The mother of former “Glee” star and international singing sensation Charice Pempengco, Raquel, said her daughter need not apologized for being a lesbian.

“I had known for quite a while,” Raquel said, speaking to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. She was 18-years-old when she came out “through an email,” according to Charice’s mom.

“I went through that myself,” Raquel told the Inquirer, in her native tongue Tagalog, “But I did not turn my back on my family.” She claims she was a lesbian before she was married to Charice’s father.

The singer’s mom admitted that she asked Charice to keep it a secret, saying “She has a name to protect and a career to sustain.”

“With her [cute girl] image before,” Raquel said, “her target audience’s age was 8 to 88. That’s gone now.”

The issue of the singer’s sexuality and her mother’s stance on it has caused a rift in their relationship.

According to the Philippine Star, Charice has been estranged from her mother and brother. She’s living with a friend’s house in a suburb a few hours from Manila, the Philippine capital where she and her family lives.

The last time Raquel and Charice spoke was on April 5.

In a statement, Charice’s mom said that the mess her family is in right now made her want to go back to the days when they had no money, reports the Inquirer.

“When Charice became successful, I thought everything would turn out well,” Raquel said. The recent events have left her feeling “abandoned,” but she vowed not to stop until her family became whole again. “I want everything to be OK. I just want my children’s future to be secure.”

Early this month, in a highly anticipated interview with talk show host Boy Abunda, Charice admitted that she was a lesbian, ending months of speculation about her sexuality.

In a separate interview with the blog Interkasyon, Charice said she’s currently dating X-Factor Philippine star contestant, Alyssa Quijano.

The singer who was called by Oprah “the most talented girl in the world” is scheduled to do performances in Indonesia and Germany this year. She is also currently working on her third studio album in the Philippines.