Elton John’s special tribute to coming out loud and proud
in opposition to a homophobic entertainment industry and the UK tabloid press, determined
to tank his career.
Authors' Note: The Wiki Player has been disabled on this post today because we believe 1D's music speaks for itself. Enjoy!
As we look back over a bittersweet we're-still-standing-year here at Narnia, there are five extraordinary artists who more than deserve a special shout out for their courageous perseverance in the face of serial adversity. A true band of brothers whose multiple solo achievements have surprised many and gained the respect of a few million more. No doubt, some of their new fans are those whose lack of familiarity with One Direction’s work throughout the years, often led to a predictable sheeple-like boyband snobbery toward their musical legacy and their artistic potential.
One Direction 2010
For that reason, despite the ignorance of the general
population, combined with several well-known industry behemoths intent to undermine
and undercut the solidarity of these young men, the year is coming to a close on a note of
resounding success, a mounting groundswell rising above the greed, homophobia and
pettiness of entrenched bitter business suits, complacent in their unchallenged
hegemony. A #MeToo future staring them in the face like never before as power begins
to shift away from the status quo toward a new era of inclusion.
One Direction 2015
Let’s face it, not only are Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson,
Niall Horan, Harry Styles, and Zayn Malik all pretty darn easy on the eyes and
the ears, they are in many ways a salve to the soul and a reminder of just how
important unity in the face of corruption can be. Despite the obstacles and the
intentional roadblocks imposed to devalue the 1D brand and factionalize their
fandom, these guys continue to support one another and new fans emerge on a
daily basis. Whatever contractual obligations they have been burdened with since
2016, these guys are battle-hardened, proven survivors. Regardless of whether their current
predicament is a result of an imposed hiatus or one that was negotiated to
clear the way for their future freedom from Syco/Sony, the shadiness and
surreptitious war that is obviously still going on behind the scenes will end.
No matter how many fake babies, tabloid trash, fake model girlfriends, industry sabotage, Larry recanting, or imposed separations, these guys are not giving up their identity nor their dreams. The inference is loud and clear that we shouldn't either. Harry, Liam, Louis, Niall, and Zayn remain relevant on a musical as well as a social, political and cultural level, a true force to be reckon with, now and into the future. Congratulations boys. Keep up the good fight and have a great 2018!
No matter how many fake babies, tabloid trash, fake model girlfriends, industry sabotage, Larry recanting, or imposed separations, these guys are not giving up their identity nor their dreams. The inference is loud and clear that we shouldn't either. Harry, Liam, Louis, Niall, and Zayn remain relevant on a musical as well as a social, political and cultural level, a true force to be reckon with, now and into the future. Congratulations boys. Keep up the good fight and have a great 2018!
The acoustic version of Liam Payne's, "Bedroom Floor":
"Girl Crush", from Harry Styles at the BBC
And this past Friday, on December 8th, Louis Tomlinson dropped his latest single, "Miss You"- Check it out!
Zayn Malik's, "Dusk Till Dawn" feat. Sia
Hoping for a better year around the corner, foreshadowed by this reply from Louis to Niall back in May, 2017
— Louis Tomlinson (@Louis_Tomlinson) May 21, 2017
Collaboration: Prairie Girl and Methodical Muser
3 comments:
I remembering loving that video of Elton John's and the dark haired young dancer caught my eye. Imagine my surprise a few years ago when I found out that was Bruno from Dancing With the Stars! lol. Couldn't believe it. But I had no idea the story behind that song and how tough it was for Elton after he came out. I've been a huge fan of Elton's for many years and went to see him in concert once in Kansas City. He's a legend - so many hits. And this morning, M&M was telling me a story of how he stood up for Harry once at a small concert he was giving and while Elton sometimes can be abrasive, I have never had a doubt about his big heart and he's certainly gone on to have a historic career.
And I love all of these songs above. Niall's is the latest one I've heard and wow, I downloaded that one right away. What a great song. I cannot believe how talented each one of these young men are and what a juggernaut they will be when they reunite. I can't even imagine; so proud of them and how they're still surviving and thriving despite what they've been through.
Today, Liam immediately showed signs of probably getting ready to endure some nonsense concerning Chiam and the baby Bear, which is not his. My heart breaks for him. Yes, he embellishes sometimes and goes on; Liam is good at lying, lol. But today, I saw some of his smiles and he did not look the same. We'll see; I could be wrong, but I've been seeing some crap about how this Christmas will be the first as a "dad" and I'm already anticipating more you-know-what to hit the tabloids.
Tonight, I've got a bit of a heavy heart as I received news that a co-worker of mine who worked out on the floor, passed away early yesterday morning. He had been diagnosed with thyroid cancer probably around a year ago or so, maybe less, I'm not sure. He had a great sense of humor and had always been quite vocal about issues and concerns during worker meetings. He was fiery and yet could be quite self-deprecating. We almost dated for awhile, years ago, and this was silly, but we had someone as a go-between and so he had my phone number and was going to call at a certain time, but got too nervous and never did. And moi, ol' high & mighty said NOpe! Not for me! And I told him that nope sorry, that was it and no, I didn't want to go out now.
smh. I was a real eyeroller over that, but anyway we continued to be good friends and I talked to him after his initial diagnosis when he wasn't getting adequate answers from his doctor and he was nervous about the diagnosis, about being slammed with this news because from the very start, the outlook wasn't good, but he wanted to do whatever was necessary to get better.
He continued to work and his supervisor worked with him, letting him rest when he needed to. He gave a good fight, but succumbed yesterday. I didn't realize things had deteriorated for the past week or so and now it's too late to say goodbye.
And a family friend has been recently diagnosed w/ lung cancer; she's a very good friend of my mom's and she would join us at birthday dinners at the house. Only a few rounds of chemo, but they knocked her on her back and she just couldn't physically handle them. So she's already said no more and has already seen a priest and is at peace with what lies ahead.
Boom. Just like that. Your life changes in the blink of an eye.
Austin was at the New Jersey Walker Stalker convention this past weekend and he looked just outstanding. Lots of pictures of him with fans and I'll try to post some of them tomorrow.
Awwww, watching yet another sappy, cheesy Hallmark Christmas movie. And they always have happy endings. I love happy endings. :-) Yay
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