NKOTB's Jonathan Knight Reveals He Faced 'Pressure' To Keep His Sexuality Hidden

Jonathan Knight recently disclosed that during his time as a member of New Kids on the Block, he was pressured to hide his sexuality from the public. Knight is married to his longtime partner Harley Rodriguez. The couple started dating in 2008 and by 2016 got engaged to each other.

The artist was part of the 90s boy band NKOTB alongside Jordan Knight, Danny Wood, Donnie Wahlberg, and Joey McIntyre. Knight was the first to leave the group in 1994, and a few weeks later, it officially disbanded and reunited in 2008.

Read on to learn more.

While Knight is currently enjoying marital bliss with his partner Rodriguez, it wasn't always so. The artist joined a recent episode of the Frosted Tips podcast with Lance Bass, where he shed light on his experiences during his band's early years. He said, "My manager knew I was gay."

Knight further explained that his manager told him not to tell anyone about his sexuality because it could mean the death of his still-young career. "He pulled me aside and was like, 'If anybody finds out, your career is over. The New Kids' career is over. My career is over,'" the artist recalled per Page Six. "It was just so much pressure."

Knight continued, "Looking back, that was a lot of pressure to put on somebody who's just trying to figure out the world themselves. As it went along, the stress built up and built up and built up."

Knight revealed that the pressure was so much for him that he was constantly battling with anxiety and felt like he was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. When he eventually became known as a gay man, it was several years later and not by choice. The artist revealed that an ex-boyfriend of his, without his consent, had sold pictures of them to a news platform.

He recalled, "It was a boyfriend of mine who sold pictures of us to the National Enquirer." Despite the tabloid reports, Knight did not make any formal statement of his sexuality and just continued living his life.

"I didn't want to. I was just living my life... it wasn't something I was hiding," the former NKOTB member said. "But then it was like, 'No, you have to make a statement. You have to clear the air.' And that whole process was horrible."

After years together, Knight and his longtime boyfriend Rodriguez tied the knot in a secret ceremony. The artist revealed the news in an interview with Entertainment Tonight. During the conversation, Knight was asked about the wedding band on his finger, after which he confirmed his new marital status.

He said, "But everybody just assumed we're married, so I never say yes, or no 'cause I don't wanna lie." The ceremony was held during the COVID-19 pandemic, and according to their Instagram bios, the couple took each other's last names.

Knight and Rodriguez initially got engaged in 2016 after eight years together. They were reportedly in Africa for a vacation with their families when Knight popped the question. During an episode of Sirius' The Jenny McCarthy Show, the singer said, We were in Africa, our parents were there — our moms were there — and I just figured this was the time to pop the question and make it official."

"We were on the Zambezi River — it's right above Victoria Falls," he continued. "We took a nighttime raft dinner, just the four of us on the river; there was like a hippopotamus in the background. It was a supermoon. It was just absolutely beautiful; it was so romantic."

In 2011, Knight's ex-girlfriend and fellow singing sensation outed him on national television. Tiffany was invited on an episode of Bravo's "Watch What Happens: Live" where she revealed that Knight was gay.

The singer ignorantly claimed that Knight became gay after their time together, but while they dated, they had a lot of fun and did "facials" together. When asked if she had dated any member of the NKOTB, the artist said, "The quiet one, the shy one."

She continued per Billboard, "[Jonathan Knight] became gay later. I didn't do it. I had issues with that. I was thinking maybe I did. Now looking back, when we were dating, he was so much fun. We used to do facials together. He was so easy to talk to."

The singer received heavy backlash online for what she said on "WWHL," but luckily got some support from her ex, Knight himself, who told her to not "lose any sleep" over what she shared on the show.