On one of my
recent daily Internet promenades at my favorite sites, I came upon a videoclip
which caught my attention. It was very well made, like a gay short movie,
tastefully erotic. It promotes a very good song called Robot, by Gonzalo Caps.
Gonzalo was born in Madrid almost 25 years
ago. Robot is about the complicated relationship between an out gay man and a
closeted celebrity. It begins with:
My circuits are burned and I've been
forgotten on a corner of your room. I would separate myself from your games,
your confessions and those moments of tension. I would, if I were just a robot.
(A rough translation by me - a combination of my poor Spanish and Google
Translate. If you want to check out the lyrics for yourself, here they are:
http://www.letrasmania.com/letras/letras_de_canciones_gonzalo_caps_142517_letras_other_217031_letras_robot_1859843.html
And here's the video:
Since writing this I have contacted
Gonzalo through FB and I have more info for this story. To begin with, he seems
to be a really nice guy. When I asked him if he could point out other gay-themed
songs of his that i could include in this presentation, he answered: "All
of my songs are gay-themed, because I'm gay myself". It's an interesting
answer. We're used to people saying "I'm a singer who happens to be gay
and not a gay singer", so, to me, this different outlook is refreshing. I
look forward to hearing your opinion on this.
He also told me that his previous single,
Espérame (Wait For Me) talks about his past relatioship and being selfish with
the other person. It's not something that he's proud of, but he needed to do a
song about that feeling.
The lyrics tell the story of a man who's
not ready to commit to one person yet, even though he doesn't want to lose him.
Here are some, translated by Google & me:
... but there is such rampant hunger
My body knows the feeling.
Before that, I want to rise
and sway in many arms
and visit many rooms
so that I'll be able to say:
Wait for me.
Wait for me.
Wait for me.
Until the end arrives
and you have to go back.
Here are the complete lyrics in Spanish:
https://www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/Gonzalo-Caps/Espérame
And here's the video:
In yet another memorable song of his, El Caleidoscopio (The Caleidoscope), he sings
the praises of his lover and asks not to be left alone:
Your face arouses such divine thoughts in me.
And I want to be part of that reality.
Do not leave me alone, I want to be your
everything.
Here are the complete lyrics in Spanish:
http://www.letrasmania.com/letras/letras_de_canciones_gonzalo_caps_142517_letras_other_217031_letras_el_caleidoscopio_1908071.html
And here's the video:
As it's already obvious, this chance
discovery inspired me to take a weekly detour away from English-speaking
gay-themed songs. These 5 days we'll talk about 5 different acts from 4
different European countries. Then we'll be back to English speaking ones. For
2 weeks, I'll be tackling the 21st Century. Then we'll spend our first fortnight of many in the fabulous 80s, while after that, I'm thinking of
examining how the Black Experience intersects with the Gay Experience. As for
tomorrow, we'll be heading to France. A demain.
Interesting question yianang, do I think gay artists should traffic mostly in gay-centric themes? Well, my broad-view mind says being gay should not be the defining aspect of one's character, sort of like a gay actor should be able to play any role or a gay singer should be able to sing a love song with an opposite sex object. However, my life experiences mind is all too aware of just how difficult being gay is and has been throughout history so I recognize the importance of shining a light on gay matters whenever an opportunity presents itself. I hear a lot of folks say "I wish gays weren't so in-your-face about it" or "stop trying to force your agenda and just be patient, the world will evolve". The problem is, while the world ever-so-slowly moves forward with gay rights, many still are suffering and dying because of who they love and this simply can't continue. There are still far too many bigots willing to squash our rights as human beings or worse, eliminate our kind completely from existence. Patience is no longer an option, nor should it be. Until homosexuality is no more unique than being left-handed, I think emphasizing that aspect will continue to be important if for no other reason than to remind the world - We're here, we're queer, get over it.
ReplyDeleteSo, do I think gay artists should devote their art to primarily gay subjects? In this climate, we need as many public faces and pronouncements as we can get to help facilitate progress from both straight and gay figures. We're seeing this currently play out with the various anti-gay laws being adopted and the very public backlash from our business and artistic allies. Certainly, a gay artist can create whatever they want and that's as it should be but I would hope at the vert least, they don't hide their true self in the interest of popularity or monetary gain. And for those who do make their art all about the gay, I hope they find ways to communicate this without being exclusionary to the hetero world. The best art holds a mirror up to the human condition and that is something we all share gay or straight. Whew!
A comprehensive and thoughtful reply, RM, which finds me in agreement. Also, to take the matter one step further, I think that for most gay artists, their sexuality informs the narrative and/or aesthetic of their work, whether their subject matter is clearly defined as gay themed or not. Some examples of this are directors Pedro Almodovar & Luchino Visconti, play-writes Tennessee Williams & Edward Albee, painters Caravaggio & Michelangelo and composers Tchaikovsky & (recently reviewed) Cole Porter.
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