News flash: Lance Bass is out of the closet

After years of silence, Bass is publicly revealing what he first shared with his friends, then his shocked family.

"I knew that I was in this popular band (’N Sync) and I had four other guys' careers in my hand, and I knew that if I ever acted on it or even said (that I was gay), it would overpower everything," he said.

"I didn’t know: Could that be the end of ’N Sync? So I had that weight on me of like, ‘Wow, if I ever let anyone know, it's bad.' So I just never did."

Why now? "The main reason I wanted to speak my mind was that (the rumors) really were starting to affect my daily life. Now it feels like it's on my terms. I'm at peace with my family, my friends, myself and God so there's really nothing else that I worry about," he said.

People