New Kids on the Block member Jonathan Knight is a proud newlywed nowadays, however he says he felt “a lot of pressure” to cover his true self in the course of the early phases of his music profession.
Knight, who’s homosexual, appeared this week on the “Frosted Tips with Lance Bass” podcast, the place he shared the painful reminiscence of being informed by a supervisor that his time as a pop singer could be “over” if he addressed his sexuality publicly.
“My manager knew I was gay,” Knight recalled to Bass. “He pulled me aside and he was like: ‘If anybody finds out, then your career’s over, the New Kids’ careers [are] over … Sony’s gonna lose money.’ It was just so much pressure. Looking back, that was a lot of pressure to put on somebody who is just trying to figure out the world themselves.”
Kevin Mazur through Getty Images
A Boston native, Knight was simply 17 when the New Kids on the Block launched their self-titled debut album in 1986. The boy band ― which incorporates Knight’s brother Jordan, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg and Danny Wood ― grew to become one of MTV’s most popular acts two years later, when their second album, “Hangin’ Tough,” turned out to be a worldwide smash.
The New Kids on the Block disbanded in 1994, however regrouped in 2008, and proceed to take pleasure in main success as a dwell live performance act.
In 2011, it was widely reported that fellow pop singer Tiffany publicly “outed” Knight in an look on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live.” In his chat with Bass this week, nevertheless, Knight stated that it really befell two years earlier, and that Tiffany wasn’t accountable.
“It was a boyfriend of mine that sold pictures of us to the National Enquirer,” he defined, referring to a 2009 article that appeared within the grocery store tabloid. At the time, he’d already begun courting his now-husband, Harley Rodriguez.
Paul Marotta through Getty Images
Being pressured to make a public assertion after that headline was “horrible,” Knight stated, including that he admires the low-key methods many different stars have chosen to handle their sexuality.
In spite of that early setback, Knight and Rodriguez went on to turn into joint contestants on the twenty sixth season of “The Amazing Race,” which aired in 2015. Knight has since credited his time on the CBS competitors sequence with giving him “a lot of confidence” when it got here to dwelling authentically.
“I am at a point in my life where I’m comfortable in my own skin and I can allow myself to be vulnerable,” he told Entertainment Tonight in 2015. “And if I’m in a situation where I have a meltdown and it’s on TV, I’m fine with that. I’m human.”
Knight confirmed in August that he and Rodriguez, a health coach, had gotten married, however stated they hadn’t formally celebrated their marriage ceremony with household and mates on account of COVID-19 restrictions.
Bass, a father of twins, and Knight additionally spoke about shifting attitudes round parenthood within the LGBTQ neighborhood. Knight revealed he and Rodriguez had tried to expand their family through surrogacy.
“We went through the journey for about five years, and it just didn’t happen for us,” Knight stated. “Going through the process, like, ‘Today’s the day the eggs are being [transferred],’ you’re so excited, and you’re so happy. And then, you know, a week later it’s like, ‘No, you’re you’re back to square one.’”
Listen to Jonathan Knight’s “Frosted Tips” interview beneath. His feedback on popping out start across the 23-minute mark.
