TJ Osborne Exhales: ‘I Instantaneously Felt Like I Should Have Done This Long Ago’

Following his public coming out on Wednesday, TJ Osborne of the country duo The Brothers Osborne beamed into The Ellen DeGeneres Show to talk about his decision, and how he feels in the afterglow of the love and support he’s received. Describing the experience as a “very emotional day,” Osborne explained he had really only come out to a very few family and friends before yesterday.

“I was asked ‘why do you have to do this?’ and I wish I didn’t have to. I kind of told myself for a long time ‘if everything is equal here and it’s not that big of a deal then why do I have to come out?’ And unfortunately it just isn’t that way.”

“And I got to this point where I knew there was never going to be a perfect time and honestly, now that I’m kind of behind it now – with coming out – it’s so wild to me to think that about the perfect time is always now.”

Like many folks who finally take the very personal step to share this very intimate part of their life, Osborne shared, “I instantaneously felt like I should have done this a long time ago.”

TJ, I hope you feel so supported today. It’s a brave thing to be wholly you in a world and industry that would rather you hide pieces of you behind a mask. #lgbtq #whollyloved https://t.co/KePZYq2gKB

— LeAnn Rimes Cibrian (@leannrimes) February 3, 2021

Love this guy right here. @brothersosborne. Happy you are telling your story dude. 🤘👊 pic.twitter.com/l2EqHk31nm

— Dierks Bentley (@DierksBentley) February 3, 2021

Overcome with joy. He’s one of my best friends and one of the bravest people I know. Love you, TJ. Celebrating you today. https://t.co/5Wg5NKkObM // @brothersosborne

— K A C E Y (@KaceyMusgraves) February 3, 2021

We love you so much, Teej. 🙌🏼✨ https://t.co/e1snWo0Wjn

— MAREN MORRIS (@MarenMorris) February 3, 2021