Pride
Maren Morris Addresses Country Music’s Treatment of LGBTQ+ Community on ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’: ‘I’m Sorry’
Maren Morris got emotional as she fulfilled a “decade-long dream” of serving as a guest judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race. The country star appeared on Friday’s (Jan. 13) episode of the series and that night tweeted: “I’ve done some cool s—. #DragRace is rivaling it all. Getting my jacket framed next to my Grammy. It is DONE.” In a post-episode Untucked clip, Morris was teary-eyed as she spoke from her heart to the room. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “Coming from country music and its relationship with LGBTQ+ members, I just want to say I’m sorry,” Morris said. “And I love you guys for making me feel like a brave voice in country music. So I just thank you guys so much for inspiring me.” “I’m gonna cry,” she admitted. In August, Morris show...
‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 15 : How to Watch & Stream Online
RuPaul’s Drag Race is back for another lap! Season 15, which arrived on Jan. 6, became the show’s highest-rated premiere in six years, according to Deadline. Ariana Grande joined as a guest judge for the two-episode season premiere while Michelle Visage, Carson Kressley and Ross Mathews return as mainstays and Ts Madison is a rotating judge this season. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Fans can catch up on their favorite queens just in time for the new season. New episodes air on Fridays at 8 p.m. ET. See below for how to watch and stream RuPaul’s Drag Race online. How to Watch RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Season 15 Although previous seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race have aired on VH1 and Logo, the new season will broadcast exclusi...
Adam Lambert Needs a Hero for His Moody New Bonnie Tyler Cover: Listen
Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a new cover song by Adam Lambert! On Friday (Dec. 30), Lambert shared his latest in a new string of covers with “Holding Out for a Hero,” his rendition of Bonnie Tyler‘s 1984 hit. For his version, Lambert brings the tempo down from its frenetic original pace, and replaces the iconic, chunky piano chords with a syncopated, sinister bass and guitar section that permeates the track. When it comes to his voice, though, the singer keeps the pure glam-rock sound alive with his signature growl as a choir joins him for the chorus. The new cover comes as Lambert preps his next album, High Drama, for release in the new year. The LP will consist entirely of covers, two of which the star has already shared with the world (his renditions of Noël Cowa...
Lava La Rue’s Big Year: How the U.K. Indie Upstart Rendered Their Artistic Vision in ‘Hi-Fidelity’
As 2022 draws to a close, Billboard Pride is taking a look back at some of the queer indie artists who saw their stars rise over the last 12 months. Below, U.K. genre-bender Lava La Rue breaks down their big year. It’s the end of a busy trip to New York for Lava La Rue. The buzzy, much talked-about indie artist from West London has been in and out of studio sessions and supporting their partner’s gigs around the city, but as they log onto a Zoom call from a Brooklyn hotel room, they look mildly bummed. “It’s super rainy and gross,” they say, swiveling their camera around to show a cloud-choked skyline just outside their window. “Normally I get this very cute view of everything corny, like the Empire State. Now, it’s just kind of looking like Gotham.” But ...
Lady Gaga’s ‘Born This Way’ Played After President Biden Signed the Respect for Marriage Act
President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law on the South Lawn of the White House on Tuesday (Dec. 13), protecting same-sex and interracial marriages across the country. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In a video shared to Twitter from the event, Lady Gaga‘s “Born This Way” begins to play through the speakers once Biden signed the bill. “I’m beautiful in my way, ’cause God makes no mistakes / I’m on the right track, baby, I was born this way,” Gaga’s anthemic chorus is heard as the president stands up to hug his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, and the rest of his team in celebration. Gaga’s “Born This Way,” off her 2011 album of the same name, has been a powerful LGBTQIA+ anthem since its release. “Born This Way, my ...
Adam Lambert Yearns for an ‘Ordinary World’ With Haunting Duran Duran Cover Off Upcoming Album
Pop-rock superstar Adam Lambert knows his way around a good cover. And on Tuesday (Dec. 13), the singer continued the trend with his latest ode to some ’80s rock icons. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Lambert unveiled his cover of Duran Duran‘s 1993 hit single “Ordinary World,” in which the American Idol alum slows the track down to create am almost eerie version of the grief-stricken original track. Backed up by a smooth piano and some orchestral strings, Lambert carefully croons out the aching lyrics of the track, never going as far as emulating Simon Le Bon’s signature vocal, but paying homage all the same. Lambert is set to debut his live rendition of the song on Wednesday’s season 22 finale of The Voice. The singer also announced that the ...
The 25 Best Pride Songs of 2022: Staff Picks
Trying to capture what a “queer song” sounds like in 2022 is a lot like trying to explain what the color yellow is — all in all, it’s not possible. That’s because, simply put, songs by queer artists released throughout 2022 run the gamut of popular music, from thundering electro-pop, to sultry R&B, to funkwave, hip-hop, Latin, indie rock, disco and much more. Gone are the days where openly-LGBTQ people — both artists and listeners — were siloed off into one stereotypical genre landscape, now replaced by an audience who are listening to a vast array of musical genres, and a bevy of artists ready to show off their skills in nearly every musical field. The result of that evolution is not only a diverse landscape of music created by queer artists, but a new frontier of pathways toward succ...
Maren Morris Campaigns to ‘Make DJ Gay Again’ Following Candace Cameron Bure’s Anti-LGBTQ Comments
If dunking on anti-LGBTQ rhetoric is a skill, then Maren Morris is an expert at this point. The country star posted a comment on Instagram on Tuesday calling out actress Candace Cameron Bure for her recent comments on “traditional marriage” and queer characters. Writing under a post from LGBTQ influencer Matt Bernstein, Morris said “Make DJ Gay Again,” a reference to Bure’s most famous role as DJ Tanner on Full House and the 2016 reboot, Fuller House. Morris is far from the only star to call the actress out — JoJo Siwa posted an Instagram on Tuesday calling Bure’s comments “rude and hurtful,” and GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis issued a damning statement saying it was “irresponsible and hurtful for Candace Cameron Bure to use tradition as a guise for exclusion.” Explore Explore Se...
Steve Lacy, Brandi Carlile & More LGBTQ Artists Make Waves With 2023 Grammy Nominations
After months of debating who would score nominations at the 2023 Grammy Awards, we finally have our answers. The Recording Academy unveiled the new slate of Grammy nominees on Tuesday (Nov. 15), with Beyoncé garnering a whopping nine nominations, followed by Kendrick Lamar with eight. Beyoncé also tied with her husband Jay-Z (who scored five nods of his own this year) for the most Grammy nominations by any artist, with 88 total throughout her career. But Beyoncé was far from the only big winner with the 2023 noms — LGBTQ artists once again found themselves winning big, with nominations across each of the Big Four categories, and representation throughout genre categories including pop (Sam Smith & Kim Petras), rock (Brandi Carlile), R&B (Steve Lacy), country (The Brothers Osborne),...
Big Freedia Is Bouncing Back to Fuse With a New Business-Themed Series: Exclusive
Fans across the globe know the Queen Diva of bounce Big Freedia for her high-energy features and larger-than-life dance prowess. But the New Orleans-born star wants you to know that when it comes to her career, she means business. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news On Thursday (Oct. 27), Billboard can exclusively announce that after five years, Big Freedia is finally returning to Fuse’s airwaves with a new series, Big Freedia Means Business. Co-produced with World of Wonder (the production team behind RuPaul’s Drag Race), the show is set to air starting in summer 2023 on both Fuse and Fuse+. The new show will follow the bounce icon as she navigates the various different business opportunities that have come her way in the last few years, i...
JoJo Siwa Performs Some Serious Wizardry As She Transforms Into Draco Malfoy
It’s not even officially Halloween weekend yet, and JoJo Siwa is already winning in the costume category. The 19-year-old star took to TikTok on Tuesday (Oct. 24) to show off her transformation into Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter series, portrayed in the films by Tom Felton. With her platinum blonde hair and her Slytherin robe, Siwa bears a striking resemblance to the beloved character. In her video, the Nickelodeon alum recreated a scene from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, in which Felton’s Draco introduces himself and his friends to Harry Potter (played by Daniel Radcliffe). “This is Crabbe, and Goyle,” Siwa lip syncs in her costume. “And I’m Malfoy. Draco Malfoy.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Siwa’s girlfriend, f...
‘This Is the Most Special Thing That’s Ever Happened to Me’: Watch an Exclusive Mini-Doc in Queer Producer Wreckno’s Homecoming Show at Electric Forest
In June of 2012, a wide-eyed Brandon Wisniski stepped out of his older brother’s car and into their future. “I didn’t have a tent, I didn’t really have a plan,” Wisniski says. “I was just like, ‘We are going to Electric Forest,’ and it was the best experience I ever had in my life at that point.” This past June, on the 10-year anniversary of that fateful leap, the producer-rapper-DJ now known to fans around the world as Wreckno returned to Electric Forest — but this time, their older brother didn’t turn around and go home after dropping them off at the edge of the campgrounds. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Instead, the younger Wisniski pulled their brother and mom with them on stage to perform a full-on live show with vocals, chor...
