Revolt and music have always paired like peas and carrots. Music and literature were one of the first forms of expression the queers resorted to when the issue of gay rights was a taboo to even discuss. With two days to go for the International Pride month, t2 has made a playlist of seven iconic queer anthems. Tune in!

1. I Want To Break Free by Queen

Gender and sexuality have been predominant themes of Queen’s music. I Want To Break Free, a song that continues to be a primary dance song in parties and clubs, is unapologetically queer. The song chronicles the exact feeling most queer people have in multiple layers and forms. After the British rock band’s lead man, Freddie Mercury came out in the mid-70s, the band went on to make several songs that remain etched in queer playlists till date. The lines, “God knows I’ve fallen in love/ It’s strange but it’s true” are simple and resonate with millions.

2. I’m Coming Out by Diana Ross

A line we wish the queer community never had to say but is, unfortunately, one of the most prominent life-changing points in most of their lives — I’m Coming Out. The 1980 single by Diana Ross was one of the most iconic queer anthems that emerged during the 80s, making it almost sort of a battle cry for a massive group of marginalised people. However, it was revealed by songwriter Bernard Edwards that Ross did not know that the song was about being gay but was exhilarated nonetheless by the response the song received. Edwards thought of the song when he came across some Diana Ross impersonators in a famous Manhattan trans bar.

3. Born This Way by Lady Gaga

The pop star has been an advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights from the very beginning of her career. Born This Way from the eponymous album was released in 2011 but went on to be relatable and an unmissable queer track. She told Billboard in 2011, “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.” The lyrics “Don’t be a drag, just be a queen” and “In the religion of the insecure/ I must be myself, respect my youth/ A different lover is not a sin” hit hard.

4. Take Me To Church by Hozier

Common knowledge is hearing the beat drop in Take Me To Church on Instagram Reels but the song is about queer rights at its crux. The song is poetic yet straightforward about discrimination against homosexuality, especially in parts of Ireland and Russia, also roots of Hozier. The song is explicitly about the Catholic church’s stringent beliefs against the queers. We get goosebumps when Hozier sings, “I was born sick, but I love it” and “Take me to church/ I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies/ I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife/ Offer me that deathless death.”

5. You Need To Calm Down by Taylor Swift

Shade never made anybody less gay! Truer words have not been spoken before. We don’t see You Need To Calm Down as rainbow-washing just because it comes with a very gay music video. Some of Taylor’s lead supporting dancers on her tours have been out and proud queer people and then there are her GLAAD donations. She created ripples when she attacked homophobes in her 2019 song, a part of Lover. The lyrics go like, “Say it in the street, that’s a knock-out/But you say it in a Tweet, that’s a cop-out” and “You are somebody that we don’t know/ But you’re coming at my friends like a missile/ Why are you mad?/ When you could be GLAAD? (You could be GLAAD)/Sunshine on the street at the parade”.

6. Wake Me Up Before You Go Go by Wham!

George Michael was an instant favourite in the community when he wrote Wake Me Up Before You Go Go. When he came out in 1979 as bisexual, his Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley and his then-girlfriend were the first ones to know. However, he later realised he was gay. While Wake Me Up Before You Go Go is a signature queer song, when Michael launched his solo career, his I Want Your Sex was a strong track considering it released during the height of the AIDS epidemic.

7. Believe by Cher

Drag artistes have a common favourite and that is Cher. The pop star created numerous queer songs but Believe was her greatest queer anthem. When she released Believe, it broke records and was a chartbuster while playing in all party scenes. In 1979, Cher hired two drag queens to perform onstage with her and became one of the first to bring drag to the masses. Believe represents queer struggles worldwide and is not all roses but emphasises the larger message of being able to get through no matter what.