Queer The Music with Jake Shears explores LGBTQ+ anthems that have dominated dancefloors and helped shift politics, perception, and popular culture.
In the first series of the podcast, the Scissor Sisters frontman talks to queer artists and allies about the stories behind one game-changing record each week. Jake Shears and his guests unearth, song by song, stories that speak to who we are today.
The first episode features ‘You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)’ with Shears and the late Sylvester’s longtime collaborator Jeanie Tracy, plus his biographer Josh Gamson breaking down barriers in race, sound and gender. The floor-filler paints a deeper picture of the disco heyday as it encounters the terror of AIDS.
Episode two sees Jake and ‘Cabaret at The Kit Kat Club’ cast-mate Self Esteem in discussion on anti-patriarchy modern-classic ‘I Do This All The Time’, also shining a spotlight on the still under-represented experiences of queer women in the mainstream.
Further episodes will feature the likes of Olly Alexander, Peaches, King Princess, Rufus Wainwright and Skin, with more names to be revealed soon.
“I am thrilled to be hosting ‘Queer The Music’ which celebrates important LGBTQ+ artists and the anthems that have soundtracked queer lives,” Jake Shears comments. “I have always tried my best to be unashamedly myself and am grateful that myself and Scissor Sisters have often been credited as queer trailblazers.
“Well, there were a lot of people that did that before me and there will be a lot of people to do it after me. I am eager to shine a light on those artists who have fought countless prejudices, to hear their stories and to learn the finer details about how the songs were made.
“I’ll be exploring the idea of queer music. Is it a label meant to box us in? Is it something you can willingly create? Does it even exist in the first place? What I do know is that people in the LGBTQ+ community have been making incredible popular music for decades.
“I’m excited to find out about how the process and reaction to it has changed: I think it’s important to begin to talk about what this lineage and legacy is, and start to figure out how, as LGBTQ+ artists, we fit into it together.”
The podcast is made in association with Mercury Studios, its CEO Alice Webb adds: “Who better to tell these important stories than the talented and pioneering Jake Shears. We are delighted to be collaborating with him on this genre-hopping podcast series that unearths the incredible songs and artists who pushed the boundaries of music and acceptance.”
The first two episodes of Queer The Music are available now on all major podcast platforms.
