k.d. lang: Won’t mix music and politics, but will protest China
“I don’t use my music to voice my politics – I don’t think of myself as a political person…. I have passions that become political – whether it’s my sexuality, or my eating habits or my religion. I think music itself should transcend all those things. I’ve never used it to promote my gayness, necessarily. Music is about the listeners’ relationship with the music.
“I’m a Tibetan buddhist, that’s foremost…. And I have a lot of Tibetan friends. So it’s my job, in a way, to be a voice of the Tibetan people…. I think the Olympics has, historically, been a political platform…. This is no exception, especially with a country who’s been historically very cryptic and don’t want people questioning their human-rights practices. And it’s the Chinese government, not the Chinese people.”
Canadian singer k.d. lang, remarking on her recent trip to Canberra, Australia to join pro-Tibetan demonstrators protesting the Beijing 2008 Olympic torch relay. (Uptown Music)
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