Musician Melissa Etheridge celebrates her birthday today. Born in Leavenworth, Kansas, she went on to study music at Berklee College of Music and began performing in clubs around Boston. She later dropped out after three semesters and moved to Los Angeles to pursue her rock ’n’ roll ambitions.
She was signed to Island Records, but her first attempt at recording an album was reportedly rejected for sounding too polished. Returning to the studio in 1988, Etheridge released her self-titled debut album, which included the hit songs Somebody Bring Me Some Water, Similar Features and Like the Way I Do. She went on to achieve further success with Brave and Crazy in 1989 and Never Enough in 1992.
In 1993 Etheridge publicly came out declaring she was a lesbian, and released her fourth album Yes I Am. It included the songs Come To My Window and I’m the Only One.
Etheridge had a long term relationship with Julie Cypher. The couple had two children, later sharing that rock musician David Crosby had been their sperm donor. The couple separated in 2000.
From 2002 until 2010 Etheridge was in a relationship with actress Tammy Lynn Michaels, during their relationship Michaels gave birth to twins. During their relationship Etheridge had a public battle with breast cancer.
In 2014 Etheridge married her partner Linda Wallem, who is an actor, writer and producer. In 2020 tragedy stuck when her son Beckett Cypher died aged just 21, with his family revealing he had struggled with opiate addiction.
Over her career Etheridge has released 17 albums of material, including a Christmas collection and a covers album of soul classics. Her latest album came out earlier in 2026.
Melissa Etheridge spoke to OUTinPerth’s Zoe Carter back in 2012, and also chatted to Graeme Watson in 2016.
Religious leader Gene Robinson was born on this day in 1947
Gene Robinson celebrates his birthday today, turning 76.
While a university student, he was drawn to the Episcopal Church and later ordained as a minister. In 1986 Robinson separated from his wife and publicly shared that he was gay. The following year he met his partner Mark Andrew, and in 2008 the couple took part in a civil ceremony.
Robinson continued his career in the church and in 2003 was elected Bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire. His history-making appointment attracted international attention.
He remained a bishop until 2013, when he retired from the church. He later went on to work with a number of non-profit organisations. Throughout his career, Bishop Robinson often spoke publicly about the need for the church to embrace LGBTIQA+ people.
Robinson and Andrew divorced in 2015. At the time, the former bishop said that marriages between same-sex couples were no different from heterosexual marriages and that, sadly, not all relationships endure.
“It is at least a small comfort to me, as a gay rights and marriage equality advocate, to know that like any marriage, gay and lesbian couples are subject to the same complications and hardships that afflict marriages between heterosexual couples,” Robinson wrote in an article for The Daily Beast. “All of us sincerely intend, when we take our wedding vows, to live up to the ideal of ’til death do us part. But not all of us are able to see this through until death indeed parts us.”
OIP Staff, This post was first published in 2022 and has been updated.
