69 Essential Queer Songs from the Past Decade

Arts

Nov 7

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Y’all the decade is almost over and queer people were EVERYWHERE. We won the right to marry and celebrated by showing out in every musical genre imaginable. In Lady Gaga’s freaky bisexual wake, Top 40 was left amenable to queer artists like Troye Sivan, Kehlani, and Hayley Kiyoko. Tegan and Sara even started making dance-pop! Bands like Hunx and His Punx, G.L.O.S.S., Downtown Boys, and Priests made the mosh pit safe for queers again. Lesbians totally killed the straight white man’s dominance over indie rock and we glimpsed the future through a drug-fueled haze while raving with Sophie.

We’ve celebrated by making a playlist filled with essential queer music of the past decade. There isn’t a lot of music by straight female pop divas, and if you have a problem with that kindly read this article or just face the Wussy Guillotine. This playlist IS filled with songs by queer artists* in every genre imaginable, from harsh noise to pristine pop. There are songs you know and probably songs you’ve never heard of, but they’re all essential queer artists who carved out space for themselves in the past decade. Feel free to @ us on Twitter and Instagram with anything we’ve missed (unlikely), and bring on the 2020s!

*There are two exceptions to the queer artists rule. The first is Robyn’s “Call Your Girlfriend,” which I’ve seen screamed in too many bars filled with lesbians to not include. The second is Charli XCX’s “Vroom Vroom” which counts as Queer because of Sophie’s involvement. Also, Poppers 2.

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Mo Wilson is a writer and sometimes DJ living in Brooklyn. He also throws indie rock/punk shows with the booking collective Booked By Grandma and loves plastic jewelry. You can find him on Twitter @sadgayfriendx and Instagram at @djgaypanic

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Mo Wilson

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