Tag: 20gayteen

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Press Pop Culture

Best of The Tempest 2018: 9 Stories from Pop Culture

[Image description: A collage of four images from The Shape of Water, Crimes of Grindelwald, The Bold Type, Chris Brown overlaid with 'Pop Culture 2018 #bestofthetempest18']
[Image description: A collage of four images from The Shape of Water, Crimes of Grindelwald, The Bold Type, Chris Brown overlaid with 'Pop Culture 2018 #bestofthetempest18']

It’s been a peculiar year in the realm of entertainment. We’ve had such big, progressive victories and such big setbacks and anachronisms in terms of representation, transparency, and inclusivity. Many LGBTQ+ artists thrived, and 2018 was dubbed 20GAYTEEN by singer Hayley Kiyoko. It was the year of Black Panther and Crazy Rich Asians, and yet big name studios are still out there producing films that are imbued with racism, sexism, homophobia, and fatphobia as well as often promoting rape and hate.

We’re still light years away from consuming the egalitarian entertainment we deserve. I knew that very well when I became Pop Culture Editor at The Tempest. I understood that I would have to look closely at many media products that would make me mad, which I would rather ignore and avoid at all costs, but I gladly accepted the challenge. I believe our mission is to shed light on everything that is going on, and that includes denouncing the many injustices that occur in the entertainment industry. We can’t possibly stay silent about the things we deem wrong, because silence is complicity.

But we also don’t like to only see the glass half empty, and we love to admit that there are many things to praise and to celebrate. Without further ado, I present to you 9 of my favorite Pop Culture stories we published in 2018, a mix of the good and the bad.

1. Why are blockbuster films pretending that lesbians and bisexuals don’t exist?

Why are blockbuster films pretending that lesbians and bisexuals don’t exist?

Despite the good representation that television and the music industry gifted us with this year, blockbusters are still actively promoting the erasure of female queerness as well as employing queer bait. This is a trend that needs to stay in 2018.

2. What time is it, Hollywood?

What time is it, Hollywood?

What about what happens behind the camera? This article explores some trends of the entertainment industry from the inside out, because actresses are not the only people we need to protect. Let’s say #TimesUp to all kinds of discrimination.

3. Dislikeable female characters aren’t inherently feminist – but that’s okay

Dislikeable female characters aren’t inherently feminist – but that’s okay

There is a big misconception in fiction and in critique: that a female character who dares be different and dislikable is automatically a great feminist heroine. She’s not, and that’s okay.

4. Why I’m boycotting J.K. Rowling and her “Fantastic Beasts”

Why I’m boycotting J.K. Rowling and her “Fantastic Beasts”

We are tired of people giving J.K. Rowling a free pass for everything just because she wrote a beautiful book series 20 years ago. For a while now, she has been twisting things to appear “woke” instead of honestly admitting that as the times progressed, she also wants to be more inclusive. There is no need to say that she was planning plot twists all along when in reality the implications of that make her way more problematic. Read why in this piece!

5. Bollywood item numbers are more dangerous than we think

Bollywood item numbers are more dangerous than we think

If you don’t know what an item number is, you need to read this piece. If you do know, you need to read this piece. It’s eye-opening and I will never look at a Bollywood film the same way again.

6. This director’s approach to diverse female characters completely changed my movie-watching experience

This director’s approach to diverse female characters completely changed my movie-watching experience

Contrary to what some haters will have you believe about feminists, we do celebrate the accomplishments and achievements of men, when they deserve it. This article is a clap on the back of an Oscar-winning director for an amazing film that contributed to making 2018 better.

7. Yes, The Bold Type is unrealistic… just not for the reasons you think

Yes, The Bold Type is unrealistic… just not for the reasons you think 

You may or may not know this show, which was a true revelation for its honest representation of working (and woke!) millennial women. However, the show has been accused of portraying a utopistic world of equality (but it really doesn’t, the protagonists deal with misogyny, racism and homophobia every day). This article cleverly responds to that claim, contextualizing it particularly within the journalism world (where the main characters spend most of their time) that we know too well.

8. Karma has finally come for Chris Brown, and we can thank women for that

Karma has finally come for Chris Brown, and we can thank women for that

Abusers deserve to be held accountable for their actions. After the tidal wave that was the #MeToo movement, it’s good to see that celebrities are still being taken down after abusive behavior.

9. My mind tells me to read, but my body is overwhelmed and overworked

My mind tells me to read, but my body is overwhelmed and overworked

A constant struggle in the transition to adulthood is that we are burdened with too many responsibilities and we have too little time to do the things we actually want to do out of sheer pleasure, like reading. It does not help that books have gained a very strong competitor for our time and attention, the “monster” that are streaming services.

We’re ready to kiss 2018 goodbye. In the hope that 2019 will be a more satisfying year for women, people of color, and all oppressed minorities, happy new year from the staff of The Tempest!

Categories
The Internet LGBTQIA+ Movies Music Books Pop Culture

The most iconic moments of 20gayteen – and why entertainment matters in normalizing minorities

Pynk Music Video by Janelle Monae [Image description: seven women dance together wearing pink skirts that represent the vulva] via Youtube

Didn’t you hear? Word on the net is that 2018 has been canceled, replaced by 20gayteen, which sounds much cooler and much more diverse. Jokes aside, this year counts many amazing contributions in the entertainment industry by queer artists and about LGBTQ+ narratives. They were much needed and will continue to be if we are to win the fight towards de facto equality. Yes, the road to equal rights is still long, and entertainment is by far less important than laws and policies, but it’s a step in the right direction.

How does a marginalized group come to be tolerated, accepted and finally beloved in society? A phobia always originates from ignorance. We fear what is different, what is unknown. As long as something is conceptualized as Other, there will always be a certain fear that translates into hatred. The necessary normalization should take place in common spaces that are constant sources of information for society: the easiest way to change people’s minds is to do it through entertainment.

Films and television have an almost omnipotent power that is expressed in a vicious circle: they are reflection of our society, yes, but our society also mirrors what it sees in the media. Therefore, without further ado, here’s a list of relevant media events that might not be perfect, but that are definitely helping changing people’s minds little by little.

1. Janelle Monae and her Dirty Computer

Janelle Monae
[Image decription: Janelle Monae wearing a rainbow gown at an event]
Janelle has always been an outspoken activist. This year, she’s gone above and beyond to express herself in the most creative and artistic way, not only through her music, but visually as well, through videos and fashion choices. Her music video for Pynk is, quite literally, an ode to vaginas. It also teases a not-so-hidden jab at Donald Trump, with “pynk grabs back” written on panties. Iconic. Dirty Computer, her 46-minute dystopian sci-fi “emotion picture” companion to her album of the same title, is a metaphor for being Other in a white patriarchal heteronormative society that represses anything that is different. Janelle’s multiple identities conflict with the repressive societal standards: she is Black, wild, free, and in a queer polyamorous relationship with the character played by Tessa Thompson and a man. The futuristic visual vibes of her creations are always evocative and tell a story as beautiful as the lyrics.

2. Love, Simon

[Image description: two boys are about to kiss]

The film Love, Simon directed by Greg Berlanti, based on the book Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli was a real pioneer, as the first mainstream teen comedy about gay love. A globally acclaimed hit, it grossed $60+millions at the box office. The takeaway message from the film is that being gay really shouldn’t be a big deal in 2018, it should be normalized. See the hysterical sequence of Simon’s friends coming out to their families for being straight. In fact, the film was marketed not as a niche product for a specific audience of LGBTQ+ and allies, but as a story about love, the way all stories should be presented.

3. Hayley Kiyoko and her Expectations

[Image description: a woman sitting in a chair looks at a naked woman on the floor, who in turns look back at her]
Everything our Lesbian Jesus does, every interview, every social media post is a blessing for the LGBTQ+ community. Expectations is Hayley’s first album and it is impossible to pick a favorite song or music video that she released this year. From the Pride anthem Curious to What I Need ft. Kehlani, and the less known tracks like He’ll Never Love You. Sadly, until recently, Hayley’s audience was limited to queer communities online. Now she’s finally being recognized by the media and even won the Push Artist of the Year Award at the VMAs in September. It’s only fair she’s finally made it into stardom. After all, she’s the one who came up with the hashtag 20GAYTEEN.

4. Bloom by Troye Sivan

Troye Sivan
[Image description: Troye sitting sideways in an armchair wearing an unbuttoned saffron shirt and turquoise feathers on his head]

Troye’s second album is full of beats, but nothing will be as aesthetically pleasing as the Bloom music video. Glamorously vintage, steamy, visually daring and stunning, Bloom also challenges gender norms, with Troye proudly wearing make-up and clothes that are considered feminine by heteronormative patriarchal society. As usual, he’s having none of that. He dances in bright red lipstick, skirts, dresses and sings in front of elaborate flower arrangements, because boys should be allowed to wear whatever they feel like.

 5. Call Me By Your Name

[Image description: two boys are sitting at a table on a sunny day]
The film by Luca Guadagnino based on the novel by André Aciman got four nominations at this year’s Academy Awards (including Best Picture) and brought home the award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Before you say that the age gap between Elio and Oliver is illegal, I’ll tell you that it’s completely legal in Italy, where CMBYN is set. This story had a powerful impact on thousands of people because it is a common tale about finding oneself in and through others. It’s about human connection and self-discovery, self-acceptance and – only at the end – romantic love, that just happens to be between two Jewish males. The film’s cinematography is one of the most beautiful of this decade, and it will make you feel nostalgic of places you’ve never been in a time you weren’t born yet.

According to you, what are the media events, films, videos, songs, television episodes, personalities, etc. that made 20GAYTEEN?Let us know by tweeting me at @ladymultifandom, and you could be featured in a future The Tempest article!

The queers thrived in the media in 2018. Let’s keep it up next year, shall we? Twenty-nineteen also rhymes with 20gayteen. Or maybe it’ll be twenty-bi-teen? And then, what, you ask? Twenty-gaynty anyone?

Categories
Music Pop Culture

Hayley Kiyoko is the pop star of my dreams, and I love watching her shine

Hayley Kiyoko lies between two women, whose hands are on her neck and shoulder.
Paper

Pop star Hayley Kiyoko exploded onto the queer music scene in 2015, when the video for her second single off This Side of Paradise EP, “Girls Like Girls,” went viral. Since then, she’s produced hit after hit all about her fascination with women, and honestly?

Same, girl. Thank you for this incredible, important work.

In 2018 (20GAYTEEN if you will), Kiyoko plans to release her debut LP, Expectations.

On Thursday, she released the self-directed music video for a new single from Expectations, “Curious.” It’s definitely NSFW, but it’s also unapologetically queer from start to finish, and the female gaze is refreshing and appreciated.

This video is incredible. I’ve watched it a dozen times already. Every time Kiyoko releases a new single, it’s accompanied by a super steamy video featuring her getting extra intimate with other women.

Obviously, Kiyoko isn’t the first queer woman in music, but she’s one of the first openly lesbian women of color to push her attraction to women to the forefront of her career and aesthetic, i.e. framing her entire body of work around her queerness.

There’s no way to straight-code Hayley Kiyoko’s work. She makes sure of that in her songwriting, her performances, and her music videos.

[bctt tweet=”There’s no way to straight-code Hayley Kiyoko’s work.” username=”wearethetempest”]

Kiyoko features women from various ethnicities in her videos, as well as women with visible stretch marks and other “imperfections”—which is awesome because the way lesbian women are usually packaged for the public is very much focused on male pleasure. That means blonde hair, blue eyes, impractically long acrylic nails, and exclusively femme-on-femme content—all of which exist in the lesbian experience but aren’t the only lesbian experience.

We need more queer women, like Kiyoko, to be encouraged to take charge of their own work. The difference is stark, and hella empowering.

It’s also refreshing to see an openly lesbian woman—especially a woman of color—involved in ad campaigns and doing interviews on TRL. Watching Kiyoko rise through the ranks has been a genuine pleasure, both as a fan of pop music and as someone who would have loved to see more openly queer women in the music scene when I was just a baby lesbian trying to figure things out.

[bctt tweet=”‘Curious’ is definitely NSFW, but it’s also unapologetically queer from start to finish.” username=”wearethetempest”]

Beyond the aesthetics, the content of Kiyoko’s music is also important for young queer women. She dives into topics often explored in heteronormative love songs, from crushing on a friend to wondering whether an old flame misses you, too.

Not having to change the pronouns in a popular song to make it apply to your crush is an amazing feeling—I can attest to that from years of listening to artists like Tegan and Sara and sighing in relief when I didn’t have to think “if only this song was about a woman…”

[bctt tweet=”We need more queer women, like Kiyoko, to be encouraged to take charge.” username=”wearethetempest”]

Since the “Curious” music video premiered, it’s already gotten more than 1 million views on YouTube; Kiyoko’s last video, for the single “Feelings,” has over 6 million in just two months. Expectations is slated to hit stores on March 30, and the album cover features Kiyoko staring in admiration at a naked woman whose back is to the camera. “Women are a constant inspiration to me and I want to translate that love and appreciation into physical art, through all my music and imagery,” Kiyoko said in an Instagram post.

I’m here for it. I absolutely cannot wait for Expectations to drop, so I can listen exclusively to it for the rest of the year.

I’ve already got “Curious” on repeat on Spotify. Who’s with me?