Christina Aguilera saved Michael Anderson’s life. He finally got to say thank you.

Michael Anderson will never forget the moment he discovered Christina Aguilera.

As a gay child in an unwelcoming family, Anderson watched “The Voice,” for talented, LGBTQ+-affirming pop stars who became north stars in his life. First hearing the lyrics to Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful,” pulled Anderson out of the depressive episode that came with being a closeted gay child.

“When I discovered that song in my life, that’s what I needed to hear at that time because I was so alone and suffering and trying to accept myself in a very hostile environment for LGBTQ people,” Anderson said. “This may suck right now, being closeted and scared and afraid of going to hell and afraid of being kicked out of home, but one day, all of this will make me stronger, wiser and a fighter.”

Anderson had no idea being a “fighter,” as Aguilera’s fans call themselves, would take a literal meaning one day.

On Nov. 20, Anderson was working at Club Q — one of Colorado Springs’ two LGBTQ+ bars — when a gunman killed five people and injured more than 20 others in the attack. Anderson, the club’s director of operations, did not suffer gunshot wounds but said he left with several stress injuries and watched those around him fight for their lives.

In the months since the attack, Anderson has met President Joe Biden and testified to Congress, pushing for stricter gun laws and LGBTQ+ rights.

Anderson worked with the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) to coordinate speeches, testimonies and meetings. 

As he testified to Congress, Anderson quoted lyrics from Aguilera’s song “Beautiful.” She then sent flowers and a card to his door.

Nearly three months after his testimony to Congress, GLAAD representatives told Anderson they’d be awarding Aguilera with their Advocate for Change Award, an annual prize given to a famous ally of the LGBTQ+ community.

While on a Zoom call doing what he believed was confirming travel plans, Anderson learned Aguilera asked for him to deliver the award.

“It was like the best moment of my life,” Anderson said. “Truly, truly surreal.”

Anderson sat with Aguilera at the GLAAD event. Prior to delivering the award, he thanked her for the influence in his life and said “I hope I make you proud.”

“You already make me so proud,” she responded. 

“That gave me the confidence I needed to just go out there and do it and give it my all and represent my friends and Club Q in that capacity,” Anderson said. “It truly was the definition of a full-circle moment for me.”

Aguilera has long been a supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, before gay marriage was legalized in all 50 states and LGBTQ+ rights were supported by a majority of Americans.

"She has saved so many queer people’s lives because they, for once, heard music that affirmed them, told them they were beautiful and a fighter and they should trust their instincts,” Anderson said. “She’s put empowerment on the radar for me.”

Anderson attended a private, Christian school in his youth and said Aguilera’s music — particularly a music video featuring a transgender woman and a gay couple — introduced him to other options for his life.

“It was her rebel spirit and her willingness to go against the norm,” Anderson said. “She has passed on her fighter mentality and created fighters around the world.”

Alison Berg is a multimedia journalist at Rocky Mountain PBS and can be reached at alisonberg@rmpbs.org.