Michael Passons, a founding member of Grammy-nominated Christian group Avalon, says he was kicked out for being gay.
“Avalon showed up at my house and told me I was no longer in the group,” he said of his 2003 termination. “And it was all because of who I am.”
At the time, fans were told Passons was leaving Avalon “to seek out new opportunities in his music career.”
Speaking to Josh Skinner on the Jonah and the Whale podcast, Passons said before giving him the boot, the group made him attend “conversion therapy” sessions.
“I was required to drive a couple hours every week to see this person in Chattanooga,” he recalled. "It was basically someone sitting there listening to me speak and looking like they felt really sorry for me. [I was thinking] 'Is this all there is? Do you have an answer? Do you have a cure? Let's speed this up.' I knew, of course, they didn't but I was trying to play along.
“After a month I said, 'I'm not going back to that guy, let the chips fall where they fall. I'm not going back.' It wasn't long after that.”
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Passons said he knew his sexuality was not accepted in the Christian music community. “I knew if I were honest, I would lose my career, I would lose many things,” he said, “and I did end up losing all those things I feared I would.”
Passons, now 54, only recently came out to his family. “I’m glad things worked out the way they did,” he said.
Avalon debuted in 1995 and was nominated for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album in 2000, 2001 and 2004. The group was named Favourite Contemporary Inspirational Artist at the 2003 American Music Awards.