Country singer-songwriter Cameron Hawthorn surprised fans last week by dropping a heartwarming music video reflecting his authentic self.

The retro-styled “Dancing in the Living Room,” above, shows couples of varying ages, races and genders swaying gently in time with the music. As the song reaches its climax, Hawthorn himself joins in, embracing his male partner tenderly before sharing a dance.

“I remember always thinking how special it was to dance freely with my boyfriend in the living room of our apartment — being gay, it’s not as easy to dance as a couple in public together as it is for a straight couple,” Hawthorn, who originally hails from Kansas, told The Advocate in an interview published March 8. “I wanted to express how special that moment is for a couple, when it’s just the two of you in the privacy of your own four walls.”

Though country music has traditionally been viewed as conservative, the genre boasts a small (but vocal) number of openly queer personalities like CMT host Cody Alan, as well as artists Chely Wright and Ty Herndon. Last fall, singer-songwriter Brandon Stansell recalled his own coming-out experience in “Hometown,” the video of which debuted to significant buzz on the country music network CMT.

“Dancing in the Living Room” is being touted as Hawthorn’s public coming-out moment, but he identified himself as gay in a November 2018 Instagram post after viewing the film “Boy Erased,” starring Nicole Kidman and Lucas Hedges.

“My journey getting here has taken many years and hasn’t been easy,” he wrote. “There has been a lot of confusion, doubt, heartbreak and pain along the way. But also a lot of freedom, openness, and love.”