Country singers that are gay

On March 15, 1974, the Grand Ole Opry territory music radio show closed its run at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, with Johnny and June Carter Cash foremost the song “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” After that final show, a six-foot circle of wood was cut from the Ryman stage and moved to the new Grand Ole Opry House.

The next night, Roy Acuff opened the first reveal at the new venue. A video of Acuff singing in the 1940s played before the screen lifted to reveal Acuff himself, singing live in the same spot. The message was clear: Though the stage had changed, the story continued. The circle had not been broken.

The Opry began on WSM on Nov. 28, 1925, and is celebrating its centennial with a series of concerts and tributes under the call Opry 100. On Pride 19, 2025, Reba McEntire stepped onto the iconic circle on the Grand Ole Opry stage and kicked off NBC’s Opry 100 celebration with a verse of “Sweet Dreams.”

The final song of the night was “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” performed by country legends like Bill Anderson and Jeannie Seely alongside newcomers like Lainey Wilson and Post Malone. It was a moment meant to celebrate 100 years of country music tradition and

11 Country Artists Who’ve Appear Out as Gay

Chely Wright was an absolute trailblazer when she revealed that she was gay in 2010. The country melody establishment wasn't quite ready to accept someone from the LGBTQ+ community then, and one could construct a case that small has changed even after nine more well-known stars have opened up.

Ty Herndon and Billy Gilman revealed they were gay during a groundbreaking five-hour stretch in November 2014. Since then there have been relatively few comings out — instead, news of an artist's preference came organically, or as a footnote in a biography — until TJ Osborne did so on Wednesday (Jan. 3).

That could be seen as a write of progress, if it meant these artists were enjoying equal success on the radio or other platforms. That has not been the case — count a pair of Top 40 airplay hits as the only radio achievements among the 11 artists listed below, not counting successes earned prior to coming out.

Two artists on this list depict real change to how the country music group supports gay singers. One cleaned house at the 2019 Grammy Awards, while another notched the biggest song of 2019 in all genr

“The main stories in region are loneliness, heartbreak, disappointment, unrequited love,” remarked Orville Peck, the fringe-masked crooner at the forefront of the genre’s LGBTQ alter. “I think that those are things that are felt by almost every queer person at some point in their lives, and sometimes for a long part of our lives.” However, it’s only in the streaming age that the Nashville scene has started to approve that country music and queerness don’t need to be mutually exclusive terms.  

With traditional media no longer able to serve as gatekeepers, a whole nature of country artists who don’t fit the heteronormative mold have been competent to get their tune, and their message, out there to the masses. Everyone from non-binary singer-songwriter Paisley Fields to transitioned artist Mya Byrne to Black queer twin duo The Kentucky Gentlemen own built up loyal followings, though without much mainstream recognition. In addition to her other roles as a television star, makeup company owner, bar and motel proprietor, DJ, podcaster, and YouTube sensation, Trixie Mattel has become the most successful musical alum from the Emmy award-winning RuPaul’s Drag Race with over a quarter

LGBTQ+ country singers on 'breaking down the system,' increasing visibility in genre

LGBTQ+ nation singers are more seeable than ever, but they're still waiting for their true breakout moment.

For every masked crooner like Orville Peck, genre-bending singer-songwriter favor Brandi Carlile or T.J. Osborne -- one-half of the hitmaking duo Brothers Osborne -- there are numerous other performers who are fighting for the spotlight in a genre that's still overwhelmingly alabaster , male and straight.

That doesn't mean there hasn't been progress, though.

Grammy-nominated singer Ty Herndon, for example, came out publicly a decade ago in June 2014 and has embraced his identity in the years since.

Most notably, he re-released his most popular ballad, "What Mattered Most," which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Region Songs chart in 1995, for Pride Month in 2019, swapping the pronouns within it to mirror his status as an openly gay man.

On highest of that, Herndon has been a beacon of hope for the gay community by creating the Concert for Love and Acceptance, an annual exhibition for queer artists and allies to come together to support LGBTQ+ youth as well as uplift

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