The new single is a bright, synth-pop confection that matches the fun, feel-good video featuring teen dancers Kaycee Rice and Sage Rosen, who flip the switch on binary roles, dancing in gender-nonconforming costumes.
Grassi and Hoying, founding and current gay members of the 3-time Grammy Award-winning a cappella quintet Pentatonix, describe Superfruit’s musical approach as, “a little more gay-friendly and a lot more open, more sexual, more liberated.”
Out singer/songwriter Leon Else took a break in the studio to record a stripped down cover of Whitney Houston’s classic hit, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.”
Leon dropped the earnest and open-hearted Whitney cover following the release of his new single, “What I Won’t Do,” which I wrote about here back in May.
The synth-driven “What I Won’t Do” is the latest single to be released from his upcoming EP due this summer.
“What I Won’t Do” follows on the heels of Else’s previous single “The City Don’t Care” feat. Oliver, which was released in March.
Dubbed “the new Sam Smith” by People magazine, Else’s soulful and richly emotive voice have acted like a magnet to fans and critics alike. Immediately generating buzz, Else has garnered the attention of Elton John while also having been named “Best Dressed Man” by British GQ and, most recently, Else was tapped by VH1 to pay tribute to George Michael and praised as “mesmerizing” (Idolator) and “captivating” (Paper).
Watch Else’s unplugged version of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” below.
Superfruit drops a SECOND music video in one week! We’re going to get spoiled!
Scott Hoying and Mitch Grassi, band members of Pentatonix and YouTube sensations, surprised fans today with a new music video for their disco-tastic track, “Bad 4 Us.”
Totally danceable, totally fun for a Friday afternoon.
Earlier this week I featured their video for “Imaginary Parties” here.
Singer/songwriter Rod Thomas, recording under the moniker Bright Light Bright Light, explores and celebrates the streets of New York in the new bright and bouncy music video for “New York Pretty.” The track is from the upcoming EP Tales of the Cityto be released July 7. Thomas sets the tone from the get-go, opening the track thusly: I hope that everyone can see me now Now that I feel so much better about myself Now that I feel better about myself With Pride Month in full swing, Thomas whirls and swirls throughout gay NYC including visits to three iconic gay bars: Stonewall, Julius, and Williamsburg’s Metropolitan. Thomas describes the feel of “New York Pretty” on his official website thusly:
‘New York Pretty’ came out of the blue one sunny say in New York winter. It’s inspired by the Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin movie ‘Big Business’ and the idea of spending a long time in a place that’s not quite right, eventually moving to the city and feeling like you finally belong. It’s no secret that New York is my place for that, and also inspired by RuPaul and the incredible RuPaul’s Drag Race, I wanted to write a song about self-empowerment and self-belief, and this is what emerged. Musically, it’s a mix of inspiration from Broadway, Queer As Folk’s UK gay scene and Kylie’s ‘Light Years’ which all had a large influence on my music taste growing up.
On my latest podcast for The Randy Report, I chat with Canada’s premier LGBT solo country artists, Drake Jensen & Patrick Masse, as they’ve teamed up to record an upbeat country song, “ Go Your Own Way” (not the Fleetwood Mac hit), meant to inspire young people who are bombarded with the message that they are “less than.” The bright pop-country track has a liberating, anti-bullying message for young people in the closet; and also addresses the imaging in social media that perpetuates “perfection,” feeding a narrative that we aren’t good enough. The press release for the single reads, “The fact is we can do something about it. We can go our own way.” After just one week, “Go Your Own Way” has landed on the Top 10 Most Active Indies chart. Jensen and Masse have also launched the “Go Your Own Way” Project on Facebook, a positive, interactive space encouraging folks to share photos and videos expressing how they “go their own way.” It’s a case of Canadian East meets West as Jensen (from Ottowa) and Masse (from Vancouver) team up for to share a powerful, timely message. Throughout the candid interview, both Jensen and Masse are refreshingly frank talking about bullying, collaboration within the LGBT community, the impact of religion on young LGBTs and more that motivated the two to record the country anthem. Noting that bullying is especially rampant during school years for young LGBTs. I asked if either had experienced bullying themselves. “I didn’t get to high school,” said Jensen. “I had a nervous breakdown when I was 15, and I locked myself in my room for six months. My last day of school was a flash mob beating that lasted about roughly a mile with two guys with boards with nails in them, and a crowd of people of about 75 that gathered around and followed while they bashed me. That was the last day. That was grade nine. There was no more school after that.” But the story didn’t end there. “I’ve just recently connected with one of the guys that did that to me on Facebook. It was one of the most surreal things ever, you know? I sent him a message, and I said, ‘I see you have children. I hope they don’t suffer what I suffered at your hands.'” Referring to his ‘Scars’ music video which includes statistics about childhood bullying, Jensen told the man, “Thank you very much, though – you’ve motivated me to do this and help thousands of people.” He says he’s forgiven the man who admitted facing his own demons, saying “the past is the past.” Masse recalls how discussions with co-workers about religion moved him to raise his voice at an early age. “I remember years ago I worked at a big hardware store in Canada called Canadian Tire, and it was one of the first jobs I had out of high school. I was working graveyards; we were doing store audits, and I was with this young girl. Her name was Teresa, and she was a daughter of a pastor, and I was probably the first gay person she ever met.” “We would talk, she’d quote the Bible. She would quote this and quote that, and I said to her, ‘Well, Teresa, what do you think?’ She came back the next night, and said, ‘You know, you’re the first person, Patrick, who’s ever asked me what I think.’ I said, ‘Doesn’t that concern you Teresa? You’re 23 years old, and while there’s great lessons and values in the Bible, you can’t hide behind a Bible and use a Bible to judge other people.” “Jesus only ever judged the hypocrites and the Pharisees in his lifetime,” adds Masse. “He wouldn’t be standing with you. He’d be walking with me because we’re all imperfect people here. It’s exciting to see that there are true Christians out there that are coming around. I think people are realizing people are people and everybody needs love, right? Everybody needs acceptance.” I loved talking with these two great artists. Hit the link above for the interview and to hear “Go Your Own Way.”
She doesn’t kiss me on the mouth anymore ‘Cause it’s more intimate, than she thinks we should get She doesn’t look me in the eyes anymore Too scared of what she’ll see, somebody holding me
During a recent interview on The Zach Sang Show, Halsey said she wanted “Strangers” to be believable.
“It needs to be real,” she said. “So I’m not going to put a girl on the song to sing who’s straight. I’m just not going to do it.”
Halsey’s song “Ghost” was one of my Top 5 songs by LGBT artists in 2016. You can check out “Ghost” on The Randy Reporthere.
Out comedian/actress/singer Scout Durwood describes her new music video, “Take One Thing Off,” as “the same balance of controlled chaos I like to have onstage.”
“We wanted something colorful, queer and just left of center,” she added.
“Take One Thing Off” flaunts an upbeat and undeniable chant over a propulsive musical backdrop.
“In reference to accessories, Coco Chanel said, ‘Before you leave the house, take one thing off’,” Durwood says. “I’m such a believer in public nudity and loving your body that it’s the idea of taking off one expectation people have of you. The record is taking that one thing off.”
The album is now available on iTunes and other digital download sites.
• A top Russian diplomat vehemently denies verified reports of gay men being tortured in Chechnya.
• Donald Trump’s recent tweets show he doesn’t really understand how the U.S. Senate works.
• From a new study: In 2015, LGB students reported being bullied on school property at a rate of 34 percent compared to 19 percent for straight students.
• If you love pop culture as much as I do, head over to Boy Culture’s awesome collection of opening credits of classic TV shows.
• Out musician Raph Solo recently dropped the music video to his new single, “Love Lives,” a celebration of his long journey to self-acceptance. Solo, who once tried so-called “conversion therapy” in an attempt to change his sexuality, says “I have worked very hard to gain the self-respect and acceptance I enjoy today.”
Solo also shares that the music video is meant to show a different side of the artist, complete with “tongue in cheek” choreography: “I dance a lot in this one! It’s all very tongue-and cheek compared to my previous story-based, cinematic music videos. I hope fans like the choreography and chutzpah.” Check out the video below.
