As a straight teen in the 80’s I made a promise to myself: when I ever see a gay/bi/lesbian being bullied I would defend him/her with all my might! I still can’t watch this music video without tears in my eyes. Often the world is ugly. ❤️ to all of you out there!
Growing up in the UK in the 80's, full of hatred and bigotry, made worse by the AIDS epidemic, then a death sentence, knowing you were different, but being too terrified to tell anyone and thinking no one was like you and you must hide away in shame. And then hearing this song. And the shrieking cries at the start of it, expressing all that emotional pain. And knowing someone else might be feeling the same. Undescribable, the emotions this song brings flooding back within the first few bars. Difficult to imagine now, in today's society, what this song meant to some people then.
This song would fill the dance floor, while lyrically bring many to tears. It has become a gay anthem to those who had to leave home too live and find love. Jimmy Somerville, Steve Bronski R.I.P and Larry Steinbachek.
Brings back fond memories...it has that British beat and sound to it and of course being German, we always had the first pick of the UK bands. -- I had been raised to become a non- judgmental adult and am still thankful to my parents to this day. It gives me an inner peace, that some people will never find in their lives. ☮ Love as always
When I came out in the late 80’s this song was still recent enough to be legendary. “Representation matters” now but back then there really wasn’t such a thing. Not this openly, anyway. In 1984, an openly gay band having a song about being gay become a mainstream hit was a big deal and earned Bronski Beat its place in the queer history books. #RIPSteveBronski Edit: I commented before actually watching your reaction. Man, that 80’s synth pop and Jimmy Somerville’s piercing vocal completely transported me to a different time and place. (I’m pretty sure that place is an early 90’s tea dance on pride weekend. Lol)
I hope you enjoyed the song as much as I did dear Nigel. This was and is one of my favorite songs from the 80s. Although the sad story - I love the song! 😍 Have a good one! 🙋♂️
The song is semi-autobiographical, based on Jimmy Somerville’s (the singer and actor in the video) upbringing as a young gay man in a small town in the UK.
Glasgow isn't small town. But the housing estate he grew up on n the North of the city was rough as fuck.. possil..... Jimmy's family were protestant n a deeply sectarian city.. he was never going to get support from his family
I was 13yo when that title came out and knowing I was gay and terrified by what would be my future… I was bullied every day at school and felt like I would have one day to take my train and run…that song 😢 Life was sometimes hard even because of the rejection I had to endure at some times and the number of friends who died from aids in the early 90… But I had a great life so far and I can say I am proud of who I became ! ❤
I always loved this song but it broke my heart, the parents behaviour. Now, my only living child is gay and he never had to worry about his extended family. He was worried about his mates, he grew up in a country town and is not at all feminine so no one ever knew. His mates have not changed and he is now 33. He has a partner and they’ve been together for 8yrs and he is like another son to me, I love him so much. I never would have guessed when I first heard this that I would be dealing with it myself, but he is still the same boy that I raised and love more than my life.
It wasn't just gay guys that wanted out of Scotland to go to London in the 80's, most of the youth did. Now no one wants to go there, its a very different place now.
I said it before, it just breaks my heart that he was attacked by the person he liked, being also that he smiled before and then attacked him bc he was obviously actually making fun of him, sooo hurtful. Also, I think he's two friends aren't real. Idk, looks like those guys are the "imaginary friends" he needed (friends he needed), it's just odd how they encourage him in the bathroom to go see the guy and then hide in the dark as he walks toward the guy, also they're always there in those big moments. Anyway, I love this song and feel his pain. Brave to transform all that into this beautiful melody and tell his story to the world.
Watched this video about a thousand times on MuchMusic back in the day. Pretty damn groundbreaking. Such a great song and singer. Recently saw a lovely video of Jimmy S surprising a busker who was singing their stuff. I'm always reminded of this song whenever I hear Twenty One Pilots more current piece 'Hometown' from a couple of years ago. You should check that out and compare the two tracks. No video for it, but TOP have some really cool conceptual videos with an interlinked storyline running through them, which solidifies in their album 'Blurryface' and carries on through the following 2 albums. They have a seriously intensive fanbase.
I want to rename this song to (CRYYYYY) Think of what yucraine is going through and everu family evacuating the country via train leaving the men behind to fight
The sad thing is that the main character in this video is an outcast - and the video was meant to parallel the singer's own real life. The video and the song were used to reveal the fact that they (Bronski Beat) are gay - to help people who were (or had been) going through the same things mentioned in the song and featured in the video. This was done so that those people could see that there was some gay representation, which at the time wasn't really the done thing in the music industry. The fact that he's gay makes him feel like an outcast since his own community refuse to accept him for who he is - which is why he leaves home. The lyrics even state that he was "pushed around and kicked around" - indicating that he was physically bullied because he's gay. And there's scenes in the video that indicate that he was beaten up by homophobes who were willing to resort to physical violence and attack him, because he's gay - one of whom he showed interest in (earlier in the video), which the guy obviously didn't like. Later on in the video his mother appears accepting (and even hugs him) after finding out that he's gay when the policeman brings him home after the attack. However his father refuses to accept him for who he is - as shown at the end of the video when he puts out his hand and his father refuses to shake it. His father does give him some money though - perhaps after being convinced to do so, by his wife and mother of their child. Remember that this is the 1980s when being gay wasn't as accepted as it is today. It's a lot more accepted today but sadly there's still some people still refuse to accept it - like everywhere else in the world. In certain parts of the UK being gay had only just been decriminalised. In England being gay had "officially" been decriminalised in 1967 thanks to the the Sexual Offences Act, which decriminalised private homosexual acts between men aged over 21. However its effects were mixed and slow to be noticed - and sadly by the 1980s people were still receiving homophobic abuse, and being treat differently because they are gay. The law wasn't changed in Scotland until 1980, and in Northern Ireland it wasn't changed until 1982 - about 13 & 15 years after it was changed in England. In 1994 the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act lowered the age of consent for gay men from 21 to 18. In 2001 it was further lowered to 16 - the age of consent for straight people in the UK at that time.
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As a straight teen in the 80’s I made a promise to myself: when I ever see a gay/bi/lesbian being bullied I would defend him/her with all my might! I still can’t watch this music video without tears in my eyes. Often the world is ugly. ❤️ to all of you out there!
I'm straight but this is so touching ,his Dad gives him some money but won't shake his hand , so sad but a great song.
The answers will never be found at home... I could cry
Growing up in the UK in the 80's, full of hatred and bigotry, made worse by the AIDS epidemic, then a death sentence, knowing you were different, but being too terrified to tell anyone and thinking no one was like you and you must hide away in shame. And then hearing this song. And the shrieking cries at the start of it, expressing all that emotional pain. And knowing someone else might be feeling the same. Undescribable, the emotions this song brings flooding back within the first few bars. Difficult to imagine now, in today's society, what this song meant to some people then.
Still does, hits me the same every time
I am so proud to be someone in the UK who embraced the meaning of this song and made it such a hit. I'm straight but was memorised
❤️❤️❤️
In the video when his dad won't even shake his hand, it makes me want to weep.
same!
This song would fill the dance floor, while lyrically bring many to tears. It has become a gay anthem to those who had to leave home too live and find love.
Jimmy Somerville, Steve Bronski R.I.P and Larry Steinbachek.
Brings back fond memories...it has that British beat and sound to it and of course being German, we always had the first pick of the UK bands.
-- I had been raised to become a non- judgmental adult and am still thankful to my parents to this day. It gives me an inner peace, that some people will never find in their lives. ☮ Love as always
When I came out in the late 80’s this song was still recent enough to be legendary. “Representation matters” now but back then there really wasn’t such a thing. Not this openly, anyway. In 1984, an openly gay band having a song about being gay become a mainstream hit was a big deal and earned Bronski Beat its place in the queer history books.
#RIPSteveBronski
Edit: I commented before actually watching your reaction. Man, that 80’s synth pop and Jimmy Somerville’s piercing vocal completely transported me to a different time and place. (I’m pretty sure that place is an early 90’s tea dance on pride weekend. Lol)
I hope you enjoyed the song as much as I did dear Nigel. This was and is one of my favorite songs from the 80s. Although the sad story - I love the song! 😍 Have a good one! 🙋♂️
The song is semi-autobiographical, based on Jimmy Somerville’s (the singer and actor in the video) upbringing as a young gay man in a small town in the UK.
Glasgow isn't small town. But the housing estate he grew up on n the North of the city was rough as fuck.. possil..... Jimmy's family were protestant n a deeply sectarian city.. he was never going to get support from his family
I was 13yo when that title came out and knowing I was gay and terrified by what would be my future… I was bullied every day at school and felt like I would have one day to take my train and run…that song 😢
Life was sometimes hard even because of the rejection I had to endure at some times and the number of friends who died from aids in the early 90…
But I had a great life so far and I can say I am proud of who I became ! ❤
Please react to their hit Why? more upbeat and you'll love it!
Totally and maybe even gayer
I always loved this song but it broke my heart, the parents behaviour. Now, my only living child is gay and he never had to worry about his extended family. He was worried about his mates, he grew up in a country town and is not at all feminine so no one ever knew. His mates have not changed and he is now 33. He has a partner and they’ve been together for 8yrs and he is like another son to me, I love him so much. I never would have guessed when I first heard this that I would be dealing with it myself, but he is still the same boy that I raised and love more than my life.
It wasn't just gay guys that wanted out of Scotland to go to London in the 80's, most of the youth did.
Now no one wants to go there, its a very different place now.
I said it before, it just breaks my heart that he was attacked by the person he liked, being also that he smiled before and then attacked him bc he was obviously actually making fun of him, sooo hurtful. Also, I think he's two friends aren't real. Idk, looks like those guys are the "imaginary friends" he needed (friends he needed), it's just odd how they encourage him in the bathroom to go see the guy and then hide in the dark as he walks toward the guy, also they're always there in those big moments. Anyway, I love this song and feel his pain. Brave to transform all that into this beautiful melody and tell his story to the world.
thanks so much for watching with me
Watched this video about a thousand times on MuchMusic back in the day. Pretty damn groundbreaking. Such a great song and singer. Recently saw a lovely video of Jimmy S surprising a busker who was singing their stuff. I'm always reminded of this song whenever I hear Twenty One Pilots more current piece 'Hometown' from a couple of years ago. You should check that out and compare the two tracks. No video for it, but TOP have some really cool conceptual videos with an interlinked storyline running through them, which solidifies in their album 'Blurryface' and carries on through the following 2 albums. They have a seriously intensive fanbase.
I dont dig pool scene. lol! but its a killer song. Reminds me of being a kid in 80's. Cheers
The weirdest thing, I was just talking to Chris about this song the other night, I kid you not. I'm hearing that Twighlight Zone music... 🤣🤣
If you enjoyed this I suggest you watch Why? Which is the follow up song from The Age of Consent Album... ruclips.net/video/H3LbzjFJdSA/видео.html
I want to rename this song to (CRYYYYY)
Think of what yucraine is going through and everu family evacuating the country via train leaving the men behind to fight
merci !!!! a mastpiece for all gay people around the world
thanks so much for watching with me!
The sad thing is that the main character in this video is an outcast - and the video was meant to parallel the singer's own real life.
The video and the song were used to reveal the fact that they (Bronski Beat) are gay - to help people who were (or had been) going through the same things mentioned in the song and featured in the video.
This was done so that those people could see that there was some gay representation, which at the time wasn't really the done thing in the music industry.
The fact that he's gay makes him feel like an outcast since his own community refuse to accept him for who he is - which is why he leaves home.
The lyrics even state that he was "pushed around and kicked around" - indicating that he was physically bullied because he's gay.
And there's scenes in the video that indicate that he was beaten up by homophobes who were willing to resort to physical violence and attack him, because he's gay - one of whom he showed interest in (earlier in the video), which the guy obviously didn't like.
Later on in the video his mother appears accepting (and even hugs him) after finding out that he's gay when the policeman brings him home after the attack.
However his father refuses to accept him for who he is - as shown at the end of the video when he puts out his hand and his father refuses to shake it.
His father does give him some money though - perhaps after being convinced to do so, by his wife and mother of their child.
Remember that this is the 1980s when being gay wasn't as accepted as it is today.
It's a lot more accepted today but sadly there's still some people still refuse to accept it - like everywhere else in the world.
In certain parts of the UK being gay had only just been decriminalised.
In England being gay had "officially" been decriminalised in 1967 thanks to the the Sexual Offences Act, which decriminalised private homosexual acts between men aged over 21.
However its effects were mixed and slow to be noticed - and sadly by the 1980s people were still receiving homophobic abuse, and being treat differently because they are gay.
The law wasn't changed in Scotland until 1980, and in Northern Ireland it wasn't changed until 1982 - about 13 & 15 years after it was changed in England.
In 1994 the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act lowered the age of consent for gay men from 21 to 18.
In 2001 it was further lowered to 16 - the age of consent for straight people in the UK at that time.
Thanks so much for watching with me!
You pretty much forgot to react. Lame. A few earnest faces ain't cutting it. Disappointing.