The Ultimate A-to-Z Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Musicians and Bands, Pt. 3 (K–O)
This is part 3 in our series on LGBTQ bands and musicians. Click for “The Ultimate A-to-Z Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Bands, Artists, Musicians and Bands” parts One, Two, Four and Five.
For even the most seasoned music lovers and sound hounds, discovering LGBTQ bands and musicians can prove daunting.
Only a handful identify as “LGBTQ bands” themselves, as most identify simply as musicians, preferring not to box themselves into a set sound, lyrical set or target demographic. For the same reason, it’s rare to find a comprehensive listing of LGBTQ bands and artists on online stores or streaming apps; all artists, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, are typically grouped by genre.
But with a little research and a lot of listening, we’ve created this living encyclopedia of LGBTQ bands and musicians that can be used to discover new queer artists and give music-lovers an even deeper appreciation for those you already loved.
Below you’ll find our comprehensive encyclopedia of LGBTQ bands, artists and musicians, from K–O:
Leo Kalyan
Talk about a triple threat: Kalyan is a gay Muslim English singer who produces a dreamy R&B amalgamation that’s part The Weeknd and part Will Young. (“Focus”; “Daydream”)
Kandy
Long Island DJ/producer with beats in the clubs and his heart in the ballroom. (“Feelin’ KNT”; “Fudge It”)
Kaytranada
Louis Kevin Celestin is a Haitian-born, Montréal-based DJ/producer with one stellar release under his belt, 99.9%, and a Rolodex anyone would be proud of — Syd features on “You’re the One,” Anderson .Paak on “Glowed Up” — and no doubt we will be featuring him plenty in the years to come.
Kazaky
Here is a boy band — from Ukraine — unlike any before. They have since disbanded and, given the witch hunt happening in neighboring Russia, we hope they’re in hiding or seeking asylum in a more tolerant society. For now, we are left with their androgynous videos and hi-NRG Eurodisco (“Love”).
Kehlani / Poplyfe
This Bay Area biracial bisexual took on the world with her 2017 debut SweetSexySavage (“CRZY”).
Kera
Billboard described her work as “bipolar folk” and I’m hard pressed to come up with a better phrase, though her fantastic track “I’m Late” sounds to me like Rock Hudson’s dream of Doris Day as a butch lesbian.
Kiddy Smile
Pierre Hache dba Kiddy Smile may not be the first black gay Parisian DJ to saunter down the pike, but I sure as hell can’t think of who that might be. (“Let a Bitch Know”; “Slap My Butt”)
Rachael Kilgour
A bad breakup precipitated this Minnesota folk singer’s best and latest record, Rabbit in the Road. She’s a sharp one, especially when she comes up with a title metaphor and a title track that encapsulates her broken relationship with damning efficacy.
Kindness
Adam Bainbridge, the non-binary British electronic musician, has produced some impressive, exploratory music in a short span of time, including an opening track that samples a trans anthem (Underground Resistance’s “Transition”) for a statement of intent (“Sibambaneni”) and a jazzy trap jam too weird for clubs that’s also a statement of intent (“Softness As a Weapon”).
Kingdom
Ezra Rubin (aka Kingdom) is a club music impresario who dropped his debut this year, Tears in the Club, with guest turns from Syd (“Nothin”) and SZA (“What Is Love”), and some deeply useful instrumental pieces that are dark and beats-wise, like the title track.
Kitchens of Distinction / Stephen Hero / Fruit / Lost Girls
Patrick Fitzgerald waved the shoegaze flag for gay boys everywhere, from 1989’s Love Is Hell through 1994’s Cowboys and Aliens, then went on hiatus and recorded under many other monikers, reuniting 19 years later for 2013’s Folly. Though under the radar then and now, some of their work broke through, especially 1991’s Strange Free World and its signature song “Drive That Fast.”
King Princess
If you didn’t know that Mikaela Mullaney Straus dba King Princess was genderqueer/gay, the title of her debut Cheap Queen might tip you off. She’s funny and resilient and here to entertain with her inclusive queer confections, including the bottom anthem “Hit the Back” and, enough said, “Pussy Is God.”
Hayley Kiyoko
This politically active singer, songwriter, actress and, whether she likes it or not, role model is equally at home with her rebellious side (“What I Need feat. Kehlani”) and her more vulnerable one (“Wanna Be Missed”).
Jonathan Knight / New Kids on the Block
Another boy band, and this time the gay one is Jonathan Knight (who, with his partner Harley Rodriguez, participated in the 26th season of The Amazing Race). Though the New Kids aren’t so new anymore, they released their sixth album 10 in 2013, though it’s “You Got It (The Right Stuff)” and “Step by Step” that burns brightest in our memories.
L Devine
Hailed by Charli XCX as “the motherfucking future of pop,” Olivia Devine dba L Devine is here to disrupt the straight, white male industry she was brought up in. We hope she succeeds. (“Can’t Be You”; “Peer Pressure”)
Lady Gaga
Not only is she a great friend to our community, she’s part of it. Her story is still unfolding as she stretches out to the world of TV and film, flitting from genre to genre as the shapeshifter she not only desperately wants to be, but actually is. After last year’s roots move Joanne, no doubt we all shared a sigh of relief when she dropped the electropop “The Cure,” but it’s churlish to deny her the opportunity to stretch out. The woman who unleashed our modern LGBTQ anthem on the world, “Born This Way,” can do whatever the hell she wants.
Ladyhawke / Two Lane Blacktop
Phillipa Margaret Brown’s Kiwi electropop made inroads worldwide with her eponymous 2008 debut singles “Back of the Van” and “My Delirium.” She stumbled with her 2012 follow-up, Anxiety, but returned to form last year with the strong Wild Things (“A Love Song”). Her lower public profile could be a result of too many similar artists coming up at the same time (La Roux, etc.) or the self-esteem issues she grappled with prior to her marriage to actress Madeleine Sami, but she’s back and raring to win you over again.
Lafemmebear
Producer LeahAnn Mitchell was blackballed as a writer in the industry after coming out as trans, but as they’ve always said – getting the gender wrong, silly straight men – you can’t keep a good woman down. (“SHUTUP! feat. Bella King”; “IF”)
Adam Lambert
The career trajectory of this American Idol runner-up (quick, name the winner … didn’t think so) has been like a sales graph — up, down, way up, crash, etc. And, musically, he’s all over the place as well, but you would be, too, if you had the instrument to sing whatever you wanted. That was obvious on his first post-Idol debut For Your Entertainment (“Whataya Want from Me”) and solidified when he was asked by Queen’s guitarist Brian May to fill the shoes of Freddie Mercury on a world tour. His second release, Trespassing, debuted on the U.S. charts at number one (the first for an openly gay performer), and 2015’s The Original High showed enormous maturity in his writing (“Ghost Town”). There’s a masterpiece in him, and when he finally gets to it, he’ll be even more unstoppable than he already is.
Mary Lambert
Hers was the authentic voice — or, at least, the gay one — on Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’s “Same Love,” and though it allowed her to quit her bartending job, it’s also overshadowed her solo work. Too bad, as her debut Heart On My Sleeve was prime pop (“Secrets”), and the stopgap EP she put out this year, Bold, bodes well for her next full-length (“Know Your Name”).
Daniel Land / Engineers / riverrun / Daniel Land & the Modern Painters
This shoegaze guitarist has been releasing music for eons with Engineers (former member) and a series of solo projects, but we hadn’t heard of him until last year’s gorgeous In Love with a Ghost, wherein he delineates the thrills and anxieties of life in a new city (“New York Boogie Woogie”) and falling in love (“Holes on the Dancefloor,” which cribs its opening melody from Bronski Beat’s “Smalltown Boy”).
kd lang
She hasn’t released a solo record since 2008’s Watershed (though last year saw a collaboration with Neko Case and Laura Veirs called case/lang/veirs), but she’s kept herself busy with acting and activism. She’s damn near a perfect singer — live, we cannot recall anyone with the technical control she has — and Ingénue, from 1992, featuring “Constant Craving,” was a, ahem, watershed. She has a way with standards and covers (“Black Coffee”) and I wish she hadn’t forsaken her country roots as quickly as she did (“Big Boned Gal”), but she’s one of our best.
Leland
Brett McLaughlin dba Leland is best known as the writer behind many of RuPaul’s Drag Race’s musical sketches, but he’s a formidable pop songwriter on his own with a Golden Globe nomination for the song he co-wrote with Troye Sivan for Boy Erased. (“Middle of a Heartbreak”; “Mattress”)
Le Tigre / MEN / JD Samson
This electroclash trio fronted by Kathleen Hanna and Johanna Fateman, and later joined by out lesbian JD Samson, combined the grit and fun of The B-52’s with politics and social commentary (their eponymous debut, with “Hot Topic,” is the shit). Samson and Bateman went on to form MEN with a focus on gender politics (“Credit Card Babies”), and Samson has continued co-writing with various artists such as Peaches and Christina Aguilera.
Le1f
Three mixtapes, two EPs and one full-length put the American rapper Khalif Diouf aka Le1f into the conversation, yet despite the highlights of that full-length Riot Boi (“Koi,” “Umami/Water”), homophobia in hip-hop runs deep. Maybe by the time his sophomore record drops — and thanks to the inroads made by Frank Ocean and others — he’ll get the public hearing he deserves.
Ivri Lidir / The Young Professionals
This big pop star in Israel came to our attention via the synth band The Young Professionals. Imagine Chromeo, but gay, and you’ve got it. And Lidir, with Johnny Goldstein, can rock some pumps (“D.I.S.C.O.,” “All of It but Me ft. Anna F.”).
Siena Liggins
From Detroit to Atlanta straight to the hearts of pop-leaning lesbians and advocates, Siena Liggins broke on the scene with her summer song “Flowerbomb” and her stalker-ish hard-to-let-you-go broken love track “Me Again.”
Lis Nas X
Montero Lamar Hill had the hit heard round the world with his country banger “Old Town Road feat. Billy Ray Cyrus” and then he stated what he thought was obvious to everyone. Where does the black gay rapper/singer go now? Let’s hope it’s just higher and higher. (“Kick It”)
Limahl / Kajagoogoo
Christopher Hamill is too boring a name to be a pop star, but the anagram Limahl, now that was mysterious! Add to that a cuckoo’s hairdo and a band name like Kajagoogoo, and any old New Wave song could be a hit (“Too Shy”). Their run was brief, then Limahl went on to solo glory with “The Never Ending Story.”
Little Richard
Patti Smith once said, “To me, Little Richard was a person that was able to focus a certain physical, anarchistic and spiritual energy into a form which we call rock ‘n’ roll. I understood it as something that had to do with my future. When I was a little girl, Santa Claus didn’t turn me on. Easter Bunny didn’t turn me on. God turned me on. Little Richard turned me on.” This Georgia native was an effeminate black boy severely punished by an unforgiving father and haunted by his sexuality for years on end. But he was also one of the primary architects of a still-young art form, rock ‘n’ roll, and while most of us may know more about the character he became on talk shows later in his life, let’s not forget that the roots of much of our most beloved genres — glam rock, rockabilly, it goes on — lives in his pompadour (“Tutti Frutti,” “Good Golly Miss Molly”)
Lizette Lizette
Swedish Swedish queer queer indie indie Europop Europop. (“Scorpio”; “Junk”)
Tove Lo
Ebba Tove Elsa Nilsson wears her bisexuality like a well-worn pair of jeans; it’s easy and comfortable on her, even though her electropop has a grunge edge. Her debut, Queen of the Clouds, was Top 20 around the world (and featured the love-as-addiction anthem “Habits [Stay High]”), and her follow-up, Lady Wood (great title), was announced with a 31-minute short film, Fairy Dust, that included the first half of the record.
LP
Laura Pergolizzi has been kicking around since 2001, though her star has been on the ascent as of late, thanks to last year’s Lost on You, centered around a breakup and its messy aftermath. The title track and “Tightrope” are standouts, and it’s easy to hear why she’s been a go-to writer for Cher, Christina Aguilera and others.
Manilla Luzon
Three years after appearing on Season 3 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Luzon released the 2014 album Queen. Its title track is a piano homage to Luzon’s deceased drag queen lover, Season 2 competitor Sahara Davenport. Manila Luzon has also released a handful of singles, some solo and others featuring fellow Drag Racers, like “The Chop” with Season 4 queen Latrice Royale, “That’s a Man, Maury” with Willam Belli and “Bring It” with Season 5 winner Jinkx Monsoon.
Grant MacDonald
We have no idea if this Canadian based musician is gay or not, but his recorded oeuvre is basically a metal-tinged gay porn soundtrack for cowboys, astronauts and, on a recent release, fucking Prince Harry up the ass, hard. (“Superhot Harry”; “Cockship”)
Barry Manilow
A collective yawn went up when Manilow came out this past April, not because it wasn’t newsworthy, only because everyone already knew. And while his middle-of-the-road soft rock and pop has never blazed any trails, it’s impossible to deny the craft and comfort of his many, many hits, including “Mandy” and “Copacabana (At the Copa).”
Ricky Martin
Yet another performer with a boy band past, Martin’s not the chart-stormer he was back when “Livin’ La Vida Loca” was inescapable, but he’s living his truth openly now, a role model to a vastly underrated community, and looking damn good doing it.
Matmos
The couple at the heart of Matmos — M.C. (Martin) Schmidt and Drew Daniel — have been terrorizing the world with their electronic experiments since 1997’s eponymous debut. Last year’s Ultimate Care II was put together primarily from the sounds of their Whirlpool washing machine (“Ultimate Care II Excerpt Nine”) and, as someone who admits to finding rhythm in both the bustle of a Xerox and the pounding during an MRI, all I can say is they fascinate me.
Trixie Mattel
The winner of Drag Race All Stars 3 released his first studio album, Two Birds, in 2017 and One Stone the following year. Of all the drag queen musicians on our list, Mattel is the only to release country-folk music albums. With songs like “Mama Don’t Make Me Put On the Dress Again,” “Little Sister” and “Red Side of the Moon,” Mattel’s albums contain a mix of surprisingly deep ballads and country bops exploring the joy and melancholy of male femininity.
David McAlmont / McAlmont and Butler / Michael Nyman with David McAlmont
Black gay Brit McAlmont has released music both solo and with former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler, and I wish that he and Butler would record again, because 2002’s Bring It Back was a minor wow (“Falling” is a gay boy’s girl group nirvana). His neo-classical soul combo with Michael Nyman, The Glare, is also worth your time.
Joe McElderry
The sixth season X-Factor winner sounds exactly as you’d expect — high-gloss English pop — and his 2010 debut Wide Awake was a bit of alright (the title track and “Superman” were fetching). Since then, it’s been covers records and musical tours and the slow slide to oblivion (unless his forthcoming record reverses that trend).
Freddie Mercury / Queen
He was a great showman and a front-rank vocalist — how many singers for rock and metal bands wish they had half the chops of the man born Farrokh Bulsara? So he didn’t come out until just before he died of AIDS in 1991. It’s not like we didn’t know. The prancing, the spandex, that mustache in the ’80s, please! “Who Wants to Live Forever?” from Innuendo was haunting when it was released in 1991, and even more so after Mercury’s death. And so many of their songs — from “Killer Queen” to the drag video for “I Want to Break Free” — were delicious in-jokes that kept tongues wagging for years.
Merlot
Non-binary R&B vocalist with freckles for days. (“Bad for You”; “Sunrise”)
Stephin Merritt / The Magnetic Fields / The 6ths / The Gothic Archies / Future Bible Heroes
He’s a songwriting machine with a plethora of bands to channel his productivity, though most of us know him best for his work with The Magnetic Fields. Both 1999’s 69 Love Songs (with “The Book of Love”) and this year’s 50 Song Memoir (“’68 A Cat Called Dionysus”) are his masterpieces, but all of his projects cough up a great track or 12 when the mood strikes him. And because his voice is sometimes hard for folks to take, you might want to immerse in his oeuvre when other people take the vocal lead (check out The 6ths’ “San Diego Zoo ft. Barbara Manning”).
George Michael / Wham!
As talented as he was beautiful, this singer of Wham! and solo glory left us too soon. He set the standard for cheesy ’80s ballads with “Careless Whisper;” he turned a publicity scandal into music video fodder with “Outside”; and he made his ass as famous as his voice with “Faith.” Well played, sir. Well played.
Mika
We’ve never understood the divisiveness elicited by this pop star. Perhaps it was his coyness when confronted about his sexuality in the beginning — though it seemed screamingly obvious to most of us, and no doubt the community wanted him to state flat out that he was gay, not bi — but he was also born in Beirut and, culturally, that’s a difficult minefield to negotiate (he dealt with those expectations, wittily, on “All She Wants” from 2015’s No Place in Heaven). Over the course of four records he’s given us fun pop (“Lollipop”) and, in his best release thus far, The Origin of Love, real heartbreak (the title track, “Underwater”).
June Millington / Fanny
One of the first all-female American rock ‘n’ roll bands were the overlooked and ripe for revival Fanny, fronted by Filipino sisters Jean and June Millington. June was out to her bandmates, but that wasn’t a promoted fact. Maybe it should have been, because the American press — with the notable exception of rock critic Robert Christgau — basically ignored or belittled them. But they were fierce, as this live clip from 1971 of “Blind Alley” will attest.
Ginger Minj
After releasing his first single, “Ooh Lala Lala,” in June 2015, and his second, ”Bad, Bad Boy,” in October 2016, Ginger Minj debuted a 16-track pop album titled Sweet T the same year. The album features bisexual comedian Margaret Cho and Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips, plus a handful of heartbreaking covers like “Losing My Religion” and “Dream a Little Dream,” which capture the heartache of growing up gay in the conservative South.
Donna Missal
Missal’s debut album, This Time, released September 2018, is a fiery, blues-rocking, soul-inflected platter that’s put the non-binary performer square in our sights. “Keep Lying” rages with old school grit while “Girl” doubles down on neo-soul. Good stuff.
MNEK
Uzoechi “Uzo” Emenike has one EP to his name — 2015’s Small Talk — and some guest spots (Gorgon City’s “Ready for Your Love feat. MNEK”), not to mention writing and production credits with Madonna, Clean Bandit, Kylie Minogue and too many others to mention. He’s part of that new breed of gay pop stars whose sexuality is just part and parcel of the entire package. We think he’s ready for his close-up.
Janelle Monae
This former android from planet funk came out as pansexual and, well, her music took a turn for the carnal. To which all we have to say is yaas yaas yaas! (“Pynk”; “Make Me Feel”)
Jinkx Monsoon
After winning Season 5 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, this genderqueer cabaret and burlesque performer used that newfound fame to launch multiple albums, including The Inevitable Album (2014) and The Ginger Snapped (2018), the latter a reference to the performer’s tried-and-true hair color. Before releasing the albums Monsoon had also performed the titular role in the rock musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch and played the villainous Velma Von Tussle in an adaptation of John Waters’ Hairspray.
Kailee Morgue
Young queer U.S. singer-songwriter meeting her heroes and, amazingly, recording with them. (“Headcase feat. Hayley Kiyoko”; “Knew You”)
Matt Morris
This religious gay songwriter’s 2010 debut — and only studio release, When Everything Breaks Open — was produced by Charlie Sexton and Justin Timberlake (“Live Forever”). He’s kept himself busy as a religious blogger and songwriter with Timberlake, Kimbra and others.
Morrissey / The Smiths
Beloved as the frontman for The Smiths, polarizing as a solo artist to this day: Steven Patrick Morrissey has always been a man of contradictions. Sensitive and belligerent. Shy and flamboyant. Asexual and … who knows? But love him or hate him, or love them and hate him, he’s amassed an impressive songbook, with help from Johnny Marr and the other members of The Smiths (“Ask”), or with his solo collaborators (“Suedehead”).
Bob Mould / Hüsker Dü / Sugar
This gay wrestling fan, along with the also gay Grant Hart and the mustachioed Greg Horton, fronted one of the few (if not the only) seminal hardcore LGBTQ bands Hüsker Dü (“Makes No Sense at All”), the seminal alt-rock band Sugar (“See a Little Light”) and his genre-hopping solo work (“Life and Times”).
Jason Mraz
Mellow Mr. Mraz came out as an LGBTQ+ ally in 2018 (and also confirmed himself as bi). Musically, his reggae-inflected soft grooves are the perfect soundtrack to an afternoon pansexual pool party or an intimate dinner amongst friends or potential lovers. If that sounds pejorative, it may well be. Loads of folks love the type of gentle music put out by artists like Mraz and Jack Johnson — they’re wildly successful brands — and it’s great to have some representation there. (“You Do You feat. Tiffany Haddish”; “I’m Yours”)
MUNA
Among LGBTQ bands, this queer L.A. trio is rising up the ranks on the back of a fresh debut (About U), contemporary electro (“I Know a Place”) and a refusal to be pigeonholed. Keep an eye on them.
Nakhane
This out and proud South African son has two releases to date, 2013’s Brave Confusion and 2018’s You Will Not Die. His take on indie pop is lush and baroque — vocally similar to David McAlmont and as theatrical as Benjamin Clementine. Check out “Interloper” and “Clairvoyant” to see if he’s your thing.
Meshell Ndegeocello
This formidable bassist is the type of artist, or old soul, who — though known well enough — will most likely be rediscovered by future generations. Ahead of her time? Perhaps. But she is fully of our time as well — a bisexual firebrand who has tackled homophobia head on (“Leviticus: Faggot”) and does not suffer fools gladly, even during the times when that fool just might be her.
Sharon Needles
After dominating Season 4 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, this ghoulish “horrorqueen” continued to work his macabre schtick with a handful of dark-themed singles and albums. While 2013 debut album PG-13 combined dance-pop, punk, metal and electronica, 2015 follow-up Taxidermy had more of an EDM and pop sound, while 2017 album Battle Axe went back to combining dance and rock. Sharon Needles’ revealing lyrics explore a dark obsessions with drugs, sex, deadbeats and the horrors of the entertainment industry.
Alex Newell
Singer-actor Newell has one EP to his name — the delightful Power — and is most known to millions as the trans student Unique Adams from Glee. And his instrument, that gospel-inflected high tenor, has the power to keep drag queens wet for years (“This Ain’t Over”).
Klaus Nomi
Unless you were in New York in the late ’70s you might only know Klaus Nomi — if you know him at all — from his appearance with David Bowie on Saturday Night Live in 1979 (“The Man Who Sold the World”). But Nomi was adored by the downtown crowd for his countertenor (and his surprisingly lyrical soprano when he sang opera) long before La Dame came calling, and he had some success with his glammy New Wave-y solo work (“Total Eclipse”). AIDS unfortunately took him from us too soon, in 1983.
Laura Nyro
Her own work was adored by a ravenous cult, though she achieved peak commercial success when The Fifth Dimension covered two of her songs, “Stoned Soul Picnic” and “Wedding Bell Blues.” If you’re looking for a great singer-songwriter that exudes New York cool, you could do no better that 1968’s Eli and the Thirteenth Confession or 1969’s New York Tendaberry. And though she passed of cancer in 1997, her songcraft is resilient: every few years she’s rediscovered or reinterpreted by young artists, and there’s no reason to think this won’t go on for quite some time.
Ó
Brooklyn indie pop from Gabrielle Smith, formerly known as Eskimeaux. (“Breaking My Neck”)
Sinead O’Connor
Never a dull moment with this one! Still, her first two records are classic — the one with “Mandinka” and the one where she owns Prince (“Nothing Compares to You”). So she’s done a few crazy things along the way. Who hasn’t?
Frank Ocean / Odd Future
Not the first sexually fluid black artist to come down the pike, but in some respects Frank Ocean may be the most significant. We shall see. Other artists rallied around him — particularly Beyoncé and Jay-Z — and his otherworldly hip-hop has connected with millennials of every stripe. Channel Orange is significantly better than his latest, Blonde (not to mention Endless), and no doubt there are those who prefer his mixtape nostalgia, ULTRA. But whether it’s “Novacane” or “Bad Religion” or “Solo” you never doubt you’re listening to an artist who likes to push the boundaries of his music as much as he felt the need not to make a secret of his sexuality.
Kele Okereke / Bloc Party
Five albums in and the indie band Bloc Party feel tired, though they came out the gate fast with Silent Alarm and sustained through the late aughts. His solo work this decade has been more dance-oriented and — it has to be said — gayer. Good for him. While he was still in the closet, the claustrophobic indie rock of “The Prayer” was perfect, so it’s only fitting that, post-coming out, his grooves are liberated and joyous (“Tenderoni”).
Openside
Indie pop from New Zealand — think CHVRCHES and Ladyhawke and you’ll have an idea of this LGBTQ bands sound. (“Character Flaws”)
Rita Ora
I remember reading once in a review this simple and spot on question: What is a Rita Ora? To be honest, until the overwrought backlash from the LGBTQ+ community around her song “Girls feat. Cardi B, Bebe Rexha, and Charli XCX”), she hadn’t fully registered as much of anything. That controversy motivated her to come out as bisexual, though ultimately the outrage was a tempest in a teacup. There’s a long history of “straight” women in pop crossing over for the occasional Sapphic dabble (Madonna and Britney; Katy Perry), but I’m glad she cleared it up for us.
Orville Peck
A Canadian country artist who wore masks before they became regulatory, Mr. Peck has the sweet, supple voice of Roy Orbison and a penchant for throwing some indie rock tropes into his faster songs for that extra kick in the chaps. Someday – long after COVID-19 is gone – he may reveal himself. Facially, at least. His music, however, isn’t hiding behind anything. The gay desire is front and center. And the mystery surrounding his actual identity may be the thing that makes him more successful than other gay country singers. (“Dead of Night”; “Turn to Hate”)
Rayvon Owen
American Idol alum freed from the shackles of the closet… (“Honesty”; “Like a Storm”)
Head here for “The Ultimate A-to-Z Encyclopedia of LGBT Musicians and Bands” Part Four.
This article was originally published on August 30, 2020. It has since been updated.
