Every year more and more women publicly join our ranks, and 2024 was no different. These are the women who came out as sapphic or as trans women and we want to say, “Welcome!”
How you know her: RuPaul’s Drag Race season 15
She came out as: Trans
When she came out: July 6 on Instagram
What she said: “I wanted to let you all know that I’m trans and began HRT a little over a month ago. […] As of right now I’m just going with Amy out of drag, which I thank Malaysia for.”
How you know her: House of the Dragon (Baela Targaryen)
She came out as: Gay
When she came out: April 19 on Instagram
What she said: “Wait till they find out I’m gay too…”
Photo: @brenda_biyaa on Instagram
How you know her: Daughter of the president of Cameroon, rapper King Nasty
She came out as: Lesbian
When she came out: June 30 on Instagram
What she said: Posted a photo kissing her girlfriend, Brazilian model Layyons Valença, saying “”I’m crazy about you & I want the world to know”
How you know her: One Tree Hill (Brooke Davis), Chicago P.D. (Erin Lindsay), John Tucker Must Die (Beth McIntyre)
She came out as: Queer
When she came out: April 25 in a Glamour article
What she said: “I think I’ve always known that my sexuality exists on a spectrum. Right now I think the word that best defines it is queer. I can’t say it without smiling, actually. And that feels pretty great.”
How you know her: Baby Reindeer (Martha Scott)
She came out as: Gay
When she came out: June 4 on the Reign with Josh Smith podcast
What she said: “I realised I was a big, old gay. I was like, ‘That’s what it’s been, that’s what it is.’”
How you know her: The Gilded Age (Marian Brook), daughter of Meryl Streep
She came out as: Queer
When she came out: June 22 on Instagram
What she said: “Blessed to be entering the Joyful New Era bb,” with rainbow flag and heart emojis with pictures of her partner Anna Blundell
Photo: @madamelaqueer on Instagram
How you know her: RuPaul’s Drag Race season 4
She came out as: Trans
When she came out: January 22 on Instagram
What she said: “It’s never too late to come out and live your true experience and be yourself and be authentic. There’s nothing like feeling loved in your own skin.”
How you know her: Life in Pieces (Jennifer Collins Short), Slip (Mae Cannon)
She came out as: Queer
When she came out: February 26 in The Hollywood Reporter
What she said: “I’m here, I’m queer, I have some fear but I’m working through it.”
Photo: @ayeshamadon on Instagram
How you know her: Heartbreak High (Amerie Wadia)
She came out as: Bisexual
When she came out: July 5 in Gay Times
What she said: “I only properly admitted, out loud, that I was bisexual two or three years ago. It feels recent. It’s pretty interesting watching myself be attracted to [girls]. My first kiss was with a girl. I’ve actually never spoken about my sexuality before in anything, so this is pretty new.”
How you know her: Bridgerton (Cressida Cowper)
She came out as: Bisexual
When she came out: June 1 on Instagram
What she said: “In Love with a woman, loud about it and proud about it!”
How you know her: RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16
She came out as: Trans (previously nonbinary)
When she came out: January 30 in Entertainment Weekly
What she said: “It wasn’t at all supported by my partner, and it ended up being a big part of why I had to leave, because he didn’t want to be with a trans person. […] [On Drag Race, I was] in this environment for the first time where everyone’s calling me Amanda and not my government name, and realizing how good that felt, and I started to feel a bit more comfortable in the reformation of my identity. […] I refer to myself as a t-girl at the moment.”
How you know her: Country music singer
She came out as: Bisexual
When she came out: June 9 on Instagram
What she said: “Happy to be the B in LGBTQ+”
Photo: @jasminepanama on Instagram
How you know her: 90 Day Fiancé
She came out as: No label given
When she came out: July 28 on 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? reunion special
What she said: “I mean, I have had girlfriends in the past so I get attracted to women as well as men.”
How you know her: Singer-songwriter, Mean Girls (Regina George)
She came out as: Lesbian (previously out as bisexual)
When she came out: January 20 on Saturday Night Live
What she said: Had Bowen Yang introduce her as “lesbian intern” instead of script’s “bisexual intern” in a skit
How you know her: Singer-songwriter
She came out as: Lesbian
When she came out: March 10 during a concert in Ohio
What she said: “I’m gay and nothing’s actually wrong with me.”
How you know her: Comedian, The Amber Ruffin Show
She came out as: Queer
When she came out: June 30 on Instagram
What she said: “In what will come as a shock to exactly zero people, I’m using the last day of PRIDE to come out! Be proud of who you are, little babies! I know I am! And I can’t wait to be discriminated against for a new reason!!
Photo: @stacyrenae926 on Instagram
How you know her: Love Is Blind
She came out as: No label given
When she came out: August 28 on Instagram
What she said: “Surprise!” with a rainbow emoji and a video of her kissing her girlfriend
How you know her: Comedian, After Midnight
She came out as: Bisexual
When she came out: February 13 on her Netflix special Have It All
What she said: “I’ve been trying to figure out if I’m bisexual, or if I just binged Euphoria too fast. ‘Cause I’ve been trying to date women, but it is so hard. I don’t know how to get women to like me. […] It’s scary to just say you’re bisexual, cause then someone’s always like, ‘fuckin’ prove it.’ […] My brother is trans, my sister is gay, and I identify as afraid.”
How you know her: Star Wars (Rose Tico), Raya and the Last Dragon (voice of Raya)
She came out as: Queer
When she came out: November 22 in Vanity Fair
What she said: “I haven’t said this publicly yet, but I’m a queer person. […] I’ve never truly felt this accepted before.”
How you know her: Saturday Night Live, Agatha All Along (Jennifer Kale)
She came out as: Lesbian
When she came out: September 9 to Them
What she said: “I’m out in my life and I do keep my personal life kind of private, but I also don’t necessarily want my identity to be private. […] I guess I’m one of those late-in-life lesbians. I just feel very comfortable and confident in my life.”
