Here's the sad reason why Jason Mraz didn't come out sooner

Coming out takes a little longer for some of us — and that was certainly the case for singer Jason Mraz, who shared his very good reason for waiting until later in life to come out.

Mraz, 48, was a recent guest on the Dinner's On Me podcast hosted by Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Eventually, Mraz and Ferguson discussed the singer's coming out, which happened in 2018 when he was already in his 40s.

"In the 90s, being gay was like [the] punchline of a joke," Mraz said, "And I didn't want to be the punchline of a joke."

The singer explained that he tried to keep his nose down as a teenager while figuring out "ways I could instead get out and see the world one day." He also added that being raised in a conservative environment added to his fears, even though his parents "are very supportive."

"I still took with me the conservative street that I grew up on, and that was very hard to break out of," Mraz went on. "I was very shy and scared of what my family would say, or what my hometown would think, or just whatever."

In 2018, Mraz came out as bisexual in a letter of support for the LGBTQ+ community. "We still have a long way to go / But know / I am bi your side / All ways," Mraz ended the statement. In 2023, the singer divorced his wife and has continued to speak openly about his queerness.

While Mraz told Ferguson on the podcast that he considers himself a "late bloomer," he's not worried. "I love where I am, and I feel so much love for myself finally that can only enhance the next relationship… when I find one," he concluded.

Listen to the full Jason Mraz episode on the Dinner's on Me podcast below.