Coming Out in Print

k.d. lang
Issue 605, June 16, 1992
She broke new ground by coming out on the cover of The Advocate in 1992, but the Canadian country-pop musician wanted the world to know she wasn’t ready to be called an activist simply for loving other women. The next year lang appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair, seated in a barber chair while supermodel Cindy Crawford stood behind her and appeared to be giving lang a good shave — on her face. She would later become a fierce advocate for LGBT rights.

“I don’t feel political about my preference. I just don’t. I’m sorry to disappoint you hard-cores, but I don’t! I think as a human being we all feel discrimination at some time, we all feel oppression. There should be strong examples in the subculture, and I think there should be people fighting for our rights. But I don’t feel like it’s my passion. I feel like it’s a part of my life, my sexuality, but it’s not—it certainly isn’t my cause. But also I have never denied it. I don’t try to hide it like some people in the industry do.”