timothybrownjr13

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Number 28 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Jazz Singer Billie Holiday Born Elenora Fagan in 1915 Billie was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating sound. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills. Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem, where she was heard by producer John Hammond, who liked her voice. She signed a recording contract with Brunswick in 1935. Collaborations with Teddy Wilson produced the hit "What a Little Moonlight Can Do", which became a jazz standard. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Holiday had mainstream success on labels such as Columbia and Decca. By the late 1940s, however, she was beset with legal troubles and drug abuse. After a short prison sentence, she performed at a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall. She was a successful concert performer throughout the 1950s with two further sold-out shows at Carnegie Hall. Because of personal struggles and an altered voice, her final recordings were met with mixed reaction but were mild commercial successes. Her final album, Lady in Satin, was released in 1958. Throughout her career, Billie was openly a bisexual woman, and actually had an array of high-profile relationships with other famous figures in Hollywood and beyond at the time. Billie most notably dated American actress Tallulah Bankhead, a figurehead of film. Billie Holiday is influential to me because of her ability to rise beyond her surroundings and create something truly beautiful. Regardless of how her life ended, she was still able to bring light to controversial events and sing about sadness that made listeners comprehend struggle. @billie.holiday #billieholiday #ladyday #ladysingstheblues #solitude #strangefruit #jazz #music #pride #bisexual #drawing #redsketch #prismacolor #pride2022 #prideproject #art #artist #pencilart #gayartist (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfWBOiUubq1/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 27 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Pop Artist Andy Warhol Born Andrew Warhola Jr in 1928, he was an American artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationship between artistic expression, advertising, and celebrity culture that flourished by the 1960s, and span a variety of media, including painting, silkscreening, photography, film, and sculpture. Some of his best-known works include the silkscreen paintings Campbell's Soup Cans (1962) and Marilyn Diptych (1962). Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Warhol initially pursued a successful career as a commercial illustrator. After exhibiting his work in several galleries in the late 1950s, he began to receive recognition as an influential and controversial artist. His New York studio, The Factory, became a well-known gathering place that brought together distinguished intellectuals, drag queens, playwrights, Bohemian street people, Hollywood celebrities, and wealthy patrons. Many of his creations are very collectible and highly valuable. His works include some of the most expensive paintings ever sold. In 2013, a 1963 serigraph titled Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster) sold for $105 million. In 2022, Shot Sage Blue Marilyn (1964) sold for $195 million, which is the most expensive work of art sold at auction by an American artist. Andy Warhol inspires me not only by his artistic creativity, but his ability to push the boundaries on what is and is not art. @andywarhol_archive #andywarhol #warhol #popart #thefactory #glamourous #gayartist #stunning #marilynmonroe #campbellssoup #art #drawingoftheday #artist #drawing #pencildrawing #portrait #sketch #prismacolor #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfTydOFrIqa/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 26 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Director James Whale James was a English film and theater director as well as an actor. Some of his most famous films include Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, The Old Dark House, and The Invisible Man. These films are all considered classic and have spawned many remakes. Born 1889 in England James discovered his artistic talent early on and studied art. With the outbreak of World War I he enlisted in the British Army and became an officer. He was captured by the Germans and during his time as a prisoner of war he realised he was interested in drama. Following his release at the end of the war he became an actor, set designer and director. His success directing the 1928 play Journey's End led to his move to the US, first to direct the play on Broadway and then to Hollywood, California, to direct films. Whale was openly gay throughout his career, something that was very rare in the 1920s and 1930s. As knowledge of his sexual orientation has become more widespread, some of his films, Bride of Frankenstein in particular, have been interpreted as having a gay subtext and it has been claimed that his refusal to remain in the closet led to the end of his career. James Whale inspires me not only because of his imagination but by his willingness to not conform to the expectations around him. During his time to be his authentic self was a bold move and I applaud him for it. #jameswhale #frankenstein #brideoffrankenstein #invisibleman #boriskarloff #elsalanchester #director #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #drawing #redsketch #prismacolor #pride2022 #prideproject #horrormovies (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfRFP-SL_zA/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 25 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Leonardo da Vinci Born 1452 in the Republic of Florence Leonardo was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested on his achievements as a painter, he also became known for his notebooks, in which he made drawings and notes on a variety of subjects, including anatomy, astronomy, botany, cartography, painting, and paleontology. Leonardo is identified as one of the greatest painters in the history of art and is often credited as the founder of the High Renaissance. The Mona Lisa, is his best known work and often regarded as the world's most famous painting. The Last Supper is the most reproduced religious painting of all time and his Vitruvian Man drawing is also regarded as a cultural icon. In 2017, Salvator Mundi, attributed in whole or part to Leonardo, was sold at auction for US$450.3 million, setting a new record for the most expensive painting ever sold at public auction. Much of Leonardo's personal and private life remain hidden, but what evidence there is, states his most intimate relationships were perhaps with his pupils Salaì and Melzi. Melzi, writing to inform Leonardo's brothers of his death, described Leonardo's feelings for his pupils as both loving and passionate. It has been claimed since the 16th century that these relationships were of a sexual or erotic nature. Court records of 1476, when he was aged twenty-four, show that Leonardo and three other young men were charged with sodomy in an incident involving a well-known male prostitute.  Leonardo has inspired me as an artist since I first began taking art seriously. His work really is frustratingly exceptional, from his thin layering to his experimentation with materials. I often wonder what he would've accomplished had he been given another lifetime. @leonardo_davinci_ #leonardodavinci #davinci #reinassance #painter #italy #florence #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #queerartist #gayillustration #monalisa #vitruvianman #scupltor #art #artist #drawing #pencildrawing #prismacolor #portrait (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfOkxrvrDIq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 24 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Drag Queen Divine Born Harris Glenn Milstead in 1945 but he is better known by his stage name, Divine. He was not only a drag queen but an actor and a singer with close ties to independent filmmaker John Waters. Divine was born in Baltimore, Maryland to a conservative middle-class family, he developed an early interest in drag while working as a women's hairdresser. By the mid-1960s he had embraced the city's countercultural scene and befriended Waters, who gave him the name "Divine" and the tagline of "the most beautiful woman in the world, almost." In drag, Divine took a lead role in both of Waters' early full-length movies, Mondo Trasho (1969) and Multiple Maniacs (1970), the latter of which attracted press attention for the group. Divine next starred in Waters' Pink Flamingos (1972), which was a hit on the U.S. midnight movie circuit, becoming a cult classic, and established Divine's fame in the American counterculture. Continuing his cinematic work, he starred in two more of Waters' films, Polyester (1981) and Hairspray (1988), the latter of which represented his breakthrough into mainstream cinema and for which he was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male. Independent of Waters, he also appeared in a number of other films, such as Lust in the Dust (1985) and Trouble in Mind (1985), seeking to diversify his repertoire by playing male roles. Divine influences me because of his brilliance, when he wanted to be funny he was hilarious and when he wanted to be taken seriously, he was intimidating. Divine was many things, to me personally he was an artist who created one of the greatest characters in LGBTQ history. @divineofficial #divine #pinkflamingos #johnwaters #beautiful #gayartist #illustration #sketchbook #figuredrawing #instaart #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #pride2022 #prideproject #lustinthedust #polyester #hairspray (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfLugPUODnO/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 23 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is actor Billy Porter Born in 1969 Billy Porter is an actor, singer, and author. He graduated from Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama, and achieved fame performing on Broadway before starting a solo career as a singer and actor. In 2013 Billy won a Tony for his portrayal of Lola in Kinky Boots. Billy's Broadway resume includes Grease, Topdog/Underdog, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Dreamgirls. Apart from his stage career he has appeared in many films including Twisted, The First Wives Club, and The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy. Apart from this it was his role in 2018 where he starred in FX's Pose as Pray Tell that really skyrocketed him into the mainstream. His charisma and willingness to be vulnerable while having the strength to keep others from falling apart was inspiring and one of the best representations of a gay man on television. Billy also has a passion for fashion and at the 2019 Golden Globes he gained attention for wearing an embroidered suit and pink cape designed by Randi Rahm. He said the fact that people were surprised that he wore a cape inspired him to ask Christian Siriano if he could create him a ball gown because it was something he had always wanted to wear. He felt it seemed like a way to challenge people's ideas of masculinity. He continued to make fashion waves that year when he wore a fitted tuxedo jacket and a velvet gown by Christian Siriano with 6" Rick Owens boots to the 91st Academy Awards. Billy Porter inspires me because he challenges the norm, the accepted perception of what normal is or what a man should be, do, or wear. He lives and loves freely and that is something that I myself am trying to achieve. He doesn't let the remarks of others get in his way, it's a power and it's influential. @theebillyporter #billyporter #pose #kinkyboots #broadway #beautiful #gayartist #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gay #lesbian #bisexual #transgender #queer #pride #prismacolor (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfJcroMr8hy/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 21 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Drag Queen Dorian Corey. Dorian Corey was an American drag performer and fashion designer. She appeared in Wigstock and was featured in Jennie Livingston's 1990 documentary Paris Is Burning. Born Frederick Legg in 1937 assigned male at birth, but realized later in life that she was a trans woman. Calling herself Dorian Corey, she began doing drag after leaving the city of Buffalo. In the 1950s, Corey worked as a window dresser at Hengerer's, then moved to New York City to study art at Parsons. Corey was the founder of the voguing House of Corey, holding over 50 grand prizes from the voguing balls. She was also "house mother" to Angie Xtravaganza, who later became a mother of her own house and was also featured in Paris Is Burning. Corey's legacy remains one of importance to the drag and ballroom communities, and her particular importance in the development of voguing as a cornerstone of New York ballroom culture is venerated and memorialized in the modern day. Corey is remembered by fans, friends and family for her simple philosophy that "...everybody wants to make an impression, some mark upon the world. ... You don't have to bend the whole world. I think it's better just to enjoy it. Pay your dues, and just enjoy it. If you shoot an arrow and it goes real high, hooray for you." Dorian Corey inspires me because of her fierceness and strength. She had an amazing talent, not only with fashion, but with words as well. I personally love her quote "Shade is I don't tell you you're ugly, but I don't have to tell you because you know you're ugly — and that's shade!" @parisisburningquotes #doriancorey #parisisburning #houseofcorey #drag #dragqueen #dragballs #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #xtravaganza #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfGxU6JrHKK/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[timothybrownjr13]

I forgot to post this...Father's Day present to Pops @flyingon18 it might not be the first time I drew this image but I can say it is the best version I've done.🖤🖤🖤 #fathersday #fathersday2022 #gift #family #pencilart #prismacolor #portrait #blackandwhite #colorpencil #beautiful #artist #drawing #pencildrawing #artwork #fathersdaygifts (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfFUHcdPPq-/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 22 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Actor George Takei Born Hosato Takei in 1937, George Takei is not only an actor, but a author and an activist. He is known for his recurring role as Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the starship USS Enterprise on Star Trek. Takei was born to Japanese-American parents, with whom he lived in U.S.-run internment camps during World War II. He began pursuing acting in college, which led in 1965 to the role of Sulu, to which he returned periodically into the 1990s. Upon coming out as gay in 2005, he became a prominent proponent of LGBT rights and active in state and local politics. George began his acting career in the late 1950s, providing voiceover for characters in english dubbed Japanese monster films, like Rodan and Godzilla Raids Again. He appeared on Playhouse 90, an episode of Perry Mason and a few times on Hawaiian Eye. It was after staring in an episode of the Twilight Zone that he landed the role as Sulu on Gene Roddenberry's Stark Trek. Originally cast as a astrosciences physicist in the second pilot, then became the ship's helmsman. From acting George moved into writing and activism, having come out as gay after then California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed same-sex marriage. George Takei inspires me because of his outlook on life, he has seen and lived through some painful times and yet inspires and continues to fight for LGBTQ+ rights. He is loved and respected and continues to exemplify that love and forgiveness triumphs all. #georgetakei #startrek #hello #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #drawing #redsketch #prismacolor (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfEHjM2riKi/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 20 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Drag Queen Motha RuPaul. Born RuPaul Andre Charles in 1960, he has become a iconic figure known simply by his first name. He is known not only as an incredibly artistic drag queen, but he's a musician, author, model, and television judge. He is known for his reality show Rupaul's Drag Race, where he produces, hosts, and judges. He has also made several cameos is films and television shows other than how own. RuPaul was born and raised in San Diego, eventually studying premorming arts in Atlanta, Georgia.  He settled in New York City, where he became a popular fixture on the LGBT nightclub scene. He achieved international fame as a drag queen with the release of his debut single, "Supermodel (You Better Work)". He became a spokesperson for MAC Cosmetics in 1994, raising money for the Mac AIDS Fund and becoming the first drag queen to land a major cosmetics campaign. RuPaul's Drag Race was created in 2009 and has gone on to produce fourteen seasons in the United States. The show has also seen success internationally, with several international variants of the show being made, such as RuPaul's Drag Race UK and Canada's Drag Race. This has also inspired several spin-offs. RuPaul inspires me because of his ability to create and even if it doesn't work out, he doesn't let failure bring him down. He was one of the first gay men I'd seen on television at a young age. It was nice to see someone who felt the same way I do. @rupaulofficial #rupaul #dragqueen #drag #illustration #queerartist #paper #beautiful #fantasyart #sketchbook #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfBfXqdupBr/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 19 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Artist J.C. Leyendecker Born in 1874, German-American illustrator J. C. Leyendecker has been referred to as the Norman Rockwell before Norman Rockwell. In 1882 the Leyendecker family immigrated to Chicago where J.C. eventually attended Chicago Art Institute. He studied drawing and anatomy under John Vanderpoel's lead. After a short time Leyendecker and his brother made their way across the seas to attend the Julien Acadamy in Paris for a year where he was exposed to Alphonse Mucha a leader in the French Art Nouveau movement. Between the years 1896 and 1950, he painted more than 400 magazine covers. During the Golden Age of American Illustration, for The Saturday Evening Post alone, he produced 322 covers, and many advertisement illustrations for its interior pages. Leyendecker's private life has been up for discussion but it has been generally accepted that he was a homosexual. Leyendecker excelled at depicting male homosocial spaces (locker rooms, clubhouses, tailoring shops) and extraordinarily handsome young men in curious poses or exchanging glances. Leyendecker never married, and he lived with another man, Charles Beach, for much of his adult life. Beach was the original model for the famous Arrow Collar Man and is assumed to have been his lover. J.C. Leyendecker inspires me by his work, it's not only stunning, but fun and playful while also be distinct and precise. I personally love his musical jester for The Saturday Evening Post, the position of the figure mixed with the rich colors displays Leyendecker's artistic illustrative mastery. @jcleyendeckerart #jcleyendecker #artist #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #drawing #sketch #sketchbook #figuredrawing #instaart #illustration #redsketch #prismacolor #pride #rainbow (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce_S_o3L-yX/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 18 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Activist Gilbert Baker Born June 2, 1951 Gilbert Baker was an artist, designer and activist. His most notable work is the pride flag. He along with Lynn Segerblom and James McNamara helped create one of the most iconic symbols of the queer community. Baker served in the US Army in the early 70s, stationed as a medic in San Francisco during the beginning of the gay movement and lived openly as a gay man. After being honorably discharged he learned to sew by fellow activist Mary Dunn, he used these skills to create banners promoting gay rights and speaking out against the war. Baker created the first pride flag with a collective in 1978. Now the colors of the original flag consisted of pink, red, orange, yellow, green, teal, indigo, and violet, but eventually due to cost the pink and teal stripes were removed. Volunteers helped Baker hand dye and stitch the original two flags together. These flags measured around 30 by 60 feet. Gilbert Baker influences me by his commitment to speak out and protest for the rights that I have today. He also inspires me as an artist, who knew that such a thing as eight stripes of color sewn together could hold so much power. @gilbert_baker_foundation #gilbertbaker #lynnsegerblom #jamesmcnamara #prideflag #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #drawing #redsketch #prismacolor #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce8i-tSLNsH/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 17 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Singer/Guitarist Melissa Etheridge Born in 1961, Melissa is not only a singer and guitarist, but she also writes her own music and is an activist. She got her start in the late 80s and was considered an underground success. She is known for her smoky/raspy voice mixed together with a pop folk-rock sound. Melissa has been through some pretty serious issues, she feared coming out, she worried she would lose everything and that her fans wouldn't accept her, but realized after she came out that that was anything but the truth. Etheridge came out in 1993 as lesbian and became an activist at the same time. In 2004 Melissa was unfortunately diagnosed with breast cancer, but thankfully after surgery and chemotherapy she beat the disease. Melissa Etheridge inspires me because of her strength and determination, to not only beat cancer but to take the risk and come out. Admitting to yourself and others you're of the LGBTQ+ community is terrifying and it doesn't always have the best results, but Melissa still chose to take that leap of faith and now she continues to inspire next generations of queer artists. @melissa_etheridge #melissaetheridge #cometomywindow #imtheonlyone #rock #folk #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #drawing #redsketch #prismacolor (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce5ptROOHJc/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 16 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is actor Zachary Quinto Zachary Quinto has played sone pretty iconic characters, from Sylar on Heroes to Spock in the most recent rebooted Star Trek films. He is known for his darker portrayals that leave the viewer either loving him or loving to hate him. His role as Dr. Oliver Thredson on American Horror Story: Asylum was one of my personal favorites. Born in 1977 he started his career in television, with Charmed, Touched by an Angel, and Six Feet Under, but it would be his role on 24 that helped eventually land him his spot on Heroes. From there he's skyrocket into film. Zachary came out publicly as gay in 2011 and stated that after the suicide of gay teenager Jamey Rodemeyer, he felt that "living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality." Before coming out Zachary had been a active supporter of gay rights and organizations like the Trevor Project. Zachary Quinto is on this list because he breaks the perception that people have when it comes to queer actors. His roles are very diverse and he doesn't rely on painful stereotypes, but rather pure talent to make his characters real. #zacharyquinto #ams #heroes #nos4a2 #startrek #spock #actor #sylar #drawing #draw #pencilart #prismacolor #portrait #sketch #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #gay #lesbian #bisexual #transgender #queer (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce3cwtIrnU5/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 15 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is mathematician Alan Turing Alan Turning was not only a mathematician, philosopher, theoretical biologist, but a computer scientist as well. Turing was influential in the development of theoretical computer science, providing the concepts of algorithm and computation with the Turing machine, which is considered a model for the general purpose computer. He is considered the father of not only theoretical computer science, but also artificial intelligence. Turing was born in London in 1912. He graduated Kings College Cambridge, with a degree in mathematics. In 1938 he recieved a PhD from the Department of Mathematics at Princeton. During WW2 he worked for the Government Code and Cypher School. He devised a way of breaking German ciphers and helped crack the German Enigma Code. After the war Turing created one of the first designs for a stored program computer. Despite his many accomplishments, Turing was never fully recognised in Britain during his lifetime because much of his work was covered by the Official Secrets Act. Alan Turing inspires me because of his intelligence and creativity. Despite not being viewed as an equal, where it was a crime for him being homosexual, he still chose to help save the lives of others. It's also pretty amazing to know that the preliminary computer design came from him. In a time where computers are a way of life, we should all give Alan Turing a special thanks. @alanturingofficial #alanturing #enigmacode #ww2 #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #bisexual #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #drawing #sketch #draw #pencilart #prismacolor #portrait (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce0oE27rAPm/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 14 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is singer George Michael. George was born in Northern London in 1963. Along with Andrew Ridgeley, he began his career as a member of the music group Wham! The duo made quite a name for themselves, from the UK music charts to touring China. It was in 1987 when George released his first solo album Faith, that pushed him into another direction. He was no longer one half of a group, but a solo artist having 4 singles reach for the number 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 music charts. George's career continued with the release of Freedom 90, a live duet with Elton John, and 2 more multimillion selling albums in 1996 and 2004. Apart from music George campaigned for LGBT rights and HIV/AIDS awarness. He came out in 1998, having worked very hard to keep his personal life private. George Michael is one of the best best male vocalists of all time, his sound recognizable and distinct. He influences me because of his willingness to be tender and vulnerable. His sound resonates in my heart, he yearns for love and honesty, but is playful and unapologetically sensual. There will never be an artist quite like George. @georgemofficial #georgemichael #wham #freedom #fatherfigure #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #queerartist #gayillustration #lgbt #pride #rainbow #queer #gay #transgender #lesbian #drawing #sketch #sketchbook #figuredrawing #onemoretry (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cex8582O19u/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Number 13 on my Queer Icons Pride Project is Rockband Queen Vocalist - Freddie Mercury Freddie was born Farrokh Bulsara in 1946 in Zanzibar. He attended English boarding schools in India and then returned to do secondary school in Zanzibar, but in 1964 he and his family fled to England to escape the revolution. In 1970 he was introduced to Brian May, John Deacon, and Roger Taylor, and together they created the band Queen. Freddie is known not only for his flamboyant stage presence, and incredible vocal ability, but his writing ability as well, having written many of Queen's hits including Killer Queen, Bohemian Rhapsody, Somebody to Love, and We Are The Champions. Freddie had a few partners, some woman and some men, but his sexuality was something he rarely discussed, privacy being one and certain laws at the time made it criminal to express homosexuality being the other. But there were those close to Freddie that said he was either gay or that he was bisexual, regardless Freddie is a Icon and to me a Queer Icon for the ages. Freddie Mercury influences me in pushing myself as an artist and how the viewers see what I have to say on paper, whether it be truth or a lie. Freddie's voice supports and lifts me up in ways few artists can and I'll always be grateful for that. @freddiemercury #freddiemercury #queen #queerartist #gayillustration #freddiemercuryforever #lgbt #pride2022 #prideproject #loveislove #strength #lgbtqia #pride #brianmay #rogertaylor #rock #gay #transgender #lesbian #drawing #sketch #sketchbook #prismacolorpencil (at Turlock, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cevj3VCrXOn/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=