Dannii Minogue (who’s not only Kylie’s little sis, but a bona fide pop star and TV personality in her own right) is hosting the U.K.’s first-ever deliciously messy gay dating show I Kissed a Boy, premiering later this month on BBC Three.
But this is hardly the LGBTQ+ ally’s first gift to the queer community: In 1999, she literally released the Pride anthem of the year with shimmering, disco-driven bop “Everlasting Night.”
Dannii’s missive for this song is clear from its opening line. “We got a party to go to tonight,” she declares before an undeniable, booty-shaking beat busts through in full force.
It’s the kind of disco-pop tune built for the dance floor, so it’s no surprise the track served as the official theme for the 1999 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, the largest annual Pride event in all of Oceania.
Just a year before in 1998, the flamboyant and decadent Australian party had seen record attendance numbers, selling 27,000 tickets thanks to performances from both Minogue sisters.
For Dannii’s solo 1999 show, she dialed the theatrics up a notch, perching on a gigantic crescent moon that dropped from the ceiling while singing the “Everlasting Night” extended mix, not missing a beat when her “dress got a little bit tangled on the way down” and holding her own during a commanding ballroom interlude. As is the beautiful chaos of a Pride concert!
That kind of spirit is immortalized in its unabashedly gay music video: a four-minute long, sweaty and purple-hued reminder of what transpired under the mirrorball at gay clubs before the aughts’ arrival.
Filmed at a Sydney nightclub, the visual features glimpses of their Mardi Gras celebration, and a heavy helping of bare and glistening torsos, larger-than-life drag queens, and grinding as Minogue and her friends enjoy a night out on the town. Dannii even shares a playful smooch with a shaved-head stud at the end after flirting on a couch all night. Basically, if we had a time machine, we’d use it to go back and *beg* for an invite.
“Everlasting Night” may have peaked at No. 42 in Australia, but Minogue’s connection to the track and the iconic Pride event has lived on.
In 2009, she shared the 1995 demo of the track on the aptly titled The 1995 Sessions collection. She later returned to the Mardi Gras stage for the first time in 16 years for a 2015 headlining set, and even popped out for a surprise duet of “All the Lovers” during Kylie’s performance this year. What can we say? You can’t keep this girl away from her gays — and they were sufficiently gagged!
Dannii has always worn her LGBTQ+ Ally Crown with pride though — pun intended. In 2017, she told Australia’s Star Observer that she used to perform at gay clubs back “when other artists wouldn’t.” And she’s made it clear that it’s not a one-way street when it comes to her relationship with LGBTQ+ fans. “It’s not just gay people supporting me, I’m supporting them,” she said.
Still, the queen behind steamy hits like “All I Wanna Do” and winking lyrics like “Lovin’ you in the daytime / When there’s no one around” does not feign ignorance when it comes to the hookups that happen at her shows.
“A lot of guys in relationships have even said my music introduced them to each other,” she told Star Observer. “I’ve seen some incredible friendships grow and I’ve had people say we met at one of your shows and he proposed and now we’re married, and that’s the stuff that artists love.” Sounds like we need to get tickets to a show ASAP!
“Everlasting Night” may be an oft overlooked entry in Minogue’s discography, but our fingers are crossed for a callback on I Kissed a Boy — especially since Ian Masterson, the song’s producer and her self-proclaimed “bestie,” composed the new dating show’s theme song.
Regardless, we can’t wait to see one of these gorgeous UK hunks find someone to hold all “everlasting night / everlasting night.”
Catch Dannii Minogue as the host of I Kissed a Boy, premiering in the UK on BBC Three and BBC iPlayer on May 14.
Andrew
Dannii’s 2003 album Neon Nights helped earn her the name of Queen of the Clubs It’s an amazing nu-disco/electro-pop album, dare I say it’s better than Kylie’s Fever? yeah, I’m saying it. Then in 2008 she released the Club Disco album which became the staple for every pre-out going out catch up, every songs is a bop. Check them out and enjoy another Minogue.
nm4047
Better than Kylie, *gasping in horror & clutching at my pearls.