Singer Melissa Etheridge has said
coming out gay has helped her career.
The 51-year-old Etheridge, who came out
in 1993, discussed her coming out during an appearance on cabler E!'s
late night talk show Chelsea Lately.
“I was known [before I came out]. I
had three albums out, and they did okay. They did like a million,
which is great. And then I came out and that next album sold like
six, seven, eight, nine, ten million. So, I did okay,” Etheridge
told host Chelsea Handler.
“Actually, it's all just a publicity
stunt. I'm not really gay,” Etheridge joked.
She went on to explain that she
“learned the truth at 17” and found early success earning a
living singing in lesbian bars in Los Angeles, but when she signed to
a music label they did not promote her sexual orientation.
Etheridge added she decided to make a
formal announcement after an interviewer “changed all my pronouns
in the interview to my boyfriend.” (The video is embedded on this
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