Reneé Rapp Was Nervous to Publicly Come Out as a Lesbian: 'I Heard a Couple Comments That Really Hurt My Feelings'

In an interview with 'Them,' the pop star/actress also opened up about how a sketch cameo on 'Saturday Night Live' helped her come out

Reneé Rapp is getting real about her sexuality.

In an interview with Them published Thursday, June 6, the pop star/actress, 24, opened up about coming out as a lesbian after previously identifying as bisexual.

When Rapp performed on Saturday Night Live in January, she had been considering coming out as a lesbian. However, a few negative experiences made her initially reconsider.

“I had privately been calling myself a lesbian, saying it to my friends, and I heard a couple comments that really hurt my feelings,” she told the outlet.

One comment, Rapp sarcastically recalled, was: “Oh, amazing, you’re coming out again. Congratulations."

Related: Reneé Rapp Has 'Had Enough' of Fans Questioning Her Sexuality: 'If I Say I'm a Lesbian I Am a Lesbian'

However, when her sketch cameo — which featured Bowen Yang playing a lip reading expert on an entertainment news program — featured a line originally penned as, “We need assistance from our little bisexual intern Reneé,” she asked staff writer and nobinary comedian Celeste Yim if she could change the sexuality descriptor from "bisexual" to "gay."

“They were so sweet — and obviously, they were going to be so sweet,” Rapp recalled of the experience. “But to me, I was thinking about being so afraid to publicly change my identity. I didn’t want anybody to be upset with me.”

She added, “I didn’t want to do it and be like, ‘Oh my God, I’m not using the word ‘bisexual,’ and make bisexual people feel s---ty. I also didn’t want to be like, ‘OK, I’m ‘gay’ and have all the lesbians be like, ‘Say you’re bisexual, then.’ I felt so wrapped up and scared.”

However, the "little gay intern" line wasn't fully working for Rapp.

It was a friend who convinced the Mean Girls actress that "it would be really f---ing sick if you came out as a lesbian on SNL." So the line was changed, and she did it.

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Related: Reneé Rapp Opens Up About Longtime 'Crush' on Justin Bieber: 'He Reminds Me of a Really Sexy Lesbian'

“I stayed off my phone for a couple days because I was so f---ing terrified and felt so s---ty but then it was just, like, a thing, and it felt good,” Rapp said.

Still, the Sex Lives of College Girls star continues to "have incredibly homophobic thoughts" toward herself.

“‘Lesbian’ was not a good word for me to hear as a kid,” Rapp said, “and now it’s something that I have such a close emotional connection to.”

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