Village People, the disco band whose members dress as “macho” male characters, announced it will perform at events celebrating President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration next week.
“We know this won’t make some of you happy to hear, however we believe that music is to be performed without regard to politics,” Victor Willis, the band’s lead singer and the only remaining original group member wrote in a recent Facebook post. Willis portrays “the cop.”
“Our song ‘Y.M.C.A.’ is a global anthem that hopefully helps bring the country together after a tumultuous and divided campaign where our preferred candidate lost,” Willis wrote. “Therefore, we believe it’s now time to bring the country together with music which is why VILLAGE PEOPLE will be performing at various events as part of the 2025 Inauguration of Donald J. Trump.”
Village People is scheduled to perform at an inaugural eve ball hosted by the MAGA activist group Turning Point USA.
High-profile guests whose attendance at the event has been confirmed include Vice President-elect JD Vance; Trump’s son, Donald Trump, Jr.; Vivek Ramaswamy, co-head of the newly-formed Department of Government Efficiency; border czar Tom Homan; Kash Patel, Trump’s nominee to head the FBI; Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s nominee for Director of National Intelligence; and Trump advisor Stephen Miller.
Other prominent guests include a host of extreme right-wing, anti-LGBTQ media personalities, including Ben Shapiro, Megyn Kelly, Glenn Beck, Michael Knowles, Matt Walsh, and anti-trans activist Riley Gaines.
Turning Point USA’s founder, Charlie Kirk, has promoted Christian nationalism and right-wing ideological causes, often platforming white supremacist ideology and frequently demonizing members of the LGBTQ community.
Village People’s “Y.M.C.A.” — which was enthusiastically embraced by the gay community in the 1970s — is now a staple of Trump’s political rallies, during which the president-elect, to the beat of the song, clenches his fists and stiffly and awkwardly moves his arms back and forth in a mortifying “great granddad” dance move. At times, he looks like he’s pulling an imaginary string through his head.
For decades, people have alleged that Village People’s costumes and songs were “coded” to appeal to members of the LGBTQ community.
Critics of Trump have accused the president-elect and his ardent followers of hypocrisy for promoting a song that has long been considered an iconic “gay anthem.”
Willis, however, has insisted that there is no hidden meaning to the group’s manner of dress or the lyrics of their songs.
In fact, Willis recently threatened to sue “each and every news organization that falsely refers to ‘Y.M.C.A.’, either in their headlines or alluded to in the base of the story, that ‘Y.M.C.A.’ is somehow a gay anthem.”
In 2020, Willis, who is heterosexual, had asked Trump to stop playing “Y.M.C.A.” and other Village People songs at rallies. Three years later, the group’s manager sent a cease-and-desist letter to Trump’s campaign team for playing their song “Macho Man” at an event at the president’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
Willis has since changed his mind, saying he appreciates that Trump “seems to genuinely like the song.” (The presumed increase in royalty checks probably doesn’t hurt either.)
The LGBTQ community appears to have soured on the song due to its association with Trump.
Several Facebook comments on the Village People’s Facebook page accused the band of “selling out” to curry favor with the incoming president. Gay cultural critic Michael Musto has even gone as far as to say the song has been “straight-washed.”
A transgender teaching assistant at the University of Oklahoma has been placed on leave after a conservative student accused both the assistant and the course's professor of discriminating against her for citing the Bible in an essay that received a zero.
The student, OU junior Samantha Fulnecky, a psychology major, had been assigned a 650-word essay reacting to a study on whether children's popularity correlates with how closely they conform to prescribed gender norms, reports Oklahoma-based NPR station KOSU.
The study -- Gender Typicality, Peer Relations and Mental Health -- found that popular children are more likely to be described as "gender-typical" by their peers than children who are frequently teased. Among those who are teased, young boys show the worst mental health outcomes.
Two 20-year-old men have been accused of plotting a deadly terrorist attack in suburban Detroit, allegedly targeting several LGBTQ bars after purchasing high-powered weapons, stockpiling ammunition, and practicing at local gun ranges.
According to an FBI affidavit, Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud, both 20 and from Dearborn, allegedly conspired with at least five unnamed individuals and a minor -- identified as "Person 1" -- to carry out an ISIS-inspired shooting attack on Halloween night. Prosecutors say Ali and Person 1 were to execute the assault while the others planned to travel to Syria to join Islamic State forces.
History was made in Pennsylvania several weeks ago, when Erica Deuso became not only her town's first transgender elected official, but the first transgender mayor to be elected in Pennsylvania history.
Deuso's identity -- and the historic nature of her candidacy -- were not the focus of her campaign for mayor of Downingtown, Pennsylvania. Instead, the 45-year-old focused on kitchen-table issues and the nuts and bolts of governing a small city in an exurban county outside Philadelphia.
"After I won my primary, The Philadelphia Inquirer did a story about it, noting, 'This person could be the first trans mayor in Pennsylvania.' But that's not what I was running on," says Deuso. "Everybody I met was really focused on what was in it for their families. What was I going to do about flooding? What am I going to do about public safety? And I kid you not, the first person who approached me, after I found out that I won, was talking to me about a speed bump in their neighborhood."
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.