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Number 98 |   Jason Collins: The Courage To Live Out Loud

The trailblazing NBA player who changed professional sports by coming out—and left a legacy of courage, authenticity, and LGBTQ+ visibility.

Episode 98 carries special meaning.

Jason Collins wore No. 98 as a quiet tribute to Matthew Shepard, whose 1998 murder became a defining moment in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ violence, and to The Trevor Project, which was founded that same year. Long before Collins was ready to tell the world he was gay, the number allowed him to carry a private truth onto the basketball court.

Born alongside his identical twin brother, Jarron, Jason grew from a talented California basketball player into a Stanford standout and a respected 13-year NBA veteran. He played for six franchises, appeared in two NBA Finals and built a reputation as a physical, selfless teammate who understood that not every meaningful contribution appears in a box score.

But throughout most of his career, Jason was carrying something his teammates and fans could not see.

In April 2013, Collins told his story in a groundbreaking first-person Sports Illustrated essay. By coming out publicly while still pursuing his NBA career, he became the first active male athlete in one of North America’s four major professional team sports to do so. When he later took the court for the Brooklyn Nets, he became the first openly gay player to compete in one of those leagues.

This episode explores more than a historic first. It is a deeply human story about the exhaustion of hiding, the fear of disappointing people you love, the freedom that comes with telling the truth and the difference one person can make simply by refusing to disappear.

Jason’s influence continued long after his final NBA game. As an NBA Cares ambassador and advocate for LGBTQ+ inclusion in sports, he helped make locker rooms, arenas and communities more welcoming for the people who would follow him.

Jason Collins died in May 2026 at age 47 after living with glioblastoma. Later that year, he was posthumously selected to receive the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage—an honor recognizing a legacy that extended far beyond basketball.

Jason did not set out to become a symbol. He wanted to live honestly. In doing so, he gave countless other people permission to imagine that they could do the same.

This is the story of Jason Collins: basketball player, brother, husband, advocate and barrier-breaker.

References and further reading

• Jason Collins’s groundbreaking first-person essay in Sports Illustrated
• NBA: Jason Collins passes away after a valiant fight with glioblastoma
• NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s statement on Jason Collins’s legacy
• Stanford Athletics remembers Jason Collins
• The story behind No. 98 from the Matthew Shepard Foundation
• Jason Collins and the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage

Music credits

Music featured in this episode was sourced through Uppbeat:

• “1st Class” — Mountaineer
• “Beginnings” — MonoBox
• “Big Dreams” — Simon Folwar
• “Broken” — David Bullard
• “Hope Is Alive” — Infraction
• “Lonely Mountains” — Monument Music
• “Movement” — MonoBox
• “Pieces of Light” — Tobias Voigt
• “Sunset in Junipero” — bách.

Sound credits

• “Basketball Practice” — amthomas101, Freesound
• “Small Applause” — sclolex, Freesound
• “High School Basketball Game with Crowd Noise” — blurry_bear, Freesound
• “Basketball Game Crowd Ambience” — GFX Sounds
• “Newborn Baby Crying” — freesound_community, Pixabay
• “Little Baby Crying, Newborn, Infant Cries” — nematoki, Pixabay

Sound effects are used under their respective platform licenses.

Content note: This episode discusses homophobia, anti-LGBTQ+ violence, cancer and death.

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Happy 9-2-5 Day! Here is a gift bonus episode for all those who loved Dolly Parton.

Dolly Parton Tribute: Music, Memories & LGBTQ+ Allyship

Listen to Dolly Parton’s “Here You Come Again” on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/track/6H7nDglS6xWpRidbhMwI2L

I heard Dolly Parton before I knew who Dolly Parton was.

I was riding to kindergarten when “Here You Come Again” came through the car radio. I didn’t know her name yet—I just knew that when the song ended, I wanted to hear it again. A few years later, I was standing in front of a mirror lip-syncing “9 to 5” like I was Dolly. Looking back, some of the clues about me were less subtle than others.

This episode is my personal tribute to Dolly Parton—not only the country music legend covered in rhinestones, but the woman whose humor, Christian faith and acceptance of LGBTQ+ people made a gay kid from a conservative evangelical world feel safe.

I talk about Dolly’s declaration that “people are people,” the time she entered a Dolly Parton look-alike contest at a gay bar and lost to the drag queens, and “Travelin’ Thru,” the song she wrote for the transgender-centered film Transamerica. I also share why her understanding of God, family and belonging meant so much to me as I faced estrangement from my own mother, married Troy and learned the important difference between receiving permission and being truly accepted.

This is an episode about Dolly Parton’s LGBTQ+ allyship, grief, faith, family and the people who help us believe we were already somebody worth loving.

The world may feel less sparkly without Dolly—but she left us the rhinestones.

References and further listening

• Dolly Parton’s 1984 interview with Andy Warhol and Maura Moynihan:
https://www.interviewmagazine.com/culture/new-again-dolly-parton

• Dolly discusses her gay fans and losing a drag look-alike contest:
https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/dolly-parton-gay-rumors-losing-drag-queen-alike-17812138

• The Associated Press on Dolly’s Christian faith and acceptance of LGBTQ+ people:
https://apnews.com/article/6c8d0046b90ef8490ebe1233aeb69008

• The Academy Awards listing for “Travelin’ Thru” from Transamerica:
https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2006/T

• Official memorial announcement from Dolly Parton’s family:
https://www.dollyparton.com/news/official-announcement-dolly-parton-passes-away-at-80

• Celebrity tributes, including Kacey Musgraves:
https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/dolly-parton-dead-80-celebrities-react-country-music/story?id=135946115

• Sally Field and Reba McEntire’s Emmy Awards tribute:
https://www.televisionacademy.com/video/dolly-parton-tribute-78th-emmy-awards

• Miley Cyrus’s tribute to her godmother:
https://pitchfork.com/story/miley-cyrus-pays-tribute-to-godmother-dolly-parton-i-have-an-angel-by-my-side/

• Dolly Parton’s 2018 Library of Congress interview:
https://www.loc.gov/item/2021690731/

Music credits

• “Morning Mandolin” — Chris Haugen
YouTube Audio Library
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0bxY-vPuYU

• “Photographs” — The Lakes
Licensed through Uppbeat
https://uppbeat.io/contributors/the-lakes

• “Steadfast” — The Lakes
Licensed through Uppbeat
https://uppbeat.io/contributors/the-lakes

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Faith, Sexuality, and the Change at CenterPeace

Sally Gary spent years helping LGBTQ Christians find a place in the church. But what happened when the founder of CenterPeace changed her own beliefs about same-sex marriage?

In this episode of The Secret Is OUT, host Stan Stadig tells Sally’s story—from her Church of Christ upbringing and years at Abilene Christian University to coming out, building a ministry, and finding love with Karen Keen.

For fourteen years, CenterPeace made room for honest conversations about faith and sexuality while maintaining a traditional Christian view of marriage. Sally believed that view herself. She lived it, wrote about it, and became someone conservative churches trusted.

Then years of listening, studying Scripture, and facing her own loneliness brought her somewhere she hadn’t expected. In October 2020, she told her own conference that she had become affirming of same-sex marriage. Then she introduced the woman she planned to marry.

Throughout the shift, Sally still loved the people and places that had shaped her. Changing her mind meant risking those relationships. It also meant imagining a life she had spent decades believing was unavailable to her.

Along the way, I share some of my own experience with trying to explain—and change—my sexuality. Sally’s story raises questions many of us know personally: Can I be gay and Christian? What happens when my understanding of Scripture changes? Will the people who love me still make room for me?

In this episode

• Sally Gary’s upbringing in the Churches of Christ and connection to Abilene Christian University.
• Coming out privately, then speaking publicly at ACU.
• Why Sally founded CenterPeace for LGBTQ Christians and their families.
• Celibacy, loneliness, and reconsidering beliefs about same-sex marriage.
• Her relationship with biblical scholar Karen Keen.
• The 2020 announcement that changed CenterPeace.
• Finding belonging while staying connected to Christian faith.

Written and narrated by Stan Stadig. This is a narrated account of Sally Gary’s story, drawing on her public statements, writing, and published interviews.

Content note: Discussion of suicidal thoughts, family abuse, religious rejection, attempts to change sexual orientation, and long-term isolation.

For further info on Sally Gary, CenterPeace, and the 2026 Conference:

Visit centerpeace.net to learn about the upcoming 20th Anniversary Conference as well as the ministry, LGBTQ Christian community, retreats, and support for families.

The 2026 CenterPeace Conference takes place October 15–17 in Dallas, at First United Methodist Church of Dallas. Visit the conference information and registration page for speakers, workshops, and the schedule.

Explore more:

• CenterPeace resources on faith and sexuality
• Support for parents of LGBTQ children
• Loves God, Likes Girls documentary
• Sally’s memoir, Affirming: A Memoir of Faith, Sexuality, and Staying in the Church

Support and community

If this episode brings up thoughts of suicide or you need immediate emotional support, call or text 988 in the United States or Canada.

For support around faith and sexuality, CenterPeace offers community for LGBTQ people, their families, and church leaders.

Music credits

With thanks to the musicians whose work helps tell this story:

• Aakash Gandhi: “Invisible Beauty”; “Liquid Time”
• Asher Fulero: “Hopeful Freedom”
• Dan Lebowitz: “Take Your Time”
• Esther Abrami: “No.2 Remembering Her”
• Joel Cummins: “Resolve”
• JR Tundra: “Red Hot Son”
• The Mini Vandals: “City of the Wolf”
• Wayne Jones: “A Quiet Thought”; “Touching Moment”
• Zachariah Hickman: “Leaning On the Everlasting Arms”
• TunePocket Exclusive: “All Hayle To The Dayes (Modern Pop Ballad)”
• Chris Zabriskie: “The Temperature of the Air on the Bow of the Kaleetan”, available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Mixed beneath narration and processed as part of the episode soundtrack.

Additional audio credits: “Esperanza” by bmangelo; microphone feedback and tapping by freqman; road and busy-room ambience by breviceps; small-group conversation ambience by neilraouf; car-door and engine audio by nematoki; and Zoom connection audio by rachelribeiro71.

References and further reading

• Sally Gary: “Still One of You”, CenterPeace Conference, October 23, 2020.
• Mark Wingfield: “Meet Sally Gary, the Churches of Christ advocate for gay Christians”, Baptist News Global, March 25, 2021.
• Sally Gary: “Coming Out. A Quarter of a Century Later.”, December 16, 2021.
• Sally Gary: “My Response to ACU’s Holy Sexuality Week”, November 26, 2023.
• Sally Gary and James Gorman: “Interview #12 — Sally Gary”, Abilene Christian University’s Churches of Christ in the 21st Century Oral History Project, September 6, 2022.
• Eerdmans: “Five Questions with Sally Gary”, February 23, 2021.
• Nicola Menzie: “‘Loves God, Likes Girls’ Author Talks Myths Christians Believe About Same-Sex Attraction”, The Christian Post, July 12, 2013.
• The Christian Chronicle: “Review: Authors offer insights on same-sex attraction, faith”, 2013.
• Karen R. Keen: “Will You Meet Me at CenterPeace?”, September 5, 2024.
• Guy Hammond: Response to Sally Gary’s announcement, Renew.org. Included as the non-affirming perspective discussed in the episode.
• Sally Gary: Loves God, Likes Girls: A Memoir. Leafwood Publishers, 2013.
• Sally Gary: Affirming: A Memoir of Faith, Sexuality, and Staying in the Church. Eerdmans, 2021.
• CenterPeace: Mission, history, and current programs.

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Not Broken | Michael Passons
 The Christian Singer from Avalon Who Refused Conversion Therapy and Found His Voice Again

In 2003, Michael Passons was called into a meeting with the other members of Avalon, one of the biggest groups in contemporary Christian music. By the time it ended, he no longer had a job.

The public was told Michael had left to pursue a solo career. The truth was much harder: he was gay, his bandmates knew it, and he had refused to enter conversion therapy.

Michael had spent eight years helping Avalon earn gold records, Dove Awards, Grammy nominations and twenty number-one Christian radio singles. Then he seemingly disappeared. Behind the silence was a man trying to rebuild his life after losing his career, his community and nearly everything he thought made him valuable.

This episode follows Michael from his childhood in Yazoo City, Mississippi, to the height of Christian music fame—and into the Nashville living room where it all came apart. It also traces the long road back: coming out publicly, returning to music and reclaiming “Testify to Love” as the inclusive anthem its words had always promised it could be.

Michael Passons was never broken. But it took him more than twenty years to stop living as though he needed to be fixed.

Content advisory: This episode includes discussion of conversion therapy, religious rejection and  depression.

References and further reading

• Michael Passons Breaks Silence: His Truth About Avalon, Christian Music & 20-Year Return — The Patrick Custer Show

• Former Avalon Singer on Coming Out, Getting Ousted and Where He Is Today — Washington Blade

• A ’90s Christian Hit Song Is Now Blooming as a Queer Anthem — Sojourners

• Testifying to Love: An Interview with Michael Passons, Ty Herndon and Melissa Greene — Unbound

• Pushed Out of Christian Pop, Michael Passons Reclaims an Old Hit as an Affirming Anthem — WPLN News

• Michael Passons: Official Biography

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Antes de vivir la vida loca, Ricky Martin tuvo que aprender a sobrevivir la vida privada.

En la cima de su fama, Ricky Martin era uno de los hombres más famosos y deseados del mundo. Pero detrás de la música, los pantalones de cuero y la imagen cuidadosamente construida había un hombre gay que cargaba con vergüenza religiosa, homofobia internalizada y el temor de que decir la verdad pudiera costarle todo.

En este episodio de The Secret Is OUT, Stan Stadig recorre la vida de Ricky: desde su infancia como monaguillo católico en Puerto Rico y sus años en Menudo hasta convertirse en una superestrella internacional de la música latina.

Revisitamos el fenómeno de “Livin’ la Vida Loca”, la invasiva entrevista de Barbara Walters que lo hizo sentirse violado y las fuerzas que lo mantuvieron dentro del clóset: la fe, el machismo latino, la fama, la sexualidad y una industria que lo vendía como una fantasía para las mujeres.

También exploramos cómo la paternidad, la espiritualidad y la escritura de sus memorias ayudaron a Ricky a aceptar su identidad, y por qué su salida del clóset en 2010 se convirtió en un momento importante para la comunidad LGBTQ+.

Stan también comparte lo que significó presenciar el ascenso de Ricky siendo él mismo un cristiano gay profundamente encerrado en el clóset y con, digamos, un lugar especial en su corazón para los hombres latinos.

Esta no es solamente la historia de una celebridad que salió del clóset. Es una historia sobre el precio de vivir ocultando la verdad y la libertad que se vuelve posible cuando finalmente somos nosotros quienes decidimos contarla.

Aviso de contenido: Este episodio incluye conversaciones sobre trauma religioso, homofobia internalizada, preguntas invasivas de los medios y el costo emocional de permanecer en el clóset.

https://www.rickymartinfoundation.org/es/

REFERENCIAS DE PRODUCCIÓN Y NOTAS DE VERIFICACIÓN

FUENTES NARRATIVAS PRINCIPALES

[1] Recording Academy. “Mira la histórica interpretación de ‘La Copa de la Vida’ de Ricky Martin en los premios Grammy de 1999”.

https://www.grammy.com/video/ricky-martin-la-copa-de-la-vida-the-cup-of-life-grammys-performance-1999-latin-explosion-rewind/

[2] Billboard. “Ricky Martin vivía a lo grande en la cima del Hot 100”.

https://www.billboard.com/pro/ricky-martin-livin-la-vida-loca-this-week-in-billboard-chart-history-1999/

[3] ABC News. “Ricky Martin reflexiona sobre no haber estado preparado para salir del clóset como gay”. 2 de junio de 2021.

https://abcnews.com/GMA/Culture/ricky-martin-reflects-ready-gay-amazing-felt/story?id=78048493

[4] Kira Cochrane, The Guardian. “Ricky Martin: ‘Odiaba que la gente intentara obligarme a salir del clóset’”. 3 de julio de 2011.

Fuente principal en primera persona sobre su atracción durante la infancia, la enseñanza católica, Menudo, sus relaciones, la espiritualidad, la entrevista con Barbara Walters, la paternidad y la reacción pública a su salida del clóset.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/jul/03/ricky-martin-hated-force-come-out

[5] Hollywood Walk of Fame. “Ricky Martin”.

https://walkoffame.com/ricky-martin/

[6] Alex Frank, GQ. “El renacimiento de Ricky Martin”. 22 de febrero de 2024.

https://www.gq.com/story/the-rebirth-of-ricky-martin

[7] Jack Irvin, People. “Ricky Martin recuerda cómo su padre lo animó a salir públicamente del clóset”. 21 de marzo de 2024.

https://people.com/ricky-martin-dad-encouraged-him-to-publicly-come-out-gay-8612945

[8] Jason Sheeler, People. “Ricky Martin ya no quiere ocultar quién es”. 2 de junio de 2021.

https://people.com/music/ricky-martin-wont-hide-anymore-man-with-no-secrets-pride-cover/

[9] The Guardian. “Ricky Martin: ‘Creía que la homosexualidad era algo malo’”. 6 de mayo de 2011.

El artículo recoge la declaración de Martin de que la cultura, la religión y la sociedad le enseñaron a interpretar su sexualidad como algo malo.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/may/06/ricky-martin-homosexuality

[10] Billboard. “Los éxitos de Ricky Martin en el Hot 100”.

https://www.billboard.com/music/latin/ricky-martin-hot-100-hits-7632412/

[11] Entertainment Tonight. “Ricky Martin recuerda la ‘incómoda’ entrevista con Barbara Walters”. 10 de abril de 2018.

https://www.etonline.com/ricky-martin-recalls-uncomfortable-barbara-walters-interview-about-his-sexuality-100035

[12] Fundación Ricky Martin. Descripción oficial de su misión y sus programas.

https://www.rickymartinfoundation.org/en/

[13] UNICEF. “Ricky Martin”.

https://www.unicef.org/goodwill-ambassadors/ricky-martin

[14] Ricky Martin. Me. Celebra, 2010.

Memorias autobiográficas utilizadas como fuente primaria. Página de la editorial e información de la edición:

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/309139/me-by-ricky-martin/

[15] Aaron Hicklin, Out. “Out100 2010: Ricky Martin”. 9 de noviembre de 2010.

https://www.out.com/out-exclusives/out100-2010/2010/11/09/out-100-ricky-martin

[16] ABC News. “Ricky Martin sale del clóset: ‘Soy un hombre homosexual afortunado’”. 29 de marzo de 2010.

https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/ricky-martin-fortunate-homosexual-man/story?id=10234454

[17] Oprah.com. “Ricky Martin habla sobre su salida del clóset”. 2 de noviembre de 2010.

https://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/ricky-martin-on-coming-out

[18] People. “Ricky Martin y Jwan Yosef se divorcian después de seis años de matrimonio”. 6 de julio de 2023.

https://people.com/ricky-martin-jwan-yosef-divorcing-exclusive-7557212

[19] Reuters. “Ricky Martin y el DJ brasileño Pedro Sampaio actuarán en el espectáculo de medio tiempo en Río”. 18 de agosto de 2026.

https://www.reuters.com/sports/ricky-martin-brazilian-dj-pedro-sampaio-play-halftime-show-rio–flm-2026-08-18/

[20] Natalie Finn, E! News. “Ricky Martin admite haber acosado a personas gays cuando era un joven ‘muy enojado y muy rebelde’”. 27 de agosto de 2013.

https://www.eonline.com/news/452928/ricky-martin-admits-to-bullying-gay-people-when-he-was-a-very-angry-very-rebellious-young-man

[21] Paramount Press Express. “Se anuncian los primeros artistas y homenajeados de los MTV Video Music Awards de 2025”. 18 de agosto de 2025.

https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=111690-first-performers-and-honorees-revealed-for-2025-vmas-airing-sept-7-on-cbs-2

[22] Google Books. Yo, de Ricky Martin.

La descripción de la editorial incluye el relato de Martin sobre cómo escribir el libro lo obligó a conectar recuerdos y dio comienzo a un proceso de sanación.

https://books.google.com/books/about/Yo.html?id=p5qnbqueyWkC

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Livin’ La Vida Privada: Ricky Martin on Coming Out, LGBTQ+ Identity & Living Authentically

Before Ricky Martin could live la vida loca, he had to learn how to survive la vida privada.

At the height of his fame, Ricky Martin was one of the most recognizable (and desired) men in the world. But behind the music, the leather pants and the carefully constructed image was a gay man carrying religious shame, internalized homophobia and the fear that telling the truth could cost him everything.

In this episode of The Secret Is OUT, Stan Stadig traces Ricky’s journey from a Catholic altar boy in Puerto Rico and teenage member of Menudo to international Latin pop superstar. We revisit his explosive “Livin’ La Vida Loca” era, the invasive Barbara Walters interview that left him feeling violated, and the complicated forces that kept him closeted: faith, Latin machismo, celebrity, sexuality and an industry built around selling him as a fantasy to women.

We also explore how fatherhood, spirituality and writing his memoir helped Ricky finally claim his identity, and why his 2010 coming-out announcement became an important moment in LGBTQ+ history.

Along the way, Stan shares what it was like to watch Ricky’s rise as a deeply closeted gay Christian man with, shall we say, a special place in his heart for Latin men.

This is more than the story of a celebrity coming out. It is the story of what the closet can cost, and the freedom that becomes possible when the truth is finally yours to tell.

https://www.rickymartinfoundation.org/en/

Content note: This episode discusses religious trauma, internalized homophobia, invasive media questioning and the emotional cost of remaining closeted.

Production References and Fact-Check Notes
Primary narrative sources
[1] Recording Academy. “Watch Ricky Martin’s Landmark Performance of ‘La Copa de la Vida’ at the Grammy Awards in 1999.”
https://www.grammy.com/video/ricky-martin-la-copa-de-la-vida-the-cup-of-life-grammys-performance-1999-latin-explosion-rewind/
[2] Billboard. “Ricky Martin Was ‘Livin’ Large Atop the Hot 100.”
https://www.billboard.com/pro/ricky-martin-livin-la-vida-loca-this-week-in-billboard-chart-history-1999/
[3] ABC News. “Ricky Martin Reflects on Not Being Ready to Come Out as Gay,” June 2, 2021.
https://abcnews.com/GMA/Culture/ricky-martin-reflects-ready-gay-amazing-felt/story?id=78048493
[4] Kira Cochrane, The Guardian. “Ricky Martin: ‘I hated it when people tried to force me to come out,’” July 3, 2011. Major first-person source for childhood attraction, Catholic teaching, Menudo, relationships, spirituality, the Walters interview, fatherhood and the response to coming out.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/jul/03/ricky-martin-hated-force-come-out
[5] Hollywood Walk of Fame. “Ricky Martin.”
https://walkoffame.com/ricky-martin/
[6] Alex Frank, GQ. “The Rebirth of Ricky Martin,” February 22, 2024.
https://www.gq.com/story/the-rebirth-of-ricky-martin
[7] Jack Irvin, People. “Ricky Martin Recalls His Dad Encouraging Him to Publicly Come Out as Gay,” March 21, 2024.
https://people.com/ricky-martin-dad-encouraged-him-to-publicly-come-out-gay-8612945
[8] Jason Sheeler, People. “Ricky Martin Doesn’t Want to Hide Who He Is Anymore,” June 2, 2021.
https://people.com/music/ricky-martin-wont-hide-anymore-man-with-no-secrets-pride-cover/
[9] The Guardian. “Ricky Martin: ‘I thought homosexuality was evil,’” May 6, 2011. Reports Martin’s statement that culture, religion and society taught him to interpret his sexuality as evil.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/may/06/ricky-martin-homosexuality
[10] Billboard. “Ricky Martin’s Hot 100 Hits.”
https://www.billboard.com/music/latin/ricky-martin-hot-100-hits-7632412/
[11] Entertainment Tonight. “Ricky Martin Recalls ‘Uncomfortable’ Barbara Walters Interview,” April 10, 2018.
https://www.etonline.com/ricky-martin-recalls-uncomfortable-barbara-walters-interview-about-his-sexuality-100035
[12] Ricky Martin Foundation. Official mission and program overview.
https://www.rickymartinfoundation.org/en/
[13] UNICEF. “Ricky Martin.”
https://www.unicef.org/goodwill-ambassadors/ricky-martin
[14] Ricky Martin. Me. Celebra, 2010. Primary memoir. Publisher page and edition information:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/309139/me-by-ricky-martin/
[15] Aaron Hicklin, Out. “Out100 2010: Ricky Martin,” November 9, 2010.
https://www.out.com/out-exclusives/out100-2010/2010/11/09/out-100-ricky-martin
[16] ABC News. “Ricky Martin Comes Out: ‘I Am a Fortunate Homosexual Man,’” March 29, 2010.
https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/ricky-martin-fortunate-homosexual-man/story?id=10234454
[17] Oprah.com. “Ricky Martin on Coming Out,” November 2, 2010.
https://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/ricky-martin-on-coming-out
[18] People. “Ricky Martin and Jwan Yosef Are Divorcing After 6 Years of Marriage,” July 6, 2023.
https://people.com/ricky-martin-jwan-yosef-divorcing-exclusive-7557212
[19] Reuters. “Ricky Martin, Brazilian DJ Pedro Sampaio to Play Halftime Show in Rio,” August 18, 2026.
https://www.reuters.com/sports/ricky-martin-brazilian-dj-pedro-sampaio-play-halftime-show-rio–flm-2026-08-18/
[20] Natalie Finn, E! News. “Ricky Martin Admits to Bullying Gay People When He Was a ‘Very Angry, Very Rebellious’ Young Man,” August 27, 2013.
https://www.eonline.com/news/452928/ricky-martin-admits-to-bullying-gay-people-when-he-was-a-very-angry-very-rebellious-young-man
[21] Paramount Press Express. “First Performers and Honorees Revealed for 2025 MTV VMAs,” August 18, 2025.
https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=111690-first-performers-and-honorees-revealed-for-2025-vmas-airing-sept-7-on-cbs-2
[22] Google Books. Yo by Ricky Martin. Publisher description includes Martin’s account that writing required him to connect memories and began a healing process.
https://books.google.com/books/about/Yo.html?id=p5qnbqueyWkC

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He’d Rather Die Than Come Out: Kane Evans

For years, Kane Evans believed there were worse things than living a lie. Coming out was one of them.

He built a life that looked the way it was supposed to look — masculinity, family, faith, career. But underneath it was a secret he was convinced could cost him everything. At his lowest point, Kane believed he would rather die than tell the people he loved that he was gay.

In this episode of The Secret Is Out, we explore what it was like for Kane growing up with faith and expectations that left little room for who he really was, being a closeted professional rugby player, and eventually reaching the point where hiding was no longer something he could survive.

This isn’t a neat coming-out story. It’s about fear, religion, sports, family, and coming out later in life — and what happens when the life you worked so hard to hold together is the very thing keeping you from being yourself.

US Suicide Hotline: Call or text 988

References

Nine Network — 100% Footy, James Bracey interview with Kane Evans, June 8, 2026. (Primary source)
ABC News Australia, Nick Campton, “Rugby league must rise to Kane Evans’s level of courage,” June 9, 2026.
Associated Press, “Rugby league international Kane Evans comes out as gay in a TV interview,” June 2026.
Reuters, “Rugby league — Former NRL player Evans comes out as gay,” June 9, 2026.
ABC News Australia, “Kane Evans coming out ‘may have saved many lives,’ says Sydney Roosters great,” June 9, 2026.
The Guardian / Australian Associated Press, “Former NRL player Kane Evans finally ‘free’ after coming out as gay,” June 9, 2026.
Sky Sports, “Kane Evans: Former Hull FC prop comes out as gay in emotional interview,” June 8, 2026.
http://NRL.com, Tony Webeck, “Evans latest to credit Fijian influence,” February 12, 2016.
The Fiji Times, “Evans ready for Bati campaign,” June 18, 2017.
The Fiji Times, “Kane, joker for Bati,” November 19, 2017.
New Zealand Warriors, “Vodafone Warriors sign giant Eels prop Kane Evans,” August 12, 2020.
ABC Religion & Ethics, Andre Afamasaga, “Kane Evans, coming out and the words Pacific Rainbow people long to hear,” June 12, 2026.

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Chely Wright: Country Music, Faith and Coming Out

Chely Wright had built the life she’d dreamed about since she was a little girl in Kansas. She was a successful country music singer, had a number-one hit, and was part of a world she loved. But behind it all, she was hiding something she had spent years believing could destroy everything she’d worked for.

Chely was gay.

In this episode of The Secret Is Out, we look at Chely Wright’s coming-out story — her deeply held Christian faith, the pressure to stay closeted in country music, the relationships she kept hidden, and the years she spent trying to reconcile who she was with who she believed she was supposed to be.

It’s also the story of what finally happened when keeping the secret became harder than telling it.

Chely Wright became the first major country music artist to publicly come out as gay. Her story says a lot about country music and LGBTQ acceptance, but even more about faith, shame, love, and what it can cost to spend years hiding a part of yourself. 

www.thesecretisOUT.com
IG: @thesecretisOUTpodcast 

References
Wright, Chely. Like Me: Confessions of a Heartland Country Singer. Pantheon, 2010.
The principal first-person source for Chely’s childhood, faith, sexuality, relationships, career, suicidal crisis and decision to come out.
AfterEllen, “Interview with Chely Wright,” 2010.
Useful for Chely’s account of “Julia,” the L Word DVD story, her relationship with her mother, and the sequence in which she came out to Rodney Crowell and began writing Like Me. AfterEllen interview (https://afterellen.com/interview-with-chely-wright/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
Out, “In Her Own Wright,” May 4, 2010.
Long-form interview published as Chely came out publicly. Particularly important for the January 26, 2006 crisis and the years preceding it. Out interview (https://www.out.com/entertainment/2010/05/04/her-own-wright?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
Curve, Chely Wright coming-out interview, 2010.
First-person material about the childhood bargain with God, including Chely’s later realization that a nine-year-old could hardly be expected to understand the bargain she was making.
The Iconic Midlife with Roxy Manning, “Owning My Truth: Chely Wright on Fear, Faith, and Finally Being Free,” 2026.
A valuable recent retrospective in which Chely revisits her childhood faith, the suicidal crisis, her decision to live and come out, and her distinction between spiritual acceptance and “country music jeopardy.”
Los Angeles Times, “Country singer Chely Wright finds strength to face the music,” May 7, 2010.
Contemporary reporting about Chely’s fear of Nashville, the absence of openly gay role models in country music, and her account of the conversation with John Rich. Los Angeles Times profile (https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-may-07-la-et-chely-wright-20100507-story.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
Metro Weekly, “Chely Wright’s Second Act: Out, Proud, and Living Her Truth,” 2018.
Retrospective interview covering the end of Chely’s long-term relationship, sale of their shared home, fear of being outed and the period leading into her 2006 crisis.
CBS News, “Second Cup: Chely Wright,” May 21, 2010.
Contemporary coverage of Like Me, the accompanying album, her religious struggle and her explanation of why she concealed her sexuality while pursuing country music.
Autostraddle, interview with Chely Wright, 2010.
Especially useful for the aftermath of coming out and the difference between private expressions of support from Nashville figures and willingness to support her publicly.
CBS News, “Chely Wright: Nashville’s quietly rejected me,” 2012.
Chely’s later assessment of what actually happened to her relationship with Nashville after coming out.
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Official source for the episode’s content advisory. The Lifeline provides free, confidential support 24 hours a day in the United States and its territories by calling or texting 988. (988 Lifeline (https://988lifeline.org/get-help/?utm_source=chatgpt.com))
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (https://988lifeline.org/get-help/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)