Journalist Brian Blueskye Loves Coachella!
Brian Blueskye, the Assistant Editor of the Coachella Valley Independent, is a longtime journalist with an emphasis on music, so we thought we’d devote our #ILoveGayPalmSprings column to showcasing his views on the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival.
Brian (center, in the cap and blue t-shirt with the band Skinny Lister at Coachella 2013) was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio and moved to the Coachella Valley in 2005. During his early teen years, he discovered a love for music and still hasn’t been able to stop collecting records, along with his second obsession, books. Inspired by various music journalists and writers such as Gore Vidal and Chuck Klosterman, he began writing blogs in 2000 on various subjects.
“Coachella was built on indie rock and dance music, and both are still very present in the lineup each year. I think a lot of people would be surprised as to who has played the festival over the years that also identify as LGBT. The Buzzcocks, who are a punk band, have played in the past, and their front man Pete Shelley has identified as bisexual. Deerhunter performed last year, and their front man Bradford Cox has come out as gay.”
“Music is a universal language,” explains Brian, “and I think at Coachella, there's a lot to admire about that. The DJs that play the festival are usually big names in dance music and have hits that play in clubs all around the world, which includes gay bars. The dance music culture has always been something the LGBT community has embraced when you look at Studio 54 and the disco era and it's continued on through the years. So I think a lot of the people who go there that are all about dance music come from all different backgrounds, ethnicity, political views and all sexual orientations. No one cares in the world of dance music and I think that's why it's here to stay. I'm kind of blown away by that when you walk into the Sahara Tent – it's all these different people dancing and reacting to the music.”
“I remember watching the last of Perfume Genius' performance in 2015 to get a good spot for Royal Blood who were playing after,” adds Brian, “and Mike Hadreas of Perfume Genius, who is LGBT, was doing a very strange performance in a dress with Betty Boop on it while wearing lipstick and eyeliner and the crowd that was watching it loved it. I love that about Coachella. Whether you go for Radiohead, Lady Gaga, or Kendrick Lamar, you're going to see a lot of different things.”
Well said, Brian!