Talk:Melissa Etheridge

First or second inauguration?
Etheridge is also famous as a gay rights activist, having publicly come out as a lesbian during President Bill Clinton's second inauguration in January 1993.

1993 was his first inauguration, did she come out in 93 or 97 his second inauguration ? User:Smith03

She came out in 1997 at the second. -MLE Fan no in 1993! - mary —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 80.104.117.119 (talk • contribs) 16:20, 18 August 2005 (UTC)
 * For ease of communication, please sign your comments using 4 tildes ( ~ ). Also, please WP:CITE a credible source which documents whether this event happened in 1993 or 1997 so we may put this to rest.  :)  Hall Monitor 16:49, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

Given that she was "out" by the time of the release of "Yes I am" in 1994 (the title itself was a comment on all the rumors), I would say it's the first inauguration. for definitive proof, check pages 132-134 of the first edition hardback of "The Truth is..." where she talks about the performing at the first inauguration and being referred to as a "butch rocker" by the newspapers afterward. She also talks about having come out and thus deciding to use the song "Yes I Am" on her forthcoming album. DragonsDream (talk) 16:24, 9 June 2008 (UTC)

This is semantics but Yes I Am does not reference her being gay; she has repeatedly said that wasn't the case, including her iTunes Originals interview CD. It's a coincidence as she already titled the album and then happened to come out right before its release. 12.162.122.6 (talk) 21:51, 4 March 2010 (UTC)

fair use images
I'm new to Wikipedia's image fair use guidelines, but from what I gather at Template_talk:Albumcover, we shouldn't be using an album cover image to illustrate Etheridge herself. Does anyone have a known promotional photo that we could use instead, or does anyone have a different take on the fair use guidelines? --Allen 23:56, 1 March 2006 (UTC)


 * No response to this, so I'm deleting it. --Allen 19:31, 5 March 2006 (UTC)


 * The world must be getting dysfunctional when nobody can take the time to pick up the phone and ask somebody's permission for something so elementary. 172.56.27.230 (talk) 01:29, 24 May 2014 (UTC)

I need to wake up
I think I need to wake up was the song for the film An Inconvenient Truth. Maybe we should add this.--195.93.60.137 17:03, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

Anyone interested in bringing this article up to FA?
I posted a note on the Melissa Etheridge fan board looking for some input and also some free license photos. I know there are some fabulous pics out there. Agne 08:28, 23 January 2007 (UTC) (aka Idle Ash for the newbies :wave:)
 * Always trying for FA! (okay, maybe at least a B - I got through college on that!) But it would be a great goal for this article. Zue Jay (talk)  05:13, 2 March 2007 (UTC)

Be Nice- No Bull Dyke references!
The person who inserted the words 'bull dyke' after the words gay rights activist should have his/her editting rights revoked! Preach on melissa!

Virtual album
Is this a necessary inclusion? Seems a little...commercial as only iTunes is cited/capable/the one doing this type o' thing? Zue Jay (talk)  05:13, 2 March 2007 (UTC)

Second ASCAP Award
I'm not an editor of Wikipedia pages so thought I would throw this out there to someone to add - Melissa Etheridge has actually received two ASCAP awards...she was honored with the prestigious ASCAP Founders Award during the 24th Annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards on April 18th, 2007. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.7.155.167 (talk) 17:31, 14 March 2009 (UTC)

Needs more sources
The article needs a LOT more sources. It has been tagged accordingly. SunCrow (talk) 08:05, 25 August 2019 (UTC)
 * agreed.Eruditess (talk) 22:59, 16 July 2020 (UTC)

Can someone clean up this paragraph?
Its first sentence seems to suggest this paragraph is about Etheridge's history of navigating her lesbian identity in and out of the public eye, but the rest of it gives random quotes that don't have any apparent connection to the question of when the public became aware of her sexuality.

 At the time of the album's release, it was not generally known that Etheridge was a lesbian. While on the road promoting the album, she paused in Memphis, Tennessee, to be interviewed for the syndicated radio program Pulsebeat—Voice of the Heartland, explaining the intensity of her music by saying: "People think I'm really sad—or really angry. But my songs are written about the conflicts I have...I have no anger toward anyone else." She invited the radio syndication producer to attend her concert that night. He did and was surprised to find himself one of the few men in attendance.

Can someone decide if we need these random quotes? 2601:601:51C:E24:3412:81F8:8D19:8336 (talk) 19:22, 1 September 2023 (UTC)