Melissa Etheridge Reveals What Finally Inspired Her to Come Out Publicly: ‘We Were All Celebrating’

For Melissa Etheridge, one spontaneous moment onstage became a turning point that would change her life forever.

The “I’m the Only One” singer, 65, has been looking back on the powerful moment she publicly came out as a lesbian during celebrations surrounding President Bill Clinton’s inauguration in January 1993.

At the time, Etheridge had planned to reveal her sexuality later that year to coincide with the release of Yes I Am. But after becoming involved with LGBTQ+ leaders who had supported the Clinton-Gore campaign, she felt inspired to act sooner.

“It was the first time that gay organizations had come together, formed political PACs and raised money,” the rocker explained on the Monday, June 1 episode of P&G and iHeartRadio’s Elton John Impact Awards podcast.

“And it was the first time a presidential candidate had actually talked about being gay, not about him, but had said the words ‘gay’ and ‘lesbian,'” she continued. “I had never heard the words ‘gay’ and ‘lesbian’ on television, you know? It was the first time and it was very exciting.”

That feeling carried her onto the stage at the Triangle Ball, a celebration honoring Clinton’s inauguration. Surrounded by friends and trailblazers—including singer k.d. lang, who had come out publicly the year before — Etheridge felt empowered.

“We were all celebrating,” she remembered. “I got up and said, ‘Hey, I’m proud to be a lesbian.'”

While news of her announcement received only a brief mention amid inauguration headlines, the moment was life-changing for Etheridge and meaningful for countless fans and the gay community.

As she revealed on the Artist Friendly podcast in April, many people close to her already knew she was a lesbian, but Etheridge wanted to live more openly.

In a 1992 interview with Music Express, the journalist inaccurately referred to a “boyfriend” instead of quoting her intentionally gender-neutral language she had used, which also convinced her it was time to speak out.

Etheridge explained: “He changed every pronoun that I used. He changed it to my ‘boyfriend,’ and it horrified me.”