Pride
Kaleena Zanders Celebrates PRIDE and Black Music Month with “RELOAD” Remix Pack
Rising singer-songwriter Kaleena Zanders released her track “RELOAD” last year, recounting her personal experiences with police brutality. The single and music video provided a powerful metaphorical message of hope and “reloading” on love (instead of bullets). In celebration of PRIDE and Black Music Month, the Los Angeles-based artist has dropped her RELOAD [Reloaded] remix EP, featuring fellow POC producers Lee Wilson, R3LL, 12th Planet, Vindata, and KOIL. As icing on the cake, all first-year artist streaming royalties will be donated equally between the National Bailout Fund and Diversify The Stage, LLC. This diverse remix package spotlights a range of different genres, each brilliantly capturing their own style. Kicking things off is Lee Wilson’s groovy disco house mix, follow...
Adam Lambert Addresses Lil Nas X’s Same-Sex Kiss at the 2021 BET Awards
The 39-year-old singer knows what it means to be a young star making waves through talked-about performances. Back in 2009, just after ending his run on American Idol, Lambert gave a performance of his song “For Your Entertainment” at the American Music Awards that shocked some viewers. Much like Lil Nas X at the BET Awards, Lambert’s performance culminated in a same-sex kiss (in Lambert’s case, with his keyboard player) while the cameras were rolling. The reactions to the two performances differ significantly. For Lil Nas X, while his stoked some controversy (though not nearly as much as his music video for the song did back in April), the vast majority of the public response has been positive — stars like Sean “Diddy” Combs, Kevin Abstract, Tegan ...
Latin Pride: Esteman on How Coming Out Marked a ‘Before & After’ In His Career
How did the decision to come out impact your art? I feel like there is a before and after in my career when I decide to come out to my fans. It’s as if a weight has been lifted off my shoulders and, in a way, I was able to connect with them even more via my music. Before I told them, I already had a special bond with the people that followed me but in the moment that my album Amor Libre was released and I decide to share all these personal stories and show an unfiltered side of me, my music became more valuable and powerful. Without planning this, I think more people started listening to my songs. Did you have any LGBTQ+ idols growing up? Elton John, Freddie Mercury and Miguel Bosé. And then there was Madonna, Gloria Estefan and Cher who aren’t part of the community but are LGB...
Madonna Marks Pride Weekend With a NYC Club Performance & Auction
Happy Pride indeed! Madonna helped kick off New York’s Pride weekend with a surprise performance during The Standard’s re-opening bash Pride x Boom on Thursday (June 24). Madonna’s set, which took place in the Boom Boom Room, featured the Queen of Pop performing “Hung Up” and “I Don’t Search I Find” off Confessions on a Dance Floor and Madame X, respectively, from atop the bar for a crowd packed with bold-faced names. Among the attendees were Lance Bass, Andy Cohen, Anderson Cooper, Indya Moore, Adam Lambert, Jon Batiste, Zachary Quinto and many more. According to the press release, after her brief set, Madonna auctioned off three Polaroids that were snapped by the star and Ricardo Gomes at her New York home in June. The images are framed and...
Madonna Premieres ‘No Fear, Courage, Resist’ at Times Square for Pride Weekend
There’s no brighter tourist destination than Times Square, and no bigger pop star than Madonna. So it made sense for the Queen of Pop to use the famous Manhattan intersection on Thursday night (June 24) to premiere her “No fear, Courage, Resist” video. The Pride Weekend-themed video was filmed with Ricardo Gomes, and it flashed up on the big screens of Times Square for the world to see. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.
Latin Pride: Javiera Mena on the Importance of Connecting With Your True Self
How did the decision to come out impact your art? I never actually came out of the closet, only when they asked me whether I had a boyfriend, and I said, “No, I have a girlfriend.” That was my coming out. My entire family has known since I was 15 years old, and I’ve always received a lot of love and support from them, so it was great for me to be able to speak up and be who I am without any shame or fear. I think other artists might feel under pressure coming from their family or the people around them. I think my art has obviously been impacted by the times we live in, because, unfortunately, if I say I’m dating a girl, people expect me to be an activist or to represent something. The only reason I say unfortunately is because I’d like to live in a world where this isn’t a pro...
Latin Pride: Pabllo Vittar on Making Art to Help Others Find Their Voice & Identity
Vittar has become a household name in her home country of Brazil with her fierce, unapologetic and empowering tunes. She’s gotten on the international radar by collaborating with artists such as Diplo, Lali, Charli XCX, Anitta and Thalia, to name a few. In celebration of Pride Month, Vittar opens up about how coming out has impacted her art and how she will be celebrating Pride this year. How did the decision to come out impact your art? Did you ever have an LGBTQ+ idol growing up? I was lucky enough to never have to actually come out! I grew up in an open-minded, full of love family. For drag in my teenage years, RuPaul opened so many doors for me as a kid growing up in a small town. So I strive now to make art and provide a message, to help other kids like me growing up, hopefully, do th...
No Uefa hammer for gay supporting German skipper
The German FA has said it will not be punished by UEFA for the rainbow-coloured captain’s armband Germany skipper Manuel Neuer has worn during Euro 2020 in solidarity with gay pride this month. The German Football Association (DFB) said it has received a letter from European football’s governing body stating that a review of the matter has been stopped. “The armband has been assessed as a team symbol for diversity and thus for a ‘good cause’”, the DFB said on Twitter. Normally, the captains of each team at the European Championship are obliged to wear a standard armband issued by UEFA. Former Germany midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger, who came out as gay after retiring in 2013 and is now head of sport at VfB Stuttgart, was unimpressed that UEFA were even looking into the armband matter. “Come...
Amythyst Kiah on Her Powerful New Album ‘Wary + Strange’: ‘I’m What I Needed to See When I Was Younger’
The brackish rock serving as the underbelly of Kiah’s countrified timbre, announcing that “I don’t creep around, I stand proud and free/ ‘Cause I’m black myself/ I go anywhere that I wanna go/ ‘Cause I’m black myself.” The song serves as a clarion call, shining a light on Black liberation and Kiah’s reclamation of her physical and mental health. Other tracks, namely “Soapbox,” “Sleeping Queen” and Firewater,” continue this navigation down the, yes, “wary and strange” road to her Black, femme, queer and uniquely American freedom. “Hiding myself to please everybody wore me down. In order to truly be happy and fulfill my purpose in life, I had to embrace who I honestly am, in every way,” Kiah says, smiling via Zoom. And in doing so, others are embracing her. Last...
Latin Pride: David Alvarado Talks an Industry That Thrives From Diversity & Inclusion
In honor of Pride Month, Alvarado opened up to Billboard about his career path being part of the LGBTQ+ community. Read the Q&A below. Billboard: How did the decision to come out impact your art? Alvarado: I’ve been fortunate to work in an industry that thrives from diversity and inclusion. My sexual orientation has never defined me, and I’ve been able to live an open and honest life, including throughout my career. Did you ever have an LGBTQ+ idol growing up? Growing up, any LGBTQ+ visibility I had was limited. TV and film had a huge influence, which is why visibility is so important. I remember when I was an intern at PolyGram, I met a senior executive who was openly gay and that was definitely a positive influence on me. Would you say the industry is more accepting of the LGBTQ+ com...
David Archuleta Opens Up About His Sexuality in Emotional Message: ‘God Made Me How I Am For a Purpose’
The 30-year-old singer, who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, revealed that he came out as gay to his family in 2014, but that he also “had similar feelings for both genders so maybe a spectrum of bisexual.” He also learned that he doesn’t “have too much sexual desires and urges as most people,” which works for him since he’s saving himself for marriage. “I just invite you to please consider making room to be more understanding and compassionate to those who are LGBTQIA+, and those who are a part of that community and trying to find that balance with their faith which also is a huge part of their identity like myself,” the Utah native wrote. He added, “I think we can do better as people of faith and Christi...
Five Decades of Lavender Country: Inside the World of a ‘Queer, Screaming Marxist B-tch Country Singer’
For a self-professed “screaming Marxist bitch singer” who dropped a mostly ignored queer country album in 1973, it’s been a busy time for 77-year-old Patrick Haggerty of Lavender Country. On the bootheels of his band’s historical reappraisal after a 2014 reissue and ensuing reunion shows, the pioneering group’s legend continues to grow as the singular beauty and groundbreaking lyrical content of its self-titled album become apparent to more open-minded generations. Not only is there a screenplay about Haggerty’s life floating around Hollywood, but the septuagenarian is reinvesting his energy in recording, duetting with drag star Trixie Mattel last year, releasing the lovely “Treasures That Money Can’t Buy” in January and gearing up...
