Originally Published in Print December 2021
As the noughties revival takes the fashion world by storm, alerting the nostalgia brigade to such pop culture gems like The Simple Life and wired headphones (rip airpods, you didn’t last long), I think it is only fair to recognise the impact the queer community had on this era, and that this era had on the gays. Take a look at the top early 2000s artists that awakened all those baby gays way back when.
Britney Spears
Okay, yeah, cliché I know. Not to mention she was the world’s most prolific popstar at the time, I mean, who didn’t love Britney? But there’s good reason Britney is so synonymous with the LGBT community – she encapsulates both the love for performance and over-the-top aesthetics found in queer art, a prevalent example of the moment being drag queens, and following her controversies of the late aughts, also encapsulates the feeling of being misunderstood and ostracised by the people who love to consume that art. You need only look to Chris Crocker (now Cara Cunningham’s) viral video ‘Leave Britney Alone’ which exemplifies the empathy the LGBT+ community had for Brit’s circumstances, a video which was laughed at and has since been vindicated. That got heavy. Pop idols are gay, basically.
Dolly Parton
A girlboss, a gem, possibly the best country musician ever— Dolly Parton is the tolerant and accepting mother figure you always needed. She taught you that it’s okay to like rhinestones and long nails and still be a serious artistic and intellectual force. ‘9 to 5’ is literally a study in class consciousness, and I think the communist gays need to accept Dolly Parton as their comrade … unless … she is what awakened their class consciousness in the first place.Oh my God it’s turtles all the way d-
Aqua
As trashy Eurodance dominated the clubs and the airwaves, Aqua stands out among the lot for their single ‘Barbie Girl’ which changed the entire game. The song was irritatingly catchy, the lyrics lewd, but just about vague enough to get past the ears of ill-attentive parents. Who hears the name of a children’s toy and thinks: “Sure, it’s okay if my child watches this hyper-saturated music video on loop for hours on end, and it is absolutely not concerning if they then pivot to shot-for-shot remakes of that video made in The Sims 2”. I genuinely believe that if Aqua had not brainwashed all of us as children, irreparably warping our perception of what is listenable, we would not have the PC music or hyperpop that we have today.
The Veronicas
‘Untouched’ is one of those insane tunes from the early 2000s that sadly seems to get forgotten from many pop medleys, playlists, and throwback stations – but do you know who remembers The Veronicas? Gays. One half of the twin duo, Jess Origliasso, literally dated Ruby Rose, the effervescent non-binary WLW awakening for so many Tumblr and Instagram teens in 2015 after her performance on ‘Orange Is The New Black’, as well as starring in one of the most gay panic-inducing music videos of the 2010’s, ‘By Your Side’. If that isn’t a bit fruity, I don’t know what is.
My Chemical Romance
….or really any pop punk or emo-adjacent music that isn’t Fall Out Boy. Look, don’t lie to yourself, former emo kids. The theatricality and gender-bending aesthetics of 2000s alternative music has queerness in its bones. Even aside from all the obvious takes that can be drawn from feeling angsty and confused in your identity and just wanting to scream to the tune of some horny teenager’s songwriting, the sheer depth of expression and artistry that is evident in this music is liberating. Being the weird goth kid, drawing endless anime and Tim Burton inspired OC’s, watching Warrior Cats AMVS set to MCR and Linkin Park songs. What a joyous form of self-fashioning, of discovering who and what you are in the world. Also, all the emos thought it was, like, way cool to be bi.
Robbie Williams
Indeed, there may be something inherently alarming about the very idea of Robbie Williams. Being a childhood stan of Take That is somewhat forgivable, ‘Shine’ was part and parcel of the 2000s soundtrack. But Robbie? Mister Williams himself? Bear with me; He was a man marketed to the middle aged woman demographic, I get that, and isn’t there something inherently fringe to the idea of a child being obsessed with someone like that? Come on, they might as well have been watching Desperate Housewives or Sex and The City. Even, god forbid, Cougartown. Just think about it.
Literally Any Glee Cover Song
Yes, the Glee cast rendition of ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ had every child in an absolute vice grip — but in keeping with the aforementioned appreciation of the art of the extra (what I mean here is camp) found among LGBT circles and creators, hell, the show’s creator Ryan Murphy is gay, the association just makes sense. Not to mention, Glee was a forerunner in genuine LGBT representation in mainstream television, particularly in the teen demographic, and was really a pioneer of the growth in representation in the next decade. At which point I would like to note that Glee premiered in 2009 and technically shouldn’t be on this list, but I think it deserves to be here.
Nicki Minaj
…..I point you to the Barbz.
