Country music duo Brothers Osborne’s TJ Osborne comes out as gay

Country music star TJ Osborne revealed in an interview with Time magazine on Wednesday that he is gay.

The 36-year-old singer of Brothers Osborne, a duet he started with his brother John, said he was “very comfortable being gay”, adding however: “I find myself being guarded not to wanting to talk about something that I personally have no problem with. It sounds so strange.

He was concerned that his coming out might seem opportunistic or attention-seeking, according to Time. “People will ask, ‘Why do we even have to talk about this? “And personally I agree with that,” he said. “But for me, going to an awards show with a man would be mind blowing to people. It wouldn’t be like, ‘Oh, cool!’

Someone in their career may have reservations about going out publicly because country music is often associated with conservatism. However, “the country is actually more complicated and more interesting than the mainstream caricature would like. There has always been a tension of protest alongside sentimental patriotism,” write historian and writer Jon Meacham and star of the country Tim McGraw in a 2019 editorial for Time.

Still, the country music industry has punished stars for sharing more liberal beliefs. When the Dixie Chicks (now The Chicks) critical George W. Bush and the 2003 Iraq War, fans urged radio stations to boycott their music.

And most of the states known for their breeding of country music stars are southern red states.

Osborne isn’t the first country star to go gay, however, according to Time, he’s the only openly gay artist signed to a major country label.

He told Time he didn’t think he would be kicked out of the limelight in a place like Chicago, “but in a rural town playing a county fair? I’m curious how that will turn out.” He also wondered if country music was popular among many gay people because they never had the chance to identify with it.

Osborne said he spoke to his brother and teammate in his 20s. “He was very open and frank about it, and I was moved, because my brother was finally able to be completely honest with me about who he was,” John told Time. “How many times in life do we hold back parts of ourselves and wish we didn’t?”

Regarding his brother’s public release, John said, “If I had to have all my money and my success wiped out to make my brother truly thrive in life, I wouldn’t even think about it. Not for a second. “

The brothers said they had made subtle messages about inclusion in their past work – for example, featuring gay and interracial couples in a music video for “Stay a Little Longer” – and it didn’t. always been well received.

People’s negative and sometimes offensive reactions put TJ off, but he ultimately decided to go out for himself and the men he dates. “Saying, ‘Hey, don’t hold my hand. Someone I know is here, so can you wait in the car? “Rightly so, they would feel unwanted by me,” he told Time.

Osborne is hoping his decision to exit opens up more creative possibilities. “I want to reach the top of my career by being completely who I am,” he said. “I mean, I am who I am, but I kept a part of me silent, and it choked.”