Martha Reeves and the Vandellas recorded “I Should Be Proud,” a clear anti-war song, in 1970. However, she was told that the CIA was following her around and that song was taken off the radio.
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The Village People are more important to the gay community than YMCA. Most of the guys who sang and performed YMCA were not even the original band. The fact that a gay fantasy band would sell a million copies of its debut album (which only had four songs) is pretty incredible.
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“The ‘girl’ thing seems to be real important for other people but I’m mystified by it. For me, Brass In Pocket was supposed to be real traditional, because tradition in rock is what turns me on. We want our rock singers to be confident and cocky, and Brass In Pocket was an act, my attempt to write a song that sounded like that.” — Chrissie Hynde
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Nile Rogers said in an interview with Red Bull Music Academy in 2011 that he and Bernard Edwards realized that with Good Times, they had the “perfect hip hop record because the break down took so long to develop that they could have rhymes that could go on forever…” He said for Chic, the song was just the excuse to go to the chorus and the chorus was just the excuse to go to the breakdown.
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…name-checking Nixon was not just taking advantage of an easy target. He invited this criticism by involving himself in the discussion about what was and was not “appropriate” for radio airplay.
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“Lady Marmalade” helped create a shift of perception, seducing nations into singing along to a proud, unfettered sexuality from the Black female POV. The trio channeled Lady M.’s erotic ferocity in the spirit of Ralph Ellison’s “Change the Joke and Slip the Yoke,” blowing up the racist Jezebel stereotype by flaunting their sexual agency with the roar of a three-headed lioness. — Adele Bertei
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Fueled by a few too many gin and tonics, Charlie Rich announces that John Denver is the CMA Entertainer of the Year but it does not end there. He reaches into his pocket, takes out a lighter, and sets the card on fire. Fortunately, John Denver was appearing via satellite from Australia and did not see it but a whole lot of other folks did. Charlie said it was an accident and blamed it on some painkillers but given the state of country music in 1975, it seemed too obvious of a statement to ignore. That statement was that the likes of John Denver were not welcome in country music.
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The Loft was the beginning of the members-only sanctuaries that attracted gay men, in particular, because it was places like the Loft and the Sanctuary, and Paradise Garage that welcomed...legitimized the presence of the queer community. No more sitting in dark corners, making sure that you had your bail money in your pocket.
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