Black gay gospel singers

Wilmer “Little Axe” Broadnax was a Black transman whose tenor voice raised him to fame in the s and 50s during the golden era of traditional Black Gospel music. The year-old son of a gospel singer father is clearly and proudly subverting religious iconography and music to glorify homoerotic desire — and in doing so, prompting a national conversation about homophobia within the Baptist church and Black Christian culture as a whole.

While already facing the ever-present challenges inherent to blackness, a number of black musicians have still been gallant enough to claim sexual identities that could hamper their success. So in honor of these black artists who are boldly standing in their truth, we’ve rounded up 15 musicians of color who are unapologetically here and queer.

LGBTQ+ megastars have long dominated gospel music. Their flair has shaped the “soul-stirring” genre. Every Black History Month, there is a tribute to the Black Church and its gospel music. The contribution of LGBTQ+ singers to the canon of gospel music, however, is never front and center in the celebration of its history. With its overtly gay overtones, Gospel music is in the DNA of both Black sacred and secular cultures.

It cannot be overlooked in its influence in Aretha’s songs, Little Richard’s flamboyant performances, Alvin Ailey’s signature dance piece “Revelations,” or the public fire and brimstone exhortations of James Baldwin, whether at the. Sign up to our FREE newsletters to get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox.

But according to two scholars at Northwestern University, it is very much a reality in the world of gospel music within the Black church. Kent Brooks agrees. On Tuesday evening, Oct. The Black church, Brooks says, centers on liberation theology, the ongoing Black struggle from slavery through present day racism. Both scholars stress that this is not unique to Black churches, however, it takes on a specific framework when the significant role of gospel music is incorporated.

Take, for example, Chicago-born James Cleveland. The case was settled out of court. Johnson says that Cleveland was a regular attendee at parties thrown by the Rev. And then there was the singer Wilmer Broadnax, also in the same mid-late 20th century. He says acceptance of gay Black gospel singers is increasing, but not by much. Both Brooks and Johnson point to the example of gospel singer Anthony Williams, who performed under the name Tonex until , when he came out as gay, and changed his stage name to B.

Both he and Johnson include in their lecture what their lives were like, growing up Black, gay, and in the South, and how they wrestled internally with conservative church philosophies on sexuality. Jeff joined Evanston Now in after a year career as a broadcast journalist in Cincinnati, Ohio, during which he won more than 40 local, regional and national awards for excellence in reporting, More by Jeff Hirsh.

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