With the release of his new memoir, legendary music industry leader Clive Davis has come out as bisexual.
Davis might not be considered a household name by some, but a great many of the acts he's been largely responsible for certainly are.
At both CBS and Arista Records, he signed Aretha Franklin, Rod Stewart, Aerosmith, Kelly Clarkson, Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen, Chicago, Billy Joel, Pink Floyd, Christina Aguilera, Carlos Santana, Whitney Houston, the Grateful Dead, and dozens more.
He is also the co-founder of LaFace Records with L.A. Reid and Babyface, and the co-founder of Bad Boy Records with Sean "Diddy" Combs.
At times, people have been romantically involved with both men and women are referred to as bisexual by the media, but they don't actually identify themselves with that term. Not so with Davis, who now proudly identifies as bi. From his ABC News interview with Cynthia McFadden:
And there are deeply personal revelations: The end of his two marriages, and in the final chapter, Davis discusses his sexuality. He is bisexual, he told me. Since the end of his second marriage in 1985, he has been sexually involved with men. At first with both men and women, Davis said, but for the past 20 years with two male partners: A doctor for 13 years and for the past seven, with another man he does not name.
He tells me bisexuality is “maligned and misunderstood” but that it is his truth and he decided it was time for him to say so publicly. I asked Davis about the old adage that people are “either gay, straight or lying.”
“I’m not lying,” Davis said. ”[Bisexuality] does exist. For over 50 years I never had sex with a male. It wasn’t repressed. I had very good sexual relationships with women.”
Davis will be discussing his book, his career, and his bisexuality with Katie Couric on Katie this afternoon.
Davis has won four Grammy awards as a producer, and is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He is now one of the most powerful figures in the world to have ever come out as LGBT.