Adam Levine in OUT: Maroon 5's Frontman on 'The Voice' and His Gay Brother

Adam Levine loves to be nude, stand up for great causes like the fight against cancer, sing (Perhaps you’ve heard of the multi-platinum radio giants Maroon 5?), guide new talent as a judge on NBC’s The Voice, and make you wonder if he might be gay.

“There’s no way to hide my straightness,” the cover boy recently told Out magazine, “but if people didn’t think there was a small chance I was gay, then I wouldn’t be doing my job very well. Look at the best ones, guys whose sexuality was always questioned. Bowie. Jagger. Freddie Mercury. I wouldn’t be the front man of a band if that question hadn’t come up at some point.”

The judge on the new hit singing contestant that famously showcased several out LGBT contestants thinks the entertainment world is overdue for more queer performers.

“What’s always pissed me off about Idol is wanting to mask that, for that to go unspoken," Levine said in the interview. "C’mon. You can’t be publicly gay? At this point? On a singing competition? Give me a break. You can’t hide basic components of these people’s lives. The fact that The Voice didn’t have any qualms about being completely open about it is a great thing.”

In the Out cover story, Levine also opened up for the first time about how his younger brother, who is gay, helped shape his perspective.

“I can single-handedly dispel any ideas that sexuality is acquired,” he told OUT with a laugh. “Trust me, you’re born with it. My brother is gay, and we knew when he was 2. We all knew. We all really wanted to provide some cushion for him and constantly let him know that it’s OK,” Levine said. “A lot of people don’t want their kid to be gay and will fight it at all costs. But I’ve got news for you—it’s a losing fucking battle. The more you fight it, the more fucked-up your kid’s gonna be. You’ve just gotta embrace it from the beginning. That’s the only way to deal with it as a family. Otherwise, you’re just screwing yourself over, and you’re gonna make your kid miserable.”

Levine is hopeful that America is close to fully embracing equality for all it’s people.

“For some reason, we’re a little bit behind with homosexuality. The fact that gay marriage isn’t legal everywhere at this point is a joke. But there are things now that you never thought would have existed, so I think that we’re kind of in good shape.”

Read the full interview with Levine on Out.com now.

Want more? Check out the rest of his steamy photo shoot.