"Gay Messiah" is a song written and performed by American-Canadian singer-songwriter

Rufus Wainwright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded eleven studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical opera ...

. It originally appeared on his EP, '' Waiting for a Want'', released by

DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Mo Ostin, his son Michael Ostin and Lenny Waronker as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label opera ...

in June 2004 as a preview of his fourth studio album, '' Want Two'', released by

Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...

in November 2004.

Composition

"Gay Messiah" features both Christian and gay

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

, and has been described as an example of Wainwright expressing his sexuality within his work. In the song, Wainwright addresses being labeled a

gay icon A gay icon is a public figure who is regarded as a cultural icon by members of the LGBTQ community. Such figures usually have a devoted LGBTQ fanbase and act as allies to the LGBTQ community, often through their work, or they have been "openly app ...

, which he rejects. Instead, Wainwright declares he is "Rufus the Baptist", referring to

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

, and sings: "I won't be the one/Baptised in cum". He says of the titular subject: "He will then be reborn from 1970s porn/wearing tube socks with style/and such an innocent smile". In his review of '' Want Two'',

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

Stephen Deusner Stephen M. Deusner is an American music critic and part-time record store clerk who lives in Bloomington, Indiana. A native of Tennessee, he has contributed to Pitchfork Media (including ''the Pitchfork 500''), ''Salon'', '' CMT'', ''American Songwr ...

described the savior character as "Wainwright's own personal Jesus". According to Wainwright, the song was inspired in part by the

Israeli–Palestinian conflict The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing military and political conflict about Territory, land and self-determination within the territory of the former Mandatory Palestine. Key aspects of the conflict include the Israeli occupation ...

. In 2004, he told ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'':

Religious wars are back in fashion, and the main problem is that I don't empathise with religious sentiment. Gay people are not represented in that literature. So even though it's silly, I feel like I can't enter the conversation. So I decided to write a song about how the next messiah would be a homosexual. The Bible needs a gay gospel.

In 2005, he said of the song's origins:

It was written ages ago as a party song, to kind of liven up a dinner table. And then as the political climate thickened it became a kind of liberal anthem. On stage I began to preface it with a plea to go out and vote Democrat. And now it has become a kind of literal prayer. We do actually need this divine porn star to come down and teach us what it means to be human again...

Reception

In his review of ''Want Two'',

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's Chris Jones said the song "is a fine example of ainwright'stongue-in-cheek ability to mix the sacred and profane, heralding a Republican-baiting prophet".

References

{{authority control 2004 songs LGBTQ-related songs Messianism Rufus Wainwright songs Songs critical of religion Songs written by Rufus Wainwright