Filipino-American musician Troy Laureta on Monday came out as gąy in a lengthy Instagram post with his childhood photo on rainbow colors.
“Today is one of the most important days of my entire life, bigger than any gig, bigger than any show, and bigger than anything that has happened thus far. Today I am free,” Laureta said.
Growing up in a Catholic household, Laureta said he has suppressed himself for the sake of his family.
“For the majority of my life, I’ve kept a huge part of myself very private and very hidden. This kept secret would have become a source of immense pain and isolation that I honestly had no idea how to get out of. I couldn’t be myself. I was in a mentąl pris?n. I grew up in a semi-conservative Filipino Catholic household. And while my parents were, in many ways, progressive, certain things were not spoken about within the family,” the singer said.
“I, therefore, suppressed so much of myself to protect my family from being talked about and spare them from what I thought was shameful. Yet, in that bid to protect them, I betrayed myself and it ate away at me for many years,”
Laureta said this made him question himself and it took time for him to accept things in life.
He thanked all those who have been supporting him and said music helped him to accept himself.
