Will Young says he was told to re-record Leave Right Now because he sounded 'too gay'

Pop singer came out as gay in 2002

(WireImage)

Will Young has claimed he was told to re-record his hit single "Leave Right Now" because he sounded "too gay" on the track.

The Pop Idol winner told The Telegraph he was made to record the song until record executives were happy with it.

Young, 39, came out as gay in 2002, shortly after his success on the first ever season of the TV singing competition. "Leave Right Now" hit the No.1 spot in the charts a year later.

"I didn't know at the time, but when I was recording 'Leave Right Now', someone at the record company said I 'sounded gay' and kept making me re-record the track," he said.

"There's a real flavour to homophobia and bigotry. It's really shaming. People don't understand the power of language."

Since 2015 Young has taken time away from recording music and recently starred in a touring production of Cabaret.

He also launched a successful podcast with Chris Sweeney, Homo Sapiens, which deals with issues facing the LGBT+ community and has hosted special guests including Jeremy Corbyn, Jack Monroe, and screenwriter Russell T Davies.