What are Pedro Julio and Ricky Martin up to?

Tweeted! Pedro Julio Serrano hanging out with Ricky Martin at a recording studio in Manhattan.

It's been six months since pop singer Ricky Martin came out on Twitter and he's been relatively low key since then.  As far as I know, he has only granted one official interview on the topic when he appeared on the cover of People en Español in June and discussed being a gay parent.  But that doesn't mean he has been silent.

The Puerto Rican pop idol has been surprisingly forthcoming when it comes to LGBT issues on his Twitter account. Not an insignificant thing when you realize that the man has nearly 1.7 million Twitter followers. No wonder he was recently named by The Advocate as the 6th most popular gay personality on Twitter in the world,

Just last week, as the doomed senate vote on 'Don't Ask Don't Tell' approached, he tweeted:

As a HISPANIC member of the LGBT community,I ask u 2 pls repeal #DADT and move fwd with the #DREAMAct #enddiscrmination

And today he sent Tweets about two young gay men who committed suicide in the United States as a result of being bullied.

Usually that's not how things go. First, a star comes out and then all media wants to ask about is his sexual identity. The star will be all demure and say that their art is about more than their sexuality. They will say they shouldn't be seen as role models or experts on gay issues. And then get angry if the press pushes them on the subject.

It's only later, when a star becomes comfortable with their 'out' lives, that they might delve into LGBT rights without thinking that it might define him or her.

Twitter has turned all that around. Twitter has allowed Ricky Martin to define his coming out process instead of media doing it for him.  He has been able to reveal what he wants to reveal about himself without being completely open about his personal life.  And it has allowed him to delve into LGBT-rights issues without reporters asking whether it means he's now decided to be a full time gay activist. Today, six months later, gossip sites and magazines are still speculating about who his partner might or might not be.

Things are about to change. The English-language version of Ricky Martin's autobiography "Me" is due out on November 2nd.

On her farewell talk show season, Oprah has landed the first television interview with the singer since coming out (Are you a Ricky Martin fan? Want to appear on the show? Here is Oprah's open call).

Before things blow up into the stratosphere:  On Saturday, my friend Pedro Julio Serrano sent this on his Twitter account:

Hanging out with @Ricky_Martin #instudio... Boricuas in the house! http://twitpic.com/2rz879

Lordy lord! In a way, that's certainly no surprise. The moment I knew Ricky Martin would not wimp out on LGBT issues after coming out was the moment he thanked Pedro Julio for his LGBT activism back in May. So It was certainly no surprise that once Ricky came to New York he would get in touch with PJ.

By the way: Pedro Julio, who works at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF), will be receiving an incredible honor himself as he receives the "Puerto Rican Pride Award" from the NYC-based November Committee.

The LGBT advocate joins past Boricua honorees Jennifer Lopez, Antonia Pantoja, Denise Quiñones and Sila Calderon in being honored by the committee. It's the first time that an honoree has been chosen for his LGBT advocacy and I dare to say that both Ricky Martin and I are super proud of his achievement.

Previously:

• June 1, 2010: On Father's Day, People en Español honors Ricky Martin
• May 3, 2010: Ricky Martin greets LGBT activist Pedro Julio Serrano on Twitter
• March 29. 2010: Ricky Martin: "I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am."
• June 22, 2009: What Ricky Martin actually said to TVaqui