David Crosby Is Mystery Dad

Rock star Melissa Etheridge has revealed the paternity of the two children she shares with her lesbian partner, and it turns out he's a two-time rock Hall of Famer.

In a cover story for Rolling Stone magazine, Etheridge says David Crosby, the singer and songwriter from Crosby, Stills and Nash, fathered her toddler children with filmmaker Julie Cypher via artificial insemination.

Etheridge, 38, had long refused to disclose the paternity of 3-year-old Bailey and 1-year-old Beckett, prompting speculation on the biological father's identity. Gossips speculated on celebrities such as Brad Pitt and Tom Hanks.

But the couple revealed the secret in grand fashion - posing on the cover of Rolling Stone with the two children, Crosby, and his wife, Jan. The article was released to the media on Sunday; the magazine hits newsstands on Friday.

"We just got so tired of this secret," Etheridge told the magazine. "It wears you out. And keeping this big secret goes against how we are choosing to live our lives - very openly."

Cypher, 35, carried the children. Crosby, who is 58 and the father of three other children, doesn't plan to help raise Bailey and Beckett, which is fine by Etheridge and Cypher.

"If, you know, in due time, at a distance, they're proud of who their genetic dad is, that's great," said Crosby.

He had his first hit ("Mr. Tambourine Man") in 1965 as a member of the Byrds, and is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland as a member of the Byrds and as one-third of Crosby, Stills and Nash.

The Grammy-winning Etheridge said Crosby's wife first suggested the idea when the two couples chatted during a vacation in Hawaii a few years ago.

"It came from her, which was the best, most perfect, way," Etheridge said. "For one, he's musical, which means a lot to me, you know, and I admire his work. And he has his own life, has his own family."

Cypher and Etheridge live in Los Angeles.