User:Anuhhh/LGBT music

1970s
In the 1970s, the disco, glam rock and industrial music cultures offered a multitude of platforms for expression for gender and sexual non-conforming individuals. Artists popular within the LGBT community included Blondie, Donna Summer, The Village People, Gloria Gaynor, and many others.

Disco was an incredibly notable genre for those in the LGBT community as it was constantly played in gay clubs and even produced by people in the community. Many people pushed back on disco and even created anti-disco movements, ultimately leading to homophobia and an increase in anti-gay sentiments.

The 1970's also birthed an era of culture extremely notable to queer people; the ballroom scene. Starting in New York City, the ballroom scene gave room for predominantly low-income queer people of color (QPOC) to express themselves, dance, and compete. From the scene emerged a style of dance called voguing, which is still popular and can be seen in ballroom events to this day. The dance is consistently referenced in current pop culture, but was popularized into the mainstream from Madonna's Vogue from her 2009 album, Celebration. The song is still popular within the LGBT community.

The ballroom scene itself would popularize different styles of music and would influence the future of music to be played in gay clubs and other queer spaces.

1980s
The 1980s saw increased exposure to LGBT culture, namely genderbending and cross-dressing, in the music industry with artists such as Culture Club, George Michael and Wham!, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Melissa Etheridge, Pet Shop Boys, Dead or Alive, and Erasure.

There was a large queer community that existed in electronic and dance music during the 80s. These genres of music were often played in underground queer clubs in many cities such as Los Angeles and New York.

The ballroom scene was still extremely active and was popularizing more and more genres of music and styles of dance.

Music videos began to allude to LGBT relationships, which included Bronski Beat's "Smalltown Boy", Pet Shop Boys' "Domino Dancing" and Madonna's "Vogue".

Gay icons during this decade included Cyndi Lauper, Loleatta Holloway, Gloria Gaynor, Bob Mould, and Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford.

Disco culture of the 70s and 80s is directly associated with queer musicians. Sexual and gender fluidity had become increasingly visible, leading to artists such as David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, and Prince to exist in unique ways that pushes the boundaries of gender and sexuality. The ambiguity and fluidity of these artists helped to create a safe space for queer people.

Also popular with the LGBT community was post-disco dance music such as Italo disco, house music, Hi-NRG, and freestyle. During the 1980s this music became more prevalent in the United States and LGBT artists gained prominence. DJ Larry Levan started his DJ career at the gay disco Paradise Garage.