A full 15 years after reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, Ricky Martin‘s second English single “She’s All I Ever Had” is getting a much-needed pronoun swap.
According to reports, the 42-year-old Latin pop star changed pronouns in the song from “she” to “he” while performing during Morocco’s Mawazine Music Festival earlier this month. Though he sang a majority of the song with the lyric “she,” he awarded the song’s climax with an updated “he.”
According to GayStarNews, Martin also acknowledged a rainbow flag in the audience while he sang “Livin’ La Vida Loca.” “What a beautiful rainbow flag right there,” he said.
The change may not seem like much, but it’s everything in a country that punishes homosexuality. As Think Progress notes, article 489 in Morocco’s penal code makes homosexuality a crime punishable by imprisonment. Just last month, six men were convicted of homosexuality and face up to three years in prison.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
But Martin is at least still allowed to perform in the country. Following similar proclamations of solidarity in Russia, artists including Lady Gaga, Madonna, Selena Gomez, and even Cher were threatened with a permanent embargo.
Check out the performance below:
masc4masc
might as well. not like anyone’s listening anymore.
Alan down in Florida
@masc4masc: Obviously since he did it in front of an audience someone’s listening. His current single has just bulleted from #15 to #13 on the Billboard Latin Pop Songs chart. He may not be as big a pop star in the mainstream but he is still one of the biggest Latin stars there is around today.
redcarpet
So is he going to retcon “She Bangs” to “He Bangs”?
I dunno why, but it sounds so much dirtier with “he” instead.
cformusic
@masc4masc: shade!
Merv
I wish someone would fix that video. The audio is horribly out of sync, like by a couple minutes.
coltonblack
I wonder if he will continue to do this or if it was a situation where he was playing to the audience?
BECQueerty
I love Ricky. (By the way, [fun fact] the original name of my mom before she got re-married.)
jaleoman
Queerty did not mention that is the biggest festival in the
In the continent of Africa, Justin Timberlake and
Alicia Keys were performing different nights, but
Ricky sold out the stadium that he perfumed and the other 2 stars not.
was watching some of the videos in YouTube
And a lot of people were waiting for him at the airport.
He still very popular in many countries that homosexual
Is considered illegal. He is such a positive
Role model for our community.
maxdadmark
You go Ricky!