Gloria Gaynor: 'I Will Survive' Is 'The Core Of My Purpose' : NPR

Contents:

• GAY HISTORY – JANUARY 20, 1979: GLORIA GAYNOR’S GAY ANTHEM “I WILL SURVIVE” RELEASED – FIVE FACTS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
• THE TRIUMPHANT QUEER LEGACY OF GLORIA GAYNOR’S ‘I WILL SURVIVE’
• THE STORY OF... 'I WILL SURVIVE' BY GLORIA GAYNOR
• I WILL SURVIVEGLORIA GAYNORTRACK 5 ON LOVE TRACKS PRODUCED BYDO FEKARISTHIS SONG WAS GIVEN A LUCKY BREAK WHEN A STUD 54 DJ FLIPPED TO THE B-SI OF “SUBSTUTE”, A RIGHTEO BROTHERS VER. DURG A TIME WHEN MOST DIS HS WERE HEAVILY… READ MORE AUG. 19783 VIEWERS704K VIEWS79 CONTRIBUTORSI WILL SURVIVE LYRICS[INTRO]AT FIRST I WAS AAID, I WAS PETRIFIEDKEPT THK' I ULD NEVER LIVE WHOUT YOU BY MY SIBUT THEN I SPENT SO MANY NIGHTS THK' HOW YOU DID ME WRONGAND I GREW STRONG AND I LEARNED HOW TO GET ALONG[VERSE 1]AND SO YOU'RE BACK, OM OUTER SPACEI JT WALKED TO FD YOU HERE WH THAT SAD LOOK UPON YOUR FACEI SHOULD HAVE CHANGED THAT STUPID LOCKI SHOULD HAVE MA YOU LEAVE YOUR KEYIF I'D HAVE KNOWN FOR JT ONE SEND YOU'D BE BACK TO BOTHER ME[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW, GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO HURT ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, HEY HEY[STRG SOLO]YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE[VERSE 2]IT TOOK ALL THE STRENGTH I HAD NOT TO FALL APARTJT TRY' HARD TO MEND THE PIEC OF MY BROKEN HEARTAND I SPENT OH SO MANY NIGHTS JT FEELG SORRY FOR MYSELFI ED TO CRY, BUT NOW I HOLD MY HEAD UP HIGHAND YOU SEE ME, SOMEBODY NEWI'M NOT THAT CHAED UP LTLE PERSON STILL LOVE WH YOUAND SO YOU FELT LIKE DROPP' AND JT EXPECT ME TO BE EENOW I'M SAVG ALL MY LOV' FOR SOMEONE WHO'S LOV' ME[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW, GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO BREAK ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, OH[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO BREAK ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE[SAXOPHONE SOLO][VERSE 2]IT TOOK ALL THE STRENGTH I HAD NOT TO FALL APARTJT TRY' HARD TO MEND THE PIEC OF MY BROKEN HEARTAND I SPENT OH SO MANY NIGHTS JT FEELG SORRY FOR MYSELFI ED TO CRY, BUT NOW I HOLD MY HEAD UP HIGHAND YOU SEE ME, SOMEBODY NEWI'M NOT THAT CHAED UP LTLE PERSON STILL LOVE WH YOUAND SO YOU FELT LIKE DROPP' AND JT EXPECT ME TO BE EEWELL, NOW I'M SAVG ALL MY LOV' FOR SOMEONE WHO'S LOV' ME[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO HURT ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D BREAK DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE[OUTRO]I'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT SO MUCH LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, Y, I'LL SURVIVE, YEAH, I'LL SURVIVE37EMBEDCANCELHOW TO FORMAT LYRICS:TYPE OUT ALL LYRICS, EVEN REPEATG SONG PARTS LIKE THE CHOSLYRICS SHOULD BE BROKEN DOWN TO DIVIDUAL LUSE SECTN HEARS ABOVE DIFFERENT SONG PARTS LIKE [VERSE], [CHOS], ETC.USE ALICS (<I>LYRIC</I>) AND BOLD (<B>LYRIC</B>) TO DISTGUISH BETWEEN DIFFERENT VOLISTS THE SAME SONG PARTIF YOU DON’T UNRSTAND A LYRIC, E [?]TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT OUR TRANSCRIPTN GUI OR VIS OUR TRANSCRIBERS FOMABOUT
• GLORIA GAYNOR: 'I WILL SURVIVE' IS 'THE CORE OF MY PURPOSE'
• THE 50 BT GAY SONGS TO CELEBRATE PRI ALL YEAR LONG
• ULTIMATE PRI PLAYLIST: THE 50 BT GAY SONGS
• GLORIA GAYNOR FACTS: 'I WILL SURVIVE' SGER'S AGE, HBAND, CHILDREN AND SONGS EXPLAED
• “I WILL SURVIVE” BY GLORIA GAYNOR
• MIC. GLORIA GAYNOR: I WILL SURVIVE

GAY HISTORY – JANUARY 20, 1979: GLORIA GAYNOR’S GAY ANTHEM “I WILL SURVIVE” RELEASED – FIVE FACTS YOU DIDN’T KNOW

Black Mic Month and Pri Month celebratns lli Nile Forr’s say about Gloria Gaynor’s dis h, “I Will Survive. ” Though the spirg dance song was released the 70’s, the sgle rurfaced the 90’s as LGBTQ alt wh the AIDS crisis and moment Gaynor was livg when she rerd “I Will Survive” — rejectn om the mic dtry as a talented Black woman, the abily to rely on her body for the first time — no doubt ntributed to the song’s energetic msage of survival.

As Gaynor has spent most of her reer affirmg, survival is the first step to eedom, pennce, and happs — and who don’t want to believe the are possible? Read more about Gaynor’s mil journey and how her mic spired Black and queer muni through tryg tim the article below.

THE TRIUMPHANT QUEER LEGACY OF GLORIA GAYNOR’S ‘I WILL SURVIVE’

On January 20, 1979 Gloria Gaynor’s rerdg of I Will Survive was released and started s way up the mic charts.

“I Will Survive” beme one of the qutsential anthems for the Gay Pri that year and has held strong as a favore of gay men everywhere.

Gaynor origally released “I Will Survive” as the B-si to her ver of the Righteo Brothers’ “Substute” 1978. Gaynor won the only Dis Grammy. Gloria Gaynor won the Grammy award for Bt Dis Rerdg 1980 for “I Will Survive.

THE STORY OF... 'I WILL SURVIVE' BY GLORIA GAYNOR

Gaynor also rerd the song at a higher vol register than she normally sgs and the track wasn’t overproduced like her earlier hs. Dozens of artists have vered Gaynor’s h anthem, helpg achieve a timels stat on the charts. It not only serv as a break-up anthem for women that ro up strength and power to move on om a relatnship, but as the qutsential empowerment song the gay muny to those who leave them behd, and even to Gaynor herself.

Jt before rerdg “I Will Survive, ” Gaynor spent six months the hospal om a back jury and the song served as her own source of motivatn to survive and overe the jury.

Now that you know a ltle more behd the tune, watch and sg along wh Gloria Gaynor’s timels PRIDE anthem below. FlashbackWhile she didn’t tend for the song to be an LGBTQ anthem, s lyrics were an spiratn amid the AIDS crisis and homophobiaGloria Gaynor, London, 1975. Gloria Gaynor’s voice starts timidly: “First I was aaid/I was petrified.

I WILL SURVIVEGLORIA GAYNORTRACK 5 ON LOVE TRACKS PRODUCED BYDO FEKARISTHIS SONG WAS GIVEN A LUCKY BREAK WHEN A STUD 54 DJ FLIPPED TO THE B-SI OF “SUBSTUTE”, A RIGHTEO BROTHERS VER. DURG A TIME WHEN MOST DIS HS WERE HEAVILY… READ MORE AUG. 19783 VIEWERS704K VIEWS79 CONTRIBUTORSI WILL SURVIVE LYRICS[INTRO]AT FIRST I WAS AAID, I WAS PETRIFIEDKEPT THK' I ULD NEVER LIVE WHOUT YOU BY MY SIBUT THEN I SPENT SO MANY NIGHTS THK' HOW YOU DID ME WRONGAND I GREW STRONG AND I LEARNED HOW TO GET ALONG[VERSE 1]AND SO YOU'RE BACK, OM OUTER SPACEI JT WALKED TO FD YOU HERE WH THAT SAD LOOK UPON YOUR FACEI SHOULD HAVE CHANGED THAT STUPID LOCKI SHOULD HAVE MA YOU LEAVE YOUR KEYIF I'D HAVE KNOWN FOR JT ONE SEND YOU'D BE BACK TO BOTHER ME[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW, GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO HURT ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, HEY HEY[STRG SOLO]YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE[VERSE 2]IT TOOK ALL THE STRENGTH I HAD NOT TO FALL APARTJT TRY' HARD TO MEND THE PIEC OF MY BROKEN HEARTAND I SPENT OH SO MANY NIGHTS JT FEELG SORRY FOR MYSELFI ED TO CRY, BUT NOW I HOLD MY HEAD UP HIGHAND YOU SEE ME, SOMEBODY NEWI'M NOT THAT CHAED UP LTLE PERSON STILL LOVE WH YOUAND SO YOU FELT LIKE DROPP' AND JT EXPECT ME TO BE EENOW I'M SAVG ALL MY LOV' FOR SOMEONE WHO'S LOV' ME[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW, GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO BREAK ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, OH[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO BREAK ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE[SAXOPHONE SOLO][VERSE 2]IT TOOK ALL THE STRENGTH I HAD NOT TO FALL APARTJT TRY' HARD TO MEND THE PIEC OF MY BROKEN HEARTAND I SPENT OH SO MANY NIGHTS JT FEELG SORRY FOR MYSELFI ED TO CRY, BUT NOW I HOLD MY HEAD UP HIGHAND YOU SEE ME, SOMEBODY NEWI'M NOT THAT CHAED UP LTLE PERSON STILL LOVE WH YOUAND SO YOU FELT LIKE DROPP' AND JT EXPECT ME TO BE EEWELL, NOW I'M SAVG ALL MY LOV' FOR SOMEONE WHO'S LOV' ME[PRE-CHOS]GO ON NOW GO, WALK OUT THE DOORJT TURN AROUND NOW, 'E YOU'RE NOT WELE ANYMOREWEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO HURT ME WH GOODBYE?DID YOU THK I'D CMBLE? DID YOU THK I'D BREAK DOWN AND DIE?[CHOS]OH NO, NOT I, I WILL SURVIVEOH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVEI'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE, I WILL SURVIVE[OUTRO]I'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE, AND I'VE GOT SO MUCH LOVE TO GIVEAND I'LL SURVIVE, Y, I'LL SURVIVE, YEAH, I'LL SURVIVE37EMBEDCANCELHOW TO FORMAT LYRICS:TYPE OUT ALL LYRICS, EVEN REPEATG SONG PARTS LIKE THE CHOSLYRICS SHOULD BE BROKEN DOWN TO DIVIDUAL LUSE SECTN HEARS ABOVE DIFFERENT SONG PARTS LIKE [VERSE], [CHOS], ETC.USE ALICS (<I>LYRIC</I>) AND BOLD (<B>LYRIC</B>) TO DISTGUISH BETWEEN DIFFERENT VOLISTS THE SAME SONG PARTIF YOU DON’T UNRSTAND A LYRIC, E [?]TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT OUR TRANSCRIPTN GUI OR VIS OUR TRANSCRIBERS FOMABOUT

The guar riff starts as Gaynor is forced to nont her terrible ex — “And so you’re back/From outer space” — as if ’s givg her momentum to send him away and live a better life whout late 1978, Gloria Gaynor released “I Will Survive” as a B-si dis track, not knowg the song would soon bee the five sgle of her reer. She was still wearg a back brace when she rerd “I Will Survive” after beg picked up aga by moment Gaynor was livg when she rerd “I Will Survive” no doubt ntributed to the song’s energetic msage of survival.

GLORIA GAYNOR: 'I WILL SURVIVE' IS 'THE CORE OF MY PURPOSE'

“[Fekaris and Perren] said, ‘We thk you’re the one that we’ve been wag for to rerd this song that we wrote a uple of years ago, ’” Gaynor explaed a 2013 terview wh Audible. But who wrote Gloria Gaynor's inic fiant h, and how did she e to sg ?

THE 50 BT GAY SONGS TO CELEBRATE PRI ALL YEAR LONG

Fekaris also wrote other songs for Gloria Gaynor, but this was his only huge succs as a also wrote dis favour 'Boogie Fever' by The Sylvers and 'Shake Your Groove Thg' by Peach & Herb.

'" Gaynor herself once said: "I love the empowerg effect, I love the enuragg effect. How did Gloria Gaynor land the song? They agreed that the next diva that found them would get the end up beg Gloria Gaynor, whose rerd pany lled Perren lookg for productn on a song lled 'Substute', a song origally by the Righteo Brothers.

Gaynor then agreed to rerd 'I Will Survive' as the B-si. Gloria Gaynor - I Will Survive [Official Vio] 1978 [Aud iTun Pl AAC M4A].

ULTIMATE PRI PLAYLIST: THE 50 BT GAY SONGS

Although everyone who worked on the song knew was superr to the A-si, the print of Gaynor's rerd pany specifilly wanted 'Substute', and released as the A-si as planned.

The song is often referred to as a 'gay anthem' bee of this. Gloria Gaynor was not a one-h-wonr.

GLORIA GAYNOR FACTS: 'I WILL SURVIVE' SGER'S AGE, HBAND, CHILDREN AND SONGS EXPLAED

Gloria Gaynor - Never n say goodbye. While Gloria Gaynor will forever be known for this one song, she had already sred some hs before was released.

“I WILL SURVIVE” BY GLORIA GAYNOR

While some classics do appear on our list, others do not – sorry, Gloria Gaynor, Kylie Mogue, RuPl, Brney and Cher, we still adore you — here are 25 sential pri songs om the 1970s to today. gay clubs but, wh a strg of hs, expand to natnal tours and TV. Somewhat rctively lled the “Queen of Dis, ” the virtuosic, openly gay sger approached genr ( his performative and private liv) as a fluid, non-bary ncept a pre–Judh Butler era.

Although seems most of Queen’s fans were cluels as to how openly gay and subversive ontman Freddie Mercury was – spe the unabashed swank of his stage prence – he also never really tried to hi . Rodgers later told the Mail on Sunday that they wrote the track “bee of her gay followg, ” but fibbed a ltle to a sktish Ross. “A DJ told her [the song] was gog to her reer – people would thk she was gay, ” Rodgers said.

It’s a quiet piano ballad about growg up gay. The lyrics e om the out-and-proud Brish punk rocker Tom Robson, who had a h of his own wh “Glad to be Gay. Much of Erasure’s disgraphy embodi not precisely celebratory gay pri but gay romantic realy – a ankns about the emotnal, if not overtly sexual, liv of gay men toward the end of the 20th century.

MIC. GLORIA GAYNOR: I WILL SURVIVE

So when out Brish duo Andy Bell and Vce Clarke’s plative yet buoyant sgle beme a worldwi h gay-uniendly 1988, felt quietly revolutnary to anyone the know. The gay teens and tweens, most of them closeted, fely did.

“Beg gay and open about is my substance. Ontman had long been a whe-hot sex symbol, role mol and trendsetter for gay men and other LGBTQ dividuals across the world. The Bay Area gay punk pneers found a ht of mastream fame when they toured wh Green Day on their Dookie n 1994, but was their sexy lyrics and who-giv-a-fuck attu that enared them to a generatn of queer kids – before that term was even fashnable.

It’s difficult to pick one song that f them – wh songs like “Dick of Death, ” “Groovy Unrwear” or their classic ver of Prce’s “Jack You Off” – but we went wh one that seems to fy the ia of a gay “anthem” no matter how you thk of .