Hyperpop + Queer Theory

An exploration into the intersection of a rising queer subculture and critical queer thinkers. Created as a Queer Studies final project

[hyperpopqt]

Introduction (AKA: Why would I write about a niche micro-genre for a final?)

Although the term 'hyperpop' first entered mainstream public consciousness in 2019, when Spotify published a playlist of the same name, it's been notoriously hard to define exactly what this genre is. The genre's roots can be traced to the Soundcloud Beat scene of the 2010s, as well as the work of late music producer SOPHIE. Elis Enis in his article ‘This is Hyperpop: A Genre Tag for Genre-less Music’. describes the genre as working under a “winking parody” of modern pop, utilizing “a collective allegiance to gaudy auto-tune” and being created by a “tight-knit internet community” of artists, many of whom are “queer, trans, [and/] or POC” (Enis). This is the best explanation that I think is possible for the genre that I've been obsessed with ever since Kero Kero Bonito released their first album in 2014, when I was first introduced to the concept of experimental pop. As both a queer person and a DJ part of the hyperpop community, the genre (and the artists that make up the genre) are an important part of my life.

Hyperpop, while a relatively niche genre, has been rapidly growing in popularity over the past three years, with the Spotify playlist alone boasting 254,000+ followers, heavily featuring queer artists such as Arca, Chester Lockhart, Dorian Electra, COBRAH, and TAAHLIAH. It is this cast of characters that I will be examining in comparison to the works of queer theorists Eve Kosofsky Sedgewick, Judith Butler, Victoria Clarke and Kevin Turner, and Jackie Goldsby in this project.

While the hyperpop community is tight-knit and comprised primarily of queer individuals, the genre and resulting subculture hasn't been examined or compared in relation to existing queer theory. As such, I've formatted my analysis into this blog to allow a more public access to the internet at large. Whereas hyperpop is often stated to be inaccessible due to its largely abrasive sound, the ideas that its artists create and grapple with should be available to a greater audience and I invite others to continue the discussion started here.

- Willow

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Bibliography

[hyperpopqt]

Bibliography

Arca. "Nonbinary." KiCk i, XL Recordings, 2020. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/track/4lUlYGT5VvZWN3GBDIc9KT?si=c0cd5c28d62f4c00

Arca, Planningtorock. "Queer." kick iiii, XL Recordings, 2021. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/track/6nmuvquxXkrkBucbxpQ8Wo?si=1bb66ec4c8f64d0c

Butler, Judith. "Performative Acts and Gender Constitution: An Essay on Phenomenology and Feminist Theory.” in The Performance Studies Reader, ed. Henry Bial, 2nd ed. (London and New York: Routledge, 2007), 187-99.

Clarke, Victoria., Turner, Kevin. "Clothes Maketh the Queer? Dress, Appearance and the Construction of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Identities." Feminism & Psychology 17, no. 2 (2007): 267-76.

Electra, Dorian. "Gentleman." My Agenda, Dorian Electra, 2020. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/track/5stwYWdRRFmLQ25IbX8kK1?si=c195970b9dc14c75

Electra, Dorian. "M'Lady." My Agenda, Dorian Electra, 2020. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/track/2i9yWmgHVqWW1vmXtxUaN9?si=5abef871022f41cf

Enis, Eli. “This is Hyperpop: A Genre Tag for Genre-less Music.” Noisey Music by Vice, 27 October 2020, https://www.vice.com/en/article/bvx85v/this-is-hyperpop-a-genre-tag-for-genre-less-music

EXTREME, JACKIE. “CHERRYBLOSSOMING.” CHERRYBLOSSOMING, THE JACKIE CORPORATION, 2020. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/track/0Dgn7zUypdEMLj6LcASEyq?si=92ccdf5ee0a14d31

Goldsby, Jackie. “Queens of Language: Paris is Burning.” in Queer Looks:Perspectives on Lesbian and Gay Film and Video, ed. Martha Gever, John Greyson, and Pratibha Parmar (New York: Routledge, 1993), 108-15.

Kosofsky Sedgwick, Eve. “Queer and Now.” Sedgwick, Tendencies, Series Q (Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1993), 1-20.

Lockhart, Chester [chesterlockhart]. "Bio." Instagram, 2021, https://www.instagram.com/chesterlockhart/

Saleh, Dua. "Sugar Mama." Nūr, AGAINST GIANTS, 2019. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/track/4dyAQ8PjbyInJYgTnTsIeX?si=2e5a30aec4514446

Spotify. “hyperpop.” hyperpop, Spotify, 2021. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX7HOk71GPfSw?si=fd8bdc25bac24fc6

TAAHLIAH. "Angelica." Angelica, Untitled Recs Limited, 2021. Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/album/2FRhqyhCl2pz7Bx7IiugOI?si=OzDGLveCQjixOEAngT93PA

[hyperpopqt]

Rejecting 'Realness': TAAHLIAH, Dua Saleh, and Jackie Goldsby

In her critique, entitled 'Queens of Language' on Jennie Livingston's 1990 documentary 'Paris Is Burning', Jackie Goldsby highlights the concept of 'realness' in ballroom culture. Realness, the ability to pass as a given gender or sexuality, "derives its charge from the gesture of erasure's precisely because the marks of race, class, and sexuality limn these images" (Goldsby 110). The depiction of realness in 'Paris is Burning', while problematic for how it can be seen as a glorification of whiteness, displays a level of truth combined with a suspension of disbelief: those who walk at a ball dressed as "An ultra feminine 'Virginia Slims' girl" (Goldsby 110) are understood to not necessarily identify as such, but are judged on how well they can pull off a convincing performance.

TAAHLIAH, a Glasgow-based Black trans woman, and a DJ drawing inspiration from the ballroom and hyperpop scenes, chooses to defy the concept of 'realness', instead portraying herself and her own experiences in her music. On her debut EP 'Angelica', TAAHLIAH rejects the upper class and embraces her lower class roots ('Bourgeoisie'), reflects on the struggle of coming to terms with a trans identity ('Brave'), and reflects on other trans women of color who haven't been as successful in passing as she has ('Never Lose'). This literal 'realness' juxtaposes the 'realness' described by Goldsby in that it rejects white, middle/upper-class ideals in favor of TAAHLIAH's own life and experiences.

This level of self-awareness is and rejection of ballroom 'realness' is paralleled in Sudanese-American fringe-hyperpop artist Dua Saleh's presentation. While primarily known for xyr depiction of an androgynous nonbinary character in Netflix's 'Sex Education', Saleh portrays themself as separate from the norms attached to queer Black artists in their style and music. In 'Sugar Mama', the opening track from xyr first EP, Saleh rejects the white middle/upper-class ideal present in queer culture by portraying the 'Sugar Mama' as a racially insenstive rich white woman only interested in Saleh as a fetishistic figure.The rejection of "stringy hair", as Saleh prefers xyr women "in a bonnet" (Saleh) again places Goldsby's 'realness' into a place of contention, instead celebrating the 'realness' of Saleh's own experiences. Both TAAHLIAH and Dua Saleh display this 'new realness' as a way to reject the ideals of both neoliberal queer culture and the aspiration for whiteness found in ballroom'realness', positioning them in a place where their experiences dictate their music.

[hyperpopqt]

Queens in Latex: COBRAH, JACKIE EXTREME, and Clarke & Turner's Construction of Queer Appearance

Victoria Clarke and Kevin Turner's 'Clothes Maketh the Queer? Dress, Appearance and the Construction of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Identities' highlights the concept that 'queer fashion' and social norms lead to an assumed way to 'look gay' or 'look lesbian'. through a study on nine queer individuals, the concept of the lesbian fashion sense ("jeans or coats, trousers, obviously trousers, and it will either be a vest top or t-shirt of some description" (Clarke, Turner 269) was seen as stereotypical, but 'real' in that many lesbians feel the need to conform to said image to be seen as such. Similar to Judith Butler's gender as drag, this view orients a given sexuality as having a specific way of looking. Despite this research, neither of the to bisexual women studied thought that they had a specific way of dressing.

Both the concept of the stereotypical lesbian and the nebulous bisexual are explored and subverted in various ways in the work of a number of hyperpop artists, most notably in that of COBRAH and JACKIE EXTREME. COBRAH, a Swedish artist who creates what she calls 'gay workout music', focuses her work mainly around her identity as a lesbian, with songs such as 'GOOD PUSS' and 'GOOEY FLUID GIRLS' celebrating her love for other women. What sets her apart from other sapphic hyperpop artists is her BSDM-inspired look: tight dark-colored latex suits, chains, and exaggerated makeup. COBRAH's portrayal of herself is interesting to say the least, as it positions her outside of the stereotypes of the organized gay club scene depicted by Clarke and Turner in their study, while also positioning her inside the depiction of queer style as "in a sociocultural vacuum, free from the pressures of the gay scene" (Clarke, Turner 274). COBRAH's style is ultimately unique in that it provides her a sense of individuality while also displaying her as a lesbian woman in a non-traditional sense.

The idea of latex as a unique style is also utilized by another hyperpop artist in the depiction of music project JACKIE EXTREME. The as-of-yet anonymous artist behind the project depicts JACKIE as an animated feminine figure, typically dressed in a latex suit with their face showing. The artist behind the project identifies herself as a queer figure, but is notoriously secretive about their appearance, performing live in a full-body latex suit, hiding any distinguishing features. This combined with JACKIE's smug refusal to show herself as anything other than a simulation, speaking of their date in the song 'CHERRYBLOSSOMING' as not knowing that she isn't real, ties to the depiction of the bisexual style in Clarke and Turner's study as a nebulous entity. JACKIE's portrayal of a feminine figure in latex then doesn't serve the same purpose as COBRAH's, one working to obscure the figure while the latter works to highlight the figure as an individual. Both constructions of a queer appearance are informed by the needs of the artists themselves to appear in a certain light, yet reject the traditional stereotypes placed upon queer style.

[hyperpopqt]

Chameleon in Chainmail: Dorian Electra and Judith Butler's Gender as Drag

In Judith Butler's ground-breaking essay 'Performative Acts and Gender Constitution' she defines gender as a series of performative acts that "must be understood as the mundane way in which bodily gestures, movements, and enactments of various kinds constitute the illusion of an abiding gendered self" (Butler 187). In short, "gender is an act" (Butler 193), a form of drag in which the subject must perform a specific way (masculine, feminine, androgynous) to appear 'gendered' in the eyes of those around them.

In a genre choc-full of gender-non-conforming artists, perhaps no hyperpop artist has shown gender as drag better than Dorian Electra. In their sophomore album 'My Agenda', Electra primarily plays the role of the 'incel' produced by internet culture, a self-styled 'nice-guy' that feels the world is out to get him. This lens is used to explore the hypocrisy of dark humor in 'Edgelord', internalized homophobia in 'Sorry Bro (I Love You)', and most significantly, gender roles in the double single 'Gentleman/M'Lady'. Playing up the views of men and women produced by the current internet age, Electra examines the concept of gender as a "historical situation rather than a natural fact" proposed by Butler.

'Gentleman' portrays Electra as a 'white knight' that acts chivalrous towards women in an attempt to gain sexual favors. This caricature of men who believe themselves to be entitled to sex is displayed through a visual of the genderfluid Electra dressed in a fedora and trench coat, wielding a katana. These hallmarks of 'incel' (incelibate, referring to men who believe themselves oppressed for not being granted sex) culture are taken to the extreme: a man so sure of his own masculinity that he believes he is "the last living gentleman" (Electra). The flip side of this phenomenon is portrayed in 'M'Lady', which portrays Electra as the ultra-feminine sexual partner of the 'Gentleman'. The album art depicts Electra now dressed as a nymph, exposing cleavage and wearing a dog chain, placing 'M'Lady' in a sexually submissive stance. 'M'Lady' is described as pure, chaste, and a whore, displaying the conflicting claims placed onto women by 'incel' culture and a continued cycle of praise and disgust. In playing up this hypocritical claim, as well as depicting 'M'Lady' as "a dream" and "not real", Electra continues their portrayal of gender as drag through the depiction of gender as a historical situation, with Electra's concepts of 'male' and 'female' existing solely because of internet culture and the concepts of gender utilized in 'incel' culture.

[hyperpopqt]

Two Sides of the Same Queer Coin: Arca, Chester Lockhart, and Kosofsky Sedgewick's Labels

Eve Kosofsky Sedgewick's 'Queer and Now' highlights a key difference between the expectations of a sexual identity and the expectations of 'queer'. The epistemology of a given sexual identity, say homosexual, assumes a series of elements such as biological sex, gender, procreative choice, and sexual fantasies. In comparison, the identification with the term 'queer' can point to an 'open mesh of possibilities, gaps, overlaps, dissonances and resonances, lapses and excesses of meaning" (Kosofsky Sedgewick 8). This isn't to say that there isn't a merit in identifying with a given sexual identity, but rather that the term 'queer' provides more flexibility in the expectations it carries. However, in the subversive realm of hyperpop, both 'queer' and 'sexual identity' take on different meanings.

Catalan artist Arca, known for her collaborations with Kanye West and Björk, has made the exploration of her gender and sexual identity public with the release of her five-album 'Kick Cycle', comprised of KiCk i, KICK ii, KicK iii, kick iiii, and kiCK iiiii. Each of the five albums explores the evolution of Arca's identity, which is perhaps most apparent in 'Nonbinary' from KiCk i, and 'Queer' from kick iiii. 'Nonbinary' assumes the labels associated with a concrete identity for most of it's run-time, acting as a confident anthem of gender euphoria, but the closing verse reveals a different side to the titular identity. "I can be friendly or I can be fake/I can be real or I can lick a taste/What's it gonna take?/I can be sexy or I could be sad/Act bad just to be sweet" sings Arca, displaying a level of complexity in her gender that isn't contained in a single word. This rejection of the epistemology of identity reaches a head in 'Queer', a collaboration with legendary queer producer Planningtorock, with a refrain of "I got tears like a queer/Queer power" (Arca). This rejection of a single term and adoption of 'queer' as a qualifier mirrors Kosofsky Sedgewick's argument in the power of queer as a label, displaying a gain of personal power.

The opposite effect is created in musician and performance artist Chester Lockhart's project 'girlbosstoday', an Instagram account where the genderqueer artist adopts the persona of a cishet \ woman to parody the stifling limits brought on by labels. Through covers of Katy Perry's 'Firework' parodying the rise of rainbow capitalism (the music video depicts Lockhart adorned in a rainbow flag, eating Chik-fil-A) and the Christian worship song 'Our God is an Awesome God', Lockhart demonstrates a parody of both neoliberal politics and the limitations of identities, their Instagram proudly stating: "heterosexual they/them" (Lockhart). In this regard, Lockhart, while publicly identifying with a label, argues against the limitations brought on by a single qualifier. Both Arca and Lockhart then work to display the "silent presumptions...[made] about a given person's sexuality" argued by Kosofsky Sedgewick, ultimately rejecting labels in favor of the all-encompassing reach of 'queer'.