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Get your St. Patrick’s Day weekend off to the right start with some new tracks from your favorite queer artists. Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.
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From Doechii’s pitch-perfect new collab with Kodak Black to Joy Oladokun’s life-affirming new anthem, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below.
Doechii feat. Kodak Black, “What It Is (Block Boy)”
Simply put, Doechii has never sounded better than she does on “What It Is (Block Boy).” On her bouncing new track, the rising singer lets her voice loose over an instantly-catchy backing track complete with light guitar riffs, chunky piano chords and a killer beat. Add into it a verse from “Super Gremlin” superstar Kodak Black, and you have a certified banger on your hands.
Joy Oladokun feat. Noah Kahan, “We’re All Gonna Die”
Existentialism has never sounded quite as good as it does on Joy Oladokun’s new anthem. The aptly-titled “We’re All Gonna Die” sees the singer-songwriter taking on a “f–k it, let’s see what happens” approach to just about everything has to offer. While the lyrics might occasionally dip into a slightly more pessimistic worldview than fans of Oladokun are used to hearing, the sweet, churning production immediately casts away all doubt — “We’re All Gonna Die” is truly about having fun with what little time you’ve got in this world.
Princess Nokia, I Love You But This Is Goodbye
There’s something about I Love You But This Is Goodbye, the sparkling new EP from Princess Nokia, that is deeply endearing. Throughout the project, which sees the star switching up her hip-hop stylings for a pop-rock-meets-electronica vibe, Nokia charts a full journey from love to loss and back again. Her pen is fully intact with some A-plus songwriting on tracks like “Angels & Demons,” while others like lead single “Closure” let you bask in their delicious production. It’s a remarkable EP from an artist in need of much more recognition than she’s already earned.
ODESZA feat. Claud, “To Be Yours”
For their very first collaboration together, electronic duo ODESZA and indie star Claud prove to be a perfect match. “To Be Yours” perfectly toes the line between each of the artists’ respective worlds, employing the crystal clear production work of the sought-after dance pair as well as the confessional songwriting of the fast-rising bedroom pop singer into one gloriously fun single. If you’re in search of a good song to simply vibe out to this weekend, look no further.
Greyson Chance, “Herringbone”
Greyson Chance would like his jacket back please — and if you could bring his heart back with it, that would also be very helpful. “Herringbone,” the heartbreaking new single from the alt-pop singer-songwriter, is an ode to all things lost as Chance begs his lover to please come back after their breakup. With a gentle touch and some very well-written lyrics, Chance owns every ounce of his own anguish on this gorgeous new song.
Siena Liggins, “3 Bad”
Siena Liggins is ready for some experimentation. On “3 Bad,” the singer’s latest track, Liggins manages to take hyper-pop sounds (pitched-up vocals, plinking percussion and blown-out bass drums, to name a few) and make a deeply introspective, chaotically sad breakup song. While she promises self-destruction to her old flame, Liggins doesn’t implode — she expands her sound and dives into a new era of her career headfirst.
Shelly Fairchild feat. Shamir, “Fist City” (Loretta Lynn cover)
There is something so deeply engaging about artists as different as Shelly Fairchild and Shamir teaming up to tackle a Loretta Lynn classic like “Fist City.” The pair don’t lean away from the distinctive sounds of the country superstar — instead they lean in, bringing a folksy twang to every beat of this delicious cover. With a set of voices uniquely suited to one another, Fairchild and Shamir shine on this gorgeous tribute to a late icon.
Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:
More than perhaps any other show in the history of television, RuPaul’s Drag Race has always prided itself on creating a space for the intersection of pop culture and queerness. Whether it’s in a lip sync for your life to a famous LGBTQ anthem, or a pitch-perfect Snatch Game impersonation of a gay icon, Drag Race delivers a bevy of queer cultural moments every year.
In the series’ more recent seasons, one particular brand of those moments emerged as a fan-favorite: the Rusical challenge. Since the debut of “Shade: The Rusical” back in season 6, every main season of Drag Race has featured the now-iconic challenge where queens are tasked with picking roles and creating on a show-stopping theatrical experience. Complete with costumes, choreography and the occasional 11 o’clock number, the Rusical challenge is a near-perfect way to celebrate the queer community’s undying obsession with musical theater.
Just like Broadway itself, pretty much anything can be turned into a Rusical: Some challenges have seen queens telling an original story about drag ingenues interacting with evil queens; others have seen them telling the lightly altered stories of pop divas; one even saw the queens attempting to sell fake pharmaceutical products. In the case of season 15, the queens will be performing in their very on Footloose parody, Wigloose: The Rusical on Friday (March 17).
What makes a good Rusical performance? Below, Billboard takes a look back at every Rusical performance in the history of RuPaul’s Drag Race and RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, and ranks them from worst to best based on their general concepts, execution, music and overall impact. Take a look at where your favorite Rusical ended up below:
‘PharmaRusical’ (Season 10, Episode 2)
Concept: Who came up with this? It’s sort of funny, but ultimately very strange and random to take the format of drug infomercials and transform them into drag puns that sort of become songs. We don’t need to hear a song about a drug called Badonkadonx that will give you a bigger butt — even when it’s trying to be over-the-top and campy, it still fizzles out.
Execution: It’s tough to remember a single performance from such a strange Rusical. The Vixen made the most out of what she was given, and Mayhem Miller’s ballad about anal options was objectively funny. The rest largely got left in the background.
Music: The songs of this Rusical are disjointed, skipping around frequently from hip-hop to Broadway to pop at a frenzied pace. There’s not a lot to say here – there’s very little that’s actually successful in this music.
Overall: Especially in a season that had another (much better) Rusical, the PharmaRusical was a forgettable experience, and one that you certainly don’t need to think too much about. If you’re looking to rewatch old episodes, feel free to skip this.
Glamazonian Airways (Season 7, Episode 2)
Concept: While being slightly more coherent than the PharmaRusical, Glamazonian Airways still elicits the question, “Why?” Spoofing airline takeoff videos makes a bit more sense than satirizing pharmaceutical commercials, but it isn’t exactly ripe for comedy.
Execution: Mrs. Kasha Davis served a full ham dinner, which is the only sensible choice for this strange lip-sync experience. Ginger Minj earned her win with her choreography and her wacky faces. Most of the other queens in this challenge did a serviceable job, with only Katya, Miss Fame and Sasha Belle standing out for their struggle with performing the number.
Music: With a top 40 pop feel to each of the songs, there’s a plenty of continuity here. There’s nothing particularly exciting about the selections, but they certainly aren’t bad.
Overall: Glamazonian Airways is another rare swing-and-miss among the Rusical challenges. Especially when compared to later entries on this list, this season 7 challenge failed to take off.
Kardashian: The Musical (Season 9, Episode 5)
Concept: Now this is what we call a concept. Taking a Broadway sensation like Hamilton and parodying it by changing the subject to reality TV royalty is a perfect way to get both the competing queens and the audience at home invested in what’s happening.
Execution: Unfortunately, even with such a good concept, two queens ended up bearing the weight of this Rusical on their shoulders. Alexis Michelle’s unhinged portrayal of Kris Jenner was perfect for the challenge, and Shea Couleé’s Blac Chyna was an absolute scene-stealer. But in a musical centered around the role of Kim Kardashian, it’s hard to watch Cynthia Lee Fontaine’s strained stint in the spotlight.
Music: The music isn’t bad, per se. But when the reference point you’ve chosen to mimic is a musical like Hamilton, there’s suddenly a lot of expectation to live up to. The “club song” featuring Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan was fun, as was “Momager,” but the moments meant to directly reference Lin-Manuel Miranda’s magnum opus fell apart.
Overall: The idea of Kardashian: The Musical is greater than the sum of its parts. While the concept should work, the only truly memorable parts of this performance were Alexis Michelle, Shea Couleé, and Nina Bo’nina Brown constantly insisting that she should’ve been Blac Chyna.
Shade: The Rusical (Season 6, Episode 4)
Concept: As the first-ever Rusical, the idea behind Shade is simple; what happens if we take some classic stage tropes and reflavor them for drag queens? A winsome ingenue, a jaded diva, a brassy villain, a Greek chorus — they hit all of the marks. It’s not particularly inventive, but hey, it’s not really meant to be.
Execution: Courtney Act, Adore Delano and BenDeLaCreme are absolute stars in this Rusical. Courtney and Adore nail the live singing, and BenDeLaCreme is pure camp as the eye-patched, leopard-printed villain. Outside of that, there’s not a lot to say; queens like Darienne Lake and Gia Gunn struggled with their singing, while Trinity K. Bonet and April Carrion looked lost on the stage.
Music: As RuPaul once said to Nina West and Silky Nutmeg Ganache: “Meh.” This musical was designed to be campy and funny, not musically exciting.
Overall: Shade: The Rusical kicked off the Rusical challenge trend on Drag Race, and featured a number of highly entertaining, memorable performances. But taken altogether, the numerous rough patches showed some of the kinks that still needed to be worked out for the future of this challenge.
Cher: The Unauthorized Rusical (Season 10, Episode 8)
Concept: Considering that The Cher Show, an actual Broadway musical exploring the life of this pop icon, was already in the works at the time of this Rusical’s release, it’s safe to say that the concept is solid. This is a simple, fun way to give each queen the spotlight, by having them highlight a different era in the Goddess of Pop’s decades-spanning career.
Execution: The good largely outweighs the bad here — Kameron Michaels’ ’60s Cher had great vocals and a very funny impersonation, Monét X Change proved that she could sing the house down, and Miz Cracker delivered one of the best (and frankly, underrated) performances of the show as Vocoder comeback Cher. A few queens stumbled, like The Vixen and Asia O’Hara, but even then, the queens still worked this number out.
Music: While the performances in this challenge made us Believe, the music was not Strong Enough. The verse for Miz Cracker’s comeback Cher, including like “I know the gays will buy this/ And I know Britney will try this” is far-and-away the best, while the Movie Star Cher section sounds like it’s pulled from another project entirely. When the music works, it works — unfortunately, there are more than a few sections where it doesn’t.
Overall: The format of this unauthorized Cher Rusical, along with some high-quality performances from the queens of season 10, make up for the music’s dip in quality.
Social Media: The Unverified Rusical (Season 13, Episode 8)
Concept: Taking each major social media platform and personifying them into a cast of wildly unhinged characters is an easy, albeit hackneyed plot device that leads to all kinds of ridiculous on stage shenanigans. It’s fun, it’s campy, it’s what you’ve come to expect from a Rusical. It’s certainly not worth a downvote, but it’s not getting retweeted any time soon.
Execution: The queens did a pretty good job in this challenge, with a few exceptional standouts, and a few who we simply must swipe left on. Rosé, as expected, killed her role as Foxy, Denali and Gottmik’s Russian bots had us rolling, and while the judges were focused on a mistake Tina Burner made in character, we couldn’t help but absolutely adore her performance as the evening’s emcee, Friendster. Meanwhile Symoné and Kandy both fizzled in their respective roles as Instagram and LinkedIn, while Elliott with 2 Ts’ TikTok impersonation felt like it simply could not pass the vibe check.
Music: The song parodies here are very good — rewriting both the music and lyrics of Barbra Streisand’s iconic Funny Girl showstopper “Don’t Rain On My Parade” to fit the theme was the strongest choice of the night, with the nods to Broadway staples like “The Cell Block Tango,” “Do You Hear the People Sing?” and even “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General” picking up a lot of the slack from the bland story.
Overall: While the concept may not have been particularly inventive or interesting , Social Media: The Unverified Rusical was saved by smart musical numbers and showstopping performances from a few of the queens. Feel free to give it a like.
Trump: The Rusical (Season 11, Episode 4)
Concept: Some fans were very trepidatious about Drag Race making light of the controversial president and his lackeys with this Rusical — but looking back, this was probably the most on-brand way for Drag Race to address the Trump administration. Turning Grease into a political spoof where the queens get to openly mock those surrounding Trump (and praise those who opposed him) was about as good of a concept as we’ve seen in these Rusicals.
Execution: The queens did a great job on this yuuuuge challenge. Silky Nutmeg Ganache stole the spotlight with her Oprah Winfrey number, Nina West’s turn as Sarah Huckabee Sanders was gut-busting, Ariel Versace nailed the leading role of “Shandy,” and Yvie Oddly’s deranged Kellyanne Conway was exactly the right amount of crazy. But without uttering a single word, Ginger Minj’s guest star turn as Donald Trump himself was the show-stopping moment of this entire Rusical.
Music: It’s not easy to create multiple parody songs about political corruption in the style of Grease, but Drag Race managed to do it. While not every number was a winner, the vast majority of them hit their marks as needed, and deftly walked the line between imitation and original.
Overall: Trump: The Rusical had the potential to fall flat on its face, yet it managed to be one of Drag Race‘s most consistent Rusicals. It was over-the-top, funny, and kept the spirit of Grease intact throughout, all while getting to throw up a big middle finger to the Commander in Chief.
VH1 Divas Lip Sync Live (‘All Stars’ Season 3, Episode 2)
Concept: Simplicity, it turns out, is key when putting together a Rusical. With Drag Race and All Stars having made the official move over to VH1 , creating a musical around the network’s iconic Divas series made perfect sense for the show — and felt like a simple, easy way to both reimagine tracks from RuPaul’s catalog and let the queens embody some of their favorite chart-topping artists.
Execution: Simply put, everyone did great. BenDeLaCreme was born to shake her ass while impersonating Julie Andrews, Shangela’s Mariah was spot-on, Trixie Mattel could pull off Dolly Parton in her sleep, and Bebe Zahara Benet looked like the spitting image of Diana Ross herself. Even Thorgy Thor’s turn as Stevie Nicks, while less impressive than some of her cohorts, was still unbelievably entertaining to watch.
Music: Retrofitting each of RuPaul’s singles for different divas — spanning genres like pop, country, rock, adult contemporary and more — is a Herculean task. But each song fit every queen and made the performance that much more fun to watch, anticipating just how they would take a song like “Peanut Butter” and make it work as a Celine Dion showstopper.
Overall: From top to bottom, this challenge checked every box it needed to, and earned its Diva title.
Bitch Perfect (Season 8, Episode 2)
Concept: With Pitch Perfect‘s continued cultural dominance back in 2016, this challenge was a perfect way to honor (and poke fun) at the impact of a cappella. There’s no need for a convoluted plot or fleshed-out characters when all we really want to see is our favorite drag queens competing in different collegiate singing troupes.
Execution: Go back and watch Bitch Perfect and try not to have a great time. Everyone in this challenge is giving their best, campiest performance art, and absolutely working out the choreography. The late, great Chi Chi DeVayne is an immediate standout — her handstand-twerk continues to impress us to this day — while Thorgy Thor’s unbridled energy is infectious. Kudos to every single one of these queens.
Music: This is some of the best music ever put to the stage in a Rusical challenge. Whether they were going for bubblegum pop on “Jealous of My Boogie” or scintillating hip-hop on “Geronimo,” every a cappella arrangement in this performance was absolutely stellar.
Overall: It may not be the first one that comes to mind for some fans, but Bitch Perfect is far and away one of the best Rusical performances ever brought to the mainstage of Drag Race. Everybody say “underrated!”
Moulin Ru! The Rusical (Season 14, Episode 12)
Concept: This story is about … drag. The idea here is pretty simple — taking the hit film and Broadway musical Moulin Rouge, re-translating it using the music of RuPaul herself, and casting drag queens (as well as Leland and Leslie Jordan) in the roles. With a built-in and already beloved story, you have yourself a winning formula for a Rusical.
Execution: Can we get a standing ovation? Throughout this marvelous Rusical, each of the seven queens did a fabulous job pulling out all the stops to ace the monumental task of telling the story of Moulin Rouge armed only with RuPaul’s repertoire. Some queens, though, sparkled more than others — Lady Camden in particular, in her Harold Ziegler-adjacent role as “Mama Z,” stole every moment she appeared, nefariously stroking her beard and twiddling her mustache. Willow Pill also managed to shine as the Green Fairy with her high-energy, ratcheting-up performance in the show’s back half.
Music: Producers Leland and Gabe Lopez nailed the assignment. Each of the tracks throughout the Rusical took on RuPaul’s songs — including “Cover Girl,” “Freaky Money” and “Jealous of My Boogie” — and gave them that dramatic, brassy twist that makes Moulin Rouge so fun to listen to over and over again. Also, listen closely to that Green Fairy medley, and you’ll hear the beautiful vocal stylings of Allie X giving a truly unhinged performance.
Overall: Season 14’s installment of the annual Rusical challenge was, to borrow a phrase, spectacular-spectacular. With a clear-cut concept, some entertaining takes on RuPaul originals and a series of show-stopping performances, Moulin Ru will go down as one of the best Rusicals in the show’s herstory, come what may.
HERstory of the World (‘All Stars’ Season 2, Episode 3)
Concept: Taking a tour through history, guided by a handful of the powerful women who helped shape it? Brilliant. Not only is the concept easily accessible for fans, but it opens the door for hilarious performances and creative liberties with music throughout history. Someone in the Drag Race writers room deserved a raise for this concept, and we hope they got it.
Execution: Even the judges had a hard time finding faults in these performances. They ended up singling out Katya and Ginger Minj, but both excelled in the challenge — Ginger’s absolutely unhinged Catherine the Great was hilarious to watch, and Katya’s Princess Diana felt spot-on. Of course, the two scene stealers were Detox as a neon-colored, opera-singing Marie Antoinette, and Alyssa Edwards’ rootin’, tootin’, gun-shootin’ Annie Oakley. If there had been an audience, we would have expected a standing ovation.
Music: With every song, the producers upped the camp factor, making this challenge even funnier than it needed to be. Making hard pivots from heavy metal to opera to rockabilly to salsa, the music in HERstory of the World is insane — and yet every song works for the context it’s put in.
Overall: While it was far from the first Rusical, HERstory of the World certainly helped cement the Rusical’s status as a mainstay challenge on Drag Race, thanks to how exceedingly well it was executed.
Madonna: The Unauthorized Rusical (Season 12, Episode 7)
Concept: The fact that we don’t have a real-life Madonna jukebox musical is, frankly, criminal. With a songbook as iconic and versatile as Madonna’s, Drag Race would be foolish not to pay homage to the Material Girl’s career through a Rusical.
Execution: First things first — yes, Jan was robbed. The New York City queen slayed every vocal, nailed every dance move, and was a near-perfect embodiment of Early Madge. But when you look at the rest of the talent in this Rusical, it’s understandable why the judges had such a hard time choosing who should win the challenge — everyone was phenomenal. Gigi Goode’s True Blue-era impersonation was endlessly entertaining, Jaida Essence Hall served pure sex, Crystal Methyd was ridiculous (and really good!), and even Brita (who ended up sashaying away in this episode) did an excellent job portraying the iconic cone-bra phase of the Queen of Pop’s career.
Music: One word: composition. Nailing a parody song is a difficult task, but each and every track in the Madonna Rusical perfectly evokes a specific song in her catalog without directly using its melody. Every song managed to be both funny and good — a feat that no other Rusical accomplished quite like this one did.
Overall: This Rusical had everything — incredible performances, a strong well of material to pull from, excellently orchestrated music and stellar choreography. Frankly, no other Rusical compares — Madonna: The Unauthorized Rusical is unquestionably the best Rusical in the history of Drag Race. Period.
Lil Nas X has never been one to shy away from a fight with an internet troll, as he proved yet again after one user made an ill-fated comparison involving the rapper.
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On Wednesday (March 15), Lil Nas quote tweeted a user who made a comparison between the rapper and disgraced social media influencer Andrew Tate. “On the left, we have ‘Lil Nas X’ twerking on Satan. On the right, we have Andrew Tate, who teaches young people to think critically, to take care of their physical health and build financial security,” the tweet said alongside two images of Lil Nas and Tate. “Guess which one is deemed controversial and which is hailed as a role model.”
The “Industry Baby” rapper first pointed out that he wasn’t really “twerking on Satan” in his “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” music video. “1. that is a cgi animated being not satan from the bible book,” the rapper wrote.
Getting to his larger point, Lil Nas pointed out that he never signed up to be anyone’s idol, and encouraged his fans to think for themselves rather than finding a celebrity to admire. “2. there’s no such thing as a good role model,” he continued. “y’all need to find yourselves and stop looking for people to look up to.”
Fans of the “Old Town Road” singer also made sure to add a third point to the debate: Lil Nas X is not an alleged human trafficker. Tate and his brother Tristan were detained by Romanian police on Dec. 29 on suspicion of “human trafficking and rape.” Tate and his brother were denied bail for a third time on Wednesday (March 15), remaining in Romanian prison while awaiting formal charges.
As George Santos continues to dig himself deeper and deeper into the ongoing scandal about his many (many) lies, viral comedian Randy Rainbow is happy to sit back and watch … and yes, sing a show tune or two.
On Wednesday (March 15), Rainbow released his latest parody song, “Life’s a F–king Fantasy for Santos,” castigating the New York congressman for his repeated lies both on and off the campaign trail. Kicking off the video with a cheery reinvention of “Jolly Holiday” from Disney’s 1964 classic Mary Poppins, Rainbow wastes no time in letting Santos know exactly what he thinks of him. “Ain’t he a sack of BS?/ How’d they elect such a mess?” Rainbow opines in the song’s opening strains. “I think he might be high.”
As the song picks up steam, Rainbow — now dressed in full Julie Andrews drag — begins to rattle off a list of things on Santos’ resumé. The resulting patter mixes in disputed claims the representative has actually made (that he was a “Wall Street tycoon,” for example), other claims that he has attempted to obscure (such as his alleged career as a drag queen in Brazil), and a few funny jokes that the comedian peppered in (calling Santos “the very first woman to land on the moon.”)
Just as things begin to get as chaotic as they can, Rainbow suddenly transitions into new parody of The Seekers’ 1966 hit “Georgy Girl,” taking on the Australian folk-pop group’s groovy look to further humiliate Santos. “Hey there, Georgy girl/ Shut your stupid hole and don’t deflect,” he croons over the mellow production. “Find a little self-respect/ And maybe it’s you they’ll like.”
By the time it’s the final stanza of the song, Rainbow expertly mashes both songs together to get in a series of last digs at the embattled congressman. “His nose keeps growing as the Feds close in,” Rainbow declares. “‘Cause everything’s a fantasy with Santos/ My fantasy’s that Santos goes away!”
Check out Rainbow’s full parody video above.
On a Tuesday evening opening for Betty Who at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl, drag superstar Shea Couleé decided not to mince words when introducing herself. “Some of you may know me from a little show called RuPaul’s Drag Race,” she cheekily began her comments towards the cheering audience. “Have you ever heard of it?”
She steeled herself for what she knew was coming next. “Well, I’m not going to claim that anymore, because I guess technically it’s not really cool to do drag in Tennessee — according to the Governor Bill Lee,” she said, as the audience loudly booed the mere mention of their governor. “Yeah, what the f–k?”
Coulee was just one voice among a chorus of dissent regarding Tennessee’s newly passed law that prevents drag artists from performing in public spaces. While the scope of the latest in a series of laws targeting the LGBTQ community remains to be seen, queer performers, venue owners and tour promoters are already being forced to make difficult decisions about their future.
Senate Bill 3 was signed into law on March 2, 2023 by Gov. Lee and will officially take effect on April 1, 2023. The law prohibits “adult cabaret” performances from taking place “on public property or in a location where the adult cabaret performance could be viewed by a person who is not an adult.” The legislation defines these displays as any performance that “features topless dancers, go-go dancers, exotic dancers, strippers, male or female impersonators who provide entertainment that appeals to a prurient interest, or similar entertainers, regardless of whether or not performed for consideration.”
First offenses under this law are Class A misdemeanors, resulting in up to $2,500 in fines or jail time of up to 11 months and 29 days. Any subsequent violations are Class E felonies, carrying fines of up to $3,000 or 1-6 years of jail time.
Todd Roman, the co-owner of Nashville’s premiere drag venue Play Dance Bar, says that under the wording of the state’s new statute, his acclaimed bar is now technically categorized in the same way as a strip club. “We are not now, nor have we ever been an adult entertainment business,” an audibly exasperated Roman tells Billboard over the phone. “It’s extremely offensive to have our girls categorized in the same way that you would a stripper.”
Kate Ruane, the Sy Syms director of U.S. free expression at legal advocacy group PEN America, tells Billboard that on its face, the bill shouldn’t change much about existing obscenity laws in the state. “‘Prurient interest’ is a term often used by courts, including the Supreme Court, to describe obscene material,” she explains. “That should be an incredibly narrow category of sexually explicit performance. That should mean that most drag shows, which are not remotely sexually explicit, should arguably fall outside this statue’s scope.”
If that’s the case, then why are so many people in the LGBTQ community concerned regarding the new law’s ramifications? As Ruane explains, it comes down to interpretation. “There is a risk, given some of the recent rhetoric around drag shows that we’ve heard from these lawmakers, that these laws will be enforced more broadly than would be constitutionally permissible,” Ruane explains. “That’s the Tennessee bill in a nutshell: What does it ban? Theoretically, not much. What’s it going to impact? So very, very much.”
ACLU of Tennessee agrees with Ruane’s assessment of what’s at stake here. In an official statement released alongside the news of the law passing, legal director Stella Yarbrough said that while “the law bans obscene performances, and drag performances are not inherently obscene,” there remained significant concern “that government officials could easily abuse this law to censor people based on their own subjective viewpoints of what they deem appropriate, chilling protected free speech and sending a message to LGBTQ Tennesseans that they are not welcome in our state.”
The impact of this bill is already being felt not just in Tennessee, but across the U.S. Voss Events, the creative agency behind some of the largest drag shows in the world (like RuPaul’s Drag Race Live!), already had to make a major change to one of their most successful touring shows, Werq the World.
“It’s something that we’ve always considered to be family-friendly, and we’ve encouraged teenagers and kids who are fans of Drag Race to come to the show,” Brandon Voss, the founder of Voss Events, tells Billboard. “We’ve had to make all of our U.S. shows 18+, because we don’t want our audience to have to deal with protesters. That’s the biggest effect all of this has had on us.”
As more anti-LGBTQ laws continue to pass in Tennessee than in any other state, according to the Human Rights Campaign, queer artists and fans alike are left wondering where they are and are not allowed to perform or simply be themselves. Roman explains that even the Play Mates — Play’s rotating cast of drag performers — find themselves at a loss when it comes to what is permitted under this new law.
“At first, it was a great deal of confusion. Then it went to actual fear of not knowing whether they were going to have a job,” Roman says. “We spent a lot of time keeping them abreast of the direction everything was going to try to give them some comfort. But even now with the way this law was done, they are still in a constant state of being unsure what their future holds.” Roman adds that for the near future, “Play will continue to operate as Play has always operated,” but says that the “general sense of fear” isn’t going away any time soon.
Part of what’s driving that general sense of fear is the potential chilling effect that a law like this could have not only on queer performances, but public gender expression writ large. Ruane explains that, even if the law is not enforced as broadly as many fear it will be, it could very easily still scare touring companies, promoters, buyers and theater owners out of featuring performances that would potentially violate the law.
“Drag performers are now concerned that if they continue to do what they have the constitutional right to do and conduct drag performances, they are now exposing themselves to potential liability, even criminal charges,” Ruane explains. “So they may stop doing that. The bars and libraries and venues that host them are may also feel concern that they will experience legal liability as well. And so they will stop hosting these performances.”
It’s a question Voss has already struggled with in recent years — as threats of protests continue to rise against drag shows around the U.S., he wonders whether major players like AEG and Live Nation will still be willing to take the “risk” of putting on their shows. “Are they so inclined to buy our show when they have the Proud Boys or whoever the hell showing up to protest?” he asks. “We’ve definitely had theaters tell us, ‘Hey, this show has to be 18+’ — when it never has been before.”
AEG told Billboard in a statement that they were “disappointed” by Tennessee passing their public drag ban, adding that “our company remains committed to hosting live performances celebrating diversity and inclusion at all of our venues, and this misguided law does not change that commitment.” Live Nation did not respond to a request for comment from Billboard.
That chilling effect could also manifest in peoples’ daily lives — with no clear definition of what constitutes a “male or female impersonator,” opponents of the new law point out that trans and gender non-conforming individuals have a right to be scared about their public gender expression being at risk, regardless of whether they’re performers. “I worry about that,” Ruane says. “I worry about people feeling afraid that they cannot live their lives or get dressed and express themselves like we all do. Can this bill apply to that? It shouldn’t on its specific terms, but people are reasonably afraid.”
The question remains: Where do we go from here? Roman says he approaches this kind of discriminatory legislation with the same philosophy he urges managers at Play to use: “Don’t try to rationalize with an irrational person,” he says. “That’s where we find ourselves today; there is not a rational argument here. They’re absolutely trying to frame this as being about children, but from a logical, realistic perspective, this is nothing other than a direct attack on the LGBTQ community.”
For her part, Couleé made sure to call out the hypocrisy coming from Republican lawmakers during her Nashville performance. “I think that it’s funny that people try to use us as a scapegoat for their own agendas, when really your elected officials should be out there actually protecting you,” she said. “Statistically, the number one cause of death in adolescents is guns. Not drag queens. We are not a threat to your children.”
On the legal side, ACLU of Tennessee has already committed to “challenge enforcement of this law if it is used to punish a drag performer or shut down a family-friendly LGBTQ event,” encouraging event organizers and business owners to report undue enforcements of the new law.
Ruane says that should that challenge take place, the courts will have a responsibility to strike down Tennessee’s law. “From a free expression standpoint, we have long ago decided that you cannot do this — you cannot prohibit this sort of expression, because the First Amendment says that you can’t,” she says, taking a breath. “It is just un-American on so many different levels, I lose track of them.”
Diplo is Emily Ratajkowski’s most recent guest on her High Low podcast, and the duo delved into an open discussion about sexuality and the DJ’s hesitation to put a label on himself.
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“I’m sure I’ve gotten a blowjob from a guy before. For sure,” the producer told the model. “I don’t know if it’s gay unless you like may eye contact while there’s the blowjob happening.”
He added, “Getting a blowjob’s not that gay, I think.”
Ratajkowski went on to mention an off-air conversation they had, before Diplo officially set the record straight on his sexuality. “I think the best answer I have is I’m not not gay,” the 44-year-old musician explained, adding that he is attracted to “vibe” more than a specific gender. “There are a couple guys… I could date, life partner-wise.”
Listen to the full podcast conversation here.
Throughout his career, Diplo has been romantically linked primarily to women, including Katy Perry, whom he dated briefly in 2014. In 2020, the DJ also went on a PDA-filled vacation with model and fellow producer Chantel Jeffries, though the two never made any public claims about their relationship.
Diplo also has three children. He shares sons — 13-year-old Lockett and nine-year-old Lazer — with his ex Kathryn Lockhart and also announced that he welcomed a baby boy named Pace in 2020 with former Miss Universe pageant contestant Jevon King.
While Lil Nas X is well-known for being a comedic firebrand on social media, even the “Montero” rapper is ready to admit that a recent joke went a bit too far.
In a tweet posted on Wednesday (March 14), Lil Nas X offered an apology to the trans community after the rapper made a joke that he had transitioned. “apologies to the trans community i def handled that situation with anger instead of considering why it was not cool,” he wrote. “much love to you guys. sorry.”
The “That’s What I Want” singer was responding to critics of a since-deleted tweet, in which the rapper posted a photo of a woman bearing a slight resemblance to him. Captioning the post, Lil Nas appeared to claim that he had transitioned, writing, “The surgery was a success” next to a heart emoji. Many of the rapper’s followers quickly called out his post for being insensitive to a community that is currently being attacked by state legislatures around the U.S. with over 400 anti-trans bills currently in circulation.
While Lil Nas X officially apologized, he had choice words for one fan who asked him to do more. When told over Twitter that his apology was “fake as hell” and that he needed to show support for the community “in material ways that include money, sharing your platform to raise a [sic] awareness,” Lil Nas X quote tweeted the user, simply writing, “girl eat my a–.”
Representatives for Lil Nas X have not yet respond to Billboard‘s request for further comment.
The latest tweets come after a series of teasers from the star back in February, where he claimed that the follow-up to his debut album Montero could arrive as early as this summer. “it’s mostly planning now,” he wrote at the time. “i could easily just release music but i have to build moments around this s–t. i have to go bigger than before!”
Check out Lil Nas X’s apology tweet below:
apologies to the trans community i def handled that situation with anger instead of considering why it was not cool. much love to you guys. sorry— i am reading all that (@LilNasX) March 14, 2023
With each new season of RuPaul’s Drag Race comes the main challenge that some queens have been waiting all season for and that others have been dreading — the stand-up comedy routine.
On last week’s episode (aired Friday, March 10), the seven remaining contestants were tasked with performing in a Just For Laughs-style comedy festival. Grouped off into pairs (and one solo act), the girls came up with as many gut-busting bits as they could to wow the panel of judges and live to slay another day.
After expressing their respective desires to earn their second challenge wins of the season, Loosey LaDuca and Luxx Noir London rose to the occasion and put on a dueling comedy act to remember, taking home the top honor for this week’s challenge. Meanwhile, Anetra and Marcia Marcia Marcia found themselves flatlining on stage, landing them both in the bottom.
Performing in one of the most competitive lip syncs of the season, Anetra and Marcia (or “Anarcia” as the fans like to call them) pulled out every stunt they had for this high-octane performance to Doja Cat’s “Boss Bitch.” In the end, though, Anetra lived to walk that duck another day, sending Marcia packing.
Billboard caught up with Marcia following her elimination to talk about the queen earning the most consecutive “safe” placements in a single season, her reaction to the judges’ critiques about her makeup, and how she approached this episode’s climactic lip sync battle.
Before we get into it all, we have to talk about the near-constant critiques regarding your makeup — what did you think of the judges’ fixation on your face, which then led to a fixation from the fanbase?
Well, I am a theater kid — and in the theater industry, your entire job is basically being critiqued. Even when you have the job, you’re getting notes after every performance about what you could have done better. So, at the time, I was like, “This is just something for me to work on.” I always appreciated that, honestly, I’m always trying to improve myself. Even since we’ve wrapped, my drag and my makeup has changed so much. In the end, it helped me develop a more meaningful relationship with makeup. Before, it was always something where I was like, “Oh, whatever.” But now I see that it can make people very upset!
I don’t know if you know this, but you also broke a Drag Race record this season with the most consecutive “safe” placements in the show’s history. How do you feel about having that honor?
It’s like … the funniest award you could ever get for this show [laughs]. I will say, when you look at my track record with more detail, while I was safe the entire time, I excelled in a lot of the challenges, which is important to recognize. In a lot of ways, some of my accomplishments have been sort of eclipsed by my critiques. So while I am the “safe queen” of season 15, I think I had a lot of great high points. And hey, if I’m safe, I’m not in the bottom!
Yes, especially during a season where there have been a lot of on-air arguments about who got “second place” in a challenge, it’s worth pointing out that being safe is good.
Especially out of 16 people, it’s an exhale that you get to have. And, our cast is truly one of the most well-rounded, gifted groups that the show has had in a very long time.
Getting into this episode, you said in a confessional that this was the challenge you were dreading. What is it about the stand-up challenge that felt intimidating to you?
Well, I came into the competition being a gifted, comfortable seamstress. I also act, sing, dance, write, choreograph, and I’ve been doing that forever. This was sort of the one thing that I’ve kind of never done before. You hear comedians talk about their stand-up, or you watch shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and you learn that you usually bomb at least a few times before you can get your “tight 10.” I was apprehensive, because I was like, “I don’t know how this is going to go.”
Add onto that the fact that this is a duos challenge … in which you were the only solo performer.
Yeah … in a comedy challenge based on famous comedy pairs, to be alone is not the best starting point.
I love your runways, because I love a them, and you constantly bring out this sort of “injury chic” vibe with every look. How did that sort of “pretty-but-in-pain” idea become the staple of Marcia Marcia Marcia looks?
So, for Drag Race specifically, when I was approaching the looks, I made pretty much everything myself. I wanted to have a clear story, I wanted to do things that people weren’t going to think of and to approach it in a different way. I don’t know, I am personally very clumsy, and I think there’s something so funny about a really beautiful person with something like a cast on their arm. It’s just hilarious to me when people are really involved in their appearance and then have something go horribly wrong where they’re stuck with it for a long time. I just think it’s fun. So yes, I was always asking myself, “What’s the story? What are people not going to think of? How do I take something that may be simple or boring and twist it to make it a little weirder and funnier?”
I know it was controversial, but I was obsessed with your tie-dye look.
Thank you! I thought it was great — again, another thing that people simply did not agree with.
We get to this lip-sync — first of all, after watching all of these wild lip syncs she’s performed in, what was going through your mind when you found out it would be you against Anetra?
When it was me and Anetra, first of all, I was like, “Great, another thing we can do together, Anarcia to the end.” I love Anetra, and I knew that she was absolutely going to give everything. They call it a “Lip Sync For Your Life,” and in the moment, I was like, “Oh, I’m going to lip sync for my actual life, because I know she’s going to do the same thing.” And I knew at the end of the day it was going to be a great show, so it was mostly like, “Work, let’s just do it and have fun — if I’m going out, I’m gonna do a great job and push for the only double save of the season.”
I know that when you’re lip syncing, you’re completely focused on yourself and are largely unaware of what the other girl is doing — but you had to notice when Anetra literally leapt over your back-bent body, right?
I did not know that happened!
You didn’t? How?!
No, someone told me afterwards that she did that! I was like “What? You’re joking.” But it’s like you said, when you’re in there, it feels like you have horse blinders on — you are so focused on doing what you’ve been able to think of in the last however many minutes before actually standing on the stage that you kind of block out the other person.
That’s wild, but it goes to show what an excellent lip sync this was, you both absolutely turned it out.
Thank you so much! It was just so much fun, and I truly love Anetra, as you’ve seen me sob about in Untucked before. I love her so much, and it was one of those things where it was like, if I’m going to be in the bottom with anyone and get sent home by anyone, I’m glad it was Anetra.
Conservative politicians have been targeting trans people, drag queens and queer culture left and right in recent weeks, and artists such as Paramore‘s Hayley Williams, Lizzo and Ariana Grande aren’t letting it slide.
The three singers are just a few of the many musicians speaking out against a recent surge in anti-LGBTQ bills surging through Republican-led legislatures, particularly in Tennessee. In early March, for example, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed controversial laws banning minors from receiving gender-affirming care and preventing drag queens from performing in certain public spaces.
Why is this dangerous? RuPaul said it best in a March 8 Instagram video about the situation: Other than the life-threatening consequences of persecuting people based on sexuality and gender identity, the lawmakers passing such legislation are “distracting us away from the real issues that they were voted into office to focus on — jobs, healthcare, keeping our children safe from harm at their own school.”
Many musicians aren’t just speaking out against the uptick in discriminatory laws — they’re also singing out. Williams, along with Maren Morris, Sheryl Crow, Jason Isbell, Amanda Shires and several others, are gathering on March 20 in Nashville to stage Love Rising, a benefit concert supporting Tennessee-based LGBTQ organizations.
Even the Music Business Association, which is based in Tennessee, has issued a statement condemning the state’s legislation. “These bigoted actions are especially concerning as we believe the intentional use of vague, inflammatory language will act as a gateway to encouraging acts of violence against the LGBTQ+ community,” it read.
“The music industry is built upon the work of artists, many of whom identify as trans, non-binary, genderqueer, and LGBTQ+,” it continued. “Legislation like this threatens the safety of artists and others, and will force businesses to reconsider holding events in this state. The safety of our conference attendees is central to our Association and will be of paramount concern in planning future events under the Music Biz banner.”
Keep reading to see some of the biggest musicians who are making their voices heard.
Hayley Williams
“Once again our state has passed two regressive and unfathomably harmful bills,” Williams wrote on her Instagram Story in late February, after the Tennessee House passed legislation that would ban drag performances and gender-affirming care. “We stand in solidarity with our LGBTQIA+ family and local LGBTQIA+ orgs in this fight, not only for inclusion for our friends and family in the queer community, but for radical acceptance and empowerment for each of them.”
“Drag is not a crime,” the Tennessee native added ahead of the governor signing the bills into law. “Gender-affirming healthcare for all, including our youth, is a necessity.”
Cyndi Lauper
“I believe you don’t stop the fight,” noted LGBTQ ally Cyndi Lauper said of the Tennessee bills in a March interview, which was captured on video. “Equality for everybody, or nobody’s really equal. This is how Hitler started … just weeding everybody out.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea what they’re doing but, you know, you just have to keep fighting for civil rights,” she continued. “I guess that’s the way it is in this country. Started out like that, didn’t it?”
The B-52s
The B-52s shared a lengthy, passionate statement on Twitter March 8 to “strongly denounce” bills promoting transphobia. “These bills not only violate the fundamental human rights of the affected individuals but also perpetuate a toxic culture of hate and intolerance that has no place in our society,” wrote bandmates Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson.
Lizzo
Lizzo took the discourse surrounding transphobia one step further by explaining how it intersects with racism and fatphobia on Twitter a few days after Gov. Lee signed the restrictive bills.
“I’ve never heard a person say why they’re racist… Or fatphobic.. I’ve never heard a reason why someone is transphobic..,” the “About Damn Time” singer wrote. “I think if we knew ‘why’ these people felt this way there would way less support for these ideals. Because the ‘why’ is more insidious than we realize.”
Jason Isbell
In the Love Rising lineup announcement, Isbell expressed his support more clearly. “Senate Bill 3 and House Bill 9 are clearly targeted attacks on Tennesseans who haven’t done anything wrong,” the former Drive-By Truckers musician said in the press release. “These bills add up to an attempt to eradicate a valuable part of our community and force good people to live in fear. We can’t in good conscience just stand by and let that happen.”
Isbell also tweeted in disagreement of the drag ban specifically, calling it a “completely unnecessary law aimed at people who don’t tend to vote GOP.”
Joy Oladokun
Joy Oladokun, another Love Rising performer, denounced Tennessee’s new laws on Twitter. “For a while now spineless representatives of a hateful minority have been stripping away the rights and care of LGBTQIA+ people in the state,” the “Someone Like You” musician wrote on March 7.
Maren Morris
As one of country music’s most outspoken social activists, Maren Morris signed on to perform at Love Rising and challenged her followers to “show these politicians that they do not speak for all of Tennessee.” “Love will prevail,” the “Circles Around This Town” artist added.
Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande shared a post slamming Tennessee’s drag show ban with her 360 million followers on Instagram Stories. “Tennessee just banned Drag Shows,” the post read. “However Nazi’s [sic] and the KKK can still hold protests and meetings there. Take a long moment and let that sink in very deeply.”
The “Positions” pop star’s brother, reality star Frankie Grande, also didn’t hold back about his feelings regarding the ban. Posting a nine-part Twitter thread on the ban’s potentially dangerous consequences, he wrote, “This is political theatre designed to encourage vigilante violence against a group of people that’s already incredibly vulnerable.”
Thread: The Tennessee Drag Ban (1/9)This bill is not just a one off from a rogue legislator. This is a continuation of a concerted effort by Republicans to criminalize, harass, and endanger LGBTQ+ people. More than 300 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were either introduced or passed in 2022 pic.twitter.com/j8m67BKAAS— Frankie James Grande (@FrankieJGrande) March 6, 2023https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
RuPaul
The Queen of Drag got right down to business in a March 8 Instagram video outlining the urgency of the situation in Tennessee. “Bullies are incompetent at solving real issues,” Ru said. “They look for easy targets so they can give the impression of being effective. They think our love, our light, our laughter and our joy are signs of weakness. But they’re wrong — because that is our strength.”
Calling drag queens “the Marines of the queer movement,” the Drag Race creator added, “Register to vote so we can get these stunt queens out of office and put some smart people with real solutions into government. And by the way — a social media post has never been as powerful as a registered vote.”
While many of Hollywood’s biggest celebrities were at Sunday night’s Academy Awards at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theater (March 12), Elton John was busy putting his star status to good use across town.
The annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards viewing party took place on Sunday at West Hollywood Park in Los Angeles. Hosted by John and his husband David Furnish, with special guests Eric McCormack and Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, the event reportedly raised over $9 million for the “Rocket Man” singer’s charity organization.
The event was well-attended by plenty of A-list artists, including stars like Maren Morris, Wiz Khalifa, Dove Cameron, Hilary Duff, Kesha, Saweetie, Tyga, Sharon Osbourne, Maggie Rogers and Smokey Robinson. Rina Sawayama served as the event’s headline performer, where she took to the stage and performed a number of tracks, including “This Hell” and “Catch Me In The Air” off her latest album Hold the Girl.
“I’m delighted to have reunited with all of my friends tonight after such a long time apart and better yet, to have raised over $9 million for the fight against AIDS,” John said of the event in a statement. “We mustn’t forget that HIV is still causing needless suffering around the world and we must protect those most vulnerable to this disease with testing and compassionate care. We can see an end to AIDS in our lifetimes, but first we must break down stigma and discrimination and provide equal access to healthcare to finally end the epidemic for everyone, everywhere.”
The Elton John AIDS Foundation was founded in 1992 with the stated goal of bringing an end to the AIDS epidemic. The annual Oscars viewing party, which began the same year as the organization’s inception, regularly raises millions of dollars for the foundation — in 2022, the event raised $8.6 million for AIDS research.