Her Majesty, QUEEN

If you knew anything about Queen before the latest biopic of them and their larger than life front-man Freddie Mercury, you knew that they are worthy of being called legends.

What makes someone a legend? Some think it’s synonymous with being a celebrity, but that’s hardly the case. So what is it then? Who better to learn from than the glorious, Freddie Mercury.

Being different is never any easy, everyone just wants to be accepted for who they are. Nobody wants to walk through life showing everyone their true self, only to be judged in return. So you dress different, look different, sound different and the world decides to shun you for it.

Let’s take a second to look behind the curtain at the person Freddie was. He was certainly “different” by the standards of the time. He was from Zanzibar, he had four extra incisors which caused his jaw to be a little bigger than normal, he dressed flamboyantly. But when he walked onto a stage, he needn’t even demand the crowds’ attention because he already had it. Hypnotizing a room is no easy task, not only does it take talent, it takes charm, it takes personality and showmanship. If you watch the LIVE AID performance from Wembly, which I will graciously link to you (warning: it is 24 minutes long, but so damn worth it). You can tell, even in a crowd of thousands that every eye there was on him and couldn’t look away. You see the crowd hugging one another and even crying. How many people can bring thousands of people to tears like that?

Freddie was an incredible songwriter. Bohemian Rhapsody is a song that will NEVER be matched in creativity, style, instrumentals, lyricism. NEVER. I don’t care about any argument you have to give against it. You’re allowed to have your opinion about it, but I hope you don’t mind being wrong. Putting so much time, effort and soul into a craft is admirable. Sitting down and putting your heart on a page is one thing but sitting down and putting your entire imagination on a page is something else.

Freddie was a lover, not a fighter. And I really do mean that, even though he was once a boxer. It was reported that Freddie had multiple lovers, which ultimately contributed to his AIDS related death. Which is heartbreaking to say the least. But my point is, Freddie had lovers that were men and women. I don’t think he was ashamed of his sexuality at all. I mean, no, he didn’t talk about it all willy nilly but people knew. It surely wasn’t a secret. And none of the people surrounding him treated it as the most important thing about him. Notably, his most important lover, I’d say, was Mary Austin. His fiancée at one point in time, who he penned the song “Love of my life” for. He continued to love her for the remainder of his life and referred to her as his soul mate. Such a rare thing, to find someone who you can go through the tumultuous times that those two went through and still come out with an unbreakable bond. Sharing a love like that is something that most people get only in their dreams.

Freddie was so much more than a dichotomy. He wasn’t Freddie on stage and Freddie off stage. He was Freddie, the magician. He could magically turn into whatever he needed to be. The performer, the lover, the showman, the songwriter, the philanthropist, the wild child, the loner. Something I think that we should all strive for, because being one thing or another is just boring. Who says you can’t be a veterinarian and a swimsuit model? Who says you can’t command the stage and also be an onlooker? Who says you can’t love men and women? WHO? Send them my way, tell them I just wanna talk.

If you take nothing from this, take this. Freddie Mercury, is a legend yes, because of his musicianship, his showmanship, his personality, his lyricism, his love, and all those wonderful pieces of him that are left behind for us to treasure. But he’s legendary, truly, because when you look at him, you can see little bits of yourself reflecting back at you. That’s what everyone really wants. To look into the face of someone they admire and adore and see something that reminds them of their selves. It’s assuring to know that even someone like that can get lonely. You can be gay, you can dress different, look, talk, and act different, you can be who you want to be and sure as the sun rises, someone will accept and love you. You can be broken and someone will still take the time to look through the cracks at what’s blooming underneath. No amount of things working against you, can stop you from doing the damn thing. You can have the room kissing the ground you walk on without changing the person you are and one day, maybe, you too, will have crowds looking for bits of themselves in you too.

Stay weird, kiddos.