Lance Bass was terrified coming out while in *NSYNC in case it affected his bandmates careers
The singer has since happily married his boyfriend Michael Turchin
By Steve Brown
Lance Bass thought if he came out while in *NSYNC the boy band would be over.
The boy band – which also included Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Chris Kirkpatrick, Joey Fatone – boasted dozens of single and multi-platinum albums when they burst onto the music scene in the late 1990s.
However, Bass was hiding his sexuality from the rest of the world and it wasn’t until 2006 – four years after the band went on hiatus – that he felt comfortable enough to come out.
On Monday (30.04.18), the band were honoured with a Hollywood Walk of Fame and Bass admitted he thought if he was truthful about his sexuality, it would have jeopardised the careers of his bandmates.
He told the crowd: “Growing up in Mississippi and in a Southern Baptist church, in a town where everyone knows your business, I had a secret: I was gay.
“And at the time, I thought that I would never be able to tell anyone because not only was I terrified of the lasting rejection, but more than that I didn’t want to jeopardise the careers of these guys up here, much less the hundreds of amazing people who worked tirelessly to bring *NSYNC to the world.
“Out of all this, the music, the tours, the love from the fans, it’s my brotherhood I’m most thankful for.
“I was a kid when we cam together and I’m a man today because of the family I have and you. I love you guys.”
Bass married his boyfriend Michael Turchin in December 2014 in Los Angeles after two and a half years of dating.