — is no different. Is it any wonder why Hall has garnered such a large following? Or should we say fandom?

Here at SYFY, we know a thing or two about finding community with our fellow fans. This is especially true of the fantasy and science fiction world, where we're not afraid to nerd out on the zanier things. Hall highlights this, explaining that "being a part of a fandom allows people to be their truest selves because I think that we're all secretly so weird, or we find these little rabbit holes of things that we love and appreciate and obsess over, and when you find people who are also strangely obsessed with the same things, it makes you feel slightly less crazy."

Credit: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Whether you're into the paranormal, the extraterrestrial, the superhuman, or just really good music, Hall is here to let you know there's something out there for everyone. Just lean into whatever it is that keeps you going. He gives a shout-out to his own fans that have kept his career booming: "I know that my fans have created a fandom, and they have formed a community and a family that is so unbreakable, it's really, truly tremendous to watch that happen, but it all happened organically."

Hall also highlights the importance of content that elevates diverse perspectives. "I think it's so important to include diversity in the stories we tell because I grew up loving fairy tales, but I was always very, very aware that there were no characters in those movies that looked like myself," he says.

The game-changer? "When I saw Brandy in Cinderella, I fell in love with that story, and it just really inspired me and let me see people in a different light," he explains. For Hall, it was a powerful moment of "realizing that people who look like me can also help tell these stories and realize that's a goal that they can accomplish, a dream that they can chase. All of those things have now opened my eyes to a world I never knew existed."

His advice to those still looking for the fandom where they belong?

"Just take your time, you'll find your tribe."