Mika in UK press 2020 / 2021

Kumazzz · January 23, 2020

:uk: 2020

Kumazzz · January 23, 2020

23 January 2020

Stars turn out for designer Gaultier's final show

French designer Christian Louboutin - known for his signature red-soled stiletto shoes - was pictured with Lebanese-born British pop singer Mika.

_110612982_hi059352307.jpg.d88032ce5ad3a973ad8a9ce0b52f4c1c.jpg

22 hours ago, Kumazzz said:

BBC World News

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51214874

Jean-Paul Gaultier: Stars turn out for designer's final show

Celebrities have descended on the final fashion show of French designer Jean-Paul Gaultier in Paris, as he bows out after a 50-year career.

Former French first lady Carla Bruni was among the guests photographed at the Paris Fashion Week event.

Gaultier shocked fans when he announced it would be his last haute couture runway last week.

He said the event, at the city's Théâtre du Châtelet, would be a "party" to celebrate his decades in fashion.

Gaultier, 67, has dressed stars from Nicole Kidman and Cate Blanchett to Lady Gaga and Rihanna.

He designed Madonna's "cone bra" corset, which she wore for her 1990 Blonde Ambition tour.

Other stars at the Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2020 show included American actress and model Larsen Thompson and Czech-Italian supermodel Eva Herzigova.

French designer Christian Louboutin - known for his signature red-soled stiletto shoes - was pictured with Lebanese-born British pop singer Mika.

The show comes less than a week after Gaultier tweeted a video announcing that this runway would be his last.

"It's going to be quite a party with many of my friends, and we're going to have fun until very, very late," he said.

Gaultier posted videos of models getting ready backstage on Twitter earlier in the evening.

'Emotional night'

Ahead of the show, Burlesque model Dita Von Teese posted on Instagram that some of his "legendary muses" would be taking part.

She predicted it would be an "emotional night" and, in an earlier post, wrote: "I'm so grateful to have been part of the story."

Last year Gaultier criticised what he called "ridiculous" fashion waste, saying big fashion brands are harming the planet by producing "far too many collections with far too many clothes".

At the opening of the event in Paris, he called the outfits on the runway his "first upcycling haute couture collection" and urged the audience to recycle their clothes.

"In my first show and this, my last, there are creations made with the jeans I've worn," he said.

"It's the most beautiful of materials. Like a lot of humans, it becomes even more beautiful as it gets older."

He added: "Goodbye to the spanking new, hello to the spanking old!"

'Surreal'

Canadian model Coco Rocha tweeted that it was "surreal" that this would be Gaultier's last show.

American actress and model Kat Graham described him as her "fashion idol".

"JPG was the first big design house to dress me, to believe in me," she wrote.

"Thank you JPG for showing me and the world that it's more than ok to be authentically yourself, and to go against the grain."

Kumazzz · March 6, 2020

Evening Standard

Monday 17 February 2020

standard.co.uk

The best ever Brit Awards moments as the ceremony turns 40

The Brit Awards are gearing up to celebrate a milestone birthday.

Tonight, the annual awards ceremony will officially turn 40 - and in those four decades, the Brits have given us some of the most memorable moments in British music history.

Though the awards were actually first held in 1977 to mark the Queen’s Silver Jubilee, they didn’t become a yearly event until 1982.

Since then, the Brits have been responsible for plenty of era-defining moments.

40 years of The Brit Awards - In pictures

Look back on four decades of the Brit Awards in the gallery above...

https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-news/brit-awards-best-moments-40th-anniversary-a4360451.html

Kumazzz · April 13, 2020

This interview does not mention Mika, but it's interesting for me.

Let's Talk

1 May 2020

PressReader https://pressreader.com/article/281556587939358

ON THE RECORD

At the turntable to answer our questions On The Record this month is Daniel Brine, artistic director and chief executive of the Norfolk & Norwich Festival.

David Brine, Norfolk & Norwich Festival director, pictured on Fye Bridge in Norwich.
Photo: Hugo Glendinning.

Norfolk and Norwich Festival’s Daniel Brine makes his music choices

1 WHAT’S THE FIRST SONG YOU CAN REMEMBER FROM YOUR CHILDHOOD?

On Ilkla Moor Baht ‘at. I’ve no idea why my mother sang this to me but I remember loving the bit about the worms.

2 WHAT WAS THE FIRST RECORD YOU BOUGHT?

My first single was Lene Lovich’s Bird Song. I haven’t heard it for years but looked it up online when you asked and it’s still great.

3 WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN LISTENING TO MOST RECENTLY?

John Grant. And we were, originally, presenting John at the Great Yarmouth Hippodrome as the first gig of the Norfolk & Norwich Festival before having to cancel.

4 WHAT WAS THE FIRST CONCERT YOU WENT TO?

Forgive me. It was Dire Straits at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.

5 WHO WAS THE BEST ARTIST OR BAND YOU HAVE EVER SEEN?

Grace Jones. She was hours late on stage but when she finally arrived she was wild and so were the audience.

6 DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE SINGER?

I’m a big Dolly Parton fan. She’s a great songwriter and has so many fantastic songs. I love to sing along and Dolly is great for that.

7 WHICH GENRE OF MUSIC DO YOU ENJOY THE MOST?

I like to listen and I like to sing (to myself), so I can be happy with all sorts of music. I love working at the festival because we have a really diverse music programme and the music programmers keep surprising and delighting me.

8 WHAT’S YOUR MOST TREASURED ALBUM?

My dad died when I was at a Mika concert.

It was just a coincidence, but for a while after I couldn’t stop listening to anything but Life in Cartoon Motion and The Boy Who Knew Too Much.

I wouldn’t necessarily say these are the most treasured but there is definitely a connection I can’t get over.

9 CAN YOU SING OR PLAY AN INSTRUMENT?

Most definitely not. But my husband is a composer who plays piano and clarinet beautifully and endlessly.

10 IF YOU HAD TO CHOOSE JUST ONE, WHICH IS THE FAVORITE SONG OF YOUR LIFETIME?

The Great Miss Stark because it’s by my husband Jonathan Cooper. It’s my favourite song from his musical Mabel Stark: Tiger Tamer.

11 AND WHICH IS THE SONG YOU WOULD TURN OFF IF IT CAME ON THE RADIO?

Anything by Dire Straits.

12 FINALLY, HOW IMPORTANT IS MUSIC TO YOU?

I love that I have music in my life – at work as part of the festival and at home with Jonathan.

I’m not sure where I’d be without it.

page-34,35

Kumazzz · April 21, 2020

PODCAST

Track by Track

21/04/2020

MP3 file ( 46min / 42 MB ) 2020.04-21_Track By Track The TRASH Music Podcast_Life In Crtoon Motion.mp3
DIRECT MP3 -- https://f000.backblazeb2.com/file/howdy-media/shows/9/episodes/5y/episode-5y-128k.mp3

Mika - Life In Cartoon Motion

This week on Track By Track we're bringing some well needed colour and fun with the one and only Mika, and his debut album, Life In Cartoon Motion.

Let us know your thoughts Track By Track- enjoy!

Mikasister · April 21, 2020

4 hours ago, Kumazzz said:

PODCAST

Track by Track

21/04/2020

MP3 file ( 46min / 42 MB ) 2020.04-21_Track By Track The TRASH Music Podcast_Life In Crtoon Motion.mp3

DIRECT MP3 -- https://f000.backblazeb2.com/file/howdy-media/shows/9/episodes/5y/episode-5y-128k.mp3

Mika - Life In Cartoon Motion

This week on Track By Track we're bringing some well needed colour and fun with the one and only Mika, and his debut album, Life In Cartoon Motion.

Let us know your thoughts Track By Track- enjoy!

Apple music https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/mika-life-in-cartoon-motion/id1434844342?i=1000472113622

Spotify https://open.spotify.com/episode/6hW2fEfVeLwM0LW3UPko17

Tune In https://tunein.com/podcasts/Music-Podcasts/Track-By-Track-The-TRASH-Music-Podcast-p1191086/

Sticher https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=68989829

A CAST https://play.acast.com/s/trashtrackbytrack/AFB44A0A-83D8-4248-89E1-D6102F2D32CE

Kumazzz · May 2, 2020

BBC Radio 2

25 April 2020

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000h9ty

Dermot presents the hits that defined the first years of the 21st Century

So 00s

Dermot presents Noughties hits from Beyonce, The Black Eyed Peas, Florence + The Machine, Outkast, Shakira and many more in this BBC Sounds Mix.

Featuring a live session track ( Grace Kelly ) from Mika, recorded for Dermot's Saturday show on BBC Radio 2 in 2007.

AUDIO file ( m4a / 80.9 MB / 01h57min ) 2020.04.25_BBC_Radio2_So_00s_Dermot_presents_the_hits_that_defined_the_first_years_of_the_21st_Century.m4a
AUDIO file ( m4a / 4.5 MB / 3min ) Grace Kelly 2007 BBC radio2_archive_Dermot's Saturday show_Grace Kelly.m4a

AMAZON

CD : The Saturday Sessions - The Dermot O'Leary show

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Saturday-Sessions-Dermot-OLeary-show/dp/B000R9QEO0

Disc: 2

1. Mika - Grace Kelly

Edited May 2, 2020 by Kumazzz

Kumazzz · May 19, 2020

TPi magazine.com

19th May 2020

Ayrton Khamsin-S Shines for Mika

Jacob Waite

Mika rehearses at Production Park Studios on a set built by Brilliant, decorated by Vince Foster’s lighting using multiple Ayrton fixtures.

Photos courtesy of Sarah Womack/Brilliant.

The charismatic singer-songwriter Mika’s Revelation tour in support of his fifth studio album, My Name is Michael Holbrook, may have been postponed midway through due to the current COVID-19 crisis, but it wowed audiences from autumn through to this spring. Lighting Designer, Vince Foster who, with an impressive CV which spans well over 30 years, requires little introduction.

Foster’s design for Mika’s Revelation was clean and uncomplicated: plenty of floor lighting, significant numbers of side fixtures and trusses in the most effective of locations. His choice of fixtures was similarly unambiguous: just four different fixtures and overwhelmingly from Ayrton. Alongside around thirty Ayrton Magic Blade-FX fixtures were approximately one hundred and twenty of one of Ayrton’s newest moving heads, Khamsin-S.

“Every moving light is a Khamsin,” opened Foster when we spoke to him about his design. “I have always been a big fan of Ayrton, using a variety of their fixtures over the years and their move into developing moving heads that have that Ayrton combination of feature-rich technology and quality engineering is really exciting.”

The Khamsin-S were everywhere on the rig: the floor, the side hangs, the ‘B’ thrust stage and on both the stage trusses and the one downstage of the B stage. “The rig was designed with input from both Mika and his sister Yasmine. We wanted an unfussy but solid music hall look to allow the audience to focus on Mika himself,” Foster reminisced. “The brief was essentially to create something of a ‘Baron Munchausen’ feel, a slightly tongue-in-cheek, comedic atmosphere. He is the consummate performer, a true showman with a very theatrical approach, and a gift to an LD; he is like a peacock – you shine a light on him and he shows off.”

This was the first time that Foster had used an LED light as his primary workhorse as he explained: “I’ve always felt that LEDs are not bright enough for a big, arena sized show but Ayrton’s Khamsin proves that LED has now come of age. Khamsin is a great fixture, it seems to have everything. It is a big beast but very quiet, and, as for its features: gobo wheels; animation wheel; two prisms; frosts – I have used them all – and of course the excellent beam range which allows me to use it equally as both a wash and a profile.”

With no video on this show, the stage uses raked rainbow coloured stripes to allude to the new album cover, the lighting was very much central to establishing the visual ambience of the set. Foster used the Khamsin-S colour palette to full effect with the set list based on rainbow colours. “With some colour mixing you can lose intensity, particularly when adding greens, but not with Khamsin. Having that facility in the same fixture that you can use effectively as a key light shows the light’s flexibility,” he added. “Mika spends a lot of time out on the B stage so we light him essentially in 360^o and can use the Khamsins as back key lighting with support from followspots. In situations like that, and for lighting the B stage, the shutters are very useful, sited as they are on stage, for framing set pieces like the drum risers. I also use a single Khamsin as a big back light with a rotating gobo at the upstage vanishing point for his first entrance, and another under a grill at the top of the ramp to light him from beneath.”

Alongside the Khamsin-S fixtures on the rig were nearly 30 of Ayrton’s Magic Blades-FX. “The MagicBlade-FX’s are great,” enthused Foster. “The zoom is fantastic, it can create a really wide back light that is completely beamless – like a wall of light. I have ten up on the mid truss, eight on the floor and nine out on the B stage. On the thrust, they work really well as uplighters and you get great footlight with a nice even fill which added to the theatricality out there. I’m also a fan of the individual cell control; with seven cells you can have the outside one colour, then graduate the palette inwards and then flip it around.

“I am really pleased that I took the option of using the Khamsin-S and the Magic Blade-FX fixtures as the foundation for this design,” concluded Foster. “The Khamsins have proved to me that they are a perfect choice if you are looking for a light that does everything in an arena environment. They have more than met that challenge.”

Ayrton is distributed exclusively in the UK by Ambersphere Solutions.

www.ayrton.eu

Twitter

Facebook

Edited May 26, 2020 by Kumazzz

Anna Ko Kolkowska · May 19, 2020

So great photos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TinyLove_CJ · May 19, 2020

I've been wanting photos of Mika on his pink piano for ages for an art piece I want to do, these are perfect! What an amazing photographer!

Thanks for sharing! 😍

Starlight · May 20, 2020

Wow I love these pictures :wub2:

TinyLove_CJ · May 20, 2020

On 5/2/2020 at 1:33 AM, Kumazzz said:

Grace Kelly 2007 BBC radio2_archive_Dermot's Saturday show_Grace Kelly.m4a

Does anyone have an mp3 file if this or able to convert it? I can download it to my phone but it won't play or be shared between devices

Anna Ko Kolkowska · May 20, 2020

11 minutes ago, TinyLove_CJ said:

Does anyone have an mp3 file if this or able to convert it? I can download it to my phone but it won't play or be shared between devices

Hello

Can you try this file? I've converted it into mp3.

Grace Kelly BBC2.mp3

TinyLove_CJ · May 20, 2020

1 hour ago, Anna Ko Kolkowska said:

Hello

Can you try this file? I've converted it into mp3.

Grace Kelly BBC2.mp3 5.95 MB · 0 downloads

It works, thank you! 😃

Kumazzz · September 20, 2020

WWD Digital Daily

18 Sep 2020
PressReader https://pressreader.com/article/281904480603039

Group Support

Kering and its stable of high-end fashion and accessories labels, including Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga, are backing a benefit concert organized by Mika to support Lebanon, following the explosion that rocked the country’s capital last month.

The “I Love Beirut” concert will be livestreamed on Sept.

19, at 9 p.m., Central European time, and profits will go to the Lebanese Red Cross and Save the Children Lebanon.

Tickets will be sold on Ticketmaster and a fund-raising campaign will be run in parallel through GoFundMe.

The French-Lebanese singer will be joined by Laura Pausini, Kylie Minogue, Rufus Wainwright,

Louane, Salma Hayek, Danna Paola, Fanny Ardant and Lebanese-American poet and visual artist Etel Adnan.

The explosion in Beirut’s port hit the country at a time when it was already suffering from a deep economic and political crisis, with soaring consumer prices and a plummeting currency. A series of anti- government protests had erupted before the coronavirus lockdowns.

Kering and its various brands have been active this spring, making donations to organizations fighting the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S., France, Italy and China. Brands under the Kering umbrella include Alexander McQueen, Brioni, Boucheron, Pomellato, DoDo, Qeelin, Ulysse Nardin, Girard-Perregaux and Kering Eyewear.

— MIMOSA SPENCER

Kumazzz · September 20, 2020

METRO UK

18 September
PressReader https://pressreader.com/@Eriko_Shino/csb_plJI_0DdJj_pXZS0G5MaBFMhxDctHYLtDcQrmB6DzHcodD8k0n0vVytSfgQDOG0yJuN305cgxBpucPW5Vdr24A

Page 39

sharon o’connell has the pick of this week’s music streams

MIKA : I LOVE BEIRUT

A benefit concert to raise funds for and awareness of those affected by the cataclysmic explosion last month in the lebanese capital where this brit and ivor novello Award-winner was born. his guests are rufus wainwright and etel Adnan. Tomorrow, 8pm, universe.com

mellody · February 1, 2021

There'll be a podcast tomorrow featuring an interview with the president of Capital Records UK, and in the Tweet it says they'll mention Mika. Probably nothing interesting, but thought I'd post it anyway.

The podcast will be online here: https://www.thelemarshow.com

Mikasister · June 26, 2021

Pop icon Mika felt ‘exploited’ by journalists hounding him to come out before he’d even told his mum

PATRICK KELLEHER JUNE 24, 2021

BOOKMARK ARTICLE

Mika performing in his live-streamed concert, which was created in partnership with Indeed. (Provided)

Mika burst onto the music scene with his chart-topping single “Grace Kelly” in 2007 – but it wasn’t long before his work took a back seat in interviews, with journalists probing him on his sexuality instead.

While he had an undeniably queer sensibility, Mika tended to dodge questions about whether he was gay in early interviews. Many LGBT+ people will remember that era for its feverish, clamouring obsession with sexuality. It didn’t matter if somebody wasn’t ready to come out, or if they weren’t comfortable disclosing how they identified. What mattered was the headline, the salacious quote, the irrepressible need for confirmation.

Mika came out as gay in 2012, a full five years after he skyrocketed to the top of the UK charts. But the spectre of those interviews still bothers him to this day.

“Sexuality, sexualised themes and gender themes were so present in music, and have always been so intrinsically a part of my writing,” Mika tells PinkNews.

“The interview part of it felt like a kind of exploitation in the wrong way, and it very quickly became this kind of searching for a defined label, or searching for a ‘scoop’ confirmation in the most cynical sense. This being at a point in my life where I hadn’t even come out to my own mum – why am I going to do this with a journalist I’ve never met when I hadn’t come out to my mum?

“Looking back, I was really pressured a lot about labelling myself. I used to feel bad. I now realise that, actually, the journalists that put so much pressure on me should feel bad. It’s not healthy.”

Mika now believes that things “come in phases” and people should be allowed to “follow their natural course” while exploring their sexuality. He did that in his music.

“I made music to express parts of me and my identity, and also my sexuality, before I had the words or the capacity to do so in normal daily life. And that’s also why I make music – to express what I find more difficult to express or what I need time to express. That’s also why people listen to music. We shouldn’t discount that, it doesn’t mean that it’s not good, it’s great. That’s a really necessary thing.”

Coming to terms with his sexuality ultimately “took time”, and he was well into his late 20s before he came out as gay.

Mika performing in his live-streamed concert, which was created in partnership with Indeed. (Provided)

When he did eventually come out – to international headlines – it was a peculiar experience for the singer.

“It felt like I had already [come out] in my music,” Mika explains. “I had never pretended to be anything I wasn’t, and I was very grateful that life had allowed me that privilege.

“It allowed me to move on to the second part of a more open, honest relationship with more empathy with my own family. And that was the most important thing – to let that evolve, to let that take its course.”

Mika refused to let record label bosses ‘reorientate’ his kaleidoscopic imagery early on

The music industry is a very different beast today to what it was in 2007. Today, some artists can be visibly, openly queer without it really causing much of a stir.

But many LGBT+ musicians have opened up about the pressures they’ve faced in their careers to appear straight or cis in an effort to appeal to a wider audience. Mika hasn’t faced overt homophobia from record label bosses, but he did face some early challenges to his wild, colourful aesthetic.

“At the beginning of my career, it was more present, especially in certain territories more than others,” he says. “To be honest I got kind of lucky with the fact that my whole visual world was something that was really homespun – I mean, I was making my own clothes, and I do my own drawings and so it’s not like you could just replace a part of it.”

Mika recounts one meeting with his record label early on where they announced their plans to hire a graphic designer and a stylist to work with him.

“I was like, ‘Are you crazy? I do it at home with my sister! That’s why you signed me – you’re not allowed to change that. No way!’ ‘OK, we’re going to find you a stylist.’ ‘Are you out of your f**king mind? I do that with my mum!’ I certainly wasn’t going to let someone else tell me how to reorientate my music – ever.”

Mika never bowed to this pressure, and he happily explored sexuality and gender norms in his own way on his debut album Life in Cartoon Motion – themes he continues to explore today, but in a much more upfront way.

In 2019, he released his fifth studio album My Name is Michael Holbrook, which featured the single “Sanremo”. The music video, shot in black and white, follows a married man in an era when homosexuality was still criminalised. Making the video was “a poetic way of calling certain things into question,” he says.

“Homosexuality is still criminalised in many, many countries around the world. It is still not embraced enough by the church in many western countries, and I think it’s good to talk about that to put things in perspective but also to highlight the disparities because we need to address that, we need to remember that.”

Such a discussion takes on a special meaning during Pride Month, which takes place each year in June. Mika remembers seeing Pride parades taking place before he had come out. Seeing such spectacles of queer joy gave him hope.

Mika performing in his live-streamed concert, which was created in partnership with Indeed. (Provided)

“At first, it was something that I coyly observed from the wings as a kid and as a young teenager, but it was really important to know it was there, even if I didn’t have the courage or I wasn’t at that place in my life where I could feel like I could just step out and join in. But I knew it was there, and knowing that it’s there is so f**king important. Knowing that there’s a version of life out there where it’s OK to be proud, you don’t have to be afraid, you don’t have to be ashamed. And then progressively as life went on, it took on a different importance in my life. It became something that was part of my life.

“It’s about cultivating that pride in yourself and demanding a certain kind of unapologetic consideration. And that’s something that is super important.”

Mika is marking Pride Month this year with a special live-streamed concert in partnership with Indeed. The performance will be streamed on his YouTube channel on Thursday (24 June), with proceeds going to Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation. Indeed is also donating a one-off $20,000 sum to the charity, and the company will also donate one dollar for every stream of the Soundtrack of Empathy concert up to a maximum of $20,000.

Paoletta · June 26, 2021

:wub2: @Mikasister thank you..so much

Edited June 26, 2021 by Paoletta

Mikasister · June 26, 2021

20 minutes ago, Paoletta said:

@Mikasister thank you..so much

You're welcome! :wink2:

Kumazzz · July 10, 2021

Nomadic Boys

Jun 29, 2021

https://nomadicboys.com/best-gay-singers/

The best gay singers of all time

In this article, we celebrate some of the best gay singers of all time who are not only ridiculously talented but are also proudly flying the flag for our LGBTQ community.

“It's a little bit funny
This feeling inside…”

Today we live in a world where being openly gay is no longer the big taboo it was in the late 20th century. We have more LGBTQ role models in the entertainment industry than ever before, and we're LIVING for it!

There used to be a time when gay male singers in pop bands were told to stay in the closet for fear of destroying their career – shocking, but that was not so long ago. Even in large parts of the world, this is still very much the case. So when we see out gay singers being successful it in the music business, we get extremely excited.

1. Ricky Martin

When Ricky Martin hit mainstream success in the early 1990s, with his spiked-up hair and thrusting hips, it ignited the awakening of millions of little gay boys across the globe! From his boy-next-door smile to his hot body, Ricky Martin is the kind of man you’d like to bed… and wed! Crowned the “King of Latin Pop“, his songs “Livin' La Vida Loca” and “She Bangs” don’t just appeal to gay crowds, but straight people too. What wedding reception would be complete if either of these hits weren't blasting from the speakers?!

Ricky, who remained in the closet for the first portion of his career, is today happily married with kids. He is a shining example that gay men can have it all.

2. Mika

If you don’t own a copy of Mika’s 2007 debut album “Life In Cartoon Motion”, then your gay card needs to be revoked… immediately! Just kidding… However, in all seriousness, Mika’s musical catalog oozes gay culture. With feel-good dance beats and lyrics dripping with pop culture references, Mika’s songs speak to our community on a whole other level. Songs like “Grace Kelly”, “Love Today”, and “Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)” are still routinely played in clubs in the 2020s – and for good reason! They still feel as modern and fresh as they did back in the day.

Mika himself is an astounding 6ft 2. His tall, slender figure and chiseled facial features make him very popular with both men and women. But in 2012, he gave us the cherry on top of a very pretty cake when he publicly came out. Today, Mika is a taken man, having been with his partner, Andreas Dermanis, for over 10 years!

3. George Michael (RIP)

The world first fell in love with George as part of the 1980s pop duo Wham! churning out pop classics like “Last Christmas” and “Wake Me Up (Before You Go-Go)”. George quickly became adored the world over for his blonde coiffed hair and puppy-dog eyes. It wasn’t until he emerged as a solo artist with his shorter hairdo and stubble that solidified him as an icon. His solo hits “Freedom” and “Careless Whisper” propelled him into the world spotlight of the music business, quickly becoming a huge household name.

Not just a pretty face, George was known for his immense generosity. He involved himself with charities such as the Elton John AIDS Foundation and Rainbow Trust Children’s Charity. Sadly, George passed away on Christmas Day in 2016, breaking the hearts of millions of fans.

4. Sir Elton John

Everybody’s favorite rocketman, Elton John, wasn’t always the grandpa of the gay music world. When he burst onto the scene back in the 1970s, he oozed sensuality and boyish charm. Often baring his hairy chest to crowds of thousands, fans went nuts over his unabashed confidence and liberated performance style. His cheeky grin and wild sense of humor also won over even the most ardent of critics, endearing him to people who would otherwise see him as #toomuch.

In his earlier days, he enjoyed relationships with both men and women, identifying as bisexual for a long time. He came out as gay in 1988 and is now married with kids – and still releasing music at the age of 73.

5. Freddy Mercury (RIP)

While he wasn’t considered the most conventionally handsome man, Freddie still embodied a magnetic appeal that attracted millions of fans across the world. His onstage persona captivated audiences to the point that no one could take their eyes off him. His vocal range transcended above all others and his ability to make the listener truly feel what he was singing about meant that anybody could fall in love with him.

Freddie’s offstage persona was much quieter and timid. No one, other than his closest pals and family, felt like they knew the real Freddie, which is why it came as a shock when he announced to the world that he was living with AIDS. He was one of the first major music artists to become associated with the disease, forcing people to wake up to its horrors, as well as the slow progress in finding a cure. Freddie sadly passed away in 1991 from the illness.

6. Hamed Sinno

Hamed Sinno is a Lebanese singer who fronts the alternative-rock band Mashrou’ Leila.

His 80s style mustache and penchant for wearing muscle shirts have made him popular among gay fans. He also represents what it means to be queer and from the Middle East, a region notorious for having some of the worst LGBTQ rights in the world. We think Hamed is a shining beacon for the LGBTQ community of Lebanon in particular, a country that still has anti-gay laws.

Hamed's music has stirred controversy among conservative crowds due to the explicit nature of his lyrics. He encourages his fans to be bold and expressive – and they take this message very seriously! Even to the point of getting themselves in trouble with the authorities by waving rainbow flags at his concert, notably in Cairo, Egypt – where the promotion of homosexuality is not only illegal but aggressively enforced! Countries like Jordan have gone so far as to ban Sinno from performing there, simply because he is openly gay! But he still is unafraid to express himself and be himself. We all love an activist who holds no punches.

7. Lance Bass

Throughout the 1990s, the world was divided into two groups. Fans of the Backstreet Boys and lovers of NSYNC! We personally love NSYNC…mostly because of our shared obsession for Justin Timberlake. And whilst it broke our hearts to wave bye bye bye to the band when they broke up in 2001, we still have a soft spot for all the members.

So, it especially warmed our hearts when in 2006, Lance Bass came out in an interview with People Magazine. This shattered the dreams of many female fans, yet delighted all of his gay ones, who were now in with a chance!

Today, Lance hosts a podcast called “The Lance Bass Show” where he breaks down all of the latest news and gossip from Hollywood.

8. Stephen Gately (RIP)

Whether or not you were a fan of Irish boyband Boyzone, you most likely had a soft spot for front singer Stephen Gately. The pint-sized singer was rarely seen without a smile on his face. His middle-parted shaggy hairstyle was peak 90s and his high angelic voice would cause all of his fans to swoon.

Gately came out in 1999, a bold move considering he was advised by his manager to stay closeted due to Ireland’s conservative attitudes towards LGBTQ people. Though surprisingly, he received very little backlash. When the band reunited in the late 2000s, they released the single, “Better”. In the music video for it, each of the boys dances and makes out with their respective partners – including Stephen who can be seen with another man! Sadly, Gately passed away in 2009 whilst holidaying in Spain.

9. Markus Feehily

Markus Feehily was known as the shy and demure member of another famous Irish boy band – Westlife. He never talked about his personal life during group media interviews, despite his bandmates talking about theirs. It wasn’t until he came out in 2005, that he finally found the confidence to become more himself.

With 15 number one songs as part of the band, he is the highest performing LGBTQ artist on the UK charts. In recent years, Markus has been an outspoken activist for LGBTQ rights, including his campaigning for equal marriage in Ireland. Markus became engaged to his partner, Cailean O'Neill, in 2019, and later that year the handsome couple announced that they are to become fathers via surrogacy.

10. Steve Grand

The All-American boy, Steve Grand, is one of the few openly gay country artists. People always give hip-hop a hard time for its lack of LGBTQ representation, whilst ignoring the fact that country music also has the same issue!

His music deals with issues around romance and life as a gay person, which he has performed at numerous Pride events. Influenced by Shania Twain and Bruce Springsteen, Grand is a hodgepodge mix of the two, with heartfelt lyrics and funky beats.

In recent years, he’s swapped out the clean-cut, wholesome boy image for a rugged, handsome god – just take a peek at his Instagram… what a handsome man!

11. Adam Lambert

With his high belting voice and epic stage presence, Lambert first won audiences over during his appearances on American Idol. He was especially popular among older women, who swooned over his strong jawline and brow game. He even once expressed an elated surprise to be the target of affection from ‘cougars’ across the USA.

However, it was his signature eyeliner and gelled black hair (giving him a gender-bending aesthetic) that helped solidify him as a queer icon. Appearances on Glee and RuPaul's Drag Race launched him even further into the public stratosphere and his solo music has received international acclaim. Most impressively, he has toured the world with Queen, taking up the lead vocals… Only Adam Lambert could come close to standing in for the incomparable Freddie Mercury!

12. Frank Ocean

When Frank Ocean came out in 2012, it took the hip hop world by storm. Hip hop music is sadly notorious for its use of homophobic lyrics so having an out hip hop artist is a big deal! Ocean changed all of that. Artists like Jay-Z and Kayne West championed Ocean for being so honest about his identity, and in turn, made the world fall in love with him.

Ocean has since spoken out against homophobia, notably after the tragic nightclub event in Orlando in 2016. His open letter dissected how anti-gay sentiments are hereditary, and how parents should be more mindful of the values they pass down to their children. His music is incredible and anyone who listens to it can’t help but feel taken by its raw honesty and smooth beats.

13. Sam Smith

Sam Smith’s debut 2014 album “In The Lonely Hour” is all about a lost gay romance. We remember how refreshing it was to hear a queer artist take on a more easy-listening/bluesy style of music, as opposed to the typical dance music most LGBTQ artists are known for. Sam laid their heart on the line, writing lyrics that were heartfelt and relatable, that both gay and straight people could relate to.

In 2019, Smith came-out as non-binary and requested people use they/them pronouns in reference to them. For many, they were the first representation of a gender non-conforming person on a major platform, though hopefully, they won’t be the last. Today, they are serving looks and music that is much more upbeat than their earlier stuff.

14. Le1F (Khalif Diouf)

As an openly queer black hip-hop artist, Le1F has been applauded by critics for challenging homophobia within the genre. His lyrics are hard-hitting and truthful, whilst his music videos are homoerotic and daring. One of his most famous songs, “Wut” features the artist sitting on the leg of a hot shirtless dude and showing off his twerking skills!

He enjoys blurring the lines between the masculine and the feminine as well. Le1F has spoken about feeling liberated by being recognized as an LGBTQ artist and his optimism that there will soon be more hip hop artists who are open about who they love.

15. Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys)

He’s always on our minds. The Pet Shop Boys were an instant hit with gay fans when they first debuted back in the 80s. Not only because of bops like “Go West” and “West End Girls”, but the two singers were gorgeous. The kind of boys you wanted to hang posters of on your bedroom wall. Neil Tennant especially was adored due to his messy hair and chiseled facial features.

Neil came out in 1994 and has since been an active campaigner for LGBTQ rights. He campaigned for equal marriage in the UK and also put pressure on David Cameron’s Government to pardon scientist Alan Turing who was arrested and convicted for being gay in 1952. An all-around incredible guy!

Mikasister · November 12, 2021

Mika is more than a TikTok trend – he’s my Italian queer icon

“Mika’s music became my safe space for exploration, questioning, introspection and, eventually, acceptance,” says Just Like Us ambassador Lili Hartlep.

WORDS BY LILI HARTLEP, A JUST LIKE US AMBASSADOR

12th November 2021

Iwas completely mesmerised the first time I laid eyes on the Grace Kelly music video, back in 2007. The bright blue t-shirt, the unapologetic curls and that fun high pitched voice – as an 11-year-old, I was taken aback by such a display of bold joy.

Quickly becoming obsessed with the song, it wasn’t long before I was asking my dad to look up more information about the singer. At the time, I was dealing with growing up as a foreigner in Italy, so when I discovered that this “Mika” guy was of Lebanese origins, and had spent plenty of time in both France and the USA, like my family, I felt in my heart I’d found someone I could relate to – it made me feel less alone, even somewhat prouder of where I came from.

Fast forward two or three years: it’s Christmas and my parents reveal they’d bought me Mika’s first two albums – I was beyond ecstatic. I listened to those CDs over and over again, making sure to buy all of his other ones as they were released over the years, all throughout my teens and into my young adulthood.

What had started out as admiration for his creativity and a feeling of familiarity due to our backgrounds, gradually turned into something much deeper. The thing about Mika’s lyrics is that they’re profoundly personal. Every album feels like a brief autobiography that gives the listener insight into some of his most intimate reflections and emotions, carefully hidden between joyful notes and happy melodies, tricking you and drowning you in feelings of the bittersweet sort. I’ve always found it extremely therapeutic.

But, it’s not only this combo that strikes emotional chords. Growing up, full of doubts and confusion regarding my identity, my sexuality, submerged in an overwhelmingly religious environment, Mika’s music became my safe space for exploration, questioning, introspection and, eventually, acceptance.

He was the only artist I knew of who openly discussed being gay, complicated feelings, struggles with religion and social pressures all in one. And despite the weight that some of his pieces carry, to this day, his music leaves me feeling emboldened and inspired.

From Billy Brown who fell in love with another man, despite his plans of an ordinary life; to Sam, who will never know that his friend would be a good wife; along with Emily, who might be gay and can’t seem to be like other girls – Mika filled my mind with these characters and their lives, giving me so much to reflect upon throughout my own journey. The manner in which he portrays their stories resembles those of cautionary tales, almost telling the listener, “Careful, don’t fall victim to the times! Be bolder than this!” It was definitely the nudge I needed time and time again.

One line that I always find curious, whenever I happen to stumble across it, is:

“To my heroes that were dressed up in gold,

“Only hoping one day, I could be so bold.”

(Good Guys, 2015)

Only a few years prior, I had thought the same exact thing watching him dance around in golden shoes in his We Are Golden music video. The full-circle effect always gives me a little kick of courage to keep on owning my pride.

Now, Grace Kelly TikTok trends aside, Mika’s music feels more relevant than ever in my life, as I am currently based in Italy, once again, during what are likely to become some of the most significant historical times in the Italian LGBTQ+ community with demonstrations happening all across the country.

Mika, who is a judge on the Italian X Factor and a prominent celebrity here, has spoken up on Twitter, claiming to believe that Italy is still capable of being loving and welcoming. To be able to rely on Mika, his presence and his words once again, even as an adult, and during what feel like increasingly dangerous days, brings a sense of reliable relief and everlasting solidarity.

So, thank you Mika, for making sure we know that if we are all in the gutter, it doesn’t change who we are, ‘cause some of us in the gutter will keep on looking up at the stars.

Lili is an ambassador with Just Like Us, the LGBT+ young people’s charity. If you’d like to volunteer to speak in schools on their Ambassador Programme, sign up now.

Kumazzz · October 11, 2022

On 6/26/2021 at 11:20 PM, Mikasister said:

Pop icon Mika felt ‘exploited’ by journalists hounding him to come out before he’d even told his mum

PATRICK KELLEHER JUNE 24, 2021
BOOKMARK ARTICLE

Mika performing in his live-streamed concert, which was created in partnership with Indeed. (Provided)

Mika burst onto the music scene with his chart-topping single “Grace Kelly” in 2007 – but it wasn’t long before his work took a back seat in interviews, with journalists probing him on his sexuality instead.

While he had an undeniably queer sensibility, Mika tended to dodge questions about whether he was gay in early interviews. Many LGBT+ people will remember that era for its feverish, clamouring obsession with sexuality. It didn’t matter if somebody wasn’t ready to come out, or if they weren’t comfortable disclosing how they identified. What mattered was the headline, the salacious quote, the irrepressible need for confirmation.

Mika came out as gay in 2012, a full five years after he skyrocketed to the top of the UK charts. But the spectre of those interviews still bothers him to this day.

“Sexuality, sexualised themes and gender themes were so present in music, and have always been so intrinsically a part of my writing,” Mika tells PinkNews.

“The interview part of it felt like a kind of exploitation in the wrong way, and it very quickly became this kind of searching for a defined label, or searching for a ‘scoop’ confirmation in the most cynical sense. This being at a point in my life where I hadn’t even come out to my own mum – why am I going to do this with a journalist I’ve never met when I hadn’t come out to my mum?

“Looking back, I was really pressured a lot about labelling myself. I used to feel bad. I now realise that, actually, the journalists that put so much pressure on me should feel bad. It’s not healthy.”

Mika now believes that things “come in phases” and people should be allowed to “follow their natural course” while exploring their sexuality. He did that in his music.

“I made music to express parts of me and my identity, and also my sexuality, before I had the words or the capacity to do so in normal daily life. And that’s also why I make music – to express what I find more difficult to express or what I need time to express. That’s also why people listen to music. We shouldn’t discount that, it doesn’t mean that it’s not good, it’s great. That’s a really necessary thing.”

Coming to terms with his sexuality ultimately “took time”, and he was well into his late 20s before he came out as gay.

Mika performing in his live-streamed concert, which was created in partnership with Indeed. (Provided)

When he did eventually come out – to international headlines – it was a peculiar experience for the singer.

“It felt like I had already [come out] in my music,” Mika explains. “I had never pretended to be anything I wasn’t, and I was very grateful that life had allowed me that privilege.

“It allowed me to move on to the second part of a more open, honest relationship with more empathy with my own family. And that was the most important thing – to let that evolve, to let that take its course.”

Mika refused to let record label bosses ‘reorientate’ his kaleidoscopic imagery early on

The music industry is a very different beast today to what it was in 2007. Today, some artists can be visibly, openly queer without it really causing much of a stir.

But many LGBT+ musicians have opened up about the pressures they’ve faced in their careers to appear straight or cis in an effort to appeal to a wider audience. Mika hasn’t faced overt homophobia from record label bosses, but he did face some early challenges to his wild, colourful aesthetic.

“At the beginning of my career, it was more present, especially in certain territories more than others,” he says. “To be honest I got kind of lucky with the fact that my whole visual world was something that was really homespun – I mean, I was making my own clothes, and I do my own drawings and so it’s not like you could just replace a part of it.”

Mika recounts one meeting with his record label early on where they announced their plans to hire a graphic designer and a stylist to work with him.

“I was like, ‘Are you crazy? I do it at home with my sister! That’s why you signed me – you’re not allowed to change that. No way!’ ‘OK, we’re going to find you a stylist.’ ‘Are you out of your f**king mind? I do that with my mum!’ I certainly wasn’t going to let someone else tell me how to reorientate my music – ever.”

Mika never bowed to this pressure, and he happily explored sexuality and gender norms in his own way on his debut album Life in Cartoon Motion – themes he continues to explore today, but in a much more upfront way.

In 2019, he released his fifth studio album My Name is Michael Holbrook, which featured the single “Sanremo”. The music video, shot in black and white, follows a married man in an era when homosexuality was still criminalised. Making the video was “a poetic way of calling certain things into question,” he says.

“Homosexuality is still criminalised in many, many countries around the world. It is still not embraced enough by the church in many western countries, and I think it’s good to talk about that to put things in perspective but also to highlight the disparities because we need to address that, we need to remember that.”

Such a discussion takes on a special meaning during Pride Month, which takes place each year in June. Mika remembers seeing Pride parades taking place before he had come out. Seeing such spectacles of queer joy gave him hope.

Mika performing in his live-streamed concert, which was created in partnership with Indeed. (Provided)

“At first, it was something that I coyly observed from the wings as a kid and as a young teenager, but it was really important to know it was there, even if I didn’t have the courage or I wasn’t at that place in my life where I could feel like I could just step out and join in. But I knew it was there, and knowing that it’s there is so f**king important. Knowing that there’s a version of life out there where it’s OK to be proud, you don’t have to be afraid, you don’t have to be ashamed. And then progressively as life went on, it took on a different importance in my life. It became something that was part of my life.

“It’s about cultivating that pride in yourself and demanding a certain kind of unapologetic consideration. And that’s something that is super important.”

Mika is marking Pride Month this year with a special live-streamed concert in partnership with Indeed. The performance will be streamed on his YouTube channel on Thursday (24 June), with proceeds going to Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation. Indeed is also donating a one-off $20,000 sum to the charity, and the company will also donate one dollar for every stream of the Soundtrack of Empathy concert up to a maximum of $20,000.

FULL article

https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/06/24/mika-coming-out-gay-media-livestream-indeed-pride-month/

June 24, 2021

PinkNews

Pop icon Mika felt ‘exploited’ by journalists hounding him to come out before he’d even told his mum

Mika burst onto the music scene with his chart-topping single “Grace Kelly” in 2007 – but it wasn’t long before his work took a back seat in interviews, with journalists probing him on his sexuality instead.

While he had an undeniably queer sensibility, Mika tended to dodge questions about whether he was gay in early interviews. Many LGBT+ people will remember that era for its feverish, clamouring obsession with sexuality. It didn’t matter if somebody wasn’t ready to come out, or if they weren’t comfortable disclosing how they identified. What mattered was the headline, the salacious quote, the irrepressible need for confirmation.

Mika came out as gay in 2012, a full five years after he skyrocketed to the top of the UK charts. But the spectre of those interviews still bothers him to this day.

“Sexuality, sexualised themes and gender themes were so present in music, and have always been so intrinsically a part of my writing,” Mika tells PinkNews.

“The interview part of it felt like a kind of exploitation in the wrong way, and it very quickly became this kind of searching for a defined label, or searching for a ‘scoop’ confirmation in the most cynical sense. This being at a point in my life where I hadn’t even come out to my own mum – why am I going to do this with a journalist I’ve never met when I hadn’t come out to my mum?

“Looking back, I was really pressured a lot about labeling myself. I used to feel bad. I now realise that, actually, the journalists that put so much pressure on me should feel bad. It’s not healthy.”

Mika now believes that things “come in phases” and people should be allowed to “follow their natural course” while exploring their sexuality. He did that in his music.

“I made music to express parts of me and my identity, and also my sexuality, before I had the words or the capacity to do so in normal daily life. And that’s also why I make music – to express what I find more difficult to express or what I need time to express. That’s also why people listen to music. We shouldn’t discount that, it doesn’t mean that it’s not good, it’s great. That’s a really necessary thing.”

Coming to terms with his sexuality ultimately “took time”, and he was well into his late 20s before he came out as gay.

When he did eventually come out – to international headlines – it was a peculiar experience for the singer.

“It felt like I had already [come out] in my music,” Mika explains.

“I had never pretended to be anything I wasn’t, and I was very grateful that life had allowed me that privilege.

“It allowed me to move on to the second part of a more open, honest relationship with more empathy with my own family. And that was the most important thing – to let that evolve, to let that take its course.”

Mika refused to let record label bosses ‘reorientate’ his kaleidoscopic imagery early on