After coming out as gay last April, Mikey Bustos and his partner and manager RJ Garcia gamely talked to the local press after the launch of Mikey’s latest music video “I Showed My Parents Taipei” during the #UndiscoveredTaipei press launch last June 14. The couple talked about being in a relationship for the past seven years.
“We used to be neighbors in Shaw Boulevard. It was like love at first sight. The first night we hung out. We fell in love. I got involved with Mikey’s video production for YouTube when he was starting and then iniwan siya ng manager niya from GMA7 and then I decided to manage Mikey,” RJ shared. Mikey added they are currently building a house together in Cavite.
Early in the relationship, RJ said he had a tendency to get jealous.
“At first it was me. Kasi siyempre celebrity siya,” he admitted.
Mikey however explained that it’s not an issue for them anymore.
“I think after you date for a while, you build this trust and we’re also very open, like we tell each other who our crushes are and all of that so we’re not really so jealous unlike before. As new lovers there’s jealousy but trust builds over time,” Mikey stated.
Unlike him, Mikey revealed his partner is a little camera shy.
“Sometimes he’ll appear as an extra in the music video but he likes to be in the background. I don’t know why because his face is so guwapo. It’s better than mine,” he said.
That’s also the reason why MIkey was the one who initiated the decision for them to stop hiding their relationship.
READ: Youtube star Mikey Bustos comes out as gay, introduces boyfriend
“Personally, it got to a point where it was affecting na my relationship with my partner and my work as well. I was burning out more, we felt there was a kink in our machine. And so RJ and I went to Puerto Galera to hang out with some friends and we decided, ‘Hey, let’s do this. Let’s come out,” he recalled.
In honor of Pride Month, Mikey and RJ hope they have inspired other couples in similar situations to have the confidence to come out as well.
“I guess from our side, since we’ve crossed the line and broken that barrier, there’s a freedom we never knew that exists now. And we thought we were happy being in the closet. We were okay. It was like a nice game for us a little bit. We made it fun. But when we came out we realized, ‘Wow RJ there’s a freedom now, I can call you bhe. I can hold your hand in public and things like that.’ Little things. We feel free and happier. We hope all young LGBTQ out there hear our story and know that it’s okay to come out,” he remarked.