Pride of place Top festival spot for gay icon Carly Rae
CARLY Rae Jepsen will headline Bristol Pride’s festival this year, the LGBT+ charity has announced.
The Canadian singer has sold millions of records worldwide. Her breakthrough single Call Me Maybe spent four weeks at number one in the UK and was the world’s best-selling single in 2012.
She has since achieved top 10 UK singles with I Really Like You and Good Time, the latter of which was a collaboration with Owl City. She has also performed on Broadway as Cinderella.
Daryn Carter, Bristol Pride’s director of programming, said: “We are so excited to welcome global superstar Carly Rae Jepsen to headline this year’s Bristol Pride Festival.”
Jepsen, 36, is a noted gay icon. She has previously performed at other Pride festivals and has been outspoken in her support for LGBT+ rights.
She said in 2019: “I’m definitely passionate about any support I can give towards fighting the good fight, and love is love, and I’ve had friends since childhood who’ve gone through some pretty severe experiences that have enriched me enough to make [supporting the LGBT+ community] a calling of mine.”
She also pulled out of a 2013 event put on by the Boy Scouts of America, citing the scouts’ policy of banning gay individuals from joining as being incompatible with her belief in “equality for all people” and her “support [for] the LGBT community”.
The Boy Scouts of America changed their policy to permit gay children to join later that year.
Carter continued: “Bristol Pride is one of the largest Pride events in the UK and this year we have our biggest ever line-up as we come back together after two years apart.
“The headline set from Carly Rae Jepsen is going to be a truly special performance that marks the close of two weeks of events celebrating Pride, and showcasing our community across the city.”
The two weeks of Bristol Pride events this summer will culminate Pride Day itself on July 9, when a march will take place through the city. The event will draw to its dramatic close with Jepsen performing at the Pride festival on the Downs that evening.
Bristol Pride encourages anyone wishing to attend to purchase a supporter wristband for £7, though other donation amounts are welcomed.
Other acts confirmed for the festival include The X Factor winner Alexandra Burke and the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Canada, Priyanka.
Ana Matronic, the co-lead singer of Scissor Sisters, will headline the official afterparty at the O2 Academy.