Etheridge, Cypher Split

By Stephen M. Silverman

07/24/1998 at 12:00 AM EDT

Melissa Etheridge and her girlfriend, director Julie Cypher, are going their separate ways after 12 years together, according to Etheridge's label, Island Records. In a statement released by the company today, the couple said they maintained "the utmost of love and respect for one another" and that "as committed parents, our top priority continues to be what is in the best interest of our children." The women have two youngsters -- daughter Bailey Jean, 3, and son Beckett, 1 -- both carried and delivered by Cypher. Rocker David Crosby was the sperm donor, according to an interview Etheridge and Cypher gave Rolling Stone magazine. The split comes only one month after another celebrity lesbian couple dissolved their relationship, Ellen DeGeneres and Anne Heche.