A gay anthem since its release in 1978, the disco hit “YMCA” is now inseparable from the election of Donald Trump, who adopted it with the approval of the Village People, denying its original meaning.
KEYSTONE
Double dose of arms in the air: at the giant meeting on Sunday, then during a gala on Monday on the sidelines of the inauguration of the new president of the United States, the famous disco song is associated with the victory of the Republican candidate.
Footage of his choreography to this music during his campaign went viral on social media. Sunday evening, the future 47th President of the United States once again performed a few dance steps on stage, surrounded by the star American disco group of the 1970s.
The song, composed by leader Victor Willis as well as Jacques Morali and producer Henri Belolo, both French, originally embodied an anthem for the homosexual male community, with gay codes – right down to stereotypical costumes – and a evocative refrain that no one was fooled: “It’s fun to stay at the YMCA/They have everything for young men to have fun/You can hang out with all the boys.”
Denial
Far from the conservative positions of the future tenant of the White House, which worries the LGBT+ community.
-“YMCA” (for “Young Men’s Christian Association”) is not a gay anthem, its lyricist Victor Willis has since reiterated: he announced in December that he intended to sue anyone who attributed this meaning to the song.
“Let’s give President Trump a chance, regardless of what you may have thought of him in the past. Let’s see what he does in the future and if he takes action to restrict LGBTQ rights, the Village People will be the first to speak out,” he wrote on Facebook on Friday.
The tube had already been used during Republican meetings in 2020, which its co-author – traditionally disguised as a police officer – had not appreciated. After his change of heart and his favorable response to Donald Trump’s invitation to participate in his inauguration, the criticisms rained down.
“Not a political group”
“Village People will perform for both Democrats and Republicans. We are not a political group. We never have been and we never will be, even if some of you try to pass us off as such,” Willis replied on Facebook on Sunday.
In the meantime, “YMCA” benefited from this spotlight: more than forty years after its release, it reached the top of the rankings, once again becoming a commercial success.
