Barry Manilow Recalls How ‘It Was a Burden’ to Keep His Sexuality a Secret: ‘I Was Always Worried’

Barry Manilow has struggled with some of the more difficult aspects of being in the public eye for years.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter released Friday, the “Mandy” musician, 80, opened up about the “burden” of keeping his sexuality a secret before coming out as gay in a 2017 PEOPLE cover story.

“I didn’t want my career to disappear. I like that. I am grateful for that. But it was hard to keep it quiet,” Manilow told the news outlet.

He added: “I was always worried. Every interview: ‘They’re going to ask me if I’m gay or not.’ By the way, no one ever did. They never asked me about the $64.”

Barry Manilow performs on stage during We Love NYC: The Homecoming Concert in August 2021.

Jeff Kravitz/Getty

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The pop legend recalled speaking to Clive Davis – who came out as bisexual in 2013 – in the 1980s about the pitfalls of coming out as a celebrity.

“He said, ‘You know – Elton John came out as bisexual. No artist should ever do that. It will hurt your career.’ And that hurt Elton for a while,” Manilow recalled.

The performer of “Copacabana” interpreted it as advice for himself, but the 91-year-old record producer denied the conversation.

“I’ve never had a conversation like that with Barry,” Davis said THR. “We never went there. If it came to that, if I were to analyze what the effect would be, I would say it is a risky career proposition. But we never talked about whether he should come out because he never told me he was gay.”

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Barry Manilow for The Hollywood Reporter.

Joelle Grace Taylor

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In October, Manilow told PEOPLE about becoming a grandfather as daughter Kirsten, 47, of husband and manager Garry Kief, became a mother for the first time and brought a baby girl into their lives.

“Garry’s daughter Kirsten adopted a little girl, so I’m a grandfather now,” he told PEOPLE. “I never, ever thought about having a child or having anything to do with it [being] father or any of that.”

“I’m watching this little girl – she’s 2½ years old – growing up and learning. This is a whole new experience for me and I’m really enjoying it,” he added.

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Source: HIS Education