Following Beartooth vocalist Caleb Shomo‘s deeply personal announcement on Saturday that he is a “proudly gay man,” his wife of nearly 14 years, Fleur Shomo, has issued a public statement of her own. Taking to Instagram to address the situation, she confirmed the painful end of their marriage while expressing her enduring love and unwavering support for her former partner’s journey.
The couple originally married in 2012. Caleb Shomo‘s public disclosure on May 23 arrived after months of online speculation, which was heavily fueled by his visual transformation and themes of radical honesty presented in the recent music video for the Beartooth single “Free“.
In her incredibly candid and heartbreaking response, Fleur Shomo detailed the immense duality of her experience over the past several months. She openly discussed the profound isolation, confusion, and grief she endured while trying to support her husband through his realization, all while silently processing the devastating loss of her own marriage and future. Despite the emotional toll, she firmly defended the validity of their shared history and urged fans to continue supporting the singer.
She wrote:
“Not really sure how to start this cause does anything even need to be said? But I guess I’ll just dive right in.”
“The past few months have been a very disorientating and hurtful time to navigate. For both of us. But I will always want to love, protect and support Caleb. I have cared more about his well being over the years than anything else in the world.”
“To see the confusion and pain he went through and the highs and lows and wanting to help but not knowing how. You never want anything more for your person than for them to just be ok. You also ask yourself constantly if you’re a bad person for wondering wtf this means for your world & the anger you also feel. I am the only person that is having to deal with the duality of this situation. To support him whilst losing everything has been incredibly hard to figure out. You can love and support your person through the hardest time in their life, whilst also be completely demolished & lose yourself at the same time.”
“You question everything. But I have learned the one thing I don’t need to question is our history. No matter what anyone will say, I know it.”
“I have always wanted nothing more than for Caleb to be happy. Trying to help him go through this without having any idea what to do, has been a learning curve we never expected to experience together. The isolation of not being able to talk to people about this has been profound, as it has not been my story to share. My mental health has suffered & I have had moments where I have not felt or acted like myself. For those that have known & been there, thank you. I’ll never be able to repay your kindness.”
“Our nearly 14yrs of marriage was wonderful and full of so much fun, adventure & love. Nobody will know anything about our marriage like we do. And no one can ever truly know what depths of love exist between two people unless they are those people. I already miss it & my husband more than anything. Our story was a good one. And now it’s done.”
“I hope anyone in the world going through this finds hope & courage & I hope the fans can continue to support Caleb.”
“For now I’m going to keep focusing on what I can control & continue living my life trying to achieve what I want to achieve. And if I keep saying hi to as many dogs as possible along the way, then I’m sure things will slowly get better, day by day, piece by small piece, bird by bird.”
Caleb Shomo‘s statement:
“There’s been a lot of speculation surrounding my personal life as of late and I feel compelled to set the record straight before it affects those I love any further.”
“I am a proudly gay man.”
“This is something I’ve been unpacking and reckoning with in my life for quite some time now. It’s been difficult to navigate the feelings surrounding the subject and figure out what to do with this fact.”
“When it comes to my art / Beartooth, I have always strived to chase who I am in the deepest part of my soul from album to album. As you could gather if you’ve followed the band at all in the earlier years, there are 4 very self deprecating albums about exploring my religious upbringing, depression, self hatred, self loathing, and hopelessness. I am grateful for all these albums, yet feel embarrassed at times that I wouldn’t allow myself to really dig up the roots for so long.”
“I spent a decade burying feelings with alcohol, and honestly when I decided to put it down and focus on exploring why I felt this way for so long, it’s been a direct path to me reconciling with my sexuality in hopes that it will eventually lead to me experiencing self love. One thing I decided before I wrote a single note of the upcoming album is that whatever happens, I will express myself whole heartedly and fully. Wherever it takes me I will follow and I refuse to water any part of it down, from the music, to the lyrical content, and way I portray myself. I will only do what makes me happy at the deepest level and what is the most honest depiction of who I am. I believe it’s impossible to love every part of you when you won’t face every part of you head on. I am trying to finally be proud of who I am and I think this is a massive part of that journey.”
“To those who have shown me love, empowerment through living life freely and openly in my presence, supporting the queer community, or simply telling me you love me whoever I am, I am forever in your debt and I hope you know what you mean to me.”
“I encourage anyone who’s struggling with who they are to give yourself grace. Give yourself patience. Be honest with yourself. Do the hard work instead of burying it down as deep as you physically can thinking it will change like I did. Holding these things in only hurt you and those around you.”
“Love you all, and hopefully this is a step in the right direction to loving myself one day.”
Earlier in March, Disturbed frontman David Draiman publicly stepped up to give his support for the young singer. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Draiman praised Shomo‘s bold self-expression, comparing his flamboyant new style to some of the greatest legends in rock history.
“Some of the greatest frontmen of all time have never held anything back, fully embracing their own aspects of flamboyance and expressing themselves as powerfully as they knew how.”
“Bowie, Mercury and so many others, took rock to a level only few dared to go, and did it with power, class and grace. I have watched Caleb Shlomo, the singer of Beartooth, become one of the most formidable young frontmen in rock. The song is great, the video is great, and the band is firing on all cylinders.”
“Bowie, Mercury and so many others, including yours truly, are PROUD OF YOU.”
Meanwhile, Attila vocalist Chris Fronzak found himself in hot water after making a ho**phobic remark directed at the Caleb. Fronzak initially posted a since-deleted message on X stating: “Looks like Caleb Shomo dropped the ‘S.’”
Facing immediate backlash from the rock and metal community, the Attila frontman walked back his comments on Tuesday, March 3, issuing a lengthy, multi-part apology explaining his skewed perspective on internet humor.
“I would like to formally apologize for my tweet about Caleb Shomo.”
“I meant it as a joke, but it didn’t come across that way. I don’t know what he’s going through at the moment, but I wish him the best. The world has too much hate [right now] & I don’t want to add any fuel to that fire.”
“People will probably twist this into more negativity, but I am being honest. I meant it as a joke, not a jab at gay people. I personally thought it was lighthearted but I suppose that’s subjective. From my perspective – I get death threats daily for over a decade. People call me horrific things & make up terrible stories. Horrible stuff every day. My perspective is skewed, the internet has desensitized me so I thought it was a 1/10 light joke.”
“The reality is, people are struggling in their own ways, and jokes are subjective. You never know what someone is going through. Therefore, I am sorry, and I will work towards thinking about things deeper before I just word-vomit s**t into this bird app. Love yall.”
