Chely Wright Will March With ‘Pride’ in Chicago

Chely Wright, who recently came out as a lesbian, has signed on as the grand marshal at this year's Chicago Pride Parade, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The singer-songwriter released her memoir, 'Like Me,' and new album, 'Lifted Off the Ground,' last month, and in the book, she details the reasons she had to hide her sexuality for the sake of her music. The organizer of the group putting on the parade in Chi-Town, Richard Pfeiffer, says a number of cities were vying for Chely.

"She represents this whole segment of the community that is not always really open about being GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender)," he says. "Country music fans live in big cities, live in small towns, but often folks in that genre aren't real open about being gay. For her to come out, it was pretty great."

Chicago's 41st Annual Pride Parade will take place on June 27.

Chely will be in Nashville on June 8 for her annual Reading, Writing and Rhythm benefit concert and auction event. This year's concert will feature guests Rodney Crowell, Justin Moore, Bucky Covington, Sarah Buxton and Canadian pop singer Jann Arden.

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