X Factor: Union J star Jaymi Hensley comes out as gay
Jaymi Hensley, star of X Factor finalists Union J, has followed the advice of his mentor Louis Walsh and revealed that he is gay and in a three year relationship with his boyfriend.
Jaymi told the Sun: āI spoke to Louis about this and he said, āput it this way, both of my big boybands had a gay member in them.ā So he said it fits the formula quite well!
āEvery boyband has got to have a gay one! And Louis just said ādo itā.ā
āIām gay and Iāve never been happier!ā he added.
The star said that he didnāt want to come out in five years time āwhen I have made money and had a career. I donāt think anyone should have to hide who they are.ā Adding: āNot enough people in the music industry are open about their sexuality.ā
The singer, who lives with his mother in Luton, said that he and his boyfriend, a hairdresser, plan to eventually get married (once the law changes) and have children.
The Union J star also revealed that he came out when he was 14 and ānever had one piece of negativity.ā
Interestingly, the star decided to publicly reveal his sexuality after a teenager asked him on Twitter if rumours thatĀ he was gay were true.
āI got a tweet from a boy who must have been 13 or 14 asking if the rumours that I was gay were true.
āHe said he ‘really wished I could be out’ because he didnāt have anyone to look up to and was finding it really hard to fit in and tell his parents.
āI was that kid at 14 and really wished I had someone to say it was OK to be pictured on the red carpet with a guy and be gay in a boyband.
āThe X Factor is such a great show to show that ā youāve got such a great range of characters, especially Rylan who is so open.
āIt was like if he can do it, why canāt I?
āBut Iām not going to suddenly come out and do a flamboyant performance ā thatās Rylanās bag.ā
He added: āIf I can help just one kid out there, that is enough for me.ā
