my dear baby queers
chappell roan is lovely, sure
but i promise
she didn't invent the concept of dykey lyrics
there have been entire ass decades before 2024 (or "I listened to chappell roan before 2024," which seems to be a competitive sport in some sectors now?)
if you can believe it
Gladys Bentley. Billie Holliday. Janelle Monae. Joan Armatrading!!! Ani DiFranco. The Butchies. Team Dresch. The Gossip. Le Tigre. Meshell Ndegeocello. Phranc, mothertruckers. We all know the Indigo Girls, Tracy Chapman etc but even beyond the obv there's a v v deep bench. So deep.
Sleater-Kinney! But yeah, there are so many.
And Janelle Monáe has been so explicitly queer so recently that it's surprising they aren't getting more of this attention. I hope it isn't a race thing. They're so talented and gorgeous
chappell blew up in a big way that’s a lot & we’ll see where it goes.
janelle monae has had critically acclaimed albums since 2012 with like a dozen grammy noms & starring turns in major films.
folks will prolly drop to a dull roar on chappell soon enough, but i doubt janelle’s going anywhere.
AND Dirty Computer and the Age of Pleasure got criminally under-covered and I will bet you hard cash that when this washes out one of them will be charting differently
Dirty Computer got DOUBLY hit, because Monáe was jussssssst about to announce the second leg of the US tour behind the album… and then the beginning of 2020 hit. GODDAMNITSOMUCH
And I have NO idea how Age Of Pleasure got ignored like it did.
I’m still furious that Dirty Computer didn’t generate the same million thinkpieces that Lemonade did, because it merited them just as much. The Womanist theology in the album video was its own longform piece begging to be written!!
i honestly think age of pleasure suffered from comparison to her own albums. it managed to snag a best album grammy nomination and be a big crossover success while landing with critics and music press as a “yeah, it’s really good. what else do you expect from janelle monae?”
Yeah, it seemed like they got more press for Glass Onion (which they were fantastic in) than The Age of Pleasure. But creating an album seems like so much more of an individual achievement than acting in a movie
(And I'm not trying to minimize acting. I'm an actor)
Janelle Monae was only just on my radar when they played in London. Friends had a spare ticket, I wheedled to go out of FOMO. Made sure I listened to tracks for few days before, had the *best* time. Amazing performer. I listened to mainstream music radio lots & I’m aghast at how unknown they were!
Scanned "Sleater-Kinney" and "Janelle Monae" and thought: It's a post for ME!
Of course it's from this thread, the one that just keeps on giving tonight (Thank you @theradr.bsky.social & contributors)! 😀
All of this is of course true.
But none of those women made an entire album specifically about being disappointed by men, realizing they wanted women, telling men to go to hell, then avidly pursuing women, which was both very sexually explicit & very danceable.
It's essentially a concept record about coming out, first to yourself, then to the world, which tells the story in a manner that is both witty & emotionally raw.
I'm in my 50s & have listened to most of the artists you named, yet her record really does feel like something new & special.
I used to be an electrician at the Calvin in Northampton, so there were a few years where I'd see her at least five or six times a year. She was always a super cool person, for sure.
I used to do lights for her in Northampton. For a few years, I was the ME at a deathtrap called the Pearl Street Nightclub - and she was always one of the best performers. Her and George Clinton were my favorite people to work with.
