It’s not our place to think critically about his image and what he’s putting out there? That’s everyone’s place, as soon as you put something out for public consumption. And he’s been in the game long enough to understand that. He’s grown up in this environment. It’s like second nature. Specific details in his personal life? No. Public life? Yes. And this is true of all art. Unfortunately there is an overlap in this instance.
It’s no coincidence that he and a bunch of others are using queer imagery during a period when queer culture itself and understanding of it is probably at its most mainstream in history. We’re living in a world where a drag competition is a bona fide phenomena and a tv show about trans people of colour is winning Emmys. And the biggest pop stars on the planet are tapping into that - of course they are. It’s not for money, it’s for relevance. Not for the first time and not for the last. Bowie was straight, Jagger was straight, Prince was straight, and they all flirted with it at various points. Prince even asked “Am I straight or gay?” in Controversy and was asked “Are you gay?” in Uptown. It was all image.
“Using” is a strong word. He’s doing what every major star does: feeling out his audience and honing in on what they respond to. Same way Beyonce didn’t touch feminism and black power until after Black Lives Matter and MeToo, and realised that this is what her audience were responding to.
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how sincere it is if people are identifying with it. But, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be having the cultural discussions, as that’s the whole point of art in the first place.
