Raised in a “really conservative” family, the rocker went to Brigham Young University - where he first formed the band - and went on a mission for two years to Nebraska. In a new interview with People magazine, he opened up about his complex feelings about religion and why he chose to leave.
He told the outlet, “There’s obviously parts of the Mormon religion that I feel pretty strongly are harmful, especially to our gay youth.”
Reynolds, 36, founded the LOVELOUD Foundation in 2017 to support young LGBTQ+ people.
“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. I have to love myself enough to follow my truth.”
The singers says that while growing up, he “always struggled” with some of the aspects of the religion, and by his 20s and early 30s, he became “really angry” and felt as though he’d been “duped” by it.
He noted that while he felt it was harmful, many of his family members are thriving in it, and has let go of the anger as he’s got older. However, he has made the decision not to raise his children in the church. Reynolds shares daughters Arrow, 11, Gia and Coco, 7, and son Valentine, 4, with his ex-wife Aja Volkman.
Volkman, 44, initially converted to Mormonism so she and Reynolds could marry in the Mormon church. The couple separated in September 2022 and finalised the divorce this year.
Imagine Dragons: Ben McKee, Daniel Wayne Sermon, Dan Reynolds and Daniel Platzma.
“My greatest goal every day is to not manipulate my kids. I really don’t want to try to tell them what their spiritual path should be,” he told the magazine, adding, “I give them my thoughts and obviously try to protect them and take care of them, while also making sure they have freedom and agency to choose whatever they want.”
Reynolds is now in a relationship with Minka Kelly. The pair met through a mutual friend, and quickly grew close as the singer shared his songs with her, and she showed him drafts of her memoir Tell Me Everything, published in 2023.
Now, Reynolds says the relationship works because they both have “really good therapists” and that his kids “really love” Kelly.
