Chaz Bono

Chaz Bono was in a relationship with Jennifer Elia in the 90s. Their affair was extensively covered by tabloids. After 12 years of being together, the couple called it quits in 2011. According to Chaz, they parted ways due to personal differences and that the break-up happened in an amicable manner.

Chaz was born Chastity Sun Bono on March 4, 1969, in Los Angeles, California. He was born to the popular pop duo Cher and Sonny Bono and often appeared on his parents’ famous television show. He was named after a film produced and written by Sonny Bono.

Chaz hogged the limelight since his birth as his parents were at the peak of their respective career. He made his first TV appearance in his parents’ show ‘The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour.’ During the filming of the show, Chaz felt uncomfortable when he was asked to wear the clothes given to him. To everyone’s surprise, he was interested in trying out the outfit worn by male artists.

Sonny and Cher’s marriage ended in a bitter divorce when Chaz was six years old. He attended ‘The High School of Performing Arts’ in New York City, where he befriended Jennifer Aniston.

Though he was interested in performing arts, he was often bothered by the confusion regarding his identity. As soon as he stepped into his teens, he realized that he wasn’t interested in boys and that he was a lesbian. But by the time he was in his late teens, he began to understand his real identity.

Unfortunately, Chaz had to undergo a difficult phase, which was further worsened by the fact that his mother wasn’t pleased with his revelation. In fact, she ended up disowning him, but he was not ashamed of his identity and decided to make a career in the field of entertainment. Hence, he started focusing on his musical skills.

While pursuing his college education at ‘New York University,’ Chaz embarked on a musical journey by joining a band named ‘Ceremony’ in 1988. Apart from being the band’s lead vocalist, he also played the guitar and percussion. During his struggle days, Bono did not tell anyone about his famous parents. However, after a few months, he finally revealed his true identity and ended up signing a record deal.

‘Geffen Records’ cracked a deal with his band and in the following few years, ‘Ceremony’ came up with several songs for the record label and most of the songs were written by Chaz. He and his band members experimented quite a lot by fusing psychedelic undertones with soft music. In the year 1993, the band released its album ‘Hang Out Your Poetry,’ which received mixed response. However, a few critics praised the creative attributes of the album and called it a ‘soothing psychedelia.’

As soon as Chaz came out of the closet, ‘Star Magazine’ published a lengthy story regarding Chaz’s sexual orientation. The fact that Cher and Sonny’s only child was a lesbian became the talking point in media. In 1995, Chaz disclosed his thoughts to a number of people with the help of a magazine ‘The Advocate.’ Since the magazine was one of the leading American LGBT publications, it made Chaz famous overnight.

He then joined the publication as a writer, and in 1996, he joined ‘Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation’ (GLAAD). He became the organization’s ‘Entertainment Media Director’ and raised his voice against the emotional and physical assaults on homosexuals.

In 1998, he bid farewell to ‘GLAAD’ when he was embroiled in a controversy. According to a few reports, Chaz’s nasty comments, made on the popular sitcom ‘Ellen,’ had given rise to the controversy. However, Chaz made it clear that his comments were taken out of context.