Gay Anthems 2009 spawns four decades of activism and anthems. There is something here for everyone. More importantly, the majority of the songs contained in these four sets have been updated for today’s dancefloors. From Diana Ross to Kristine W, it’s all here. Well, almost all here. Never fear, if this goes over as well as I hope, I plan on doing a second part to this series in the spring of 2010.
There are a total of four mixes; simply donating $10 per set will allow you to download the mix, create an mp3 CD for playback at home or in your car, transfer it to your iPod so you can use it for your workouts or even have a ‘happy house’ party. To ensure full transparency (a word carelessly bandied around these days) I will be donating 80% of the proceeds to “Equality Across America” 5% to my host provider Podbean and PayPal with the remaining 15% going towards my own personal costs in compiling this release. I also plan on listing the first initial and last names of donors at the end of each month and the amount to be donated to EAA. For those that wish not to be identified, just request to remain anonymous in the comment section of your donation.
I can honestly say that I have spent more time on these four mixes than anything I have ever done. For those that don’t follow my blog, anyone that does can tell you that my mixes are of the highest caliber. From song selection, editing, mixing to the final mastering for superior sound quality, I don’t spare anything in my work. For the slightly technically inclined, I even provide a cue sheet to split the tracks up for easier access that doesn’t leave a gap in-between songs. Also, each mix is embedded with the original artwork, which will show up in any mp3 player with a video screen and tracklists so you know what you’re listening to. For those of you that want to own the individual songs, I also provide purchase links for those songs that are still currently available for legal download within each post.
When my brother died of AIDS in 1986 and my parents were turned down by no less than four funeral homes for embalming and burial (the owners of one of these were even good friends of the family), it was then that I became aware of the discrimination against not only the disease but our community as well. To add insult to injury, an ex-girlfriend of mine sent an editorial from the Texas A&M University newspaper, where my brother was about to graduate, which addressed the death of a current student from AIDS while cowardly avoiding his name and demanding the university do a better job of preventing “people like him” from attending for fear of spreading disease. Burning with anger, these incidences made it that much more difficult for me to come out of the closet and live my life as an openly gay man. For the longest time, I blamed him for all my problems. I now know, I was wrong.
Over the years, like many of us, I became complacent as long as no one was stepping on my toes. With the free flow of information in blogs and YouTube these days, my eyes have been opened wide to the hate, bigotry and discrimination that takes place almost on a daily basis from as high up as our own government. I will no longer sit idly by while our rights under the Constitution of this great country are continually trampled upon. With a plethora of allies in the Congress and in the White House, it’s up to us to put the pressure on our representatives to ensure they hold up their promises. I no longer believe that winning hearts and minds is the best way for us to obtain our indelible rights. As California and Maine have proven, relying on the voting public to make decisions about our lives is at the very least foolhardy and at best, just plain stupid. While I am not endorsing civil disobedience, at some point it may be time to take a few pages out of the ACT UP handbook. For now, I am willing to be led by those that so fervently give us their time and leadership in an effort to achieve our goals. Those leaders would be Equality Across America.
Finally, I want to dedicate these mixes to my brother Bruce. I’m sorry that we couldn’t become closer as your experiences and knowledge would have been invaluable to me in my own personal journey. I did manage to sneak a few of your favorites into these mixes, I hope you approve. By the way, do you remember that chick named Madonna who you said was “all style and no substance?” Well, she went on to become one of the biggest entertainers in history and, get this, a gay icon. For the record, Madonna isn’t fat! I miss you brother.
Please help to support this worthwhile cause. Even if you are currently complacent much like I was for so long, at some point in your life you are likely to brush up against discrimination and wish you had helped to make a better life for yourself, your spouse and/or your children. We need your help.
Just remember, the ultimate goal here is to win full equality in every aspect of our lives. After all, we just want to be FREE, GAY and HAPPY! -K
