Lineage:

"I Was Born This Way" by Carl Bean --> "For Today I am Boy" by Anthony and the Johnsons -->
"Born This Way" by Lady Gaga -->  "Salt" by Bad Suns --> "1,2,3 Dayz Up" by Kim Petras

“I Was Born This Way”

The discussion of the LGBTQ community has not been an ongoing topic for very long. In terms of being introduced to society, the idea of being gay came before the idea of being transgender. In 1975 Chris Spierer and Bunny Jones wrote “I Was Born This Way” which was later sung by Valentino. Spierer and Jones wanted to create gay anthem, a song that people can listen to and find hope and empowerment. Besides wanting to create a gay anthem, they wanted to bring the issues against gays known. This was one of the first disco songs written about being gay. 

“For Today I am Boy”

While the idea of Gay rights has been often more represented, in 2005 Antony and the Johnsons, an indie rock band, wrote a “For Today I am Boy.” This song is about a boy yearning for his future where he can become a confident and mature woman, but he is still stuck in a male body. They write, 

“One day I’ll grow up, I’ll be a beautiful woman
One day I’ll grow up, I’ll be a beautiful girl…
But for today I am a child, for today I am a boy.”

This song allowed for the Transgender community to openly be accepted and understood by society. 

“Born This Way”

Spierer’s song empowered many people in the 1970’s and through the 21st century. One in particular is pop legend, Lady Gaga. Lady Gaga used inspiration from Spierer’s song to create her own, “Born This Way.” In 2011 Lady Gaga tells Billboard, “I want to write my this-is-who-the-fuck-I-am anthem, but I don’t want it to be hidden in poetic wizardry and metaphors. I want it to be an attack, an assault on the issue because I think, especially in today’s music, everything gets kind of washy sometimes and the message gets hidden in the lyrical play.” Lady Gaga wanted to tell people that they are free to be who they are without the judgment of anyone, and in her song “Born This Way” she makes sure to not leave anything up to the imagination. While it may have been harder for Spierer to be blunt with his meaning in the 1970’s because of the way society was, Lady Gaga finishes the job for him making sure people understand the truth. 

“Salt”

“Salt” falls three years after “Born This Way” was released. This song has another take on the struggle that transgender people deal with and trying to feel themselves in their own skin. 

“1,2,3 Dayz Up”

All of the artists that have written songs about the LGBTQ community have paved a pathway for the community. One way that is shown is through Kim Petras. Kim Petras is an openly transgender female artist. She was the second ever openly transgender woman to receive a Grammy. Petras wrote “1,2,3 Dayz Up” about never giving up and being able to have a good time. She writes, 

“O-o-o-o-one days up
Two days up
Three days up
We don’t stop, we don’t stop, we don’t stop.” 

This song can be related to this LGBTQ community in the sense that the community never gave up on fighting for their rights which allowed Petras to be able to get to where she is.

 

The songs that have been written about the LGBTQ community have paved the way for more artists and the community as a whole have a place in society which is rightfully theirs.