Country music star Chely Wright to lead the Pride Parade in Chicago

[Ed Barrow]

Chely Wright, a country music star who recently came out as a lesbian, will be the grand marshal at this year's Chicago Pride Parade, organizers said today. Wright made sizable waves in the often-conservative world of country music when she opened up last month about her sexuality.

She told the Los Angeles Times: "Historically, country music would rather an artist be a drunk -- they even encourage and endorse that one. . .They will forgive you if you beat your wife, lose your kids to the state, get six divorces, make a sex tape, get labeled as a tramp -- any and all of it is better than being gay."

Since her announcement, Wright has been on a publicity tour, visiting Oprah, Ellen and the Today Show to talk about her decision, her new album and her memoir.

Richard Pfeiffer, coordinator of PRIDEChicago, the group that organizes the annual parade, said a number of cities were trying to get Wright for their pride parades.

"She represents this whole segment of the community that is not always really open about being GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender)," Pfeiffer said. "Country music fans live in big cities ,live in small towns, but often folks in that genre aren't real open about being gay. For her to come out, it was pretty great."


http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/06/country-music-star-chely-wright-to-lead-pride-parade.html

[DURHAM D]

1. cool

[xchrom]

2. Recommend

[Dawson Leery]

3. Chely, maybe you understand how we feel now.

We on the political left has listened for decades from the so-called liberal media that we are not real Americans.
Many in your genre jumped on that bandwagon after September 11. The country music establishment (the old provincial south) kicked the Dixie Chicks out due
to their opposition to George Bush.

And there is truth to this one:
"Historically, country music would rather an artist be a drunk -- they even encourage and endorse that one. . .They will forgive you if you beat your wife, lose your kids to the state, get six divorces, make a sex tape, get labeled as a tramp -- any and all of it is better than being gay."

Tracy Lawrence(Wife Beater-Nashville) was forgiven and then some, yet the Dixie Chicks are still not forgiven by the old southern provincial establishment of Nashville.
It says much about who the country establishment are.

My understanding is that the Dixie Chicks have abandoned the country establishment. Seeing that Reba McEntire (Deliverance Girl) is an "icon" :wtf: :puke:
of country, I can see why the Chicks would not want to be a part of the old provincial southern country establishment.

[Angry Dragon]

4. K&R

[TheMightyFavog]

5. Question:

I really have not heard any big time kerfuffle over this singer. Could this be because she's an attractive and female?

What would fan reaction be if a MALE country singer came out?

[PM Martin]

6. If she had any career to start with, it's most likely over now.

[gratuitous]

7. We'll see

Sometimes people can surprise you, and it's instructive to remember that long before po' folks became a progressive cause, they were making, playing and singing music that was the forerunner of today's country music. There's a deep history of siding with the underdog in country music.

[myrna minx]

8. Cool! k&r n/t

[JuniperLea]

9. She was on Steph Miller's show this morning...

She's sharp as a tack! Very intelligent; very well-spoken.

She's not the only gay in that village (genre)... here's to her bravery giving the same to other gays in her genre. :applause: