"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-American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded 10 studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical operas and se ...

. It originally appeared on his EP, ''

Waiting for a Want ''Waiting for a Want'' is the first EP by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, released through DreamWorks Records electronically on June 29, 2004. At the time it was released, the collection previewed Wainwright's forthcoming al ...

'', released by

DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, ...

in June 2004 as a preview of his fourth studio album, ''

Want Two ''Want Two'' is the fourth album by American-Canadian singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright. The album was released on November 16, 2004. Four of the tracks on this album were released in the summer of 2004 as the EP ''Waiting for a Want'' on th ...

'', released by

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and ...

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 of some members of the LGBT community. The most widely recognized gay icons are often actresses and singers who garnered large LGBT fanbases, such as Judy Garland, Madonna, Diana Ro ...

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

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

, and sings: "I won't be the one/Baptised in

cum Cum may refer to: * a Latin preposition meaning "with" * Antonio José de Sucre Airport, Venezuela, IATA airport code CUM * Culham railway station, Oxfordshire, England, CUM, station code CUM * "Cum", a song by Mykki Blanco from the 2012 EP ...

". 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 ''

'',

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...

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 Songw ...

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 one of the world's most enduring conflicts, beginning in the mid-20th century. Various attempts have been made to resolve the conflict as part of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, alongside other eff ...

. 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 publishe ...

'':

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 #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

'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 LGBT-related songs Rufus Wainwright songs Songs written by Rufus Wainwright