hero's journey

RBD’s Christian Chavez on being outed in 2007, not wanting to seem “too gay,” & reclaiming his pride

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Back in 2007, Christian Chavez was enjoying a wave of success on the Mexican telenovela Rebelde and the pop group RBD when he made the bold step of coming out of the closet.

It was a huge milestone for queer representation in the Latin community, but Chavez’s brave move was initially motivated by more sinister machinations.

Behind the scenes, photos of Chavez were being used to blackmail the show’s network Televisa, with perpetrators threatening to out him – and potentially jeopardize the program and the music group’s future – if they were not paid to keep their silence.

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Prior to joining the series, Chavez secretly married a man in Canada and their private wedding photos were now being used against him.

Conflicted on how to handle the situation, Chavez decided to post a letter on the group’s website revealing to the world more of his authentic self, but without ever actually using the word “gay.”

“It was so hard for me because I was just 23 years old and I didn’t have any guidance,” Chavez told People. “There was Ricky Martin, but Ricky Martin was not even out yet. I didn’t know how to [handle it] —especially because I was being forced to do it and I was not ready.”

15 years ago, being out in the public eye came with the threat of it negatively impacting your career. The media backlash was especially brutal as Chavez found himself losing acting roles and radio stations refused to play his “gay music.”

Despite now being out, he felt added pressure from members on his team to not seem “too gay,” Chavez said to Refinery29. “You’re not an activist,” he recalled being told, “You are a singer and you’re an actor.”

He fell into a depression and turned to other vices in an attempt to escape his pain.

“I was in a very bad place. I thought that was it. I tried to kill myself and there was a moment in my life that I could say that I lost everything,” Chavez told People. “I didn’t have money. I was a joke for the media. I was hating myself.”

Thankfully, he slowly pulled himself out of that dark place and found inspiration through theater and making solo music again.

In recent years, he’s also achieved further success in telenovelas and on the Netflix series The House of the Flowers and Daughter From Another Mother.

Chavez is now prioritizing mental health with therapy and by sharing his story.

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“Now that I’m healed and I have so much to offer, I don’t regret everything,” he shared. “I honestly do believe that things happen for a reason. And without that happening to me, I wouldn’t be the same. So I have this purpose now.”

In a full circle moment, Chavez is also getting ready to go back on the stage with RBD as the group previously announced they are reuniting for a new world tour nearly 15 years after disbanding.

And after reclaiming his freedom and power, the 39-year-old said fans can expect to see a better version of himself this time around.

“I’m going to be that little Christian who wanted to wear different clothing, sparkles and who wanted to be himself on stage,” he said. “Finally, I’m going to get to be the real Christian.”

RBD’s “Soy Rebelde” tour kicks off August 25th in El Paso, Texas. Watch the band’s triumphant announcement below:

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