Ty Herndon and Billy Gilman made headlines in November 2014 by revealing they were gay within hours of each other ... but they weren't the first country artists to make such an announcement. From Chely Wright -- the first well-known country star to come out, in 2010 -- to songwriter Shane McAnally (pictured above), there have been a few others helping pave the way in the country music industry.

Click through the gallery to learn more about openly gay country music artists.