Three queer singer/performers

AfterElton.com has great articles and information all for and about the gay and bisexual man below is just a taste of some of the awesome articles.

As Martha and The Vandellas once sang, “Summer is here and the time is right…” Well, in any case it’s August, and the current plentiful crop of independent gay male recording artists is in. It’s a perfect time to select several for a look-see. Below, AfterElton.com showcases three queer singer/performers of the solo “pop” variety.


Bronx-born Ari Gold offers gay fans a streetwise, urban, late-night club image as he pursues his mainstream R&B/house pop sound. There’s also a kind of Thriller-era Michael Jackson quality to Ari’s look, musical grooves and vocal approach. He can often be seen sporting his trademark straw fedora or Kangol style cap.

In promoting his recent Space Under Sun CD, Ari has traveled to Israel and Europe. He dances as well as sings in his live show, and sometimes includes backup male dancers in his act: slim, slinky and on the buff side, with a sort of “rough trade” fashion sense, Ari and Co. move & dress similar to dancers one might see dancing on top of a bar in a typical gay club.

Those who enjoy the bluesy, melismatic, vocal-riffing-over-sequenced-disco-grooves style of singing, made popular by singers like Christina Aguilera, Michael Anthony and various boy-band types will enjoy Space Under Sun. The album also features some male-to-male “out” type lyrics, and several tracks have been spunoff to live again as re-released videos and remixes. In addition to his songs on CD, Ari markets “image” merchandise such as photo calendars and photo coffee-table books of himself.



Manhattan’s Matthew Duffy is a darker, more mysterious pop presence, who puts his handsome “Black Irish” looks and angular, runway model’s physique to good use in today’s brave new image-conscious MTV world. Matthew presents his singing and songwriting in a sparse, minimalist techno-pop manner. Simple vocal phrasings and short lyrical lines are delivered in his trademark soft, whispery style.

Unlike many white American solo popsters, who tend to mimic latin and/or black American music styles and mannerisms, Matthew’s sound is more derivative of cool and calculated British rock acts such as Depeche Mode and other, darker, synth-laden, gothic sounds such as Gary Numan. On his recent CD release Here I Come, the many dance oriented tracks are pretty basic and straightforward in groove, with lyrics suggesting sexual readiness and Dionysian sensual freedom. The whole album is synth-laden, drum machine driven, and almost guitarless. Several slow ballads, like “Rising” and the brand new “I Met Him on the Underground” are unusually somber and enigmatic. This listener actually finds them more interesting than the usual sappy, superficial “love” songs so many crooner heartthrobs pose their way through in this genre.

Recently, Matthew has been studying guitar, and using this skill to compose new songs. He’s also been spotted accompanying himself on guitar here and there in his live shows. Several tracks from his recent Here I Come debut CD have been made into videos, and some are getting extra attention as they go thru our digital era’s prerequisite “re-mix” mill.



Atlanta-based Mike Rickard got his early musical education singing in church and performing with contemporary Christian music vocal groups before coming into his own as a solo singer/songwriter. Not exactly a typical “pop idol” type, Mike’s positioning among young male solo talents might be compared to Shania Twain’s among her female pop star colleagues. Both Mike and Shania are more rooted in country/western’s tradition of real musicians playing real music; both offer a more down-to-earth, friendly aura as opposed to the lofty, distanced attitude of pop media stardom.

Mike’s country/western based foundation of fine, solid musicianship shows thru his pop aspirations. Additionally, fans who like a clean-cut, all-American image in their pop star will enjoy this young, strong, silent cowboy type. His debut CD is called Stirred, not Shaken, and although it does not contain much strikingly original songwriting, Mike displays an exceptionally fine, even-tempered voice, which sounds as lush and pitch-perfect at a pianissimo as it does at full throttle. Mike knows how to construct a well-balanced, viable pop hit ballad, even if his efforts are at this stage a bit generic-sounding.

To his credit, Mike has managed to hook up with the right people at the right time in his career. The technical production, song-arrangements, and especially the session musicians’ instrumental performances on his debut CD Stirred, Not Shaken are all top-notch. Most of the album’s songs are ballads of the love-lost torch variety, and are realized in an easy-listening, pop/rock/country crossover style.

I’ve seen this promising young artist perform live. His laid back, wholesome delivery of his sincere love songs is refreshing in this often superficial, image-hyped, career driven world of pop idol solo acts. Mike is also an able acoustic guitarist, confidently accompanying himself as he sings. I predict good things for this new talent who is just now coming into his own.

by Robert Urban, August 25, 2005