The highly anticipated Barbie soundtrack has finally arrived, and it comes packed with star-studded singles from some of the biggest names in the industry. Among these tracks, there is one that stands out not only as the gayest on the album but also as the gayest release yet from one of the most popular queer artists in the world: Sam Smith.
Titled “Man I Am,” the latest focus track from the Barbie album is an electrifying electro-pop hit in the making, perfect for lighting up summer dance floors and igniting parties in Fire Island. With production handled by the talented duo Mark Ronson and Ricky Reed, the song boasts an excellent musical arrangement that complements its vibrant and catchy vibe.
But it’s the lyrics of “Man I Am” that truly shine and make this song an absolute must-listen for all LGBTQ fans. Sam Smith fearlessly embraces innuendos and sensual imagery throughout the track, showcasing a level of confidence and boldness that has become a hallmark of their recent releases.
Lines like “This one is for the boys / With your greased up and heavy metal toys / So beefed up, you can’t get through the door” and “See, I’m the groove catcher, hottest thing / Six-pack and tight G-string” are just a glimpse of the playful and daring nature of the song’s lyrics.
“No, I’m not gay, bro / But I’ve been on that lay low” may be the campiest high point for the cut, and it’s hilarious to hear Smith sing these words. This clever and cheeky play on stereotypes challenges societal norms and celebrates self-expression and authenticity. The track’s infectious energy and unashamedly queer lyrics create an atmosphere of fun and excitement, perfectly in line with the spirit of a song created for the Barbie movie.
“Man I Am” joins a string of successful hits from the Barbie soundtrack, including Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night,” Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice, and Aqua’s “Barbie World,” and Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” The album has already proven to be a hit among fans globally, and it’s still just getting started.
Smith has been very busy throughout 2023, releasing a series of hit singles while promoting their most recent album, Gloria, which debuted earlier in the year. They also collaborated with the legendary Madonna for “Vulgar,” a sex-driven tune that was trying to be a controversial club banger, but which fell short.
Fans can look forward to more music from Smith as they prepare to release another track, “Desire,” in collaboration with Calvin Harris. Although the release date has yet to be announced, the news of this collaboration broke weeks ago, so it could arrive at any moment.
By the grace of good timing, both Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel have better movies out this season than David Lowery's tiresome drama Mother Mary.
Those talented actresses, their fans, and certainly their agents, should be glad if audiences catch their work in The Christophers or The Devil Wears Prada 2, and not just this pretentious, if lushly designed, go-nowhere glimpse behind the curtain of pop superstardom.
Hathaway and Coel aren't the problem. They are fully committed to whatever it is that The Green Knight writer-director Lowery intends in depicting the emotionally fraught reunion between Mother Mary (Hathaway), a Lady Gaga-Dua Lipa-coded pop diva, and Sam Anselm (Coel), the fashion and costume designer whose eye-popping looks helped define Mary's image earlier in her career.
In an already storied career on stage and screen, Claybourne Elder has earned Grammy, SAG, and Drama Desk Award nominations, sung with symphony orchestras and Broadway divas, and soloed at Carnegie Hall.
Yet, the performer, known for theater roles on and off Broadway, and as the ill-fated John Adams on HBO's The Gilded Age, had never released a solo album, until now, with his sparkling debut If the Stars Were Mine. The question for some might be, if not necessarily what took so long, why now?
"I think that there have been several times I'd thought about doing it," Elder tells me during a relaxed chat over Zoom. "And I was like, 'Oh, no. I mean, who wants to listen to it?' The kind of imposter syndrome gets to you, and you're like, 'Well, I don't want to.'" There's also the challenge, he acknowledges, of working out what you might want to say over an album's worth of songs.
Ladies might still love Cool James, but they've found a place in their hearts for their girl Cardi B. Single ladies, married ladies, ladies who love ladies, all kinds of grown-and-sexy ladies were at Capital One Arena for the D.C. date of the Grammy-winning rap diva's "Little Miss Drama Tour."
Yes, plenty of guys, and gays, pulled up, too, but it was "the ladies!" that Cardi addressed most often once she took the stage a Madonna-like ninety minutes past the advertised start time (said with love, no shade, from one who's seen Madonna on tour four times).
Pre-show, the Cap One crowd got a good warmup from the track-suited DJ spinning hip-hop and R&B. Although, based on my section -- and the lady in super-short schoolgirl attire twerking on her man while strangers shouted, "Work, bitch!" -- people came already warmed up by other means.
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