Since country singer Chely Wright (“Single White Female”) announced that she and Lauren Blitzer were engaged, the couple has collected a passel full of frequent flier miles just from LGBT events alone.
On May 21, Wright will be among the honorees at the 34th Anniversary Celebration for the National Center for Lesbian Right’s (NCLR) in San Francisco.
In April she flew from Nashville to the West Coast for An Evening With Women, the LA Gay & Lesbian Center’s annual fundraiser for its youth and senior programs, which is where we met Wright’s fiancée.
“I found a girlfriend that we can share clothes,” said Wright, glancing at similarly svelte, blonde and lovely Lauren Blitzer.
“Not shoes,” chimes in Blitzer with a smile.
“Alright, my feet are really big,” Wright admits a bit sheepishly.
Blitzer stood beaming at Wright’s side. She said she got to know the country singer while working for a nonprofit.
“I’m in the advocacy business, and that’s how we met. I used to work for an organization called GLSEN that Chely worked with.” (The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network is the sponsor of A Day of Silence, which targets bullying and discrimination in schools.)
“We’re here to be a part of the night,” said Wright outside the Beverly Hilton ballroom, where An Evening With Women was getting underway. They appeared at the invitation of Linda Perry, the show’s producer.
“I just adore her,” Wright says of the prolific singer-songwriter, who’s been responsible for recruiting such celebrities as Pink, Christina Aguilara, Renee Zellweger, Heart and this year’s headliner, Cyndi Lauper, to appear in support of the center’s programs.
“I don’t know a female singer who doesn’t want to work with Linda Perry,” says Wright, who admits to her own professional crush.
“It’s a secret fantasy of mine.”
Wright admits that she feared, “the negative consequences for my career [in] country music,” when she came out a year ago.
“But it’s alright, I’m a hard worker. I get out there and keep my head down and just do my work. I will be fine.”
Since coming out, the country music singer has puddle-jumped across the country in support of LGBT events and causes.
“I consider it a real blessing that I get to do things like this,” says Wright. “Anytime I can be out-and-about talking about my story, which, really is what the LGBT movement is about, people telling their stories, whether you’re a school teacher or a country music singer, that seems to be what changes people’s minds and ill-perceptions of people like us.”