meta-scriptGloria Gaynor And Cheap Trick To Headline The 2020 GRAMMY Celebration | GRAMMY.com
Gloria Gaynor And Cheap Trick To Headline The 2020 GRAMMY Celebration

Gloria Gaynor

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Gloria Gaynor And Cheap Trick To Headline The 2020 GRAMMY Celebration

One of the year's most anticipated industry events, the night will also feature a live performance from current GRAMMY nominee Sara Gazarek

GRAMMYs/Jan 16, 2020 - 08:03 pm

Today (Jan. 16), the Recording Academy announced rock legends Cheap Trick and GRAMMY winner Gloria Gaynor as headliners of the exclusive 2020 GRAMMY Celebration, the official after-party honoring this year's winners and nominees of Music's Biggest Night. One of the most anticipated industry events of the year, the 2020 GRAMMY Celebration will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center immediately following the 62nd GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Jan. 26. (The 2020 GRAMMY Celebration is a private, ticketed event.)

The 2020 GRAMMY Celebration will also feature a live performance from GRAMMY nominee Sara Gazarek, who's nominated for Best Jazz Vocal Album this year. Michelle Pesce will serve as the evening's DJ.

Read: 2020 GRAMMY Awards: The Complete Nominees List

The Recording Academy will produce the post-telecast 2020 GRAMMY Celebration, overseeing the entertainment, décor and logistics involved in bringing the annual event to life. More than 5,000 after-party guests, including GRAMMY winners, nominees, industry executives and celebrities, will be taken on an exotic trip through North Africa with influences of Casablanca. The event will feature Moorish architectural details and décor, a Moroccan-themed menu and unforgettable live performances.

Guests will indulge in the masterful culinary skills of "Top Chef" winner Joe Flamm, former Executive Chef of Chicago's Michelin-starred Spiaggia and Café Spiaggia, primed to open his debut restaurant in Chicago's Fulton Market District this summer. Flamm, in partnership with Levy Restaurants, has curated an innovative menu to complement the unique theme of this year's GRAMMY Celebration. The menu will feature four North African-inspired food stations inclusive of appetizers, entrees and desserts, all with a modern twist.

Live from STAPLES Center, and hosted by Alicia Keys, the 62nd GRAMMY Awards will be broadcast live in HDTV and 5.1 surround sound on the CBS Television Network Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020, at 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT.

2020 GRAMMY Awards Viewer's Guide: Where To Watch Music's Biggest Night

Living Legends: Gloria Gaynor On How "I Will Survive" Has Made Her "Feel Like A Family Heirloom"
Gloria Gaynor

Photo: Alex Arroyo

interview

Living Legends: Gloria Gaynor On How "I Will Survive" Has Made Her "Feel Like A Family Heirloom"

Nearly five decades after Gloria Gaynor released her timeless anthem, "I Will Survive," she celebrates her legacy — and her own resilience — with a new documentary, only in theaters Feb. 13.

GRAMMYs/Feb 13, 2024 - 07:11 pm

She will survive, indeed! As a poster child for the disco era, an advocate for the power of resilience, and an artist who has mastered the craft of the comeback, Gloria Gaynor has proven that her triumphant classic, "I Will Survive" isn't just her signature hit — it's become her mantra.

In addition to her triumphant classic (which won the only GRAMMY ever given for Best Disco Recording, in 1980), Gaynor has carved out a unique career full of risk, reward and longevity. That includes taking major bets on herself, including self-funding and releasing her 2019 spiritual album, Testimony — which earned her a second GRAMMY 40 years after her first, this time for Best Gospel Album. 

Along the way, Gaynor faced both health and financial issues and stayed true to the meaning of the song. These days, she's been on a victory lap, still a queen of the modern disco scene — even releasing a track with another club icon, Kylie Mingoue, with 2021's "Can't Stop Writing Songs About You" — while basking in the enduring legacy of "I Will Survive." 

Now 80, the legend's inspiring story of highs and lows is on full display in the new documentary aptly titled Gloria Gaynor: I Will Survive, which premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival and hits select theaters for one day only on Feb. 13. Gaynor reflected with GRAMMY.com about the hit that made her a household name, its lasting effects and her remarkable longevity.

I know it's been an eight year-long process working on the new documentary. What was it like bringing it to life with director Betsy Schechter?

It was difficult because I was working and there were things happening in both our lives that hindered us from coming together from time to time and progressing with the process — so part of what made it take so long was personal reasons. It was fun and tedious, but most of the time it was fun. 

What was it like seeing your emotional story on screen for the first time?

Well, I went through several emotions. It was kind of cathartic. It was surprising to see the reactions of people in the audience with me. When I was watching it on my own, I was like, "Is this going to be popular?" Because when you're watching your own life, you don't think anything big of it. You think everybody has the same problems and stories. But it was mixed emotions. 

People are saying they're learning new things about me that they've never known before or suspected. But a lot of people are also saying that they're being encouraged, and uplifted, and empowered by what they've seen in the documentary. It's been really wonderful, when it comes to the response. It's been tremendous. 

In the midst of production of the documentary, you entirely self-funded the album Testimony which later won a GRAMMY for Best Roots Gospel Album in 2020. Why was it important for you to release this independently and take on that risk?

Because I really believed it was something that God would have me do. When He calls you to do it, of course you do it. Unless I was totally wrong in what I believed I heard, in which case it'd just be an experience. 

But I really felt I had been called to do this, because it was something I've wanted to do for many years. My old management didn't think it was important. He was so interested in the money that would not come from whatever other music I did. So he thought, why bother? But for me, it was more than money. 

What did vindication of the subsequent GRAMMY win mean to you?

It was awesome and very, very validating for me. Just uplifting and encouraging. The GRAMMY is an award that comes from your peers; people who are in the business who know what it takes to record an album or talent when they hear it. It was extremely rewarding for me to win a GRAMMY for that album that was so not championed by everybody in the business. 

And leading up to the win, what was it like when you heard you were nominated?

It was like, "Okay, if this happens I'm going to be flying high." And for sure I was.

But this wasn't your first GRAMMY, because I know that distinction goes back to 1980 for "I Will Survive." Do you remember anything from that night?


Well, I was not familiar with the filming of the televising of the GRAMMYs; it was my first time there and I was actually not there when I received the GRAMMY.

Where were you?

I was in the restroom! I thought I could run to the restroom and get back and seated before it started, and then [my category came up]. Someone else received my GRAMMY and held it for like five years.

Five years, why?

I didn't even know who had it. But it was Tom Moulton, who was the geneious mixologist who did "Never Can Say Goodbye" and "I Am What I Am." He received the award for me and kept it before I even found out where it was. [But] I got it back from him! 

"I Will Survive" was waiting for you for a couple years until you recorded it. So what did you say and what did songwriters Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris say when you decided to record it?

What had happened was, I was sent to record a song that the record company president had chosen because he was newly over from England and had a hit with a song there ("Substitute", originally by the Righteous Brothers). He wanted to repeat the success of it here in the United States with me. 

They asked me what could be on the B side because they weren't sure about it, and wondered what kind of songs I liked. So I said, "I like songs that are thoughtful, meaningful and touch people's hearts and have a good melody." So they said, "Well, we think you're the one we've been waiting for to record this song we wrote two years prior." I was like, "Okay, what song is that?" 

When I read the lyrics I said, "What are you stupid, you're going to put this on the B-side? This is a timeless lyric. I'm standing here relating to this song since I had a back brace on from a surgery I had just had. I'm relating it to the fact that my mother passed away a few years prior, something I never thought I'd survive. Everybody is going to relate every traumatic situation they're going through with this song. Any situation they find seemingly insurmountable, they can relate." So they said, "Well, that's the deal we made." So I said, "Well, if it's for me then it won't stay on the B-side."

What happened when it was released?

It was definitely on the B-side, but they gave us a box of records, and there were 25 in a box, and we took them to Studio 54 and asked the DJ there, Richie Kaczor, to play it. When he did, the audience definitely responded to it, so I thought, "Okay, this jaded New York audience is losing their mind over this record, I have no doubt I'm right that this is a hit." 

So I asked him to give the records to his DJ friends in New York to play it, and they did and people began to request it on radio. The stations started calling the label: "Where is this record people keep asking for?" And the rest is history.

The song has impacted so many people over the years. Do you have any special memories of hearing how it impacted someone?

What immediately comes to mind is a situation that happened when I was in Italy. I had actually rewritten the words because I had become a devout Christian and wanted it reflected in the song. So I changed it from saying "It took all strength I had not to fall apart" to "Only the Lord can give me strength not to fall apart." And then when it said, "Now you see me somebody new," I changed it to say "He made me somebody new." 

After I sang those words for the first time at the concert in Italy, afterwards a young lady came to me and said, "You saved my life. I've been living here for almost a year and its been really, really difficult for me and I was going to home to commit suicide. But now that I've heard you sing that song, I know where my strength can come from and I don't have to die." I'll never forget her.

Before "I Will Survive" you had an early hit with "Never Can Say Goodbye," which was originally recorded by the Jackson 5. Take me inside the studio for that one.

What I remember about recording that song is that we went into the studio, the track had been done and now I'm putting my vocal on it. The producer told me, "Look, you can't sing it like Michael Jackson. You have to do your own thing with it. Let's stop now, go home and rehearse it and stop trying to sing it like Michael." 

I was so frustrated and came back the next day after not rehearsing anything, because I thought, This is the way I sing it. So when I got into the studio I knew I wanted to do something different, so I thought of the words and tried to make them really personal to me and just do it. My attitude after I finished was, "That's it, and if you don't like it, too bad!" And as I was thinking that, he jumped up from the console and said, "That's the take!" 

Clive Davis first signed you to Columbia Records in 1973. How quickly did your life change after that?

I was taken to Columbia and introduced by Paul Leka, a producer there at the time, and he was the one who introduced me to Clive. What I remember most of all is that Clive had me do three auditions; I went to New York to sing for him three times. I said, "There's no way this man has to hear me sing three times before he determines I can sing, he just likes my voice and wants a free concert." [Laughs]

He finally did sign me, but unfortunately right after I recorded my first song he left to form his own company. And I was not signed to Clive, I was signed to RCA, so he couldn't take me with him and I remained at Columbia. So my career took a different course I'm sure than if I had been signed to him specifically.  

New generations continue to discover your music and "I Will Survive," and you've even recorded new material as of late with people like Kylie Minogue. What has your recent resurgence been like?

It's wonderful, I feel like I have not missed my calling and that I'm on the path I'm supposed to be on. It's extremely rewarding, validating and encouraging. It's wonderful. I feel like a family heirloom, passing me down from one generation to another.

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GRAMMY Rewind: Kendrick Lamar Honors Hip-Hop's Greats While Accepting Best Rap Album GRAMMY For 'To Pimp a Butterfly' In 2016
Kendrick Lamar

Photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

video

GRAMMY Rewind: Kendrick Lamar Honors Hip-Hop's Greats While Accepting Best Rap Album GRAMMY For 'To Pimp a Butterfly' In 2016

Upon winning the GRAMMY for Best Rap Album for 'To Pimp a Butterfly,' Kendrick Lamar thanked those that helped him get to the stage, and the artists that blazed the trail for him.

GRAMMYs/Oct 13, 2023 - 06:01 pm

Updated Friday Oct. 13, 2023 to include info about Kendrick Lamar's most recent GRAMMY wins, as of the 2023 GRAMMYs.

A GRAMMY veteran these days, Kendrick Lamar has won 17 GRAMMYs and has received 47 GRAMMY nominations overall. A sizable chunk of his trophies came from the 58th annual GRAMMY Awards in 2016, when he walked away with five — including his first-ever win in the Best Rap Album category.

This installment of GRAMMY Rewind turns back the clock to 2016, revisiting Lamar's acceptance speech upon winning Best Rap Album for To Pimp A Butterfly. Though Lamar was alone on stage, he made it clear that he wouldn't be at the top of his game without the help of a broad support system. 

"First off, all glory to God, that's for sure," he said, kicking off a speech that went on to thank his parents, who he described as his "those who gave me the responsibility of knowing, of accepting the good with the bad."

Looking for more GRAMMYs news? The 2024 GRAMMY nominations are here!

He also extended his love and gratitude to his fiancée, Whitney Alford, and shouted out his Top Dawg Entertainment labelmates. Lamar specifically praised Top Dawg's CEO, Anthony Tiffith, for finding and developing raw talent that might not otherwise get the chance to pursue their musical dreams.

"We'd never forget that: Taking these kids out of the projects, out of Compton, and putting them right here on this stage, to be the best that they can be," Lamar — a Compton native himself — continued, leading into an impassioned conclusion spotlighting some of the cornerstone rap albums that came before To Pimp a Butterfly.

"Hip-hop. Ice Cube. This is for hip-hop," he said. "This is for Snoop Dogg, Doggystyle. This is for Illmatic, this is for Nas. We will live forever. Believe that."

To Pimp a Butterfly singles "Alright" and "These Walls" earned Lamar three more GRAMMYs that night, the former winning Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song and the latter taking Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (the song features Bilal, Anna Wise and Thundercat). He also won Best Music Video for the remix of Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood." 

Lamar has since won Best Rap Album two more times, taking home the golden gramophone in 2018 for his blockbuster LP DAMN., and in 2023 for his bold fifth album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

Watch Lamar's full acceptance speech above, and check back at GRAMMY.com every Friday for more GRAMMY Rewind episodes. 

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The Evolution Of The Queer Anthem: From Judy Garland To Lady Gaga & Lil Nas X
(Top row) Donna Summer, Frank Ocean, Madonna, Lady Gaga, David Bowie, Nina Simone (Bottom row) Culture Club, Lil Nas X, Beyonce, Diana Ross

Photos: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images; Visionhaus#GP/Corbis via Getty Images; Gie Knaeps/Getty Images; Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Live Nation; Robin Platzer/Getty Images; Photo by David Redfern/Redferns; Mason Poole Ebet Roberts/Redferns; Amy Sussman/Getty Images; PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images

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The Evolution Of The Queer Anthem: From Judy Garland To Lady Gaga & Lil Nas X

Music is a creative tool of liberation, with queer communities finding meaning — overt or otherwise — in songs by a myriad of artists. GRAMMY.com unpacks the long history of queer anthems, from a 1920s cabaret to the top of the charts.

GRAMMYs/Jun 5, 2023 - 01:50 pm

When a young Judy Garland sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" in 1939, dreaming of a more exciting, joyous and colorful life elsewhere, few might have known that her words would go on to inspire generations of queer people who found a glimmer of freedom where "the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true."

For decades, if not longer, music has continued to serve as a creative tool of liberation, with queer communities finding meaning — overt or otherwise — in songs either written directly for them or appropriated from the work of (seemingly) straight artists. Often with time, but occasionally immediately, such music becomes a queer anthem. While pride in one’s identity has often been a central theme, these anthems have also tackled the communal trauma — from the HIV/AIDS epidemic to discrimination that continues to this day. 

As the messages and musical styles have adapted with the times, what’s most powerful in the evolution of queer anthems is just how much more openly gay they have become. An increasing number of artists are able to unabashedly express their identity, including in genres that have been traditionally reticent or hostile to minorities. Tracing the history of the queer anthem provides an opportunity to see how far the LGBTQ+  community has come, and how creative expression can be used to fight for rights that are still being threatened. 

Press play on the Spotify playlist below, or visit Apple Music, Pandora or Amazon Music for an accompanying playlist of queer anthems.

In Glitter Up the Dark: How Pop Music Broke the Binary, music writer Sasha Geffen explores the history of queer anthems past and present.

"I think it's important to honor these ancestors in the queer narrative and point to how things don't always go from worse to better," Geffen tells GRAMMY.com. "Right now in our current historical moment, where we're seeing a lot of closing in and that can be really scary, but there has always kind of been this pulsing and there has always been the survival." 

A Global Musical Movement

In fact, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" wasn’t even the first gay anthem. One of the earliest is the 1920 German cabaret number "Das lila Lied" ("The Lavender Song"), a clear product of the relative sexual freedom of the Weimar Republic. Written around the time of sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld hosting the First International Conference for Sexual Reform, the song recognized the struggles queer people faced while also declaring, "and still most of us are proud/ to be cut from different cloth!"

In Europe, musicals provided sly opportunities to explore queer themes, notably the work of English playwright Noël Coward, whose hidden sexuality was expressed in unrequited love songs such as "Mad About the Boy'' and "If Love Were All." In the United States, Black women defined many of these early queer anthems, notably Ma Rainey and Billie Holiday, with "Prove It on Me Blues" and "Easy Living," respectively. As Geffen says, their music was "playful and raunchy and it sold." 

Holiday and Rainey, along with her prodigy, Bessie Smith, were all bisexual — an identity that along with their race and gender threatened their professional careers. They faced not only social ostracization, but also legal threats due to their sexuality. Yet these pioneers still expressed their emotions openly, as Ma Rainey sings on "Prove It on Me Blues": "I went out last night with a crowd of my friends'/It must've been women, 'cause I don't like no men/ Wear my clothes just like a fan/ Talk to the gals just like any old man."

The war years and social conservative of the 1950s didn’t see many lasting gay anthems, as white, male musicians appropriated and made famous the rebellious rock and roll sound of Black musicians. This was clear in songs like Little Richard’s "Tutti Frutti" (with clear sexual undertones) and "Hound Dog" by Big Mamma Thornton, who wore men’s clothes and has been appreciated for representing Black queerness

Through the sexual revolution of the mid-20th century, Black women continued to produce some of the most boundary-pushing music. Nina Simone switched the gender preference in her bubbly version of "My Baby Just Cares for Me" — from Lana Turner to… Liberace — and Diana Ross delivered a sultry take on "Ain’t No Mountain High Enough," showing the depths someone is willing to go for their paramour. 

Yet it’s impossible to include just one song by the disco diva in a compendium of queer anthems, overt or implied. The inspiration for 1980’s "I’m Coming Out" actually came out of a New York gay bar: Famed songwriter Nile Rodgers went to the bathroom and noticed a group of Ross impersonators. As Rodgers told Billboard in 2011, "I ran outside and called Bernard [Edwards, his frequent collaborator] and told him about it and said, ‘What if we recognize Diana Ross’ really cool alignment with her fan base in the gay community?’ So we sat down and wrote, ‘I’m Coming Out.’"

During this period of second-wave feminism, songs of female empowerment were also adapted by the queer community, such as Lesley Gore’s "You Don’t Own Me" (Gore herself came out as a lesbian in 2005). Some male acts embraced all that defied social norms, whether around identity or sexuality (although some of their depictions of race and gender can be questioned): "Lola" by the Kinks, "Walk on the Wild Side" by Lou Reed and "Rebel Rebel" by David Bowie, whose glam rock pushed against boundaries in terms of gender presentation.

More so than any genre before it, the arrival of disco in the 1970s provided a soundtrack for the LGBTQ+ community. In fact, it could be said it was the first genre made for and by queer folks was disco, with high-rotation tracks like Donna Summer’s "I Feel Love," Chaka Khan’s "I’m Every Woman" or even ABBA’s "Dancing Queen." But arguably the most powerful queer anthem was Gloria Gaynor’s "I Will Survive," an unabashed tribute to overcoming against all odds that can still be heard blasting from Pride floats today. 

In maybe a less nuanced but equally impactful sense during this time, the Village People also played with gay sexual fantasies in both their appearance and music, notably with their songs "Macho Man" and "Y.M.C.A." While the camp was turned up to 11, the Village People’s influence in bringing queer life to the mainstream cannot be underestimated.

Openly queer artists also began asserting themselves more than ever by the 1980s and the rise of synth pop, finding fans among straight and queer communities, often in a "you know if you know way," according to Geffen. The sound coming from British groups like Culture Club ("Do You Really Want to Hurt Me"), Soft Cell ("Tainted Love") or Bronski Beat ("Smalltown Boy") was inextricable from queerness; an uptempo beat and thematic undercurrent ran through many of the era's biggest pop songs. These artists were "talking about an experience that was very specific to the queer community — this idea of figuring out who you are and leaving home and not knowing where you're gonna be ending up and just trusting something out there might be better than what you've got," Geffen notes.

Also during the 1980s, queer anthems also began to proliferate beyond English-language music, proving that a desire to express queerness through music was universal. This was notably seen in Canadian-French artist Mylène Farmer’s "Libertine" and "Sans contrefaçon" about embracing androgyny. And in the Spanish-speaking world, there was Alaska y Dinarama's "¿A quién le importa?" which translates to "who cares?" 

Anthems Rocked By Trauma

But this relative opening in terms of gay acceptance in popular culture was quickly shaken by the HIV/AIDS crisis, when queer anthems took on an even stronger political role. Whether it be Queen’s "I Want to Break Free" or "Somebody to Love," Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s "Relax" or Sylvester’s "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)," these anthems were unabashed about expressing romantic feelings and sexual desire, as well as fighting back against violence, silence and stereotyping. 

Known for his falsetto voice, Sylvester was one of the leading voices in San Francisco’s growing queer community before passing away from AIDS-related complications in 1988. His song "Stars" is one of Geffen’s favorite queer anthems, particularly for how he conveyed both the joy and hardship of the queer experience. 

"He had such a powerful voice and powerful control over the subtleties of using it," Geffen continues. "There was this kind of melancholy that I can hear coming through sometimes of celebrating the world that you're in, this kind of sub-world inside the world where these forms of relationships are possible."

Read more: 'Spiceworld' At 25: How The Spice Girls' Feminine Enthusiasm & Camp Became A Beacon For Queer Youth

Female artists — many of whom were open allies of the queer community — also addressed the devastation of the epidemic. TLC’s "Waterfalls" (a cautionary tale with a hopeful note to "believe in yourself") and Cyndi Lauper’s "True Colors," a torch song to light the way in the darkest of times. Although, this relationship of seemingly straight artists to the queer community was not without faults. Madonna became a queer icon for her string of hits before kicking off the 1990s with "Vogue," a track that brought queer ballroom culture to a mainstream audience. While Madonna was clearly celebrating this art form, and giving a certain amount of recognition to those who created it, she was also making money off the talent and creativity of underrecognized queer communities of color.

Outside of mainstream music, the 1990s saw queer female artists asserting their identity, accompanied by the riot grrrl movement and Lilith Fair. These ranged from the Indigo Girls’ reflective "Closer to Fine" to k.d. lang’s yearnful "Constant Craving" to Bikini Kill’s "Rebel Girl," "the queen of my world." 

The Sound Of A New Millennium

The turn of the millennium heralded the beginning of a more assertive acceptance, with anthems coming from sometimes unexpected sources: Christina Aguilera’s "Beautiful," P!nk’s "Raise Your Glass,'' Robyn’s "Dancing on My Own" or Macklemore's "Same Love." With the political fight for marriage equality quickly gaining ground in the U.S., pop artists began responding with overtly pro-LGBTQAI+ messages in their music: Lady Gaga kicked off the 2010s with "Born This Way," with the theme that there is nothing abnormal about being queer.

 More recently, anthems have shed any need to hide their queerness through hidden messages or innuendos. Proudly queer artists are creating music clearly for their communities, and beyond: think Janelle Monae’s ode to female pleasure "Pynk," Perfume Genius’ searing "Queen" or Hayley Kiyoko’s "Girls Like Girls," whose title says it all (and was followed up with the more cheerful anthem "for the girls"). 

Perhaps most notably, genres that have been slower to embrace LGBTQAI+ artists have also had their share of anthems. Rap in particular has embraced queer artists from Cupcakke ("LGBT") to Frank Ocean ("Channel") to Leikeli47’s ​​("Attitude") to anything by Mykki Blanco. This also has been true in country: See Katie Pruitt’s "Loving Her," Kacey Musgraves’ "Follow Your Arrow'' or Orville Peck and his interpretation of "Smalltown Boy." This honoring of queer history and pioneers defines many modern queer anthems, perhaps most strongly in Beyoncé’s Renaissance.

Read more: How Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" Made An Important Statement About Acceptance — For Society And Herself

While her whole discography is full of bangers that have entered the queer pantheon, her latest release Renaissance is an ode to the queer and Black tradition of disco and house. Tracks like "COZY," an embrace of being "comfortable in my skin," quickly entered into heavy rotation at clubs around the world. Beyoncé has centered queer artists like Big Freedia, the queen of New Orleans bounce who wrote a powerful anthem in 2020’s "Chasing Rainbows" featuring Kesha (who herself named an album Rainbow and released "We R Who We R" after a series of suicides of gay teens across the U.S.).

Most significantly, songs about the queer experience are now defining the careers of many artists and garnering them unprecedented large audiences. This is the case for MUNA with "Silk Chiffon," King Princess with "1950" Troy Sivan with "Bloom'' or even Sam Smith and Kim Petras with "Unholy." This last sexy jam bought Petras unprecedented acclaim after years in the music industry and made her the first openly trans person to win a GRAMMY Award.

This trend might be most clearly seen in the rise of Little Nas X, who grew up mastering the language and codes of the internet before breaking through and quite quickly coming out. Geffen highlights how he uses shock to garner attention and push back against the homophobic haters, like giving Satan a lap dance in the music video "MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)."

"I think of Little Nas X as a troll who trolled his way to the top," says Geffen," knowing what people will respond to positively and what will piss people off."

Contrasting this increase in openly queer anthems and depictions of queer people in media is a sharp political reality: anti-trans laws proliferate in many states and lawmakers attempt to limit the rights of LGBTQ+ people, threatening many of the forward momentum in queer liberation. 

Read more: The Rise Of The Queer Pop Star In The 2010s

This moment in social and political history highlights the importance of an anthem, which  serves as a form of celebration and signaling of allegiance, as well as a salve against repression and motivation to continue the fight.

Of course, this list of queer anthems is far from exhaustive. Artists as diverse as the B-52s, Eurythmics, the Pet Shop Boys, Elton John, Cher, George Michael, RuPaul, Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson, the Smiths, Kylie Minogue, Brandi Carlile, Carley Rae Jepsen, Sufjan Stevens, SOPHIE, Taylor Swift and many, many others have released music that has deeply impacted the queer community. 

And really, any song can be a queer anthem if it speaks to someone on a personal level, providing a sense of connection and belonging. As Geffen notes, the magic occurs when a piece of music creates a moment of collective celebration or momentary bliss.

"There's nothing else quite like that feeling of the physical release of having a song run through you when it's also running through tons of other people who are in the crowd with you," they said, highlighting the power of that anxiety of whether you fit in dissolving away: "It opens a window into what's possible, in a world beyond the one we're in right now."

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15 Songs That Will Make You Dance And Cry At The Same Time, From "Hey Ya!" To "Dancing On My Own"
André 3000 of Outkast performs "Hey Ya" at the VH1 Big In '03 in 2003.

Photo: M. Caulfield/WireImage for VH-1 Channel - New York

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15 Songs That Will Make You Dance And Cry At The Same Time, From "Hey Ya!" To "Dancing On My Own"

Whether it's "Tears of a Clown" or "Tears in the Club," take a listen to some of the most sneakily sad songs by Outkast, TLC, Avicii and more.

GRAMMYs/May 22, 2023 - 05:20 pm

In 2003, OutKast scored their second No. 1 hit with "Hey Ya!" The timeless track has an upbeat energy that makes you want to shake it like a polaroid picture — until you happen to catch its rather unhappy lyrics.

"Are we so in denial when we know we're not happy here?" André 3000 sings on the second verse. The line that follows may sum up its contrasting nature: "Y'all don't wanna hear me, you just wanna dance."

The ability to make listeners feel (and physically react) to a wide range of emotions is part of the genius of songwriting. Tunes like "Hey Ya!" — a sad narrative disguised by an infectious melody — is one trick that has been mastered by Outkast, R.E.M., Smokey Robinson, Robyn and many more. 

If you've ever happily boogied to a beat before realizing that the lyrics on top are actually a big bummer, you're certainly not alone. BBC and Apple Music both call such tracks Sad Bangers, a fitting name for what's become an unofficial genre over the past half-century. 

In light of Mental Health Awareness Month this May, GRAMMY.com compiled a list of 15 songs that will both get you in your feelings and get your body moving. 

Smokey Robinson & The Miracles — "The Tears of a Clown" (1967)

The upbeat music on this Motown classic was written by Stevie Wonder, a 25-time GRAMMY winner who is deft at crafting tearjerkers that will tease your body into joyful dancing. The bassoon-bottomed song registers at 128 beats per minute, a tempo that's still favored by modern dance music producers. So when Smokey sings, "The tears of a clown/When there's no one around," you'd be forgiven for also welling up just a little bit while you're in the groove.

Gloria Gaynor — "Never Can Say Goodbye" (1975)

Gloria Gaynor reimagined the Jackson 5's 1971 pop hit "Never Can Say Goodbye" for the disco era. The sweeping string arrangements and trotting beat helped to fill dance floors, and to make the poignant song about holding onto a love of her own. Other cover versions by Isaac Hayes and the Communards also capture the contradictory vibe.

Tears For Fears — "Mad World" (1983)

British duo Tears For Fears became internationally known after outfitting their first danceable hit with a depressing and dramatic chorus that's hard to shake even 40 years after its release: "I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad, the dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had." Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith would later release more uplifting fare, such as "Everybody Wants to Rule The World" and "Sowing the Seeds of Love."

Kate Bush — "Running Up That Hill" (1985)

Kate Bush has had three twirls through charts around the world with "Running Up That Hill," beginning with its 1985 release and then as an unlikely Summer Olympics closing ceremony song in 2012.

"And if I only could, I'd make a deal with God/And I'd get him to swap our places/Be running up that road/be running up that hill/With no problems," she sings in the chorus of the racing track, longing to be more worry-free.

More recently, a placement in the Netflix drama Stranger Things in 2022 earned the weepy, minor key-led dance number a whole new generation of fans. The English artist was recently named a 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee.

Midnight Oil — "Beds Are Burning" (1988)

Midnight Oil lead singer Peter Garrett channeled the rage he felt from early climate change and the lack of Aboriginal land rights in the Australian Outback into "Beds Are Burning." The powerful dance tune flooded airwaves and dance floors around the world in the late '80s, reaching No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

"How can we dance when the Earth is turning?" he sings in the rousing chorus. "How do we sleep while the beds are burning?"

Garrett clearly had a personal connection to the song's yearning message: He later dedicated his life to environmental activism as the leader of the Australian Conservation Foundation, and became an elected Member of Australia's House of Representatives.

Crystal Waters — "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)" (1991)

A house music hit about a woman without a home, "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)" helped New Jersey singer Crystal Waters achieve international success despite a somewhat somber subject. A subsequent parody on the sketch comedy series "In Living Color" drew attention to the contrast of having happy and upbeat instrumentation with dispiriting lyrics.

"She's just like you and me/But she's homeless, she's homeless," rings the chorus. "As she stands there singing for money/La da dee la dee da…"

R.E.M. — "Shiny Happy People" (1991)

This upbeat collaboration is between rock group R.E.M. and B-52's singer Kate Pierson.The jangly guitar pop makes you want to clap your hands and stomp your feet, but the lyrics make you question if everything is indeed quite so shiny and happy.

The song is rumored to be about the massacre in China's Tiananmen Square, because the phrase "Shiny Happy People" appeared on propaganda posters. Pierson isn't so sure about that, though.

"I can't imagine that R.E.M. was thinking at the time, Oh, we want this song to be about Chinese government propaganda," she said in a 2021 interview with Vulture. "It was supposed to be shiny and happy. It was a positive thing all-around."

TLC — "Waterfalls" (1994)

"Waterfalls" was a worldwide hit for TLC in 1994, thanks to its sing-along chorus and funky bassline. The song's insistent bounce softens a firm lyrical warning that pulls people back from the edge: "Don't go chasing waterfalls/Please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you're used to/I know that you're gonna have it your way or nothing at all/But I think you're moving too fast."

"We wanted to make a song with a strong message — about unprotected sex, being promiscuous, and hanging out in the wrong crowd," Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas shared with The Guardian in 2018. "The messages in 'Waterfalls' hit home. I think that's why it's our biggest hit to date."

Outkast — "Hey Ya!" (2003)

André 3000 sings about loveless relationships to a whimsical, time-shifting dance beat on this Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping smash. The seriousness of the song — which André 3000 once explained is about "the state of relationships in the 2000s" — got lost among many listeners.*

Its unhappy lyrics were masked by André's peppy singing, as well as the song's jangly guitar and keyboard-led groove, which infectiously doubles up in speed at the end of every four beats. Even Outkast themselves couldn't help acknowledging the song's juxtaposition in a 2021 tweet.

Robyn — "Dancing On My Own" (2010)

A penultimate example of a sad banger is "Dancing On My Own" by Swedish pop star Robyn. The rueful song — a top 10 hit in multiple countries — commands you to shake your stuff, while also picturing yourself watching your ex move on at the club. Calum Scott's 2016 cover really brings out the sadness that can be obscured by Robyn's uptempo version.

"Said, I'm in the corner, watching you kiss her, oh no/And I'm right over here, why can't you see me?" Robyn sings in the chorus. "And I'm giving it my all/ But I'm not the girl you're taking home."

Fun. — "Some Nights" (2012)

fun. (the trio of Jack Antonoff, Andrew Dost and Nate Ruess) is best known for the zeitgeist-grabbing pop-rock power ballad "We Are Young," which is about the relentlessly positive enthusiasm of youth out on the town. The title track to their 2012 album Some Nights (which contains "We Are Young") is a much dancier, yet sadder song.

"What do I stand for?" Ruess asks as your feet shuffle along to the beat. "Most nights, I don't know anymore."

Avicii — "Wake Me Up" (2013)

Avicii collaborated with soulful pop singer Aloe Blacc for this worldwide chart-topper that is considered one of EDM's peak anthems. The slapping beat masks the track's sad, self-reflective lyrics about being lost.

The Swedish DJ/producer's 2018 death by suicide adds an even heavier air to Blacc's impassioned chorus: "So wake me up when it's all over/When I'm wiser and I'm older/All this time I was finding myself, and I/I didn't know I was lost."

Flume featuring Kai — "Never Be Like You" (2015)

"Never Be Like You" isn't the fastest cut in Australian DJ/producer Flume's bass-heavy discography, but the wispy track still has an irresistible bump to it. Canadian singer Kai begs her lover not to leave her ("How do I make you wanna stay?"), but her lovely tone still manages to keep the song hopeful.

FKA twigs featuring The Weekend — "Tears In The Club" (2022)

Perhaps the most overt selection of this entire list is "Tears In The Club," which finds FKA twigs and The Weeknd taking to the dancefloor to shake off the vestiges of a bad relationship. The singer/dancer has been candid about being in an abusive relationship, and the song is a lowkey bop that's buoyed by despairing chants such as, "I might die on the beat, love."

Everything But The Girl — "Nothing Left to Lose" (2023)

Nearly 30 years after DJ/producer Todd Terry helped introduce Everything But the Girl to the international dance music community with a remix of "Missing," the duo leaned into their electronic side on "Nothing Left to Lose." A single from their first album in 24 years, Fuse, "Nothing Left to Lose" features a squelching electronic bassline that contrasts the song's helpless yearning.

"I need a thicker skin/ This pain keeps getting in/ Tell me what to do/ 'Cause I've always listened to you," the pair's Tracy Thorne sings on the opening verse. Later, she makes a demand that fittingly sums up the conflicts of a quintessential sad banger: "Kiss me while the world decays."

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