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Marlon Williams is many things: a member of the season 28 cast of MTV “Real World” in Portland, a preacher’s kid, and an aspiring rapper. But one thing the 25-year-old Texan wants to make clear that he’s not is homosexual.

No, the situation here isn’t that Marlon is effeminate and people are making assumptions about his sexual orientation. He’s actually had sex with a man before, but insists that doesn’t make him gay. He even goes further to say how one identifies themselves sexually doesn’t even matter anymore in this day and age. That was the crux of his recent interview with The Advocate, which asked him to clarify his dealings with men and the current status of his dating life. Here’s a bit of the Q&A.

The Advocate: OK, this is awkward. MTV tells us “Marlon has had intercourse with a man before and does identify with being bisexual. But he says that he is more attracted to women and doesn’t think he would be with a man again.” We could just take their word for it, but we’d rather you tell us yourself how you identify and why.

Marlon WIlliams: Well, I don’t consider myself bisexual, because I’m not sexually attracted to men. I did have sex with a man but my reasoning for it was different. It was in a hectic time of my life filled with fighting a lot of life battles. I was just making a lot of decisions that I would not normally make. At that time in my life the gay community embraced me, and it is one of those things that just happened. I have nothing against people who are bisexual or gay, but that is not my preference.

How do women react when you tell them?

That’s funny, because it’s not a part of my conversations with women. It hasn’t really come up with any of the females I’ve been involved with. Most women I’ve been interested in lately don’t even care. I mean, whatever your sexual orientation is who cares? If you’re happy that is all that matters.

You’re the son of a preacher and were raised with conservative values. Does that cause conflict for you in terms of your sexuality? 

Well, sex in any form is hard, because the beliefs of my parents say that you are supposed to wait for marriage. The big misconception used in religion is that some sin is worse than others. That isn’t true. All sin is equal. Therefore, anything I do that is sinful can be forgiven if I repent and make changes. My belief is that God forgives anybody who believes and wants a new start in life.

You also rap under the name Jay Dillinger. Is the world of rap as homophobic as it is rumored to be? How do you deal with that?

At the end of the day it’s about the music. Frank Ocean definitely showed that if you’re talented, then you can make it happen. Being a rapper isn’t all about the hardcore gangsta stuff all the time. So I feel there is room for any type of artist to make it. You just have to be good. Me, personally, I just ignore the hate. Who somebody goes home with is their business. What difference does it really make in the end? None.

Reactions to Marlon’s interview have been mixed, with one commenter noting:

“He says sexual orientation doesn’t matter anymore but he still labels himself as straight. Doesn’t that mean it still matters to him, at least enough to align himself with heterosexuality?”

On the flip side, another person commented:

“A one-time thing with a man doesn’t make him gay anymore than a one-time thing with a woman would, necessarily, make him ‘straight.’ When he says ‘sexuality doesn’t matter,’ I assume he means as far as he’s concerned. What stood out for me is when he says it’s not ‘part of the conversations’ he has with women. I expect that to now change once the show is on.”

I would expect that to change too, just as I would want a man who had been with another man to tell me so before we were involved sexually. While I agree that a one-time sexual encounter doesn’t necessarily change your entire sexual orientation, I do need to know if you’re going to be inclined to go down that path again should the wind blow that way.

What do you think about Marlon’s interview? Does he seem to be on the DL or is he offering up valid points?

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