Medium Build is the queer country star you need to know

Queer country music may not always sit at the forefront of the cultural radar, but Nicholas Carpenter, better known as Medium Build, is an artist worth watching. Raised in an evangelical household, Carpenter says he was taught to “perform the act of existence” rather than present an unfiltered version of himself. Creating Medium Build became a way for him to be his true self, and this remains central to Carpenter’s music. 

His sound is warm, intimate and fun – imagine sitting around a campfire surrounded by loved ones, with nothing but the strum of a guitar and his lyrics floating through the air. Yet beneath the softness is a rawness that makes his music feel deeply personal. 

Second studio album King of Having Fun

Following the release of his breakthrough album Country in 2024, Carpenter hit rock bottom. He suffered from suicidal depression and stepped away from music in 2025. Now, his second studio album, King of Having Fun, due for release on 4 September, feels like a rebirth – a record shaped by collapse, healing and learning to embrace joy. 

Made alongside his closest collaborators, the album embraces a vulnerable rock ’n’ roll energy reminiscent of artists such as Orville Peck. One song in particular, ‘Bird Woman’, highlights Carpenter’s queerness through a personal lens. The track tells the story of Carpenter watching a woman do tai chi while he talks about a man who refuses to leave his wife for him. 

Love and conquest trickle through much of the record, perhaps most beautifully in King of Having Fun’s closing track, ‘Thank You, Cook’, with the lyrics: “When the love I learn from you/Becomes the love I give myself… I love myself, I am home/I don’t need anything.” And, listening to Medium Build, you can’t help but hope you feel it too.

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This interview appears in the September/October 2026 issue of Attitude, available on digital platforms and in print now.