Ur So Gay Will Always Prevent Katy Perry From Being A Gay Icon

[Didymus 34,379]

Just now, robotvoiceinalice said:

I'm sorry but what? Like Gaga has always shown up for us, is a queer person herself and has been a staple in our community for over a decade now. What more does she have to do for y'all not say she's "pandering" to us? To me she has nothing to prove, she's always put her money where her mouth when it comes to our community and is a literal acclaimed star who identifies as bi

 

11 minutes ago, NATAH said:

but Gaga hasn't been pandering to gays to get more famous, the target market for her work 2014 to now has been a very wide, general appeal

Joanne was a very US oriented GP era, her tribute acts + Vegas shows were intended to show the GP her talent, ASIB + Joker 2 are hardly targeting the gays too. there's been very few moments in recent years where she's purposely appealed to The Gays for fame 

plus the woman is actually bisexual sooo...

She's been very wishy washy about it to the point of even her fans not being able to keep up with her sexual identity. That's her own business but she did intentionally seek out a gay audience in her early days and even worked with a dedicated company to make sure she had a gay audience that could launch her into stardom. This is documented and not a secret, nor is it unique.

She's just part of an industry that knows gay people make money, period. That has little to do with her personally but there's a big difference between that industry situation and, say, Madonna who was willingly risking her career to end by supporting gay rights in the middle of the AIDS crisis. Madonna is a gay icon for that reason and no other (good) reason.

And, yes, now that Gaga is aiming to be a Hollywood staple, she gets less vocal, surprise. Is that an improvement or her strategically choosing when to be an ally and when not? She shocked many of us by deliberately evading a question about her sexual identity (in the context of representation) as part of her promo run for House of Gucci and, instead, explicitly identifying as a mere "supporter" of the LGBT community. That was wild tbh, as that interviewer was clearly acknowledging her as being a queer nominated person and she basically threw it back in their face.

And then we have Justin Tranter saying plainly what some of us have been thinking for years: she just doesn't really care. That's fine with me. I don't expect straight or vaguely bi people to care about gay rights. But then maybe it's also time we stop categorizing these "supporters" as gay icons.

[Bonkers 27,974]

Considering she did a female empowerment song with Dr Luke, maybe she'll come at us with a gay anthem with lyrics by JK Rowling?  

[robotvoiceinalice 1,142]

15 minutes ago, Didymus said:

 

She's been very wishy washy about it to the point of even her fans not being able to keep up with her sexual identity. That's her own business but she did intentionally seek out a gay audience in her early days and even worked with a dedicated company to make sure she had a gay audience that could launch her into stardom. This is documented and not a secret, nor is it unique.

She's just part of an industry that knows gay people make money, period. That has little to do with her personally but there's a big difference between that industry situation and, say, Madonna who was willingly risking her career to end by supporting gay rights in the middle of the AIDS crisis. Madonna is a gay icon for that reason and no other (good) reason.

And, yes, now that Gaga is aiming to be a Hollywood staple, she gets less vocal, surprise. Is that an improvement or her strategically choosing when to be an ally and when not? She shocked many of us by deliberately evading a question about her sexual identity (in the context of representation) as part of her promo run for House of Gucci and, instead, explicitly identifying as a mere "supporter" of the LGBT community. That was wild tbh, as that interviewer was clearly acknowledging her as being a queer nominated person and she basically threw it back in their face.

And then we have Justin Tranter saying plainly what some of us have been thinking for years: she just doesn't really care. That's fine with me. I don't expect straight or vaguely bi people to care about gay rights. But then maybe it's also time we stop categorizing these "supporters" as gay icons.

There are many examples over the time period of her career which she has stated she's queer. Its very possible that Gaga just wanted the focus to be on HoG at the time, but its very obvious that Gaga is queer and literally stated that many times. Many many times. Its quite insane that people just disregard all of that based off of one question that was asked to her. Maybe she doesn't like to shout about it or be loud and in your face about it. And should she be? No. Its completely her choice how she expresses her sexuality both publicly and privately and we shouldn't care how she does so. The main thing is she's queer and has done many many MANY things for our community, and is a queer icon. End of. Also questioning someone about their sexuality is rude, especially when they have stated it in the past.

"Vaguely bi"... what does that even mean? If someone identifies as bi then they are bi, no matter where they sit on the spectrum. Its not black and white and honestly its quite surprising to hear some gays not acknowledge bisexuality as a sexuality after all this time, after our main queen came out as bi. My sexuality does exist 

[HelloHangoverz 15,542]

29 minutes ago, Didymus said:

 

She's been very wishy washy about it to the point of even her fans not being able to keep up with her sexual identity. That's her own business but she did intentionally seek out a gay audience in her early days and even worked with a dedicated company to make sure she had a gay audience that could launch her into stardom. This is documented and not a secret, nor is it unique.

She's just part of an industry that knows gay people make money, period. That has little to do with her personally but there's a big difference between that industry situation and, say, Madonna who was willingly risking her career to end by supporting gay rights in the middle of the AIDS crisis. Madonna is a gay icon for that reason and no other (good) reason.

And, yes, now that Gaga is aiming to be a Hollywood staple, she gets less vocal, surprise. Is that an improvement or her strategically choosing when to be an ally and when not? She shocked many of us by deliberately evading a question about her sexual identity (in the context of representation) as part of her promo run for House of Gucci and, instead, explicitly identifying as a mere "supporter" of the LGBT community. That was wild tbh, as that interviewer was clearly acknowledging her as being a queer nominated person and she basically threw it back in their face.

And then we have Justin Tranter saying plainly what some of us have been thinking for years: she just doesn't really care. That's fine with me. I don't expect straight or vaguely bi people to care about gay rights. But then maybe it's also time we stop categorizing these "supporters" as gay icons.

terrible take

[nATAH 42,202]

32 minutes ago, Didymus said:

 

She's been very wishy washy about it to the point of even her fans not being able to keep up with her sexual identity. That's her own business but she did intentionally seek out a gay audience in her early days and even worked with a dedicated company to make sure she had a gay audience that could launch her into stardom. This is documented and not a secret, nor is it unique.

She's just part of an industry that knows gay people make money, period. That has little to do with her personally but there's a big difference between that industry situation and, say, Madonna who was willingly risking her career to end by supporting gay rights in the middle of the AIDS crisis. Madonna is a gay icon for that reason and no other (good) reason.

And, yes, now that Gaga is aiming to be a Hollywood staple, she gets less vocal, surprise. Is that an improvement or her strategically choosing when to be an ally and when not? She shocked many of us by deliberately evading a question about her sexual identity (in the context of representation) as part of her promo run for House of Gucci and, instead, explicitly identifying as a mere "supporter" of the LGBT community. That was wild tbh, as that interviewer was clearly acknowledging her as being a queer nominated person and she basically threw it back in their face.

And then we have Justin Tranter saying plainly what some of us have been thinking for years: she just doesn't really care. That's fine with me. I don't expect straight or vaguely bi people to care about gay rights. But then maybe it's also time we stop categorizing these "supporters" as gay icons.

some of these examples just feel like assuming the bad side of her intentions and running with the fact "yep! she no longer cares!" whilst ignoring the genuine moments she has

i mean, i've become a lot less vocal as i've gotten older but that doesn't change my beliefs or politics

(also justin was clearly very high and unstable during that meltdown lol, didn't he end up working on chromatica after?)

[palma 7,416]

16 minutes ago, Didymus said:

 

She's been very wishy washy about it to the point of even her fans not being able to keep up with her sexual identity. That's her own business but she did intentionally seek out a gay audience in her early days and even worked with a dedicated company to make sure she had a gay audience that could launch her into stardom. This is documented and not a secret, nor is it unique.

She's just part of an industry that knows gay people make money, period. That has little to do with her personally but there's a big difference between that industry situation and, say, Madonna who was willingly risking her career to end by supporting gay rights in the middle of the AIDS crisis. Madonna is a gay icon for that reason and no other (good) reason.

And, yes, now that Gaga is aiming to be a Hollywood staple, she gets less vocal, surprise. Is that an improvement or her strategically choosing when to be an ally and when not? She shocked many of us by deliberately evading a question about her sexual identity (in the context of representation) as part of her promo run for House of Gucci and, instead, explicitly identifying as a mere "supporter" of the LGBT community. That was wild tbh, as that interviewer was clearly acknowledging her as being a queer nominated person and she basically threw it back in their face.

And then we have Justin Tranter saying plainly what some of us have been thinking for years: she just doesn't really care. That's fine with me. I don't expect straight or vaguely bi people to care about gay rights. But then maybe it's also time we stop categorizing these "supporters" as gay icons.

I'm sorry but I'm extremely tired of this narrative when it comes to Gaga and her being "truly" queer or not, whether she wants to make money out of gays or if she's "truly" an ally. It looks rude and ungrateful. How a person identifies themselves sexually may change over time. People like to call her fake because she's been seen only with men but it all comes down to bi-erasure - which is precisely why I believe Gaga positions herself as a queer-rights-activist/supporter rather than saying she's queer for some time; she likes to be romantically involved with men and she does not want to be called out for it because it's nobodies business. 

Gaga could have released a carefree poppy album and continued to rake in profits in 2011 but she decided to dedicate some years of her life to saying something, and risked her career, was declared uncool right as she peaked. Fifteen years ago was a very different time compared to now and if things got a little better for us, Gaga contributed to the discussion as best as she could as a pop star. Gaga earned her spot as a gay icon and Justin Tranter can go to hell. Calling her "strategic" sounds ungrateful af I'm sorry. This is a forum where queer people healed themselves through Gaga, and it's such a shame to read this bs here. We can't expect people in power to support and celebrate us if we're going to question their sincerity at every turn and say it's just for our cash.

[Real Panda 7,584]

3 hours ago, Didymus said:

 

She's been very wishy washy about it to the point of even her fans not being able to keep up with her sexual identity. That's her own business but she did intentionally seek out a gay audience in her early days and even worked with a dedicated company to make sure she had a gay audience that could launch her into stardom. This is documented and not a secret, nor is it unique.

She's just part of an industry that knows gay people make money, period. That has little to do with her personally but there's a big difference between that industry situation and, say, Madonna who was willingly risking her career to end by supporting gay rights in the middle of the AIDS crisis. Madonna is a gay icon for that reason and no other (good) reason.

And, yes, now that Gaga is aiming to be a Hollywood staple, she gets less vocal, surprise. Is that an improvement or her strategically choosing when to be an ally and when not? She shocked many of us by deliberately evading a question about her sexual identity (in the context of representation) as part of her promo run for House of Gucci and, instead, explicitly identifying as a mere "supporter" of the LGBT community. That was wild tbh, as that interviewer was clearly acknowledging her as being a queer nominated person and she basically threw it back in their face.

And then we have Justin Tranter saying plainly what some of us have been thinking for years: she just doesn't really care. That's fine with me. I don't expect straight or vaguely bi people to care about gay rights. But then maybe it's also time we stop categorizing these "supporters" as gay icons.

What the f**k has Justin Tranter done for the gay community that outweighs the things Gaga has done? Just one example, in the height of her career she wrote a song about acceptance which included controversial topics at that time, words like "no matter gay, straight, or bi, lesbian, transgender life.." and alienated a lot of people when she could have easily garnered so much mainstream success and gained more number ones and be as big as Taylor Swift but she took a risk and we all saw the dip in success with ARTPOP.

Gaga has saved so many lives just with one song and being outspoken since the beginning of her career and even if she misses one pride month post, she owes you or I nothing. She has supported so many causes and charities not just for LGBTQ and even on the tours she does she speaks about it the most compared to any other artist, and the magnitude of these actions mean so much especially on countries that are not as progressive or LGBTQ friendly.

Edited July 31 by Real Panda

[Lucas 23,960]

She was raised in a very conservative family and went to church every Sunday. I don't think she truly supports gays except when it's beneficial for her own career

[Real Panda 7,584]

https://www.local10.com/news/florida/2022/07/11/lady-Gaga-gives-500000-to-help-lgbtq-youth-including-here-in-florida/

This was 2 years ago, half a million dollars to LGBTQ youth organizations.

"Yeah Gaga is not a gay icon."

Please, even just coming out of the closet isnt easy especially for us who dont live in countries like USA or UK or Canada or wherever thats progressive. Just her existing and advocating for LGBTQIA+ in the media gave me the strength to be who I am today and help push us to a less difficult time. I know people recently in the US with Trans rights and healthcare have been hard but I am telling you in my country the treatment for gay people from 2008 to now 2024, there is a huge difference and no matter how small, Gaga was part of that change.

OT: I dont care about Katy and her cringe songwriting skills.

Edited July 31 by Real Panda

[weed 70,894]

Mmm… I think it plays a part, but I think even if that song never existed she just would not be a gay icon. She is a hetero pop diva, somewhat like Taylor but T is much more of a gay icon in my opinion. Pink, for as quirky as she was, is another hetero pop diva. 

[chathonnete 418]

I agree, I don't think she's an enemy to the LGBTQ+ community, she's even an ally, but I feel like she's not so tolerant. I will never forget that video with Alesso where she's fed up a gay guy dancing to When I'm gone lmao.

[Didymus 34,379]

42 minutes ago, robotvoiceinalice said:

There are many examples over the time period of her career which she has stated she's queer. Its very possible that Gaga just wanted the focus to be on HoG at the time, but its very obvious that Gaga is queer and literally stated that many times. Many many times. Its quite insane that people just disregard all of that based off of one question that was asked to her.

It's not one question. She's been making puzzling statements for years and has raised this question multiple times, most infamously on Drag Race where she again explicitly implied she is not part of the LGBT community. Her only unambiguous statement about being bisexual was in 2013, to Attitude, but in that same interview she also said she is not a "gay icon" and would prefer it if people called her a "gay supporter".

Also, I literally wrote in my post that her sexual identity is her own business and we shouldn't care about that. My point was about whether or not we've moved on from calling female pop stars "gay icons" when we actually have out and proud queer people who deserve that title. People responded to me saying "she is out and proud queer" and all I meant to say was she's clearly not comfortable with people addressing her like one.

If she is clearly distancing herself from being called a gay icon, then maybe let's not call her that? Anyway, I wasn't meaning to make a big statement. Back to Katy's song being hateful pls.

@NATAH @palma @Real Panda

[Bronco 5,695]

46 minutes ago, NATAH said:

i've become a lot less vocal as i've gotten older but that doesn't change my beliefs or politics

I feel like some people don't appreciate just how consuming and draining being politically active or vocal is.

[HelloHangoverz 15,542]

10 minutes ago, Didymus said:

If she is clearly distancing herself from being called a gay icon,

She just released a pop oriented concert film at the height of pride month dressed as a Toyota yaris, saying "happy pride" all throughout the premiere

[Real Panda 7,584]

10 minutes ago, Didymus said:

It's not one question. She's been making puzzling statements for years and has raised this question multiple times, most infamously on Drag Race where she again explicitly implied she is not part of the LGBT community. Her only unambiguous statement about being bisexual was in 2013, to Attitude, but in that same interview she also said she is not a "gay icon" and would prefer it if people called her a "gay supporter".

Also, I literally wrote in my post that her sexual identity is her own business and we shouldn't care about that. My point was about whether or not we've moved on from calling female pop stars "gay icons" when we actually have out and proud queer people who deserve that title. People responded to me saying "she is out and proud queer" and all I meant to say was she's clearly not comfortable with people addressing her like one.

If she is clearly distancing herself from being called a gay icon, then maybe let's not call her that? Anyway, I wasn't meaning to make a big statement. Back to Katy's song being hateful pls.

@NATAH @palma @Real Panda

I apologize for the tone of my response to you. I understand your perspective that you want the lgbtq community to have gay icons who are in the community out and proud. And for you Gaga is an ally, and for me she is a gay icon. We can have different opinions.