Unlike many queer mainstream singers and actors, Sivan came out before he was famous because, he says in the new issue of PEOPLE, "I want to live without fear."
The pop star came out to his family at age 15, then shared his story three years later in a YouTube video.
"I was about to sign my record deal, and I really wanted to be in charge of how I came out," Sivan, now 26, says. "I didn't want anyone to take that away from me. I wanted to start going out and going to gay clubs and meeting boys, and I wanted to write songs about love that were true and genuine."
