Dan Reynolds has opened up about why he chose to leave Mormonism.
The lead singer of rock band Imagine Dragons was candid about growing up in a “really conservative” Mormon family, and discussed his “complicated” relationship with religion in an interview with People.
“There’s obviously parts of the Mormon religion that I feel pretty strongly are harmful, especially to our gay youth,” admitted Reynolds, who founded LGBTQ+ focused non-profit LOVELOUD Foundation in 2017.
“At times I feel pretty isolated from my family, but I also love them and am close to them and see them, and there’s no animosity there. I’m on a different path.”
While the Radioactive singer shared that he “always struggled” with religion, it wasn’t until his 20s that Reynolds chose to leave the church. Up until that point, Reynolds had attended Brigham Young University and even served on a two-year mission in Nebraska.
“(I) saw a lot of the harm that came from it for me personally, but it also seemed to work incredibly well for my family, and they’re all healthy, happy individuals,” he said. “As I’ve gotten older, I’m not angry about it anymore. If something works for someone, that’s really wonderful and rare, and I don’t want to mess with it.”
While Reynolds’ family remains active in the church, he has chosen not to raise his children – daughters Arrow, 11, Gia and Coco, 7, and son Valentine, 4 – as Mormons.
Reynolds shares his four children with ex-wife Aja Volkman. The pair announced their split in April 2018 after seven years of marriage.
Imagine Dragons will kick off their Loom World Tour at the end of this month in North America. UK dates are in December.
