The Queer Woman or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Halsey
I've been really angry since Black Beatles went number one, but there was a point where it went from "this song is bad" to "I'm extremely angry and really upset about this". That point was when I saw this
Then it hit me. I watch men get praised constantly, for some reason this year especially, for having songs that degrade women, songs about mistreating women, because the artist happens to be a minority. Many songs that have reached the top 40 and top 10 this year by black men have had countless lyrics about mistreating women, cheating on women with women who are also in relationships, etc. These things for some reason didn't bother me as much until recently.
When Closer went number 1, people complained. No, the song is not amazing, but people complained because it was Halsey. I saw no one celebrate the fact that there was a queer woman on the top of the charts. I saw no one celebrate the fact that there was a black woman on top of the charts. Someone tell me, I'm genuinely curious and can't find it in a Google search, when's the last time an openly gay or bi woman had a number 1 song? I couldn't find anything.
Songs with awful degrading comments about women get praised constantly yet Halsey gets dragged to the pits for...being a little annoying sometimes? Being "extra"? Yeah annoying people are SO MUCH WORSE than someone who constantly puts down a group of people and talks about treating them badly.
From this point forward, I fully embrace Halsey and her appearance in popular culture. Her success as a bisexual and biracial woman on the pop charts should not be undermined in a world where the success of men who degrade women gets celebrated. I no longer stand for the celebration of men who who popularize the mistreatment of women. Halsey is the only queer person, let alone woman, to have a number one single this year. I am celebrating and I believe more people should be. The song may be about a hetero relationship and she may be "white passing" but that doesn't take away the fact that a queer, black woman is on the longest running number 1 of the year.
That's all I have to say.
But seriously, if someone could tell me the last gay woman to have a number 1 single and the last bi woman to have a number one single, that would be fantastic because I honestly can't find it.
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