It's already been <a href=" big week for the gay muny</a>, but there's another name to add to this week's g out list: hip-hop and R&B star Frank Ocean.
Contents:
- HIP-HOP WORLD GIV GAY SGER SUPPORT
- FRANK OCEAN: ‘I CRIED THE NIGHT I ME OUT AS GAY’
- FRANK OCEAN’S LGBT MASTERPIECE: THE RADIL QUEERNS OF ‘BLON’UNKNOWABLEFRANK OCEAN’S SEND ALBUM REF FN. IT BENDS GENRE, TIME, AND GENR, ALL THE SERVICE OF STAYG TE TO HIMSELF. MIC IS ALL THE BETTER FOR .AMY ZIMMERMANENTERTAMENT REPORTERUPDATED APR. 13, 2017 3:07PM EDT / PUBLISHED AUG. 25, 2016 1:00AM EDT FILMMAGICLIKE MANY OUTSIRS, FRANK OCEAN BETRAYS AN OBSSN WH INTI AND OBJECTS JT BEYOND HIS REACH. IN AN EXCERPT OM THE BOYS DON’T CRY MAGAZE RELEASED LAST WEEK ALONGSI AN ALBUM, BLON, A VISUAL ALBUM, ENDLS, AND A MIC VIO FOR THE SONG “NIK,” OCEAN WR ABOUT AN IMAGE OF A YOUNG GIRL A R. “I PUT MYSELF HER SEAT THEN I PLAYED ALL OUT MY HEAD. THE CLSTROPHOBIA HS AS THE SEATBELT TIGHTENS, PREVENTG ME OM EVEN LEANG FORWARD MY SEAT. THE PRSG ON TERNAL ANS. I LEAN BACK AND FORWARD TO RELEASE . THEN BACKWARDS AND FORWARD AGA. THERE IS—I GOT EE.” LATER THE NOTE, HE REMEMBERS, “RAF SIMONS ONCE TOLD ME WAS CLICHé, MY WHOLE R OBSSN. MAYBE LKS TO A EP SUBNSC STRAIGHT BOY FANTASY. CONSCLY THOUGH, I DON’T WANT STRAIGHT—A LTLE BENT IS GOOD.” OCEAN IS SCRIBG HIS R FANATICISM, AN OBSSN THAT HAS FED HIM, WHILE SIMULTANEOLY ARTICULATG A EP ALIENATN. HE DO NOT F THE STEREOTYPE OF THE STRAIGHT, SUBURBAN BOY WH AN ENCYCLOPEDIC KNOWLEDGE OF TOMOBIL. IN FACT, HE SEEMGLY FDS EASIER TO ACCS HIS MEMORI THROUGH THE FIGURE OF THE YOUNG GIRL, WHOSE SEATBELT VOK A GUT MEMORY OF ENTRAPMENT. TO SAY THAT BLON IS NOT STRAIGHT IS AN UNRSTATEMENT. THE ALBUM—ALONG WH THE VISUAL ALBUM, ART MAGAZE, AND “NIK” VIO—BENDS GENRE, BENDS GENR, AND BENDS TIME. OCEAN DRIV HIS R ACROSS UNTRI AND S, MEANRG, AND ZIG-ZAGGG. RETURNG AGA AND AGA TO SCEN OM HIS CHILDHOOD AND ADOLCENCE, OCEAN LEAV LEARY BY THE SI OF THE ROAD. MIC BE A VEHICLE PABLE OF IMPOSSIBLE MOVEMENT, RRYG SI A THOUGHT, SI A MOMENT, SI A FANTASY. BLON’S UNNVENTNAL NARRATIVE MIRRORS THE REAL-LIFE STORY OF HOW THE ALBUM GOT HERE, AND ALL THE DIFFERENT FORMS HAS TAKEN THROUGHOUT S EXTEND GTATN. SCE THE RELEASE OF HIS LAST ALBUM CHANNEL ORANGE 2012, OCEAN HAS BEEN TEASG AT THIS RETURN, RELEASG VAR RELEASE DAT ONLY TO ABANDON THEM. THE JOURNALISTS WHO HAVE BEEN BURNED BY BROKEN PROMIS AND THE FANS WHO HAVE EAGERLY AWAED OCEAN’S SOPHOMORE ALBUM HAVE NMNED THE SGER AS OUTRAGEOLY, UNNECSARILY EVASIVE. PERFECTNISM IS ONE THG, BUT WHAT’S THE POT OF SETTG ADL ONLY TO FY THEM? OR BUILDG A STAIRSE WHEN YOU SHOULD BE MAKG MIC? OR STEPPG SO FAR OUT OF GENRE THAT HALF THE TRACKS ON YOUR ALBUM DON’T EVEN HAVE A DM BEAT? FRANK OCEAN DASH EXPECTATNS AND REF FNS FOR A REASON. HIS PHOBIA OF LABELS AND LIMS ISN’T JT AN AFFECTATN—S SENTIAL TO HIS ART AND HIS SELF-EXPRSN. IN 2012, ON THE CP OF CHANNEL ORANGE’S RELEASE, THE CRILLY ACCLAIMED ARTIST PUBLISHED A SCRIPTN OF HIS FIRST LOVE, A MALE IEND WHO DIDN’T ROMANTILLY RECIPROTE. OCEAN’S SEXUALY IS, AS HE SCRIB , “DYNAMIC”—A SELF-ASSSMENT THAT HASN’T STOPPED JOURNALISTS OM PIGEONHOLG HIM AS BISEXUAL OR GAY. THIS REFAL OF NVENTNAL TERMS IS BEG MORE AND MORE MON AMONG YOUNGER GENERATNS, WHO CREASGLY REJECT BARY NSTCTS. DYNAMISM IS AT THE HEART OF BOTH THE ARTIST AND HIS OVRE. IT’S ALSO PART OF AN EVER-EVOLVG FN OF QUEERNS. JT LIKE BLON, WHICH REF TO STAND STILL, QUEERNS IS LS OF A LOTN OR ENDPOT AND MORE OF A HORIZON. IN THE WORDS OF QUEER THEORIST JOSé MUñOZ, “QUEERNS IS NOT YET HERE… PUT ANOTHER WAY, WE ARE NOT YET QUEER. WE MAY NEVER TOUCH QUEERNS.” HERE QUEERNS IS FED NOT BY A STATN OR A TERM, BUT BY NSTANT MOTN. FOR OCEAN, THIS THEORIZATN IS TANTAMOUNT. AS OCEAN TOLD GQ 2012 REGARDS TO HIS UNTEGORIZED SEXUALY AND MIC, “I’M GIVG YOU WHAT I FEEL LIKE YOU N FEEL… THE OTHER SH, YOU N’T FEEL. YOU N’T FEEL A BOX. YOU N’T FEEL A LABEL.” BY REFG TO CLAIM AN INTY, HE RERV THE RIGHT TO NSTANTLY REFE.THIS IS NOT TO SAY THAT BLON FULLY EVAS THE QUTN OF HOMOSEXUALY. IN “GOOD GUY,” OCEAN CROONS ABOUT BEG TAKEN ON A DATE TO A “GAY BAR.” THE DATE THEN FIZZL TO ROMANTIC DISAPPOTMENT: “I KNOW YOU DON’T NEED ME RIGHT NOW / AND TO YOU ’S JT A LATE NIGHT OUT.” OCEAN’S LGBT FLUENC ARE ALSO ON DISPLAY “AMBIENCE 001: IN A CERTA WAY,” A SHORT TERLU ON ENDLS THAT SAMPL THE VOICE OF INIC DRAG QUEEN CRYSTAL LABEIJA. BUT OCEAN REFERENC BCH JT AS OFTEN AS HE REFERENC BOYS. IT’S THE KD OF IRREVERENCE AND MUTABILY THAT MAK OCEAN SUCH A DIFFICULT GAY IN, AND SUCH AN TRIGUG QUEER ONE. FRANK DO NOT SEEM CLED TO TAKE ON ANY RPONSIBILI AS THE HIP-HOP WORLD’S PRE-EMENT GAY ARTIST—A LABEL HE’S NEVER CLAIMED AND DO NOT SEEM LIKELY TO. WHILE HE WROTE ELOQUENTLY AND OPENLY ON THE ORLANDO PULSE SHOOTG, BLON DON’T NTA ANY SIARLY POLIL GAY STATEMENTS OR LOGI. THROUGHOUT THE ALBUM, VISUAL ALBUM, AND MAGAZE, HE SEEMS MORE PREOCCUPIED WH DISORIENTATN THAN ORIENTATN. WHILE APPLE MIC LISTS THE ALBUM AS BLON, THE VER ART READS BLOND. THIS TERCHANGEABLE MASCULE AND FEME IS AT THE HEART OF THE VIO FOR “NIK,” A SONG NAMED AFTER A TRADNALLY MASCULE HIP-HOP FETISH. THE VIO WEAV TOGETHER SHOTS OF OCEAN GLTER AND HEAVY MAKP WH NU MEN AND WOMEN, DANCG ANGEL WGS. OCEAN’S ABILY TO SAMPLE OM GENRED ATHETICS AND EXPECTATNS EVEN AS HE PULLS OM VAR GENR AND DULG MULTIPLE MEDIA REVEALS HIS UNFLCHG MMENT TO FLEXIBILY ALL THGS. AND WHILE FRANK MAK THIS RTLSNS LOOK LIKE ART, AND EVEN MAK LOOK LIKE FUN, ’S MORE THAN JT LIGHTHEARTED EXPERIMENTATN. TO FE ONELF LEADS TO PRSUR AND RPONSIBILI—TO PRODUCE ANOTHER CHANNEL ORANGE, OR TO PEN THE NEXT GAY ANTHEM. ON “NIK,” OCEAN SHOUTS OUT TRAYVON MART, MG, “THAT N**** LOOKED JT LIKE ME.” INTI, OM RACE TO SEXUAL ORIENTATN, N TRAP, FE, EVEN KILL. ARTISTILLY, THEY N STAGNATE. AND SO, OCEAN KEEPS MOVG, CG OVER 40 MIL NTRIBUTORS ON AN ALBUM THAT REF TEGORIZATN OR IOLOGIL -OPTN.OF URSE, THE WAY OCEAN APPROACH QUEERNS IS PARTLY PRAGMATIC. HIP-HOP HAS NEVER HAD A GAY SUPERSTAR. AS A MUNY, THE HIP-HOP WORLD IS STILL PLAGUED BY HOMOPHOBIA, AND PROHIBIVE MOLDS OF MASCULY. WHILE MALE RAPPERS ARE EXPECTED TO ABI BY CERTA NVENTNS, THERE APPEARS TO BE A LOOPHOLE FOR MCS WHO HAVE EXPAND THEIR ARTISTIC REACH. ONE EXAMPLE IS YOUNG THUG, A RAPPER WHO WAS FEATURED CALV KLE’S AUTUMN/WTER 2016 MPAIGN. IN A VIO FOR THE BRAND, YOUNG THUG SPOKE TO HIS PENCHANT FOR PULLG OUTFS OM MENSWEAR AND WOMENSWEAR, EXPLAG, “I FEEL LIKE THERE IS NO SUCH THG AS GENR.” WHILE YOUNG THUG’S REMARKS TRIGGERED A B OF A BACKLASH, WH HIP-HOP FANS AND MEDIA OUTLETS MG ON HIS SEXUALY, THERE ALSO SEEMED TO BE AN CREASG UNRSTANDG THAT QUEERNS ISN’T SYNONYMO WH HOMOSEXUALY. IT’S ALSO IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT YOUNG THUG STATED HIS PROGRSIVE PHILOSOPHY A FASHN FOM, NOT ON A TRACK OR A BREAKFAST CLUB TERVIEW. JAN SMH WAS SIARLY EMBRACED BY SARTORIAL TASTEMAKERS FOR HIS ANDROGYNO STYLE, PROVG THAT WHILE GENRED EXPERIMENTATN MIGHT BE RARE HIP-HOP, S MALE NIZENS N FD PRECENT AND ENURAGEMENT BY DIPPG TO OUTSI WORLDS. LIKE KANYE WT BEFORE HIM, FRANK OCEAN IS EXPLOG THIS DISTANCG LOOPHOLE BY PRENTG HIMSELF AS A MULTI-FACETED ARTIST. BY MAKG STAIRS, SHOOTG FILM, AND PRODUCG MAGAZ, OCEAN FI THE RAPPER LABEL JT AS HE SHIRKS A GAY OR BISEXUAL INTIFITN. BY LIBERATELY REFG TO BE KNOWN AS A GAY RAPPER OR A BISEXUAL MAN HIP-HOP, OCEAN N PARTIALLY SKIRT THE HOMOPHOBIC BIAS THAT THE HIP-HOP MUNY N’T SEEM TO SHAKE. QUEER, WHICH IS NOT A SGLE, STABLE INTY, MIGHT BE MORE ACCURATELY SCRIBED AS AN ACTIVE CRIQUE OF THE NORMAL AND THE NORMATIVE. NORMALY IS NOT UNIVERSALLY ACCSIBLE, OR UNIVERSALLY SIRED. THE QUEER SUBJECT, FORCED TO THE OUTSI, IS GIVEN THE PLITED GIFT OF PERSPECTIVE. BLON IS MA RICH THROUGH THIS LOOKG . FRANK OCEAN, A SEXUALLY FLUID, BLACK MAN WHO ATTEMPTS TO FY GENR, IS JT THE OUTSIR TO TAKE ON AMERI 2016. IN OCEAN’S PABLE HANDS, THE FAIAR BE STRANGE. IN BOYS DON’T CRY, OCEAN QUEERS AMERINA, PHOTOGRAPHG A MAN PUTTG ON HIS UNRWEAR A FIELD, AND SHARG IMAG OF YOUNG MEN WH TOMOBILE LOGOS SHAVED TO THEIR HEADS. IN A FEATURED POEM, KANYE WT MANAG TO WRE A EPLY UNSETTLG O TO THE MOST UBIQUO FAST-FOOD JOT AMERI: MCDONALD’S. IN “NIGHTS,” OCEAN IS HOMELS TEXAS AFTER BEG N OUT OF LOUISIANA BY HURRINE KATRA. IN ALL THE PLEMENTARY PROJECTS, THGS THAT ARE QUTSENTIALLY AMERIN—MCDONALD’S, RS, THE SOUTH—ARE TAKEN AND MA UNFAIAR AND DISQUIETG THROUGH THE LENS OF RACE, TRMA, AND SEXUALY. OCEAN’S UNIQUE MENTARY, AND THE ALIENATN THAT RMS , IS A QUIET, POWERFUL CRIQUE.IN THE WAKE OF RIGHTS-BASED VICTORI LIKE GAY MARRIAGE, SOME QUEER ACTIVISTS HAVE QUTNED A MOVEMENT THAT PRRIZ THE CHANCE TO BE THE SAME OVER THE EEDOM TO BE DIFFERENT. THIS IS WHERE OCEAN, AND HIS REJECTN OF THE STRAIGHT, TO PLAY. IN A PIECE OM BOYS DON’T CRY TLED “BOYIEND,” HE WR, “I ULD SAY THAT I’M HAPPY / THEY LET ME AND MY BOYIEND BEE MARRIED / I ULD SAY THAT I’M HAPPY / BUT CROSS MY HEART I DIDN’T NOTICE.” IT’S AS IF FRANK IS LIBERATELY PLAYG WH EXPECTATNS OR HOP FOR HIS GAY POLICS BY CLAIMG APOLICISM. OF URSE, QUEER FOLKS MIGHT ARGUE THAT THIS APATHY TOWARD MARRIAGE EQUALY IS A EPLY POLIL REJECTN OF HOMONORMATIVY. AND OCEAN GO BOTH WAYS—ON “SEIGIED,” HE PONRS AND THEN ULTIMATELY DISMISS THE ALLURE OF THE HETERONORMATIVE. OCEAN WONRS IF HIS LACK OF NVENTN MAK HIM A “FOOL”—“MAYBE I SHOULD MOVE / SETTLE DOWN, TWO KIDS AND A SWIMMG POOL.” BUT THE END, HE WAGERS, “I’D RATHER LIVE OUTSI.” IN BLON, “LIVG OUTSI” IS A PERSONAL SACRIFICE AND A RISKY WAGER. BARRED OM THE ACCEPTABILY OF STRAIGHT LOVE OR THE STABILY OF A LEGIBLE GAY INTY, OCEAN HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO KEEP MOVG, AND KEEP LONGG. VEXATN AND DISAPPOTMENT ARE EVERYWHERE, AND SATIATN SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE. WH SUCH AN UNCERTA FUTURE, HE LOOKS TO THE PAST AS HE HEADS FOR THE HORIZON. ON “FUTURA FREE,” THE FAL TRACK ON BLON, OCEAN EXCERPTS AN OLD NVERSATN BETWEEN HIS CHILDHOOD IENDS OM THE HIP-HOP CREW ODD FUTURE. ON AN ALBUM MARKED BY ROMANTIC DISILLNMENT, THIS RETURN EVOK THE FAY MAKG AND PLATONIC LOVE THAT IS SO VAL TO QUEER MUNI. IN A WORLD WHERE LOVE DISAPPOTS AND NORMALCY ISN’T AN OPTN, THERE’S AN ART TO MAKG YOUR OWN FAY, AND FDG TIMACY UNEXPECTED PLAC. OCEAN’S STEADY STREAM OF EMOTNALLY UNAVAILABLE PARTNERS, UNANSWERED TEXTS, UNFULFILLED DREAMS AND MISSED NNECTNS SPEAKS TO A SPECIFIC BRAND OF DISORIENTED SIR. IN MON PARLANCE, SEXUALY IS OFTEN RCED TO ORIENTATN. BUT QUEER THEORY PROPOS THAT THE SIRG SUBJECT IS SO MUCH MORE THAN THE GENR OF THE PERSON THEY HAVE SEX WH. THIS IS CERTALY THE SE FOR OCEAN—BLON ISN’T ABOUT WHO HE LOV, BUT HOW HE LOV THEM. HIS BRAVELY BROADSTED TIMACY IS PROOF THAT BOYS DO CRY, THAT SEXUALY N BE FLUID, THAT LOVE N BE UNREQUED, PLATONIC, QUEER, AND CEL. HE MAK THE FAIAR STRANGE, BUT HE ALSO MAK THE STRANGE FAIAR. EVEN THE MOST TRADNALLY MASCULE STRAIGHT BOY WILL SEE PIEC OF HIMSELF OCEAN’S FLUID OVRE—CHILDHOOD MEMORI THAT ULD BELONG TO ANY OF , TEXTS THAT SOUND FAIAR, LANDSP WE’VE SEEN, HALF-ASLEEP, OUT THE WDOW. IN QUEERG THE WORLD AND CHRONICLG THE QUEER, OCEAN’S BENT MASTERPIECE BRGS UNR-REPRENTED MOS OF SIRE TO THE MASTREAM. AMY ZIMMERMAN
HIP-HOP WORLD GIV GAY SGER SUPPORT
For gay black male sgers and rappers, outsi the closet remas mostly a don’t-go-there zone, to which only a few artists sce Ocean — cludg “Empire” star Jsie Smollett, Brockhampton lear Kev Abstract and rapper ILoveMakonnen — have ventured.
FRANK OCEAN: ‘I CRIED THE NIGHT I ME OUT AS GAY’
“Instead of supportg each other, sometim we n get stuck a box and people n hold agast , ” says Atlanta’s ILoveMakonnen, a former Drake protégé who me out as gay 2017. Anti-gay sentiment the black mic muny is driven, part, by old-time relign and a God who, acrdg to some beliefs, nmns homosexualy. As protectors of machismo see , homosexualy and what is perceived as “feme” behavr by men further strip black men of their mascule power.
Craig Seymour, whose “Craig’s Pop Life” podst explor entertament om a black gay pot of view, se the black LGBTQ genr divi as a se of history repeatg self. When to general acceptance, lbians don’t enunter the same roadblocks as gay men.
Even if hard-lers the black muny aren’t fully on board, they won’t necsarily em a gay or bisexual black woman a threat to eher black femy or masculy. Once a man out as gay, however, he no longer fulfills the whe — or black — knight fantasy.
FRANK OCEAN’S LGBT MASTERPIECE: THE RADIL QUEERNS OF ‘BLON’UNKNOWABLEFRANK OCEAN’S SEND ALBUM REF FN. IT BENDS GENRE, TIME, AND GENR, ALL THE SERVICE OF STAYG TE TO HIMSELF. MIC IS ALL THE BETTER FOR .AMY ZIMMERMANENTERTAMENT REPORTERUPDATED APR. 13, 2017 3:07PM EDT / PUBLISHED AUG. 25, 2016 1:00AM EDT FILMMAGICLIKE MANY OUTSIRS, FRANK OCEAN BETRAYS AN OBSSN WH INTI AND OBJECTS JT BEYOND HIS REACH. IN AN EXCERPT OM THE BOYS DON’T CRY MAGAZE RELEASED LAST WEEK ALONGSI AN ALBUM, BLON, A VISUAL ALBUM, ENDLS, AND A MIC VIO FOR THE SONG “NIK,” OCEAN WR ABOUT AN IMAGE OF A YOUNG GIRL A R. “I PUT MYSELF HER SEAT THEN I PLAYED ALL OUT MY HEAD. THE CLSTROPHOBIA HS AS THE SEATBELT TIGHTENS, PREVENTG ME OM EVEN LEANG FORWARD MY SEAT. THE PRSG ON TERNAL ANS. I LEAN BACK AND FORWARD TO RELEASE . THEN BACKWARDS AND FORWARD AGA. THERE IS—I GOT EE.” LATER THE NOTE, HE REMEMBERS, “RAF SIMONS ONCE TOLD ME WAS CLICHé, MY WHOLE R OBSSN. MAYBE LKS TO A EP SUBNSC STRAIGHT BOY FANTASY. CONSCLY THOUGH, I DON’T WANT STRAIGHT—A LTLE BENT IS GOOD.” OCEAN IS SCRIBG HIS R FANATICISM, AN OBSSN THAT HAS FED HIM, WHILE SIMULTANEOLY ARTICULATG A EP ALIENATN. HE DO NOT F THE STEREOTYPE OF THE STRAIGHT, SUBURBAN BOY WH AN ENCYCLOPEDIC KNOWLEDGE OF TOMOBIL. IN FACT, HE SEEMGLY FDS EASIER TO ACCS HIS MEMORI THROUGH THE FIGURE OF THE YOUNG GIRL, WHOSE SEATBELT VOK A GUT MEMORY OF ENTRAPMENT. TO SAY THAT BLON IS NOT STRAIGHT IS AN UNRSTATEMENT. THE ALBUM—ALONG WH THE VISUAL ALBUM, ART MAGAZE, AND “NIK” VIO—BENDS GENRE, BENDS GENR, AND BENDS TIME. OCEAN DRIV HIS R ACROSS UNTRI AND S, MEANRG, AND ZIG-ZAGGG. RETURNG AGA AND AGA TO SCEN OM HIS CHILDHOOD AND ADOLCENCE, OCEAN LEAV LEARY BY THE SI OF THE ROAD. MIC BE A VEHICLE PABLE OF IMPOSSIBLE MOVEMENT, RRYG SI A THOUGHT, SI A MOMENT, SI A FANTASY. BLON’S UNNVENTNAL NARRATIVE MIRRORS THE REAL-LIFE STORY OF HOW THE ALBUM GOT HERE, AND ALL THE DIFFERENT FORMS HAS TAKEN THROUGHOUT S EXTEND GTATN. SCE THE RELEASE OF HIS LAST ALBUM CHANNEL ORANGE 2012, OCEAN HAS BEEN TEASG AT THIS RETURN, RELEASG VAR RELEASE DAT ONLY TO ABANDON THEM. THE JOURNALISTS WHO HAVE BEEN BURNED BY BROKEN PROMIS AND THE FANS WHO HAVE EAGERLY AWAED OCEAN’S SOPHOMORE ALBUM HAVE NMNED THE SGER AS OUTRAGEOLY, UNNECSARILY EVASIVE. PERFECTNISM IS ONE THG, BUT WHAT’S THE POT OF SETTG ADL ONLY TO FY THEM? OR BUILDG A STAIRSE WHEN YOU SHOULD BE MAKG MIC? OR STEPPG SO FAR OUT OF GENRE THAT HALF THE TRACKS ON YOUR ALBUM DON’T EVEN HAVE A DM BEAT? FRANK OCEAN DASH EXPECTATNS AND REF FNS FOR A REASON. HIS PHOBIA OF LABELS AND LIMS ISN’T JT AN AFFECTATN—S SENTIAL TO HIS ART AND HIS SELF-EXPRSN. IN 2012, ON THE CP OF CHANNEL ORANGE’S RELEASE, THE CRILLY ACCLAIMED ARTIST PUBLISHED A SCRIPTN OF HIS FIRST LOVE, A MALE IEND WHO DIDN’T ROMANTILLY RECIPROTE. OCEAN’S SEXUALY IS, AS HE SCRIB , “DYNAMIC”—A SELF-ASSSMENT THAT HASN’T STOPPED JOURNALISTS OM PIGEONHOLG HIM AS BISEXUAL OR GAY. THIS REFAL OF NVENTNAL TERMS IS BEG MORE AND MORE MON AMONG YOUNGER GENERATNS, WHO CREASGLY REJECT BARY NSTCTS. DYNAMISM IS AT THE HEART OF BOTH THE ARTIST AND HIS OVRE. IT’S ALSO PART OF AN EVER-EVOLVG FN OF QUEERNS. JT LIKE BLON, WHICH REF TO STAND STILL, QUEERNS IS LS OF A LOTN OR ENDPOT AND MORE OF A HORIZON. IN THE WORDS OF QUEER THEORIST JOSé MUñOZ, “QUEERNS IS NOT YET HERE… PUT ANOTHER WAY, WE ARE NOT YET QUEER. WE MAY NEVER TOUCH QUEERNS.” HERE QUEERNS IS FED NOT BY A STATN OR A TERM, BUT BY NSTANT MOTN. FOR OCEAN, THIS THEORIZATN IS TANTAMOUNT. AS OCEAN TOLD GQ 2012 REGARDS TO HIS UNTEGORIZED SEXUALY AND MIC, “I’M GIVG YOU WHAT I FEEL LIKE YOU N FEEL… THE OTHER SH, YOU N’T FEEL. YOU N’T FEEL A BOX. YOU N’T FEEL A LABEL.” BY REFG TO CLAIM AN INTY, HE RERV THE RIGHT TO NSTANTLY REFE.THIS IS NOT TO SAY THAT BLON FULLY EVAS THE QUTN OF HOMOSEXUALY. IN “GOOD GUY,” OCEAN CROONS ABOUT BEG TAKEN ON A DATE TO A “GAY BAR.” THE DATE THEN FIZZL TO ROMANTIC DISAPPOTMENT: “I KNOW YOU DON’T NEED ME RIGHT NOW / AND TO YOU ’S JT A LATE NIGHT OUT.” OCEAN’S LGBT FLUENC ARE ALSO ON DISPLAY “AMBIENCE 001: IN A CERTA WAY,” A SHORT TERLU ON ENDLS THAT SAMPL THE VOICE OF INIC DRAG QUEEN CRYSTAL LABEIJA. BUT OCEAN REFERENC BCH JT AS OFTEN AS HE REFERENC BOYS. IT’S THE KD OF IRREVERENCE AND MUTABILY THAT MAK OCEAN SUCH A DIFFICULT GAY IN, AND SUCH AN TRIGUG QUEER ONE. FRANK DO NOT SEEM CLED TO TAKE ON ANY RPONSIBILI AS THE HIP-HOP WORLD’S PRE-EMENT GAY ARTIST—A LABEL HE’S NEVER CLAIMED AND DO NOT SEEM LIKELY TO. WHILE HE WROTE ELOQUENTLY AND OPENLY ON THE ORLANDO PULSE SHOOTG, BLON DON’T NTA ANY SIARLY POLIL GAY STATEMENTS OR LOGI. THROUGHOUT THE ALBUM, VISUAL ALBUM, AND MAGAZE, HE SEEMS MORE PREOCCUPIED WH DISORIENTATN THAN ORIENTATN. WHILE APPLE MIC LISTS THE ALBUM AS BLON, THE VER ART READS BLOND. THIS TERCHANGEABLE MASCULE AND FEME IS AT THE HEART OF THE VIO FOR “NIK,” A SONG NAMED AFTER A TRADNALLY MASCULE HIP-HOP FETISH. THE VIO WEAV TOGETHER SHOTS OF OCEAN GLTER AND HEAVY MAKP WH NU MEN AND WOMEN, DANCG ANGEL WGS. OCEAN’S ABILY TO SAMPLE OM GENRED ATHETICS AND EXPECTATNS EVEN AS HE PULLS OM VAR GENR AND DULG MULTIPLE MEDIA REVEALS HIS UNFLCHG MMENT TO FLEXIBILY ALL THGS. AND WHILE FRANK MAK THIS RTLSNS LOOK LIKE ART, AND EVEN MAK LOOK LIKE FUN, ’S MORE THAN JT LIGHTHEARTED EXPERIMENTATN. TO FE ONELF LEADS TO PRSUR AND RPONSIBILI—TO PRODUCE ANOTHER CHANNEL ORANGE, OR TO PEN THE NEXT GAY ANTHEM. ON “NIK,” OCEAN SHOUTS OUT TRAYVON MART, MG, “THAT N**** LOOKED JT LIKE ME.” INTI, OM RACE TO SEXUAL ORIENTATN, N TRAP, FE, EVEN KILL. ARTISTILLY, THEY N STAGNATE. AND SO, OCEAN KEEPS MOVG, CG OVER 40 MIL NTRIBUTORS ON AN ALBUM THAT REF TEGORIZATN OR IOLOGIL -OPTN.OF URSE, THE WAY OCEAN APPROACH QUEERNS IS PARTLY PRAGMATIC. HIP-HOP HAS NEVER HAD A GAY SUPERSTAR. AS A MUNY, THE HIP-HOP WORLD IS STILL PLAGUED BY HOMOPHOBIA, AND PROHIBIVE MOLDS OF MASCULY. WHILE MALE RAPPERS ARE EXPECTED TO ABI BY CERTA NVENTNS, THERE APPEARS TO BE A LOOPHOLE FOR MCS WHO HAVE EXPAND THEIR ARTISTIC REACH. ONE EXAMPLE IS YOUNG THUG, A RAPPER WHO WAS FEATURED CALV KLE’S AUTUMN/WTER 2016 MPAIGN. IN A VIO FOR THE BRAND, YOUNG THUG SPOKE TO HIS PENCHANT FOR PULLG OUTFS OM MENSWEAR AND WOMENSWEAR, EXPLAG, “I FEEL LIKE THERE IS NO SUCH THG AS GENR.” WHILE YOUNG THUG’S REMARKS TRIGGERED A B OF A BACKLASH, WH HIP-HOP FANS AND MEDIA OUTLETS MG ON HIS SEXUALY, THERE ALSO SEEMED TO BE AN CREASG UNRSTANDG THAT QUEERNS ISN’T SYNONYMO WH HOMOSEXUALY. IT’S ALSO IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT YOUNG THUG STATED HIS PROGRSIVE PHILOSOPHY A FASHN FOM, NOT ON A TRACK OR A BREAKFAST CLUB TERVIEW. JAN SMH WAS SIARLY EMBRACED BY SARTORIAL TASTEMAKERS FOR HIS ANDROGYNO STYLE, PROVG THAT WHILE GENRED EXPERIMENTATN MIGHT BE RARE HIP-HOP, S MALE NIZENS N FD PRECENT AND ENURAGEMENT BY DIPPG TO OUTSI WORLDS. LIKE KANYE WT BEFORE HIM, FRANK OCEAN IS EXPLOG THIS DISTANCG LOOPHOLE BY PRENTG HIMSELF AS A MULTI-FACETED ARTIST. BY MAKG STAIRS, SHOOTG FILM, AND PRODUCG MAGAZ, OCEAN FI THE RAPPER LABEL JT AS HE SHIRKS A GAY OR BISEXUAL INTIFITN. BY LIBERATELY REFG TO BE KNOWN AS A GAY RAPPER OR A BISEXUAL MAN HIP-HOP, OCEAN N PARTIALLY SKIRT THE HOMOPHOBIC BIAS THAT THE HIP-HOP MUNY N’T SEEM TO SHAKE. QUEER, WHICH IS NOT A SGLE, STABLE INTY, MIGHT BE MORE ACCURATELY SCRIBED AS AN ACTIVE CRIQUE OF THE NORMAL AND THE NORMATIVE. NORMALY IS NOT UNIVERSALLY ACCSIBLE, OR UNIVERSALLY SIRED. THE QUEER SUBJECT, FORCED TO THE OUTSI, IS GIVEN THE PLITED GIFT OF PERSPECTIVE. BLON IS MA RICH THROUGH THIS LOOKG . FRANK OCEAN, A SEXUALLY FLUID, BLACK MAN WHO ATTEMPTS TO FY GENR, IS JT THE OUTSIR TO TAKE ON AMERI 2016. IN OCEAN’S PABLE HANDS, THE FAIAR BE STRANGE. IN BOYS DON’T CRY, OCEAN QUEERS AMERINA, PHOTOGRAPHG A MAN PUTTG ON HIS UNRWEAR A FIELD, AND SHARG IMAG OF YOUNG MEN WH TOMOBILE LOGOS SHAVED TO THEIR HEADS. IN A FEATURED POEM, KANYE WT MANAG TO WRE A EPLY UNSETTLG O TO THE MOST UBIQUO FAST-FOOD JOT AMERI: MCDONALD’S. IN “NIGHTS,” OCEAN IS HOMELS TEXAS AFTER BEG N OUT OF LOUISIANA BY HURRINE KATRA. IN ALL THE PLEMENTARY PROJECTS, THGS THAT ARE QUTSENTIALLY AMERIN—MCDONALD’S, RS, THE SOUTH—ARE TAKEN AND MA UNFAIAR AND DISQUIETG THROUGH THE LENS OF RACE, TRMA, AND SEXUALY. OCEAN’S UNIQUE MENTARY, AND THE ALIENATN THAT RMS , IS A QUIET, POWERFUL CRIQUE.IN THE WAKE OF RIGHTS-BASED VICTORI LIKE GAY MARRIAGE, SOME QUEER ACTIVISTS HAVE QUTNED A MOVEMENT THAT PRRIZ THE CHANCE TO BE THE SAME OVER THE EEDOM TO BE DIFFERENT. THIS IS WHERE OCEAN, AND HIS REJECTN OF THE STRAIGHT, TO PLAY. IN A PIECE OM BOYS DON’T CRY TLED “BOYIEND,” HE WR, “I ULD SAY THAT I’M HAPPY / THEY LET ME AND MY BOYIEND BEE MARRIED / I ULD SAY THAT I’M HAPPY / BUT CROSS MY HEART I DIDN’T NOTICE.” IT’S AS IF FRANK IS LIBERATELY PLAYG WH EXPECTATNS OR HOP FOR HIS GAY POLICS BY CLAIMG APOLICISM. OF URSE, QUEER FOLKS MIGHT ARGUE THAT THIS APATHY TOWARD MARRIAGE EQUALY IS A EPLY POLIL REJECTN OF HOMONORMATIVY. AND OCEAN GO BOTH WAYS—ON “SEIGIED,” HE PONRS AND THEN ULTIMATELY DISMISS THE ALLURE OF THE HETERONORMATIVE. OCEAN WONRS IF HIS LACK OF NVENTN MAK HIM A “FOOL”—“MAYBE I SHOULD MOVE / SETTLE DOWN, TWO KIDS AND A SWIMMG POOL.” BUT THE END, HE WAGERS, “I’D RATHER LIVE OUTSI.” IN BLON, “LIVG OUTSI” IS A PERSONAL SACRIFICE AND A RISKY WAGER. BARRED OM THE ACCEPTABILY OF STRAIGHT LOVE OR THE STABILY OF A LEGIBLE GAY INTY, OCEAN HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO KEEP MOVG, AND KEEP LONGG. VEXATN AND DISAPPOTMENT ARE EVERYWHERE, AND SATIATN SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE. WH SUCH AN UNCERTA FUTURE, HE LOOKS TO THE PAST AS HE HEADS FOR THE HORIZON. ON “FUTURA FREE,” THE FAL TRACK ON BLON, OCEAN EXCERPTS AN OLD NVERSATN BETWEEN HIS CHILDHOOD IENDS OM THE HIP-HOP CREW ODD FUTURE. ON AN ALBUM MARKED BY ROMANTIC DISILLNMENT, THIS RETURN EVOK THE FAY MAKG AND PLATONIC LOVE THAT IS SO VAL TO QUEER MUNI. IN A WORLD WHERE LOVE DISAPPOTS AND NORMALCY ISN’T AN OPTN, THERE’S AN ART TO MAKG YOUR OWN FAY, AND FDG TIMACY UNEXPECTED PLAC. OCEAN’S STEADY STREAM OF EMOTNALLY UNAVAILABLE PARTNERS, UNANSWERED TEXTS, UNFULFILLED DREAMS AND MISSED NNECTNS SPEAKS TO A SPECIFIC BRAND OF DISORIENTED SIR. IN MON PARLANCE, SEXUALY IS OFTEN RCED TO ORIENTATN. BUT QUEER THEORY PROPOS THAT THE SIRG SUBJECT IS SO MUCH MORE THAN THE GENR OF THE PERSON THEY HAVE SEX WH. THIS IS CERTALY THE SE FOR OCEAN—BLON ISN’T ABOUT WHO HE LOV, BUT HOW HE LOV THEM. HIS BRAVELY BROADSTED TIMACY IS PROOF THAT BOYS DO CRY, THAT SEXUALY N BE FLUID, THAT LOVE N BE UNREQUED, PLATONIC, QUEER, AND CEL. HE MAK THE FAIAR STRANGE, BUT HE ALSO MAK THE STRANGE FAIAR. EVEN THE MOST TRADNALLY MASCULE STRAIGHT BOY WILL SEE PIEC OF HIMSELF OCEAN’S FLUID OVRE—CHILDHOOD MEMORI THAT ULD BELONG TO ANY OF , TEXTS THAT SOUND FAIAR, LANDSP WE’VE SEEN, HALF-ASLEEP, OUT THE WDOW. IN QUEERG THE WORLD AND CHRONICLG THE QUEER, OCEAN’S BENT MASTERPIECE BRGS UNR-REPRENTED MOS OF SIRE TO THE MASTREAM. AMY ZIMMERMAN
“I don’t thk ’s the gay thg; ’s the exprsn of , ” says Young M. Billy Porter, an openly gay rerdg artist who has enjoyed succs as a Tony-wng actor, attribut unequal perceptns to the male-centric gaze.