As anyone who follows even one Instagay knows, late December is the one time of year where even Taylor Swift and SZA have to take a backseat to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas is You.”
Despite the plain and simple fact that the LGBTQ community loves a yuletide banger, it also feels like when it comes to the standards, Christmas can stand to get a little gayer.
Which is where Bryan Ruby comes in. A truly unique barrier-breaking hyphenate as an out gay professional baseball player, co-founder of the Proud to Be in Baseball advocacy group, and Country singer-songwriter, Ruby just dropped a brand new carol entitled “Christmas With You.”
It’s about longing to be with someone special during the holiday season and was written as a love letter to Ruby’s boyfriend, Max. That’s a universal sentiment for anyone who’s been away from their significant other during this time of year and, as Ruby explained, the lyrics were inspired by his career as an LGBTQ athlete.
“The song is written from personal experience. I wrote it while I was on the road for baseball and really missing my boyfriend,” he told Outsports, “He heard it way before the general public and in the time since I released the song publicly, people have been tagging me in their videos with the song.”
While baseball player and Country music artist are both dream jobs, both professions are also filled with years of struggle as aspiring athletes and singers try to climb the ladder of success. Outside of the playing field or the stage, there’s a lot of lonely downtime in hotel rooms in strange towns.
Ruby clearly drew on those feelings as inspiration. But while the pining for time with his boyfriend is clear, “Christmas With You” is also playful and never descends into being maudlin, thanks to the honesty and sometimes lighthearted touch of his lyrics.
The sentiments expressed in the ballad are universal, but Ruby emphasized that this is an LGBTQ Christmas carol by dedicating the song to Max. Additionally, the music video features a close-up of a rainbow heart ornament with the word “LOVE” on his Christmas tree.
Happily, Ruby has been pleased with the carol’s reception and the prospect of spending the holidays together with his boyfriend.
“It seems like it’s going over well,” said. “Here at home we’re enjoying some much needed downtime and getting ready to have a nice low-key Christmas.”
Sometimes the best way to ring in the holiday season is getting exactly what you wanted.
