MALIBU, California. – Someday it won’t matter when a celebrity comes out as LGBTQ+, but until that day comes when every orientation and identity is accepted, embraced and respected equally, that’s what happens: Wayne Brady said followers of TikTok and Instagram that he is pansexual, and People magazine told the world.
“I’m pansexual,” he told the magazine’s Jason Sheeler in an exclusive interview. “Bisexuals have an open heart!” Brady added.
Sheeler explained to People magazine readers that this means he is “attracted to people regardless of their sex or gender identity.” In its extensive media guidelines, GLAAD defines the word “pansexual” as “an adjective used to describe a person who has the ability to be enduringly physically, romantically, and/or emotionally attracted to anyone, regardless of gender identity. It is one of several terms that make up bi+.”
As the most popular TV personality right now, Brady stands out among other celebrities including Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Janelle Monáe, Cara Delevingne, Asia Kate Dillion, Jazz Jennings and JoJo Siwa.
Brady, 51, became a star in 1998 on Whose Line Is It Anyway? television show that showcased his enormous talent for improvisation, a program that is still on the air today with Brady now serving as executive producer. The Georgia native is also an actor with dozens of film, Broadway and television roles to his credit, and was the host of the rebooted Let’s Make a Deal.
The first person Brady came out to was his ex-wife Mandy Taketa. “I just said, ‘Great.’ I knew that being honest would help him be happier,” she said.
Taketa shares the baby with Brady and her partner Jason Fordham. Brady and Taketa, 47, also have daughter Maile, 20. According to the magazine, the blended family of four is currently filming a reality show for Hulu.
“I love all people equally, including myself,” Brady said. It’s a turn to a bitter time more than 20 years ago, when the actor had a falling out with a writer on Chappelle’s Show. It was a joke that Brady insisted back in 2021 offended him mainly because it wasn’t funny: “White people love Wayne Brady because he makes Bryant Gumbel look like Malcolm X,” said the late Paul Mooney on Dave Chappelle’s sketch comedy show. .
Brady was later invited to appear on the show in a hilarious and memorable sketch that showed him in a completely different light.
For People magazineBrady wrote his own coming out story, which is below in full:
I’m pansexual.
In researching both myself and the world, I couldn’t tell if I was bisexual because I needed to really see what it was, especially since I didn’t really have the opportunity to act on it. anything. So, I came to pansexuality because—and I know I’m completely confusing the dictionary meaning—but to me, pan means the ability to be attracted to anyone who identifies as gay, straight, bi, transgender, or non-binary. Ability to attract attention in all directions. And I think, at least for me right now, this is the right place. I realized that the word “pan” meant that not only could I be physically attracted to any of these people or types, but I could also be attracted to the person next to me.
People think they really know me. This has its advantages and disadvantages.
As with any blessing, I say, “How cool.” It’s cool that people like me, especially when I host a show like “Let’s Make a Deal” or when different companies or networks think, “I want Wayne Brady to host this,” what a blessing! What a blessing it is to be in people’s homes and interact with them every day. I like this part. But there are days when I’m not a fan of it. Because I’m actually an actor. I don’t want to put personality first.
There’s a reason I live in Malibu Canyon and not downtown Hollywood. I’m an introvert. Shy. I always have been. At one point in my childhood, growing up in Orlando, I had a very severe stutter caused by anxiety, bullying, and stress. I couldn’t communicate the way I wanted until I started acting, singing and performing.
Like the characters. I was Tigger, Goofy and the Toy Soldier in the Disney Christmas Parade. I liked it because you can see the work. You don’t necessarily see me. I like to bring joy, so I like to be a character: if I can do it as a character, then maybe that character would be Wayne Brady. I’m going through a lot of therapy right now. I wish I didn’t care what people think of me, but the fact is, I do care. It’s a strange dichotomy, going from screaming audiences to sitting in the house and just chilling by yourself.
Robin Williams’ death in 2014 really impacted me and set me on a path of self-discovery.
After Robin’s death, I became involved in some groups, such as Glenn Close’s Bring Change to Mind, being vocal about mental health. And not just a mental health buzzword, but actually, what do I need to do to function in this big world and still be okay with myself and, more importantly, love myself enough to not hurt myself? Not even just physically harming yourself, but not taking care of yourself because you’re depressed, scared, and weighed down.
However, once I opened that door for myself, I had to start getting to know myself, and I had to start acknowledging things that I may have either suppressed, repressed, or just didn’t want to deal with. I’ve been working hard on a lot of other things so far, and one of the last questions on that checklist was: What’s the last thing you need to be truly happy and truly yourself? I brought joy at work. But it’s a pity that then I come home and I don’t have that joy. I feel joy because I love my daughter and my family. I like being a father more than chocolate ice cream. But this cannot be my only joy. I have to love myself. And then I realized that I had a problem, because if I can do everything on stage and in front of the camera, but then I come home and I have a love deficit, what happens? This was my rock bottom.
I have never been suicidal, but I sympathize with those who think such thoughts.
Now I understand it. I got to the point where I thought, “I’m not here, then whatever this pain is, whatever this loneliness is, this heartbreaking loneliness, I can stop it. I could be completely free of pain, whatever it is inside me.” And when I felt it, I said, “Oh, damn. Fine. let’s get to the bottom of this. Let’s do it now.”
I did all the therapy I could. I was treated for love addiction. This is part of my journey. I had to start analyzing why I was looking for myself and happiness among so many people. If I marry this man, then everything will be fine. If I meet this person, everything will be fine. I’ll be fine. I’ll get better. Obviously this is a problem. So, by doing this work, I now know for sure that love addiction arises from trauma. I’m not ashamed of it, any more than I would shame someone if they said they were addicted to methamphetamine or cocaine. It’s a disease.
What am I looking for in these people that I cannot find in myself? And then leave the crowd of people and never be satisfied, and then become lonely again. Fast forward to when I recently asked myself the question, “Wayne, are you gay?” And the answer was no, because even though I’d been in all these failed relationships and was now dealing with what I knew could be diagnosed as a love addiction, I started saying, “Okay, I’m something I feel it, but I just don’t know. how to get there.” And then I felt like a fraud.
I have been attracted to men from time to time in my life. But I’ve never dated a man.
Let’s be honest: I’ve also been attracted to certain men in my life, but I’ve always pushed it aside because of how I was raised and because I live in today’s world, and it’s scary as hell. What’s the fastest way to hurt another man? I’ll call you on your behalf. I will call you gay. I’ll castrate you. I’m going to use the F-word. I learned that very early on from people around me, they were like, “Oh, so these are bad things? Yeah. You, you don’t want to be like that.”
So what does it mean if I feel something? I don’t consider myself gay, but what if I feel something for another (man)… It’s still gay. I’ve been bullied before for a bunch of other crap. I didn’t want to wear a top hat over this suit.
I dealt with shame.
Shameful cake, you just eat it every single day and then worry that… people will find out. I’ve always had a wonderful community of LGBTQ+ friends, people I grew up with on the show, gays and lesbians, and later my transgender relatives and my niece. I’ve always had this community, but I always felt like a phony because I wasn’t honest with myself. I could talk about black issues because I can’t hide it. And you can play the role of an ally, but until the day when you can actually say, “This is who I am, and I want to stand next to you,” it’s not… I always wanted that day to come.
I have told myself in the past that no one needs to know my personal affairs. The world may be completely unaware that Wayne identifies as a pan. But it gave me the right to continue to live in the shadows and keep the secret. What would it be like to not actually be ashamed, to not feel like, “Oh, I can’t be part of this conversation because I’m lying?” I had to break this behavior.
Right now I’m trying to be as much like Wayne Brady as I can be.
Actually I don’t know about most. I’m still getting it together. But if I’m healthy, I can go on stage at Let’s Make A Deal and be the best Wayne Brady that everyone wants and expects. I can be the best father Mail needs. I can be a better friend to Mandy, a better son to my mother, and one day a better partner to someone because I do it for myself. Although I’m not dating yet! (Laughs) I’m single, but it’s not about being with someone right now. I still have some things to do. Then Wayne, as a single, open-minded pansexual, can make a decision and be free and open to other people.
Follow Wayne Brady on Instagram at @mrbradybaby and on TikTok at @waynebrady
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Wayne Brady came out as pansexual | PEOPLE: