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Barry Manilow got candid about coming out as a gay man later in life, revealing that he made the decision deliberately.
"It was a non-event," the music icon told the Los Angeles Times about coming out publicly in 2017, in an interview published on Wednesday (May 27). "I never really hid it, but in the '70s and '80s, that would have killed the career, and I didn't want to do that. So, I just never talked about it."
In 2017, the legendary musician, who married his longtime manager and partner Garry Kief in 2014, opened up about the fear of letting his fans down. "I thought I would be disappointing them if they knew I was gay," Manilow told PEOPLE at the time. "So, I never did anything. When they found out that Garry and I were together, they were so happy. The reaction was so beautiful."
Earlier this week, the "Mandy" crooner vowed to continue touring amid his recovery from lung cancer.
The singer, who postponed his Las Vegas residency at Westgate earlier this month, opened up about how his mother's own history with the disease inspired him to fight it.
"My mother died of lung cancer," he told The Guardian on Monday (May 25). "I thought, 'No, I'm not going to let this happen.' And I was right. They got rid of it, and I feel fine. I'm not sure my voice feels fine yet, but I don't want to cancel this tour. I'm so looking forward to it. So, I'm going to do it whether I can sing or not!"