'Pose' season 2 to begin with the day Madonna's epic 'Vogue' video came out, here's why it's still iconic
Ryan Murphy's 'Pose' season 2 is slated to release this summer and the critically acclaimed drama is a highly anticipated one as the revolutionary TV show chronicles the history of drag ballroom culture in New York.
Boasting the highest number of LGBTQ cast and crew in the history of television, the FX show is set to return for a second round, picking up at a time when Madonna's 'Vogue' came out. Season 1 of 'Pose' ended triumphantly in the late 1980s, after a new House was formed, and two House mothers ended their bitter rivalry. In several press tours, Murphy shared the upcoming season will witness a short time leap and open right at the time when drag culture seeped into mainstream pop culture with Madonna's 'Vogue' which released March 27, 1990.
Considered one of the best music videos of all times, 'Vogue,' created waves in the pop culture world in general and in the drag community in particular. A debatable divide in the drag community broke out. While some hailed the songstress for bringing the drag culture to the mainstream, others accused her of cultural appropriation. Almost three decades later, Murphy will be translating the time period on our screens this June, when 'Pose' season 2 premieres.
In an exclusive interview with MEA WorldWide (MEAWW), transgender model and music artist Amanda Lepore, said she loves the show 'Pose,' as it is "a huge part of LGBTQ history." She also opined that "Madonna was the perfect representative to bring voguing into mainstream." Lepore herself recently released her new EP ‘Lepore,’ which features, among other songs, ‘Buckle Up,’ and ‘The Jean Genie.’
"It’s a beautiful video. Very Glamorous, very old-school Hollywood," Lepore said of Madonna's groundbreaking video. "Madonna has done so much for the gay community. While no other heterosexual artist would even think to go near at that time, she embraced it and elevated it."
At that time, Madonna even recruited dancers from the House of Xtravaganza and Lepore believes that was a "significant" move for the "underground culture."
"She brought them on a world tour with her – giving them a huge opportunity. I don’t see anything negative, I think she deserves recognition for doing something positive for the community."
The song has been voted #5 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s and rightly so. The author of 'Madonna: Like an Icon,' Lucy O'Brien, described 'Vogue' as the "Number 1 hit of that summer, played in clubs across the globe, from London to New York to Bali."
"'Vogue' reflected the new hedonism; positive, upbeat, and totally inclusive," the author added.
However, some believed the music video had exploited the underground queer culture for financial gain. Feminist writer Nicole Akoukou Thompson noted in the Latin Post that Terrie Thaemlitz aka DJ Sprinkle said during a monologue on the track, 'Ballr/Madonna Free Zone' that the "Queen of Pop" had "taken a very specifically queer, transgender, Latino, and African-American phenomenon and totally erased that context with her lyrics."
However, a source from the House of Xtravaganza debunked the theory that there ever was a divide in the community after the pop song came out.