Country music star Chely Wright spent years building the life she had dreamed of while hiding a truth she feared could cost her everything. This episode of The Secret Is OUT tells the story of what that secret cost her, and what happened when she finally decided to tell the truth. 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)
