From director Don Argott, HBO Documentary Films and Live Nation Productions, the documentary Believer delves into the fact that the suicide rates in Utah, among members of the LGBTQ community, have skyrocketed since 2008, as a result of the Mormon church’s official stance on same-sex relationships. Looking inward at the affect these teachings were having on some of his own friends, Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds has decided to shine a spotlight on the culture he grew up in, in the hopes that through dialogue and conversation on a very human level, some changes can be made that will help save lives.

During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, Neon Trees frontman and openly gay former Mormon Tyler Glenn (who is also featured in the film) talked about how he got involved with this documentary, what it meant to him to have Dan Reynolds reach out to him, after the two crossed paths for a number of years, getting the LoveLoud festival to come together, mending fences with his own band members, and his hope that people will listen to others speak their truth. He also talked about what it’s been like to make his Broadway debut in Kinky Boots, and what’s next for Neon Trees. 

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Collider:  I thought this documentary was beautifully done, and I definitely appreciate you being so open, honest and vulnerable in this. I think it’s really so important and meaningful to put your story out there and have people hear it, who may think that they’re all alone when they’re not.

TYLER GLENN:  Thank you!

How  did you end up getting involved with this documentary? Was it just getting a phone call from Dan Reynolds (from Imagine Dragons)?

GLENN:  Yeah, it’s literally how it plays out in the film. I’ve known Dan for probably the last 15 years, but never really known him-known him. We both had bands in Utah, and both of our bands found success and we would run in the same circles. I know his brother pretty well. I know his wife very well. I’ve known his wife for a long time. We’ve always had personal connections, but when he saw me going through what I was going through, a couple years ago, with coming out, and then with leaving the church and being affected by all of that, I got a text from him, one day. He was reconciling his own faith and where he was at, and I think he found commonality in reaching out to me. I was really touched by it. I had no idea that him reaching out to me would spawn the film that it did and also LoveLoud, with the foundation and the festival. It’s wonderful. It’s wonderful that I have a friend like him. It’s really cool that this person that’s been in my life, but who I didn’t really know, I now know, in a personal way. I see his genuine heart, and I think that’s really neat. It’s been great that the platform that he has, he used to let me share my story the way that I did. That’s really cool. It’s felt very validating, after having been very painful and hard. That’s been really nice.

At the same time, you went into doing LoveLoud with the best of intentions, but it almost didn’t come together. Was there a moment of panic of, “Oh, god, we’re putting all of this time and energy and love into bringing people together, and yet we might not actually be able to bring everybody together”?

GLENN:  Yeah! It’s still crazy to think that it was only last year, last April, that this even all started. There were times where it was going to be way bigger and other artists were really excited about it, but then reality set in and it was really hard to put on that kind of event, where we were trying to put it on. It became this really grassroots, smaller thing. That day felt huge. I think what it has done is spawned this foundation now, where bigger artists are excited about it and more mainstream sponsors are excited about it. It feels incredible to see it go from this tiny labor of love to this really successful thing. It’s all steeped in trying to provide a safe space for LGBT kids. I think it’s one of the more pure things that I’ve been a part of, and that’s really exciting to me, as well.

I would imagine that any time you get on a stage in front of an audience, it must be a real rush and a real high that you get from the audience. Does you feel it even that much more, when you’re doing a show like this and it’s a part of something even bigger?

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Image via HBO

GLENN:  Yeah. My band has played Pride events, and I’ve felt personally emotional and validated when I would play those, as well. To bring up a point, half of my band is still active Mormons, and my leaving the Church and my public faith crisis really affected the band for awhile. That day, and playing that event, and playing for that crowd, locally, was really personally healing because there was a lot of fear when I left behind the Church. My band was really scared about how it would affect the band. To be able to play for a crowd of Mormons, ex-Mormons, gay Mormons, and LGBT Mormons, at an event like LoveLoud, was full circle. I finally felt validated. My bass player and my drummer, who really took it hard, we’ve had real, authentic talks since that and since seeing the documentary. I just feel validated, so in a personal way, it’s been really healing, too. It’s really cool.

There are tragic stories in this film, but there’s also a lot of hope. What do you hope that people take away from seeing this documentary? If you can't change the Church, do you at least hope that you can empower the individuals that are in it?

GLENN:  What I love about how the way Don Argott made this film is that Don had nothing in this fight. He’s not Mormon. He’s not particularly religious. Don was summoned by Dan to make this film, and the way that he’s presented it is so that you can just hear people’s stories and experiences. I think when you take the time to listen to someone else’s experience and someone else’s truth, you’re changed. I’ve seen that, in my own life. Ultimately, I hope that when people watch this, even if they’re uneasy about the topic or maybe anxious about how to reconcile this because they still believe or they’re still religious, watching someone tell their truth, in a pure way, is a way to change hearts and minds. I think we saw that through LoveLoud and the first concert we put on. I just hope that it pierces the right people to watch it. It’s less about accolades, for me, with the film. It’s more about getting it into the nooks and crannies of this nation and this culture and saying, “Hey, these are real things going on, and people that are like you are being affected.” I really hope that that’s the ultimate take away.

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Image via HBO

Hopefully it will at least help people who maybe don’t know how to even start the conversation.

GLENN:  There’s so much of that. Mormonism is the only point of reference that I have, but it’s like that within the organized religion of any culture. There’s not a lot of time where we just sit and talk and say, “Wait.” I think we’re often afraid to talk to each other and to really understand. Especially with the Mormon culture, we’re told to not dive too deeply into things that are hard to understand because God will figure it out, or we have the Prophet for that. Mormons are very smart, and hopefully watching this will prick their hearts.

You’ve also gotten to make your Broadway debut with Kinky Boots, which is awesome. What has that experience been like, getting to be a part of that show, in particular?

GLENN:  Not to beat the same emotional drum, but it’s been another healing part of my life. I haven’t acted as an adult, so that was its own challenge. But then, the show itself is so uplifting and pure, and it’s been amazing. It’s my seventh week, this week, doing performances. It’s been amazing to see how much of middle America comes to the show, or pockets of the nation that maybe have no idea what the show’s about, but they heard it’d be good, or it’s because it won a Tony, or something. To see them, by Act II, standing up and rejoicing because of a bunch of people in giant shiny boots is amazing. It’s a very gay show, if you think about it. It’s so wonderful to be a part of such a pure message like, let’s love each other. It’s simple, and it’s been really great to be a part of that. The company and the cast are so inclusive, too. It’s the real deal, and you can’t help but smile at the end of the night.

Was Broadway something you ever imagined yourself doing or had even considered doing?

GLENN:  There are people in my life that have said, “You should do that!,” or “You would be really great on Broadway,” or “Your voice is big, you should see about doing that.” But I don’t know if I ever really thought, “How do I go about doing that? Do I just do that?” Then, the opportunity came, and I auditioned and got the role. If you asked me, during rehearsals, if I thought I could do it, I would have said, “I probably should quit because I don’t feel like I’m cut out for this. Everyone is so great, and I’m just a band guy.” But it’s been wonderful to take the challenge, and then actually be good, or hear that I’m good at it is pretty exciting. I’ve definitely gotten the stage bug, so I don’t want this to just be a footnote. I’ve learned a lot. I play a straight British guy for two-and-a-half hours. That’s pretty cool.

What were you feeling, the first time you stepped onto the stage in front of the audience, and how did you feel, by the end of that first performance?

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Image via HBO

GLENN:  It was a pure two-and-a-half hour panic attack that had nothing to do with the normal stage fright stuff, like the crowd, but had everything to do with respecting the fact that the rest of the cast does this because they love it and it’s their life. I wanted to be just as good, or even better, and I wanted to remember all of my lines. By the end, it was just one of the happier nights of my life. Since then, it’s just been a learning experience and a joy. I’m sad that its’ going to be over in a month. I didn’t know if I would be. I thought ten weeks of this was gonna be enough, but it’s been a real joy to do this.

What would you say is next for you and your music career, especially once you finish your run with the show?

GLENN:  My band, Neon Trees, and I are back in a good place, this last year, and we’ve written a ton of music. I think the next juncture for us is finishing our record and getting back into it. I really miss being in my band. I really miss being on tour. I think there were a lot a necessary things, the last couple of years, that we all needed to figure out, personally and with the business side of things, but I think we’re all back in a really great place to start going again. For me, that would be the next priority. And like I said, I don’t want this Broadway experience to just be a footnote. I think there’s more to explore there, too.

Does the experience of Kinky Boots inspire you to try writing something like that, yourself?

GLENN:  Yeah, it really does. I caught the acting bug and I love that rush, and I also have a lot of ideas for music and a show, and I’ve made some contacts. I don’t know. I would love to do that. I’ve always had ideas for writing screenplays or writing a book, but it always felt like a thing I would do later in life. Right now, there are a lot of ideas, and you never know how long you have. I feel a kick in the ass to keep working on projects that I’ve always said, “Oh, maybe I’ll do that.” Now, I feel the urge to really just explore those things while I can.

Believer premieres on HBO on June 25th. For more information on the LoveLoud foundation, go to www.loveloudfest.com.