Lil’ Nas X

RICH LOPEZ | Staff Writer
rich@dallasvoice.com

So. This has been quite a year. We started with a pandemic and, well, we’re ending with a pandemic, too. And it certainly looks like that pandemic will be continuing into the new year.

Ugh.

But 2021 was also the year of COVID vaccinations, which helped get the world going again. With some mindfulness and masks, we could go out to restaurants, shop a little more comfortably and have a night at the theater.

It still feels like we’re getting into that groove again, but, for sure, we can allow ourselves to enjoy the good things.

For arts enthusiasts, the good stuff found its stride by mid-year as local theaters, organizations and venues figured out ways to keep people safe on and off stage as well as in the audience.

Music and movies fared a bit differently. The movie theaters may have been closed for a bit, but Netflix and Prime and Apple+ kept film fans entertained with new streaming films. Musicians pumped out music still, which kept our Spotify and Pandora stations fresh. And simple pleasures like books and puzzles made us realize we didn’t always need fancy gadgets or digital options to have a good time.

Our end-of-year arts and entertainment issue this week looks at primarily queer highlights in music and movies; it recalls some really fabulous stage productions and performances, and it has some book recommendations you may have missed.

There’s no best or worst here because all these releases helped us get through some difficult times.
So, here’s to 2021 — a year we had to figure out and make it work. Thanks to the following, that was a little easier to do.

A big year for queer music
This turned out to be a big year of smaller releases by queer artists. Pop, hip-hop and country musicians turned it out big time in 2021, with major label and independent releases.

These album/extended play releases put some extra Pride in our ears this year.

Arlo Parks: Collapsed in Sunbeams (January) This bi British singer has made almost all of the year-end best-of lists with this impressive album of alt-pop-jazz-soul fusion. It’s all in there in her debut, yet it feels like a complete experience of grippingly introspective songs that also feel like a cozy intimate listen.

Trixie Mattel

• Trixie Mattel: Full Coverage Vol. 1 (April) A mere four songs make up this delightful collection of covers of songs by Lana Del Rey, Johnny Cash, Violent Femmes and Cher. It definitely doesn’t hurt that Trixie is also one of the very few Drag Race alums who can sing.

Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil… the Art of Starting Over (April) This is the first of several Texans on this list. Lovato delivers their soulful voice in ways we haven’t heard before. The first act is a bit somber until they declare ownership of their music, identity and individuality. This feels like the Lovato we’ve been waiting for.

Todrick Hall

Todrick Hall: Femuline (June) Another native Texan, Todrick churns out music relentlessly. Femuline is basically a banger-filled Pride parade in 14 tracks. He also released the final chapter of his Haus Party in February. The Pt. 3 EP, however, has been delayed since 2019.

Allison Pointhier

Allison Ponthier: Faking My Own Death (August) This Allen native dropped a beautiful collection of songs that make this my album of the year even if it’s only six songs. She comes out on “Cowboy” but it’s “Harshest Critic” that drives home how she and we assess our own value.

Messer: Roses (August) Mitch Grassi stepped away from his Pentatonix sounds for this debut solo EP of thoughtful pop. The electronica-steeped songs are cool and confident with strong songwriting by the Arlington native. Don’t worry. He’s still with the a cappella group which also released two albums this year: The Lucky Ones in February and Evergreen in October.

Lil Nas X: Montero (September) Perhaps the queer album of the year, Lil Nas X did several things with this one album: He proved he was no one hit wonder. He unapologetically expressed his queerness, especially as a Black man. And he released a package of songs that were endlessly complex amid memorable hooks and beats. Also, this was his debut album. Just wow.

Brandi Carlile: In These Silent Days (October) It feels like on her seventh album that the world is finally taking proper notice of this longtime talent. She has the Grammys, she re-invigorated Tanya Tucker with 2019’s While I’m Livin,’ and co-created the genius supergroup The Highwomen with Natalie Hemby, Maren Morris, and Amanda Shires in the same year. This year, she wrote songs during her lockdown and released this beautiful addition to her discography. The opening track, “Right on Time,” kicks in the feels early.

Mainstream

Where the boys at? This was certainly a year of strong releases by female artists, and the following have all been either best sellers, critically acclaimed or both.

Olivia Rodrigo: Sour (May) Rodrigo kicked off the year with the lauded No. 1 single “drivers license” and only kept up the energy from there.

Doja Cat: Planet Her (June) Doja Cat is so gloriously strange even with her blockbuster previous album Hot Pink. Here she mixes up hip-hop, pop and more with a continuing feminist statement that honors her contemporaries and forbearers. But it’s also a just a bomb album to keep on repeat.

Billie Eilish: Happier Than Ever (July) You would never think that Eilish felt any pressure from delivering a stellar and award-winning debut full-length album When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? in 2019 at the age of 17. Now at 19, she’s bringing music that not only steps up from her last release, but makes music on her own terms. She’s no doubt an original in today’s music.

Kacey Musgraves: Star-Crossed (September) Musgraves debuted at No. 1 with her fourth album and garnered critical acclaim, but the album quietly came and went despite six songs released. “Justified” got the most attention. The album itself suffered under “is it country or pop” debates but either way, her reflection on her own divorce a month before Adele’s is a remarkable, meditative listen.

Adele: 30 (November) I’m not gonna lie. I’m still deciding on this album, but what I know for sure is that Adele is reliable for emotion and drama. In her “divorce album,” she delivers that which we love her, for but there are glimpses of her experimenting with new sounds that don’t distract from her signature style. It’s another chapter in her story that unfolds for us every few years or so.