Chely Wright feels the backlash
Tags: 
A few years ago I watched a film called Shut Up and Sing, it was about the way the county music world dealt with one of their darlings saying she was ashamed President Bush was from Texas. This was the first time my eyes had been opened to just how conservative the country music scene in the US is. I have seen Dolly Parton in concert twice and loved every second and no one at either show made me think that country music fans were any different from other music fans. However, when I think of the US, the stereotype is of cowboy hat wearing, pick-up truck driving, tobacco chewing hicks! I never believed in that stereotype, but this film made me think that maybe the traditional fan base of country music was more than a little conservative over there.
I don’t like believing in stereotypes but sometimes things happen that make you shake your head and fear that maybe they really are all Republican voting, God fearing types. For example, Chely Wright took the brave step and came out recently. For those of you who don’t know, Wright is a 39-year-old multi award winning country music artist. Wright has had seven albums and two numbers ones, yet when she came out she said
I fully expect to lose my career
How sad is that? Chely has said that she has kept this a secret for 15 years so I have an endless amount of respect for her being the first to come out in a conservative music genre. To say that she assumes she will lose her career is a sad reflection on the country music world. She went on to say
Historically, country music would rather an artist be a drunk. They would rather you were a drug addict than be gay…They will forgive you if you beat your wife, lose your kids to the state, get six divorces, make a sex tape, get labelled as a tramp. Any and all of these is better than being gay.
Wright has said that attitudes of her fellow artists left her thinking about suicide. Chely’s autobiography Like Me tells of conversations with fellow performers where she felt any honesty on her part would not be met with support. I know many of us feel that but Wright had an entire music fan base to worry about and although many many county music fans are not homophobic and many are gay themselves, you do have to feel for her and the pressure she must have felt she was under. She has said
I couldn’t figure out how to get out of the situation I was in. So I decided to kill myself. I always judged people who had committed suicide, thinking, how non-spiritual. What a loser. But then I found myself with a gun in my mouth
I think it is wonderful that she came out the other side of that and then decided to come out publicly. I know that many thousands of country music fans applaud her and are now hoping others follow suit. The big question is what effect this disclosure will have on her career. I hope she is proven wrong and that her career goes from strength to strength.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=46edf510-9d52-48ee-b300-3472c54e023c)
Popularity: 2% [?]
Loading ...
Anyone know if her book is available in Ireland anywhere? I’m dying to read it!
Not sure about that Jenny but it looks like you can get it on Amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Like-Me-Chely-Wright/dp/0307378861/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273585430&sr=1-1
I’ve been a fan of Miss Wright’s music for years. But now I’m totally turned off. Why?
Because now all of her beautiful songs sound like lies to me. She sang such great love songs about the love between a man and a woman, and here she’s being a liar all of these years.
Country music isn’t about lies, at least not the songs I grew up listening to.
Miss Wright is correct – her career is over as far as country music listeners are concerned, and she’s the author of her own demise just by opening her mouth about something nobody asked her to talk about.
Wow. After nice article understanding Chely’s dilema I’m surprised by the sentiment from the previous writer. It sounds like the same problems we have in the USA with conservatives dislike of gays. A good song and a good singer is what is important about the music. She could never have had a career if she had let people see her true self. My heart breaks that she had to live so long with so much pain, torn between a career she dreamed of all her life and the true love that we all should have the right to have without judgement of others. One has to live in the conservative US south to understand why people would choose suicide over “coming out.” I’m so happy that Chely has freed herself of the chains . Not all people have the courage or the means to take that risk. I bought her book and new CD and am sure she will gain new fans. She will also lose a lot of the core country fans and the most important…country radio.
geo – Although I see what you are saying when you talk about her dishonesty, I would have to retort by saying that the songs are still honest, she merely substituted “he” for “she” and I think we can all understand why she would do that. She is being fully open now, even knowing she could well loose her career, so I think she should be applauded.
In your last line you say “by opening her mouth about something nobody asked her to talk about”, but she was just being honest and open about who she is.
Susan – I couldn’t agree more about what you have said about country radio. We all saw what happened to the Dixie Chicks, lets hope Chely comes out on top
Come on geo, do you believe everything every singer sings?
This is entertainment and as such is a fantasy world.
She sang such great love songs about the love between a man and a woman
Every time I hear shut up and drive, I imagine its her and her gf heading off into the sunset , leaving that pickup truck driving, beer guzzling no good boyf. There’s not much love in that song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6NmMe7RYhk
Seriously though, I love country music, love everything from Vince Gill to the Dixie Chicks to Garth Brooks. I have loved Chely Wright, her voice is amazing and I will continue to love her music and if possible be more interested in her stuff because she is being honest to herself and stopped living a lie. Country music is about everything, lies, cheating, loving and drinking beer and how if you’re married to a woman named Lucille, chances are she’s going to take her love to town
Chely, you’re wonderful and hot
Geo-How has she been dishonest with her songs ,she is in the Entertainment Biz and all her songs don’t have to tell her life story they are just for entertainment.I am a massive country music fan and I think its great she has had the courage to say what she has especially when there is so many small minded people out there.
Nothing she has said should change the fact that she rocks at singing and is hot to boot.
I saw her interview on Oprah. She’s just so lovely (ok that’s not strong enough) she’s just gorgeous. I’m so smitten. She might have decribed herself as being 2 weeks old (having just come out) but I’ll always be 15 and awkward (I’m nearly 29 and just out). I think she’s done a wonderful thing. She’ll change some hearts and minds of that I have no doubt. Anyone who can ease the burden on the young gays growing up in that environment deserves our praise. I bought her single “Broken” on itunes earlier today and quite like it…she also has a facebook fan page…not that I’m crushing or anything;-)
[...] month I blogged about the brave Chely Wright becoming the first major out country music star. I must admit that I [...]