Joey Fatone Reveals He Was First NSYNC Member to Learn Lance Bass Was Gay
In a candid new docuseries, Joey Fatone has shared a personal anecdote about how he discovered his NSYNC bandmate Lance Bass was gay during the group's heyday. The revelation came in Fatone's "Boy Band Confidential" ID docuseries, which premiered this week, offering a glimpse into the private lives of the pop icons.
A Surprising Late-Night Discovery
Fatone recounted the incident in a clip shared by USA Today, describing a night out with the band that ended at Bass's house. "We all go back to Lance's house. I pass out in one of his guest bedrooms," Fatone said. "I wake up at, like, 3 o'clock in the morning. I'm like, 'Oh, my God, I got to leave.' I go to his bedroom, open up the door. There's nobody in there."
Unsure where Bass was, Fatone then checked the office. "I open up the door and he's sitting there, and there's a guy straddled on top of him," he recalled. Bass clarified that he was at the computer with his very first boyfriend, though Fatone noted they were not naked. The room "got quiet" in the awkward moment.
A Supportive Response and a Secret Kept
Fatone immediately apologized for intruding, but Bass invited him to stay. "I was like, 'Surprise,'" Bass said, to which Fatone joked that Bass's mother was going to kill him. Bass responded, "Oh, please. I don't care," and later reflected on the importance of Fatone's acceptance. "I knew he wouldn't care, but it was just so nice to hear those words, and finally (have) one of the members of your group know and be like, 'I don't care.'"
Bass asked Fatone to keep his secret for the time being, and Fatone agreed, saying, "Lance, I love you. You're my brother. You let me know when it's right for you to tell." This moment of trust and support highlights the close bond within the band during their peak years.
Background and Legacy of NSYNC
Lance Bass eventually came out publicly in a 2006 People interview, four years after NSYNC had effectively disbanded. He married Michael Turchin in 2014, and the couple welcomed twins in 2021. Meanwhile, NSYNC, consisting of Fatone, Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick, Justin Timberlake, and JC Chasez, achieved significant success in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
The band produced a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with "It's Gonna Be Me" and had six top 10 hits, cementing their status as one of the era's most popular boy bands. This new anecdote adds a personal layer to their public image, showing the human side behind the music.
