LADY GAGA: Lady Gaga will be headlining Lollapalooza and will be playing along with Erykah Badu, Arcade Fire, The Strokes, Soundgarden, Green Day, Phoenix, MGMT, Jimmy Cliff, Spoon, Devo, Cypress Hill, the New Pornographers, Grizzly Bear, Metric, Blues Traveler, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, the Temper Trap, Stars, Semi Precious Weapon and Dragonette.
ELLEN DEGENERES: Do you think that Ellen DeGeneres is using every possible opportunity on American Idol to mention that she’s a lesbian? Because somewhere amid this overall totally flattering, positive and obviously well-intentioned and well-written profile of America’s Favorite Lesbian are several bizarre accusations about Ellen over-asserting her sexuality. Really it’s a shame that these tiny comments Ellen Makes, which are certainly more subtle than similar references to male heterosexual or female heterosexual desire or behaviors on the show, stand out so much to other people! We feel if anything, she downplays her sexuality especially on her show, and often on Idol. But here we go!
Ms. DeGeneres, one of America’s most popular female comedians and talk-show hosts, is also one of its most beloved gay entertainers — and one of the few who markets herself as such. And she finds a way to remind audiences of her sexual status on almost every episode of “American Idol.” More than in any other of her ventures, Ms. DeGeneres’s performance on America’s favorite television show suggests how hard she works to seem effortlessly funny and how determined she is to be openly but unthreateningly gay.
In conclusion, Ellen is poised to take over the world. (@nytimes)
Furthemore, she is related to Madonna: Researchers have discovered that the two women are 11th cousins with a common “10th great-grandfather” — Martin Aucoin of France — whose daughters emigrated to Nova Scotia in the early 1600s. (@vancouversun)
RACHEL MADDOW:
Clearly we will be getting scans of this pronto, but Maddow let People magazine come inside her house and talk to her and Susan about their amazingness. The Huffington Post has a basic summary of what’s in the article:
“It was very ‘Desperate Housewives,'” the MSNBC host joked. When they first met, neither of them could cook very well, and Maddow still can’t (she “still can’t cook an egg,” the magazine says). But Mikula has “become an avid home chef,” saying they don’t exactly live in a “take-out town.”
People says that Mikula “loves indulging in girlie accessories like purses” while Maddow claims to “look like a dude.”
ANYONE BUT ME:
Now you can get Anyone But Me: The Complete First Season on DVD! All the wonderful moments of hot lesbian love between Aster & Vivian will be right there at your fingertips. And bonus; our very own Alex Vega designed the cover.
THE LYNCH CAN DO NO WRONG:
Jane Lynch and her cute wife want to see you at the National Gala for Gay & Lesbian Rights, because that’s where they met and fell in love!
WANDA SYKES:
Did an amazing imitation of Erykah Badu’s controversial “Window Seat” video on her show and Erykah thought it was really funny.
LESBIAN TEEVEE KISSES:
Excited Brooke Vincent and Sacha Parkinson are delighted to share the soap’s first lesbian smooch this week. (@daily star uk)
GLEE:
Wanna see The GLEE Cast performing at The White House on Easter YEAH YOU DO.
WORLD TOUR:
Ke$ha, who was a hot mess of a performer at Dinah Shore last weekend (you can catch her in all her glory in this video from one more lesbian, who have lots of Dinah Shore 2010 videos for you with more on the way!) will be hitting the road with Nicki Minaj and Rihanna for the Last Girl on Earth tour. We just had like 10 ideas about possible bisexual match-ups due to the word on the street about all these girls, but b/c our love for Rihanna and appreciation of her supreme world beauty is so great, we cannot let her be tarnished by any hypothetical sexual situations that might involve Ke$ha, who told the entire crowd at Dinah Shore’s White Diamond Party that all her songs were about “equal rights” and coincidentally “white diamonds.” (@ew)
Ellen’s no-makeup look? Um… hi there NYT… she’s a Covergirl.
I don’t feel like that article was accusing her of over-asserting. To me it read more like it was just saying she mentioned it in almost every show but was careful to make her references part of her jokes so they were “non-threatening”. When it says things like the opening line that she “leaves no opportunity untapped, not even a few seconds of chat on “American Idol.” it seemed to be referring to her building of her public persona, her appeal of which her sexuality is only a part alongside her humor.
But while I don’t read the Ellen parts the same, I did hate that they referred to Adam’s performances as “flaunting” his sexuality even before he was out. That word to me just feels so loaded with judgment, no matter where it’s used. It always feels to me like if someone is flaunting something, it’s implied that it’s something they should have kept to themselves in the first place or at least been very subtle about. Is this just me?
I don’t know, I think that when something is so big a part of you that you can’t conceal it, it can look like flaunting without helping it.
Take, for example, having big boobs. I have almost flaunted my own eye out several times with them, not to mention other people’s.
My mum thinks I’m flaunting my chest too much. Well I’m sorry I’m a 36DD; ANYTHING I wear will show a little bit of boob! I don’t know what won’t elicit a response of “too revealing”, a burqa maybe (my mum’s pretty traditional Muslim).
Ok, but then straight people are flaunting off a lot more, and they don’t realize it, or take it for granted that they are entitled to it.
For example, I was walking back home this morning and I met a girl in my complex who had a really weird, really big inflated balloon on her hands. And I could not figure out what the balloon was made of, so I asked her “hey, what kind of material is that?” And she replied “it’s a fabric balloon for my boyfriend”
WTF?!?! I asked for information about the balloon, not your sexual orientation!!! Who’s flaunting off now???
Agreed. And WTF is up with this “unthreatening” term they’re throwing around. Why the fuck would you feel “threatened” by gay-ness. We’re not going to fucking pin you down and gay you to death… Well…
I am so hyped at the thought of the Ke$ha + Rihanna + Nicki Minaj tour. I hope they bring it to Australia, but would kinda be surprised if they did.
Your disdain for Ke$ha continues to sting, Autostraddle.
Crystal, she told an entire room of human beings at the Palm Spring Convention Center that “all my songs are about equal rights…. and white diamonds!”and she came back for an encore even though no one wanted an encore
Kesha+Rhianna+Nicki Minaj….One of these things doesn’t belong.
Riese: That is funny and sad. I am surprised you went. I would have taken that time to catch up on some sleep.
Is she smoking white diamonds? Because that girl does not have one significant thought in her brain. My sister has taken a liking to her songs. I am tempted to do an intervention.
oh i didn’t go. tess, rachel and rocco went to ke$ha and told me about it. i was at samro.
salt-n-pepa the next night though were AWESOME
Who’s to say that hits such as “Blah Blah Blah” aren’t about equal rights and white diamonds? WHO ARE WE TO INTERPRET KE$HA’S ART, RIESE?
Jk, what a tool. I’ve written an essay about Ke$ha and this has just sorta made it unpublishable, how annoying.
I get that “@ew” stands for “at Entertainment Weekly”, but seeing EW after Ke$ha’s “equal rights” suggestion literally made me laugh out loud.
I know. That was funny and so appropriate. It took a second for me to see it wasn;t awesome on purpose.
What’s that the older fella from Glee has, is it a ukelele or a mini guitar or something? Now I want one! Oh, and also, if you all do get the chance go and see Temper Trap, they’re great live.
That’s an electric ukelele! Want one too, I find unfathomable joy in things that produce noise. Almost always tunelessly when in my hands.
I didnt even know such a thing existed! Ebay tells me you can buy one for a tenner online, what a bargain. Id imagine it’s easier to play than a guitar aswell, i’ll be busking on the streets in no time! :-D
In other news-> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1BzGG6pLw0 Equal rights? Really Keisha, really?
Well, you’d think it would be easier with having 33% fewer strings and all. I have a banjo-style uke, but I find it trickier than guitar because the strings are not tuned in pitch order which I find a total headf*ck for some reason. But I’m sure you will be fine and don’t hold back on those busking dreams!
Also, with the Ke$ha thing I’m sure I read somewhere that she made the lyrics of that song deliberately like she was trying to objectify men in the same way that women get objectified, and I dunno, I think she did a pretty good job. I really like her for some reason!
i have one! it’s a little guitar-shaped uke with a pickup in it, you can plug it right into an amp! i wouldn’t say it’s “easier” than guitar, but a lot of the chord shapes are similar. they travel really well, great for taking to the park (or busking!)
Why do I have a crush on Jane Lynch, I mean, she’s like, the human version of the sun.
Why shouldn’t you? haha
Ahhh, my favorite ladies in one post. Lady Gaga, Rachel Maddow, Jane Lynch, Ellen, Wanda Sykes…
Also GLEEEEE!!!
my friend and I did a studio tour in LA last week…and Rihanna’s people were using one of the stages for tour rehearsal…she wasn’t there..but there was a whole lotta futuristic-ness going on and lots and lots of robots
How freaking happy does Jane Lynch look right now? I love her sfm! :D
i’ve been watching american idol semi-consistently this season and i haven’t noticed Ellen make any references to her sexuality. i guess i’m missing things? maybe i just assume gayness everywhere like straight people do straightness. i’m HOMOSEXIST.
I agree, ive been watching at theres been quite a few funny moments, but i dont remember her saying that shes gay at all during the show. oh, an btw, mentor an performance from our favourite gay-dol Adam Lambert next week, from what ive read anyways.
I need to go to Lolla. Need. I’m trying to win tickets from the radio, but soon I’m just going to start selling stuff to raise $$ to buy a ticket.
I won a pair from XRT two years ago…it was so sweet knowing I was there for free, to make up for the other years I paid $$$…I don’t think lightning would strike twice…
$220 for a pass is not worth it for me, maybe I’ll pick up a day pass for GaGa.
I think this year’s lineup makes it worth the cost of tickets, travel, and lodging. I’d love to make a trip out of it and visit Chicago for the first time too. Alas, every music festival going person I know has chosen to go to Bonnaroo this summer – and I don’t do camping. But I do have some time until August to find someone willing to go…
i love rihanna so hard. that is all.
Agreed. When did this inclination of her touring with Nicki Minaj & that other chick come about? I’ll be the first one buying tickets if such is factual.
Probably not the best way to start my first comment on this site but . . . I really like Kesha’s album. I do cringe whenever I see/hear her speak or perform, but all I’m saying is her album has got some catchy pop tunes that can make you forget about your troubles for an hour.
I hated the NYT piece on Ellen. The examples Stanley gave of Ellen “always” reminding the audience she is a lesbian are stupid – maybe that is all Stanley can think of as she watches Ellen, or any out lesbian for that matter.
I dunno bout you gals but I don’t think its Ellen’s fault if she’s flaunting her gayness. Its a TV show and she’s there for ratings. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was asked to gay it up..
WHAT! ELLEN IS GAY!?!
Seriously Ellen should be awarded The “Under-Flaunted-Achievement” Certificate then next year we can award her “Most Improved” Flaun-tee-award (which will be a white Tee and we can toss a glass of water on her once she puts her award on) Huzzah for the gays! It can all go down at Dinah!
She flaunts her dance moves FAR more then her gayness.
Flaunt? Ellen does not = flaunt. lol
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros are a trip! That’s awesome (all the bands/performers are great) Should be a memorable show!
I <3 Jane Lynch!
1) Ellen makes VERY vague references to her sexuality once per Idol episode, if that (normally she doesn’t at all). I have no clue what that person is talking about. If anyone’s flaunting her sexuality, it’s Kara. Though she’s recently stopped perving all over that poor male contestant.
2) I hate Kesha like burning, but I skimmed an article a while ago in which she explained the reasoning behind her claim that her songs are about equal rights. She said something about how women are objectified and at times almost dehumanized in our culture, and by being a woman who is objectifying men in her music she’s reversing what’s typical and therefore making people take a closer look at the current state of gender equality through satire. However, she doesn’t understand that she’s Doing It Wrong. Her music, her image, her shtick don’t come across as satirical at all; she merely succeeds at portraying herself as just another drunk, brainless party girl, thus contributing to the status quo rather than overturning it. Nobody’s dissecting her songs in search of social commentaries.
Oh my god, I am so tired. If that didn’t make sense, and I don’t think it did, I’m sorry. But I wanted to say it. Good night, Autostraddle.