Scissor Sisters star Jake Shears had a not “entirely appropriate” romance with a 33-year-old man when he was just 16.
The singer opened up to Attitude magazine for its Masculinity issue, and says that while nothing sinister went on, he can now appreciate that the age gap was pretty major for a teenage boy.
“It wasn’t the best… or entirely appropriate. I was lucky that I don’t feel as if I was taken advantage of,” he told the British gay lifestyle magazine.
“There was a lot of confusing, hurt feelings that surrounded the scenario that I could have done without.”
Though he adds the unnamed boyfriend taught him how to play the guitar and introduced him to “a lot of great music”.
Jake, who was born Jason Sellards, also opened up about what it was like growing up gay in small town America, a topic he details in upcoming autobiography, Boys Keep Swinging: A Memoir.
“I kept everything in check but I was a weird kid and proceeded to become a weird teenager,” Jake remembered. “That sense of isolation can warp you a little. I ended up having different fantasies and desires than the status quo, and relishing the fact some people would find me stomach churning.
“I learnt how much my formative years truly affected me and how I’m still dealing with stuff from then. There’s a lot of trauma there and I think all queer people have to deal with that sort of thing.”
The 39-year-old recently released his first solo effort, single Creep City, and he’ll be playing gigs in New York and London later this month (Nov17).
