89. S7, Ep9: ‘Outsider’ identities: the intertwining of gender, sexuality and autism

Kelly McCartney is a music journalist from Rhode Island, USA. She is 52 and self-diagnosed as autistic in April of 2022. She has turned a life-long special interest in music into an incredibly varied, 30-year career in almost every area of the music industry, including interning at Entertainment Tonight, working as personal assistant to various well known musicians, project managing independent artists, and hosting music podcasts and radio shows, including Record Bin Radio on Apple Music. In 2018, she co-founded the Rainey Day Fund, which provides assistance to BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled and other marginalised artists who add to the rich fabric of roots music. She is currently exploring a tangle of identities, being queer, genderqueer and autistic, and deep in discovery about which of her life-long quirks are actually autism. In our conversation we talk about: ➡ Trying to untangle her overlapping identities ➡ The challenges of romantic relationships, confrontation and sensory overload ➡ Alexithymia ➡ How she’s built her career out of her special interest, and adapted how she works to meet her autistic needs   Squarepeg is a podcast in which neurodivergent women, and trans and nonbinary people, explore navigating a neurotypical world and share their insights, challenges and successes. I hope that these conversations will be inspiring and thought provoking, open you up to new ways of thinking about being neurodivergent, and help you feel more connected to a worldwide community of people with similar experiences. I’m Amy Richards, and after being diagnosed autistic at the age of 37 I’m now on a mission to learn more about different perspectives and issues around being a neurodivergent adult in a world that feels like it doesn’t quite fit. EPISODE LINKS: Kelly’s radio show: http://apple.co/recordbinradio    Her website: https://www.kellymccartney.com   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kellymccartneyx/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/kellymccartneyx  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kellymccartneyx  If you'd like to connect or get in touch with Squarepeg, you can find me on: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squarepeg.community/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/squarepegautism  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/squarepegautism/  Or on my website: https://squarepeg.community/    THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS! A HUGE thank you to my amazing patrons, who support my work on the podcast: Abi Hunter, Abigail J Moore, Amy Adler, Amy-Beth Mellor, Anika Lacerte, Annette, Ben Davies, Caroline, Cat Preston, Catrin Green, Cindy Bailey, Clare Holmes, Corinne Cariad, Danielle Warby, Dawn Trevellion, Elizabeth Vezina, Elizabeth Williams, Felicia Libo, Galina, Gwyneth, Jackie Allen, Jeff Goldman, Jen Bartlett, Kate and Kathryn, Kate Faust, Katharine Richards, Katherine Lynch, Kenneth Knowles, Laura Battley, Lea Li, Leo Ricketts, Lilli Simmons, Lyb, Mandy Allen, MN, Pete Burke, Rebecca Kemp, Sarah Cottrell, Sarah Jeffery, Sarah Ivinson, Sarah Swanton, Sioned Wynn, Stephanie Murray, Suzanna Chen, Suzanne, Tammie Fabien, Tegan Bailey, Tessa Valyou, Tree Hall, Una Walkenhorst, Vic Wiener, Vicki Temple, Victoria Chang, Victoria Routledge, Wendy Walker, Zephyrine Craster and Zoe Lee. If you’re enjoying the Squarepeg podcast and would like to help me carry on making new episodes, you can become a member of the Squarepeg community on Patreon from £3 per month: https://www.patreon.com/squarepegpodcast