Sting’s daughter Eliot Sumner on identifying as gender fluid and why she never came out
The musician has been in a relationship with model Lucie Von Alten for two years
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Sting’s daughter Eliot Sumner has discussed her gender identity and sexuality in an interview explaining why she eschews labelling either aspect of herself.
Sumner, 25, signed her first record deal at 17 and is releasing her new album, Information, in January 2016. She is also about to be named as the face of a major international brand.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, Sumner, who has also gone by the name Coco, described identifying as gender fluid, joining a number of stars including Ruby Rose who do not identify as exclusively male or female.The gender fluid movement has become increasingly visible in 2015, in part thanks to the high profile figures such as Miley Cyrus, the model Andreja Pejic, Jaden Smith and many others rejecting ‘boy/girl’ labels and stereotypically gendered dress.
Instead of identifying as either side of the gender binary, Sumner simply described herself as a “musician”.
“We should treat everybody the same," she said. "Me, I don’t like to be put down to a specific thing. We’re all human beings.”
Sumner echoed a similar sentiment to that shared by the gay actress Holland Taylor on coming out, who derided the expectation that gay or bisexual people should make a grand 'coming out' gesture.
"It's regarded as something people who are not mainstream have to do, Taylor told WYNC. "Watch me if you wanna see how I live."
Explaining she never ‘officially’ came out, Sumner said: “No one had ever asked”.
“They [my friends and family] knew already. So I didn’t need to. I’ve never come out to anyone. My friends always knew and I always knew."
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments