I am proud to be gay, says pop star Ricky Martin

doesn't surprise me much but why did he keep it hidden?

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I am proud to be gay, says pop star Ricky Martin


The singer said writing his memoirs had helped him with his decision

Puerto Rican pop star Ricky Martin has announced he is gay, ending years of speculation over his sexuality.
Martin, who has sold more than 60 million albums, said in a statement on his website he was "proud to say" he was "a fortunate homosexual man".
He added that he had kept his sexuality hidden because advisers had told him coming out could hurt his career.
Martin's biggest hit is Livin' La Vida Loca - a 1999 single that reached number one in more than 20 countries.
The singer, who began his career in the 1980s with Puerto Rican boy band Menudo, also had hits with She Bangs and Shake Your Bon Bon.
Martin, who fathered two children with a surrogate mother two years ago, said his decision to write his memoirs had helped him to free "things that were too heavy to keep inside".



Ricky Martin statement
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"Not sharing with the world my entire truth" about his sexuality, he continued, had become "a self-fulfilling prophecy of sabotage".
Becoming a father, he went on, had convinced him "enough [was] enough" and that things "had to change".
"To keep living as I did... would be to indirectly diminish the glow that my kids where born with," he said in a posting written in both English and Spanish.
Martin had previously remained tight-lipped about his sexual orientation, refusing to answer interviewer Barbara Walters when she raised the topic in 2000.
In recent years the singer has become an advocate for children's charities, setting up his own foundation against human trafficking.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8594121.stm

but why did he keep it hidden?

For the same reason as Liberace,his fan base consisted mostly of women and teenage girls and many of them,even most liberal ones are not that liberal when it comes to sexual orientation of their idol and it usually affects album sales and profits for the managers,also it should be noted that the article itself mentions that it were his advisors who urged him not to come out.

Originally Posted by Salvatorel

For the same reason as Liberace,his fan base consisted mostly of women and teenage girls and many of them,even most liberal ones are not that liberal when it comes to sexual orientation of their idol and it usually affects album sales and profits for the managers,also it should be noted that the article itself mentions that it were his advisors who urged him not to come out.

well I was never a big fan of him anyway so I couldn't care less about what his fans would think

Originally Posted by Salvatorel

For the same reason as Liberace,his fan base consisted mostly of women and teenage girls and many of them,even most liberal ones are not that liberal when it comes to sexual orientation of their idol and it usually affects album sales and profits for the managers,also it should be noted that the article itself mentions that it were his advisors who urged him not to come out.

This is sort of true. But you sort of miss the point, it's not because even the most liberal ones aren't accepting of his orientation-- it's usually because all these silly girls like to picture themselves with their favorite movie star/pop singer/rock star etc. If he's gay, they can't picture that the same way. It's the same reason publicists often tell budding stars to appear available and not in a relationship.

Originally Posted by Captain Jin

This is sort of true. But you sort of miss the point, it's not because even the most liberal ones aren't accepting of his orientation-- it's usually because all these silly girls like to picture themselves with their favorite movie star/pop singer/rock star etc. If he's gay, they can't picture that the same way. It's the same reason publicists often tell budding stars to appear available and not in a relationship.

lol teenage girls are so gay.

Originally Posted by Thorn777

lol teenage girls are so gay.

Agreed. Just look at all the girls that go ape over Twilight.

How surprising.

Originally Posted by Justinian

How surprising.

my sentiment too when I read this

reminds me of that R-Kelly song "Come out of the closet"

Originally Posted by davide.cool

the most overrated singer ever

too true man

He bangs..he bangs...

the most overrated singer ever

Originally Posted by davide.cool

the most overrated singer ever

Is he?

ok he had some big hit songs but was never really acclaimed or anything of the sort.

Shouldn't someone be widely highly regarded to be overrated? It seems to me he was always seen as what he is, a successful international pop singer, nothing more.

Yes, because with his music he gave life to the Latin explosion in the 90's

And that's bad because you don't like latin music or that it was an unimportant trend in music?

Originally Posted by Louis Lux

And that's bad because you don't like latin music or that it was an unimportant trend in music?

It's bad because it gave us J lo

Good for him I guess.

good for him
who cares, he's a nobody now

Oh..... my world no longer makes sense.....

Next thing you'll be telling me is that he's Puerto Rican or something,

wow, that just hit me in the face like bag of hammers. You think you know someone.....

I don't like generalization but I think that even if they are more prone to talk to and relate to gays, women are generally be more against them than men(in the deep ethical discussion). At least that's how I see it working in a large part of Latin America.

That's probably the main reason why Ricky didn't say it until now, however I'm glad that he came out. It's going to do him so much better personally when he realizes that most people will say, 'OK dude it's alright we don't hate you'.