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By Joshua Eferighe

If you think the entertainment industry’s attitudes toward trans people aren’t changing, think again.

In September, Everlast, boxing’s industry leader, selected Patricio Manuel, the first transgender boxer to compete professionally, to sponsor its “Be First” ad campaign. In August, Victoria’s Secret hired Valentina Sampaio as its first transgender model. And in June, Pose star Indya Moore became Elle magazine’s first transgender cover star.

While trans women and men have been breaking through in industries from movies and television to fashion and sports, music remains an exception. Laura Jane of punk rock group Against Me! landed on the Billboard 200 in 2011, but that was before her transition. Lucas Silveira, lead singer of Canadian band the Cliks, became the first transgender lead singer to be signed to a major label, but he hasn’t made much noise since his signing, in 2007. Now, there are signs that the music landscape might be about to catch up.

English-born singer and producer Anohni was nominated for an Academy Award in 2016. Scottish record producer, singer and songwriter Sophie became the first trans artist nominated for a Grammy in the Best Dance/Electronic Album category for her debut LP, Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Inside, in 2018. After making music for Madonna, Charli XCX and Vince Staples for years, she is finally beginning to gain recognition in her own right. German pop singer Kim Petras, 27, is dominating streaming charts with 2.7 million monthly listeners on Spotify. Brazilian musician and drag queen Pabllo Vittar, who was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2018, is leading a band of gender-fluid singers making waves in the conservative South American country. And this year, 25-year-old Ryan Cassata won an American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers award. Read more via Ozy