![Country Artists Who Have Come Out as Gay [PICTURES]](https://townsquare.media/site/623/files/2020/06/gay-country-artists.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Country Artists Who Have Come Out as Gay [PICTURES]
Ty Herndon and Billy Gilman made headlines in November 2014 by revealing they were gay within hours of each other ... but they weren't the first country artists to make such an announcement, nor the last.
From Chely Wright -- the first well-known country star to come out, in 2010 -- to songwriter Shane McAnally, there have been a few others helping pave the way in the country music industry. On Feb. 3, Brothers Osborne member TJ Osborne came out publicly, in a feature in Time. That makes him one of the very few out country artists signed to a major or large independent record label, along with Brooke Eden, who recently got engaged to her longtime girlfriend, Hilary Hoover.
"I want to get to the height of my career being completely who I am," says the singer, who's now released three major-label albums with his brother John. "I mean, I am who I am, but I've kept a part of me muted, and it's been stifling."
Click through the gallery below to learn more about country's LGBTQ+ artists:
More From 97.3 The Dawg
![A List of Country Songs That Mention Mardi Gras](http://townsquare.media/site/33/files/2018/01/RS4476_56350750.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Will Ty Herndon + Terri Clark Lead the Most Popular Country Videos of the Week?](http://townsquare.media/site/204/files/2023/03/attachment-ty-herndon-terri-clark-dents-on-a-chevy.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Ashley McBryde Recruits Brothers Osborne, Brandy Clark and More for Concept Album, ‘Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville’](http://townsquare.media/site/204/files/2022/09/attachment-Ashley-McBryde-Lindeville-Album.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Ty Herndon Shares the Unforgettable Career Advice Reba McEntire Gave Him](http://townsquare.media/site/204/files/2022/07/attachment-ty-herndon-reba-mcentire-advice.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Top 10 Patriotic Country Songs](http://townsquare.media/site/623/files/2014/07/lee-greenwood-cheryl-wright-billy-ray-cyrus-patriotic-songs.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Ty Herndon and Boyfriend Matt Collum Have Broken Up After 11 Years Together](http://townsquare.media/site/204/files/2021/10/attachment-matt-collum-ty-herndon.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Yes, Dolly Parton Heard Lil Nas X’s ‘Jolene’ Cover, and Yes, She Loves It](http://townsquare.media/site/204/files/2021/09/attachment-Dolly-and-Lil-Nas.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Country Music’s Top 10 Unforgettable One-Hit Wonders](http://townsquare.media/site/623/files/2015/12/one-hit-wonder-country.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Lil Nas X’s ‘Jolene’ Cover Stays Faithful to the Original [Watch]](http://townsquare.media/site/204/files/2021/09/attachment-lil-nas-x-jolene.jpg?w=980&q=75)