Carl Bean, a renowned gay preacher who advocated for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, has died at the age of 77. Bean is also the singer of the pride anthem "I Was Born This Way," which inspired Lady Gaga's 2011 hit. The Unity Fellowship Church Movement, which was founded by Bean in 1982, announced the news on Tuesday, describing the preacher as someone who "worked tirelessly for the liberation of the underserved and for LGBTQ people of faith." "Our hearts go out to all as we mourn the loss of this trailblazing leader and legend in the worlds of activism, advocacy, AIDS, community outreach, faith, liberation theology and so much more," the church wrote, adding that the advocate died "after a lengthy illness." Bean, who released "I Was Born This Way" in 1977, inspired Lady Gaga to sing her own version of the song. Gaga went to Twitter in May to pay homage to the Motown singer. "'Born This Way', my song and album, were inspired by Carl Bean, a gay black religious activist...