As Pride Month comes to a close, let’s look at some iconic Pride moments because love is an all-year-round thing. Featured acts include Christina Aguilera (with special guests Paris Hilton and Kim Petras), Azealia Banks, Madonna (with Saucy Santana and RuPaul’s Drag Race alum), and Charli XCX.
Kim Petras Joins Christina Aguilera for LA Pride
As the ‘Beautiful’ singer-songwriter headlined one of the most-anticipated shows of the season, the artist had a handful of surprises. Christina Aguilera reunited with Mya to sing their Grammy-winning “Lady Marmalade” from the 2001 film Moulin Rouge!. She also brought out Paris Hilton, who DJ’d a mix of “Gene In A Bottle,” Britney’s “Toxic,” and other throwbacks. But fans went wild when Hilton grabbed the microphone to perform her hit song “Stars Are Blind.”
The most unexpected moment was when transgender popstar Kim Petras, walked onto the stage in a Dirrty-inspired look. However, Aguilera one-upped the singer with a green Hulk look adorned with a massive green dildo. The pair sang a few songs from Petras’s Valentine-inspired Slut Pop EP. One of the tracks performed was “XXX” where the duo fondled each other, and let’s just say it was every queer person’s dream!
Azealia Banks discourse surrounding Wynwood Pride
In the now infamous Pride performance from the ‘212’ rapper, Azealia Banks showed up two hours late to a headlining event. Then, she only performed a few songs before expressing her frustration with the event organizers, where her mic was cut. She said, “For the last good, like, month and a half, I’ve just been being f—ed with. I’ve been being f—ed around with, you know? Set time’s been move and like, ‘Oh, you’re headlining. No, you’re not headlining. Now you’re not this.’ I’m really not happy to be here.”
However, this didn’t stop her disappointment. She proceeded to throw her mic into the crowd, to which she received boos and was promptly escorted from the stage following thrown objects as well. While the event and multiple news outlets painted her as the aggressor, she took to Twitter to clear the air:
Wynwood Pride was way too ghetto. I had to bounce. Every tech rider in Azealia Banks’ history of live performance specifically states-no dry ice as I am EXTREMELY allergic to it. Photos will show massive clouds of dry ice which began to make me lightheaded to a point I could barely stand.”
“I literally have a text message from the promoter assuring me that there would be no dry ice implemented in my performance-yet, Still came on stage to clouds of dry ice. I’ve performed Coachella twice and had that simple request honored.”
“…was originally booked for a 10pm set, which promoter moved to tam, completely inconveniencing every single member of my team.”
Her Twitter account was since suspended.
Madonna at NYC Pride
The Queen of Pop herself headlined NYC Pride with a mix of new and old hits. She performed in Hells Kitchen at Terminal 5 with the variety show “WoW, Finally Enough Love,” also available on streaming platforms.
Thanks to TikTok, a remix of her 1998 song “Frozen” (by Sickick) went viral, and Madonna didn’t waste any time promoting it– even past its hype. She also brought out the “IT” rapper Saucy Santana, who took heavy inspiration from Madonna’s 1984 smash hit “Material Girl” to create his club banger (and TikTok viral) “Material Girl” both in lyrics and visuals. Together, they performed a newly recorded “Material Girl (Remix).” Least to say, Madonna still has got the wow factor to make fans go crazy.
But she doesn’t stop there. The 63-year-old performer brought out RuPaul’s Drag Race alum (winners and queens alike) to dance alongside her for a few songs. Among the attendees were the comedic Bob the Drag Queen, fashion mogul Violet Chachki, and the iconic Laganja Estranja. This show will go down in history as one of the best Pride headliners ever.
Charli XCX at Glastonbury
Charli XCX, 29, performed at the iconic Glastonbury Festival in Somerset on June 26. With the recent release of her critically-acclaimed Crash album, she had lots of new material to perform. And Glastonbury seemed to be the next spot on her current world tour to promote the new music. Charli enjoyed her time dancing along to the setlist with her backup dancers. Charli looked sensational in a gladiator-esque outfit with a tight black bra and a matching leather Roman mini skirt.
@bbcradio1 just iconic 💅 @Charli XCX #glastonbury #glastonburyfestival
The LGBTQ+ icon performed lots of party bangers and hits, like “Boom Clap,” “I Love It,” and “1999.” And she performed the fan-favorite “Vroom Vroom,” where the crowd and she screamed at the top of their lungs. But, perhaps, the sweetest moment is dedicating the pop song “Boys” to “the little gay boys in the crowd.”
@bbcradio1 @Charli XCX really said ✨happy pride ✨ at #glastonbury 🌈🥰 #glastonburyfestival #charlixcx
What are your favorite performances from Pride Month? Let us know in the comments!
