Beyonce Posts Letter of Support for Frank Ocean Online

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Last week, Odd Future singer Frank Ocean stunned the hip-hop community when he posted a tender, lengthy piece that illumined the inspiration behind his upcoming album, Channel Orange. Ocean revealed that at the age of 19 he'd fallen in love with another man, and that "impossible" love colored his work over the next several years. He ended his thoughtful admission, "I feel like a free man. If I listen closely.. I can hear the sky falling too."

Such complete honesty would have been an act of real bravery for any mainstream artist, but in the world of urban music, where homophobia and misogyny continue to have a lyrical stronghold, it was miraculous.

Beyonce Knowles, with whom Ocean collaborated on her song "I Miss You," acknowledged Ocean's bravery in a letter posted to her official site. The words, "Be Fearless, Be Honest, Be Generous, Be Brave, Be Poetic, Be Open, Be Free, Be Yourself, Be In Love, Be Happy, Be Inspiration" appear scrawled over an image of Frank.

Knowles is not the only celebrity to voice support for Ocean. Tyler, the Creator, who has bragged about his copious, unapologetic use of the word "faggot," tweeted that he was proud of Ocean for being so truthful, although he also made a few wisecracks about him at the same time. Solange Knowles commended Ocean for his bravery, rapper Trina called him "bold and honest." Busta Rhymes told MTV News, "We're at a place in life where we gotta respect and accept what people choose as their path that they wanna walk in life, because ultimately you want people to respect what you choose as your path and your journey in life."

Ocean has since downplayed his actions, tweeting, "im not a victim. im grown. life's way harder for a lot of people. i still love everyone of ya'll. no condescension."