NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Two years after coming out publicly as a gay man, country singer Ty Herndon is revealing much more about his lifelong struggle for acceptance in a new album that he hopes everyone can relate to.
“House on Fire,” released last week, features love songs that are gender neutral, a moving title track about feeling shamed inside the church and hopeful anthems for love.
“I wanted music that would go out into the world and that anyone from any walk of life could hear their story in my music,” Herndon said in a recent interview. “Because I have a lot of die-hard country fans who have been with me a long time and are still right there. And I have a legion of brand new fans, within the young country listeners, within the LGBT community.”
In 2014, the Grammy-nominated Herndon announced he was gay and almost immediately afterward, platinum-selling singer Billy Gillman was inspired to publicly announce he was gay as well, making them among the few openly gay male country singers.
Herndon credited country singer Chely Wright, who came out in 2010, as paving the way for him and many others. Days after making the announcement, he was got a standing ovation from the crowd at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.