^^^^^^^ absolutely this .

I would hate for him to be hiding his sexuality just to gain/keep fans. Not that im sure it makes much difference these days anyway.
Though he clearly is hiding it after that ridiculous script from the auditions with him having a 'girlfriend' who he 'split up with'.

You would be surprised by the number of pop stars who are still encouraged to stay in the closet to make them as appealing to the teen girls as is possible. People can say 'it's 2016' and 'we live in the 21st Century' but as a gay male who works in the entertainment industry, I know how brutal it is. I've heard it from poptsars who are still in the limelight and also directly from casting directors. I was once told that if I let in that I was gay, I would only ever be cast as the gay best friend. And this was 2 years ago! There ahs obviously been progress, but we still have a long way to go.