Church, pickup trucks and dive bars — the imagery of classic country songs evokes “traditional” small-town American life. Now a rising number of openly gay crooners are testing just how inclusive that vision can be.
Two prominent singers came out of the closet within hours of each other on Nov. 20. Ty Herndon, who rose to stardom in the 1990s with both love ballads and Christian songs, declared himself to be an “out, proud and happy gay man.”
Herndon, who at 52 has been married twice to women, said that he had struggled since his childhood to come to terms with his sexuality.
Photo: AFP
照片：法新社
He said he was now in a relationship with a man and has reconciled his Christianity and sexual orientation.
“I sit on the tailgate of my pickup truck, and I meditate, and I talk to God,” he told celebrity magazine People.
Soon after the article appeared, another major name in country music said he was inspired by Herndon to come out — Billy Gilman, who first entered the country charts in 2000 at age 11.
Compared with Herndon’s choreographed coming out, Gilman’s was rawly personal. He released an emotional video on YouTube, saying he was “scared to death” to go public but had been hurt by gossip about his life.
“Being a gay male country artist is not the best thing,” Gilman said of the Nashville-based industry.
“If people don’t like your music, that’s one thing. But after having sold over five million records, having a wonderful life in the music industry, I knew something was wrong when no major label wanted to sit down and have a meeting and listen to the new stuff,” he said.
The former child star said he was not ashamed to be gay but voiced dismay that he was “in a genre and in an industry that is ashamed of me for being me.”
(AFP)
教堂、敞篷小貨車，與廉價酒吧—這些經典鄉村音樂景象喚起「傳統」美國小鎮的生活樣貌。如今，有越來越多鄉村歌手出櫃，考驗著鄉村音樂對同志的包容力。十一月二十日，兩位著名歌手在短短幾小時內相繼出櫃。泰‧赫恩登宣布自己是位「出櫃、驕傲且快樂的同志」。赫恩登在九零年代以流行抒情歌曲與基督教歌曲成名。
現年五十二歲、經歷兩度異性結婚的赫恩登表示，他自童年即對接受自身性傾向掙扎不已。
他表示現在正與另一名男性交往中，並且已安住於基督教信仰與坦然面對其性傾向。
他向《人物》雜誌透露：「我坐在我敞篷小貨車擋板上冥想，並且與神對話。」
在這篇文章刊登後，另一名鄉村音樂大咖比利‧吉爾曼表示，他受到赫恩登的激勵，也宣布出櫃。在二０００年才十一歲的吉爾曼，首次登上鄉村音樂排行榜。
相較於赫恩登經深思熟慮過的出櫃方式，吉爾曼則是不加裝飾的坦露心聲。他在YouTube上發表一支動人影片，表示他對公開出櫃「怕得要死」，但他因流言蜚語攻擊其生活感到受傷。
吉爾曼意指納許維爾為主的鄉村樂壇表示：「身為同志且是男性的鄉村歌手，不是什麼好事。」
他表示：「若民眾不喜歡他的音樂，那是一回事。但對已有五百萬張唱片銷售紀錄且在樂壇平步青雲的歌手而言，我知道若沒有大唱片公司願意坐下來討論並聆聽新的東西，那一定是有什麼事不對勁。」
這位前童星表示，他對身為同志不覺得羞恥，但讓他感到沮喪的是身處在「對於我做自己而感到羞恥的音樂領域與產業」。
（法新社／翻譯：林亞蒂）
Many of us face common health challenges: tired eyes from long screen use, the search for anti-aging support and the need for weight control without resorting to restrictive diets. While no single food is a miracle cure, berries offer targeted, evidence-based nutritional support that’s easy and delicious to add to your daily routine. For overall immunity and healthy skin, vitamin C is essential. Strawberries provide roughly 10 percent more vitamin C than oranges, while blackcurrants deliver three to four times as much. These tasty fruits also contain abundant polyphenols, which help the body manage oxidative stress, support overall
A: Why didn’t you come to work earlier this week? Did you go anywhere for fun? B: I went to Thailand with friends to celebrate the 2026 Water Festival, also known as the Songkran Festival. The three-day annual celebrations ran from April 13 to 15. Everyone was having water fights in the streets. A: I know that “Songkran” is the traditional New Year in Southeast Asia, usually celebrated in mid-April. B: And we also attended the 2026 Siam Songkran Music Festival this time. The EDM shows by Martin Garrix — who has been crowned the World’s No. 1 DJ by “DJ
A: Apart from the Thai Water Festival, Taiwan’s three major Matsu pilgrimages are among Asia’s largest annual folk activities. B: This year, “Baisha-ma” of the Baishatun Gongtian Temple in Miaoli County was the first to kick off her pilgrimage, with the deity departing on April 12 and returning on the 20. A: Then “Dajia-ma” of the Dajia Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung will set off next, departing tonight before midnight and returning on April 26. B: And what about “Beigang-ma” of Yunlin County’s Beigang Chao-tian Temple? When will she launch her procession? A: Typically, “Beigang-ma” begins her procession on the eve of her lunar
The US-Israeli war with Iran, which began on Feb. 28, has killed thousands of people, destabilized the Middle East and rocked global energy markets by effectively closing the strait. WHAT IS THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ? Lying between Oman and Iran and linking the Gulf north of it with the Gulf of Oman to the south and the Arabian Sea beyond, the strait is 33km wide at its narrowest point, with a shipping lane just 3km wide in either direction. Perhaps the world’s most important energy shipping channel, the waterway is about 167km long. Following through on an old threat, Tehran effectively closed the strait
RSS