Artists have begun surfacing from within the social media pool such as YouTube or Instagram, examples such as Troye Sivan, Sam Smith and Keiynan Lonsdale (part of the Love, Simon cast) comes to mind. Some queer artists are still struggling to come out of the closet or are generally unsure of what it would do to their image, whereas those who are openly queer may choose not to “politicize” their music or touch on queer topics. For queer music, the progress is apparent, but relatively slow. With teen movies such as Blue is the Warmest Color (2013) and more recently Love, Simon (2018) and the prevalence of queer representation on screen, gay representation has begun to emerge more and more from the shadows and is starting to share the spotlight within pop culture. What has drawn me to write this paper is the emergence of queer music (or musical pieces with queer undertones) into the mainstream. As with many minorities that have come to develop their own subcultures the LGBT+ community has fostered its people and has created a thriving literary, musical and overall artistic culture. It has social and political aspects that have led queer folks to create their own subcultures. In writing, or should I say, composing the many facets of queer identity, it is important to note that queer identity is much more than one’s attraction to a sex or another, even though that is what it is usually summed up as. Taylor & Francis, 200 (.)ġThis paper takes a look at queer music and at how music has entered a new wave in which LGBTQ+ people can openly create and expose characters and life situations that are their own. Queering the Pitch: The New Gay and Lesbian Musicology. While interpretation could go on and on, resonating differently with each viewer, one thing that could be agreed upon is that “four ethers” is truly a work of art for CRUDO and Wise on every level.

The operatic display of insanity, sanity, love, lust and all the dust that makes up a human is captured by centering light and color against a dark base. Led by a direction from CRUDO that mirrors the velocity of passion by Wise, “four ethers” possesses fluid shots of movement that is perfectly timed and crafted to each triumphant beat of the drum. With a religious upbringing and being a classical trained vocalist, Wise’s soulful and music lust is spewed outwards into a climatic story as seen in “four ethers.” Pulling from the notion that all humans have their pieces, just as the earth, Wise’s individuality and rawness pulls from each “ether” a personified duality of light and dark, of all humans. Now with the release of his music video “ four ethers,” directed by CRUDO (Timothy Saccenti and Alvin Cruz), the world is able to properly see what Wise’s music began to illustrate. Having released his album Blisters, this past September, Wise’s persona heard through his music is refreshing. Signing to Tri Angle Records, who holds home to unique voices, Serpentwithfeet finds his place among the roster. So, maybe I lied, there are other words to describe Wise. Carried by classically trained vocals, and a pop-electronic sound that resonates with a soulful underlying feeling that is propelled through the hurt in his voice, Serpentwithfeet is just that – a creation of the damned and hopeful. Josiah Wise, or as he is better known as Serpentwithfeet, is a remarkable artist that combines the on-stage presence of a royal rock star pushed with a modern twist of a dramatic Opera actor. Sometimes that’s all that is needed to truly describe an artist.

Youtube serpentwithfeet better ears