The 25 Gayt Songs of the 1980s

Contents:

• THE 13 GAYT MIC VIOS OF THE '80S
• 55 BT GAY SONGS OF ALL TIME (LGBTQ PRI SONGS)
• THE 50 BT GAY SONGS TO CELEBRATE PRI ALL YEAR LONG
• 30 SONGS FROM THE EARLY 2000S THAT ONLY GAY PEOPLE AND WOKE STRAIGHTS WILL REMEMBER
• 60 SONGS THAT WILL CLEAR OUT THE BATHROOM AT ANY GAY BAR

THE 13 GAYT MIC VIOS OF THE '80S

While some have looked on wh a cril eye, we’ve cid to celebrate , along wh all the gay anthems that me before . Rumors had been swirlg for years around Michael’s sexualy but nothg was ever nfirmed by him prr to this song’s release (shortly thereafter he me out as bisexual, before g out as gay further down the le). While there’s nothg explicly homosexual the play, many believe that the ma characters Vladimir and Estragon are an ageg homosexual uple, who are worn out and not engagg sexually any longer.

If you’ve ever wnsed eher of the played a gay club, you’d fely agree when you hear the entire place go crazy and sg along wh every word. Nile Rodgers (om the band Chic), who was workg wh Ross on material for her album Diana, got the spiratn for the song after seeg multiple drag queens drsed as Ross at a gay-iendly New York Cy club. Freddie Mercury was fely a rd-rryg member of the LGBTQ muny, although there is some bate about whether he intified as gay or bisexual.

The vio further solidified the song’s stat as a gay anthem, as featur all the members of the band cross-drsg. Group, Bronski Beat, released a gay anthem lled “Smalltown Boy” as the first sgle off their but album The Age of Consent.

55 BT GAY SONGS OF ALL TIME (LGBTQ PRI SONGS)

Unlike Queen, all three members of Bronski Beat were openly gay and their songs reflected this as well. It was the semi-tobgraphil story of lead sger Jimmy Somerville about the opprsn of homosexuals the early ’80s provcial Stland.

It showed Somerville beg attacked by a homophobic gang before beg brought home by police to the fay whom he is tryg to n away om. Dpe rampant homophobia tied to both the AIDS epimic and the nservative learship of Ronald Reagan the U.

Sure, RuPl had already broken before this song and movie (see our number one song) and the mid-’90s were surprisgly gay-iendly — To Wong Foo was sandwiched between the release of two other celebrated and succsful mastream LGBTQ films, The Adventur of Priscilla, Queen of the Dert 1994 and The Birdge 1996. Although only reached number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, was a number one h on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play, large part bee so many gay men loved the song — after all, was fun, sexy, danceable and mpy.

THE 50 BT GAY SONGS TO CELEBRATE PRI ALL YEAR LONG

Charts after a Facebook mpaign was lnched to get the song back on the charts rponse to a polician who blamed floodg and adverse weather on gay marriage. Martha Wash and Izora Armstead may not be LGBTQ, but the duo, pecially Wash, are nsired to be gay ins today, thanks large part to “It’s Rag Men. 1990 was the year that the unrground gay ball scene sort of went mastream, thanks large part to this Billboard Hot 100 number one h om one of the most famo artists the world at the time.

For those unfaiar, the New York Cy ball scene was an LGBTQ subculture where different ho — mostly Black and Lat gay, bi, lbian and trans people — walked (or peted) for trophi tegori such as Face, Body, Butch Queen Realns, Femme Queen Realns, miscellaneo drag and Vogueg. In addn to Jose and Luis, Madonna st five other male dancers for the tour and “Vogue” vio (four of them were gay and one of them straight).

But I’m sure Ru uldn’t have imaged that 27 years later, not only would his song still be played gay bars, but people all over the world, both LGBTQ and our alli, would still be sayg l om this song, thanks to their cln a realy show lled RuPl’s Drag Race. ” but really, the work Ru put to her reer that all stemmed om “Supermol” mak this the number one gay anthem of the 80s and 90s. The overall queerns of pop 2020 has thkg back to the gayt pop mic ever experienced: the ‘80s.

30 SONGS FROM THE EARLY 2000S THAT ONLY GAY PEOPLE AND WOKE STRAIGHTS WILL REMEMBER

The ‘80s had all, and today we celebrate the moments where the gay really jumped OUT the ’s foremost art form: the mic vio. Ins like Whney and Madonna turned out plenty of hs durg the ‘80s that are today nsired gay anthems, but the classic vios—eher by LGBTQ+ artists or featurg queer subject matter—are gay a more leral sense. BRONSKI BEAT - “SMALLTOWN BOY” (1984)This ‘80s dance h and s explicly queer vio about a smalltown gay boy the big cy broke new ground for LGBTQ+ visibily—and reached the top of the charts the procs.

MARC ALMOND - “RUBY RED” (1987)Few ‘80s pop stars were more -your-face about their sexualy than Soft Cell ontman Marc Almond, and this kky Kenh Anger-spired visual is as gay as B-52s - “LOVE SHACK” (1989)As if The B-52’s John Waters-spired athetic and out-and-proud ontman Fred Schneir weren’t gay enough for you, this mpy vid for their late-’80s h featur a pre-fame meo by the one and only RuPl.

- “CLUB TROPICANA” (1983)It would be another 15 years before he formally me out, but if Gee Michael a whe speedo vampg to this breezy 1983 bop don’t set off your gaydar…nothg will. ERASURE - “CHAINS OF LOVE” (1988)If seeg Andy Bell spend om chas jt BASKING his gayns don’t make you feel like you’re an episo of Queer as Folk, you’ve got some homework to do.

60 SONGS THAT WILL CLEAR OUT THE BATHROOM AT ANY GAY BAR

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. 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.