Just found this. What more needs to be said? If you’ve ever inherited a duff project, be it as part of your studies or part of your job – sorry, students, but this shit continues to happen even after you’ve got that precious piece of paper rumoured to shield you from poverty – then this nicely executed Lady Gaga filk sums it up beautifully. Admire the costumes.
Today, 5th September, 2011, Freddie Mercury (né Farrok Bulsara), singer, songwriter and all-round phenomenon, would have been 65 years old.
For all those who appreciate his voice, or are struck by his talent even if you don’t like his music…
For all those who have friends or family who have been infected with HIV/AIDS…
For all those who have children or relatives or friends who may be at risk…
People in the adult film industry…
Mature people, who imagine it’s a young person’s disease…
Straight people who think it’s a gay disease…
You need to talk about it. HIV, that is. Not be afraid of it, but use protection and encourage others to do so too. Help people to learn more about it and how to protect themselves. Help people who already have it to live the normal lives that are now possible with the help of modern medicine.
You couldn’t do this with any other song. Go into a chatroom where people from all round the world are connected at any one time. A guild chat in an online game will do. Type these words:
I see a little silhouetto of a man…
Not only will you immediately receive the appropriate response – Scaramouche, Scaramouche will you do the fandango? – but your contacts will happily provide you with the lyrics for the entire song. Quite possibly in time to the music as well.
Extravagant, hugely talented, handsome, ridiculous Freddie Mercury, lead singer of Queen, left an enormous mark on rock music when he died of AIDS-related causes in November 1991. He was one of the first celebrities to openly succumb to the virus, even if his illness was not officially named until the weekend he died because of the social opprobrium attached to “the gay disease”. And indeed, the inevitable vicious comments from the ignorant and hateful filled the media. However, there was also a lot of public support from others, such as Elton John. The three surviving members of Queen released a short documentary celebrating his life and ending with the statement “Freddie was our friend and we loved him”. They also set up a charity, dubbed The Mercury Phoenix Trust, to promote AIDS awareness worldwide.
