Whether you’re part of the LGBTQ+ community or not, Pride Month is the perfect opportunity to celebrate freedom of choice, self-acceptance, and of course, pride. What better thing could accompany celebrations other than music? Some songs hit different for queer people: those listened as curios teenagers and others played on repeat at the local bar were all about experimenting sexuality, daydreaming about true love or simply partying.

Now, these tracks have become international LGBTQ+ anthems present in the background of every Pride parade, praising diversity and representing some of the queer community’s struggles. This is a list of classic queer anthems to consider adding to your Pride playlist.

Born This Way – Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga

‘I’m beautiful in my way ’cause God makes no mistakes’, sings Gaga in what can be considered the absolute ode to diversity and being yourself. Addressing both religion and social prejudices, this track encourages you to accept yourself for who you are and to be proud.

Firework – Katy Perry

Katy Perry

Everyone who listened to this song can identify in the lyrics. When the world is letting you down, just let your firework burst and light up the sky. ‘Baby you’re a firework, come on let your colours burst’, Katy sings. This track is an encouragement to be brave and show people ‘what you’re worth’.

You Need To Calm Down – Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift

As one of the latest entry among these LGBTQ+ anthems, ‘You Need To Calm Down’ is a satirical, all-queer song poking fun at every hater of the rainbow community. ’Shade never made anybody less gay’, sings Taylor, celebrating Pride and diversity with her friends in the equally queer music video.

Break Free – Ariana Grande feat. Zedd

Ariana Grande

If you have attended any Pride parade, you will have surely heard this song playing non-stop. ‘Break Free’ is all about coming out of your shell and be you are. ‘Tried to hide it, fake it, I can’t pretend anymore’, Ariana sings as the beat breaks down in a frenetic rhythm.

Toxic – Britney Spears

Britney Spears

The early 2000s gifted us with this iconic pop anthem that now holds a heartfelt spot among queer music. What makes this song so appealing to the LGBTQ+ community are the sultry and sexy vibes coming from each section of the track. ‘With a taste of your lips I’m on a ride’, sings Britney as the seductive rhythm guides you through the song.

Take Me To Church – Hozier

Hozier

As one of the most dramatic and religious-themed tracks among these titles, ‘Take Me To Church’ is a representation of all the prejudices and stereotypes associated with queer couples. With many religious analogies and metaphors, the song describes the struggles of living and loving in a cruel conservative society.

I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor

Gloria Gaynor

As mentioned before, not all songs have to deliberately talk about acceptance or pride. ‘I Will Survive’ is a clear example of a song that serves as the party starter during a parade. The early 80s track, originally written as a breakup song, is now the happy melody accompanying the rainbow marches all over the world.

I Kissed a Girl – Katy Perry

Katy Perry

Once considered a corny bisexual-curious song, ‘I Kissed a Girl’ is now a favourite pick for Pride manifestations. Experimenting with your sexuality shouldn’t be an issue because once you do, you’ll realise ‘you liked it’, and that’s what this song is all about.

I Want to Break Free – Queen

Queen

Another classic that made its debut in queer music in the 80s, ‘I Want to Break Free’ is a homage to the drag community (in the music video all the band members are dressed in drag) but also represents an anthem to the freedom of love.

It’s Raining Men – The Weather Girls

The Weather Girls

As a lyrical excitement for different kinds of men, the 80s dance song has been one of the greatest addition to Pride playlists. In a funny and comedic tone, the two black singers’ voices blend together to celebrate with a ‘hallelujah’ the diversity of their male possible lovers.

Call Me Maybe – Carly Rae Jepsen

Carly Rae Jepsen

If you’ve ever experienced falling in love at first sight then this track was made for you. Carly sings about moving too fast and falling for this kind of infatuation. The LGBTQ+ community can’t keep from dancing to this dreamy beat on the notes of ‘here’s my number, so call me maybe’.

Girls Like Girls – Hayley Kiyoko

Hayley Kiyoko

Coming from a queer artist, this track celebrates lesbian love in both lyrics and music video. It’s no surprise that the LGBTQ+ community holds a special spot for this song. ‘Girls like girls like boys do. Nothing new’, sings Hayley challenging conservative mentalities and stereotypes.

Raise Your Glass – P!nk

P!nk

P!nk has always been an LGBTQ+ icon and supporter. Her music is an essential element of Pride parades because it has that tough and unbothered attitude necessary to praise being diverse. ‘We will never be never be, anything but loud’ she sings provocatively. Just like other songs, ‘Raise Your Glass’ invites you to get your freak on and party like never before.

I Follow Rivers (The Magician Remix) – Lykke Li

Lykke Li

A manifesto for the queer community, ‘I Follow Rivers’ is a house track which was also featured in the 2013 film ‘Blue Is the Warmest Colour’. This track has frequently been present in Pride parades since its appearance in the movie, becoming one of the main LGBTQ+ anthems.

Really Don’t Care – Demi Lovato feat. Cher Lloyd

Demi Lovato, Cher Lloyd

Demi Lovato teamed up with Cher Lloyd to create a song that would empower those people who are often the victims of bullying and discrimination. ‘Now if we meet out on the street I won’t be running scared I’ll walk right up to you and put one finger in the air’, sings Demi in an attempt to provoke haters. The track turned out to be perfect for Pride parades: the music video was filmed during the LA Pride in 2014.

Words by Gennaro Costanzo

Graphics by Clare Stephenson

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‘I’m a racing car, passing by like Lady Godiva.’

The lyrics to Queen’s seminal Don’t Stop Me Now have resonated with me ever since my earliest years. An unusual mantra for a pre-teen, yet I was drawn by the irreverence that the words inspire. Lady Godiva, for the uninitiated, was a medieval noblewoman who rode horseback and naked – covered only by her long hair – through the streets of Coventry to protest oppressive tax rates. No, I have never been charged for public indecency, but was, and am, seduced, I am under the thrall of such rebellious figures. Like Godiva, Freddie Mercury was a trailblazer, and for the Great Pretender, life had an uncanny way of imitating art.

It is for this reason therefore, that I come away disappointed from watching Bohemian Rhapsody. ‘Fearless Lives Forever’ – these are the words that accompany the poster for one of the year’s most anticipated films. Yet, like a deceptive Tinder profile, the tagline fails to reflect reality. In fact, Bohemian Rhapsody is far from fearless but is wholly reticent, very much sanitising Mercury and his legacy.

Bohemian Rhapsody is almost conservative in its sensibilities, positing Mercury’s flamboyance and gayness as a problem to be solved in the final act of the film. As such, the film chronicles the details of Mercury’s life (that are very much already on public record) and by the 1980s, threads of discord begin to tangle. The sensible, married Queen members begin to show disdain towards Mercury’s tastes in fashion, partying and for promiscuity. Mercury’s foray into the sins of the flesh is very much painted as a symptom of his sexuality. We see Mercury abandon Queen, become drug-addled and surround himself by a tribe of corrupting leather daddies. He is forlorn and marginalised. We see the artist suffer the consequences of discarding the heteronorm. For me, this is an irony that can’t be ignored.

There’s power in a name, and ‘Queen,’ for what it’s worth, is a potent one. Founded only a year after the Stonewall Riots, only the naïve would disregard the Innuendo behind the band’s provocative title. Where many would see perversion, Queen brought subversion. For this, it is such a shame that Bohemian Rhapsody reshapes history to suit its own narrative agenda. A particularly distracting sleight was that the film had Mercury outed as an AIDS sufferer shortly before the Live Aid concert of 1985, when in reality, he was diagnosed in 1987.

However, luckily for us, we can honour Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in a myriad of ways. Not only does he give vocals to one of the greatest musical repertoires in history, but his playfulness with fashion has opened the door for us to push our own sartorial boundaries. Mercury introduced silhouettes to the stage that rock had daren’t even consider. He understood that for an audial platform, music was and is alarmingly visual.

Whether he was referencing the Arlecchino from Italy’s Commedia Dell’Arte, wearing swathes of white satin in his Eagle Suit, or rocking his take on fetish gear in nothing but suspenders and leather trousers, there’s no denying that Queen was queer. Freddie Mercury hooked his audience with his monolithic talent, and challenged them with his anti-establishment aesthetic. He didn’t just push boundaries, but tore them up, stirred them up, and broke them up entirely.

I implore you to pay tribute to the Killer Queen of Rock-n-Roll in the only way that does him justice, by making the brave decision to rock the boat, by having the gall to be exactly who you want to be in a culture that rewards conformity. All I know is that when mediocrity is what shackles us, I want to break free.

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The post Bohemian Rhapsody: A Killer Queen who Wants To Break Free appeared first on Voir Fashion.

‘Fearless lives forever’ reads the tagline that accompanies the poster for one of 2018’s most anticipated movies: Bohemian Rhapsody. Telling the story of one of the most incredibly talented men to ever grace the earth with his presence. If Elvis was the ‘king of rock ‘n’ roll’, Freddie Mercury was truly its queen.

With a four-octave vocal range that has never been repeated, and an ability to work with a crowd in a way never seen before, he was always set to go down in history, even if his style hadn’t been so iconic.

Lucky for us, it was. Freddie was the first performer to push the boundaries of the gender norms and just wear the clothes he wanted to, he set the precedent for the artists of the future, without Freddie we most likely wouldn’t have artists such as Olly Alexander, Adam Lambert and Lady Gaga in the charts now. He was also influencing the style of icons even before Queen got big, in 1969, he fitted a pair of boots for David Bowie while working at a stall in Kensington Market, and 12 years later they were recording music together.

Whether it was strutting around the stage in a monochrome catsuit, or red striped shorts and suspenders, keeping it elegant with a flowing white tunic (that features in the trailer for Bohemian Rhapsody), or simple with blue jeans and a white vest for 1985’s Live Aid performance that went down in history as ‘rocks greatest ever performance’, he always dressed to impress. Freddie Mercury wasn’t just a style icon, he set a new standard of what a rock-star could be.

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