Queer the Music with Jake Shears

Season 4 of Queer The Music continues with Tony, Grammy and Emmy-winning actor and musician Ben Platt. In conversation with Jake Shears, Platt discusses the freedom of playing a queer character on stage in Midnight at the Never Get, his lifelong relationship with musical theatre and why performing live remains the place he feels most at home. He also reflects on bringing his sexuality openly into his songwriting, his marriage to fellow performer Noah Galvin and the importance of queer audiences seeing their own relationships represented in music. Elsewhere, Platt opens up about the uncertain future of theatre and independent filmmaking, the extraordinary long-term process behind Richard Linklater’s Merrily We Roll Along, and the lasting impact of his late friend and mentor Gavin Creel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In This episode of Queer The Music, Jake Shears is joined by author and cultural critic Barry Walters to explore the queer history of Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground. Together, they discuss Andy Warhol’s radical New York underground, the influence of David Bowie, and theidentities and subcultures that helped reshape rock ’n’ roll. From ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ to ‘Perfect Day’, Walters and Shears unpack thequeerness at the heart of Reed’s work, how it became obscured from his legacy, and why his music continues to resonate with new generations today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer The Music continues with Jehnny Beth. She and Jake Shears discuss her journey from discovering Bowie and Patti Smith to forming Savages , finding her voice as an artist and embracing her bisexuality. The episode explores sobriety, identity, depression and the challenges that followed Savages, alongside her solo career, collaborations and move into acting, including her role in Anatomy of a Fall. Beth also reflects on creativity, collaboration and what it means to keep making art on your own terms. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer The Music continues with Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme. In this special extended edition, he and Shears discuss everything from their shared love of The Cramps to vulnerability, masculinity and outlier status in rock music. Homme also reflects on growing up alongside his gay brother and how this shaped his rejection of homophobia and bigotry. The episode notably explores the queer spirit behind Queens of the Stone Age, with Homme revealing that even the band’s name was deliberately chosen to challenge the overt machismo of rock culture. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer The Music continues with acclaimed pop sensation Meek for a frank and riotous conversation with Jake Shears about finding your voice, trusting your instincts and refusing to write by anyone else’s rules. Meek opens up about the brutal realities of years spent songwriting for other artists, from international writing camps and major cuts to the frustration of seeing deeply personal songs disappear onto albums. Shears and Meek also dig into the creative chemistry behind a great writing session, the importance of having fun, and why authenticity is ultimately the most powerful songwriting tool. From performing to a hairbrush as a kid to discovering her own musical identity through a gloriously eclectic mix of pop, punk and rock, Meek’s story is one of persistence, defiance and finally being heard. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer The Music continues with acclaimed writer Jeremy Atherton Lin. Joining Jake Shears, the author of Gay Bar: Why We Went Out and Deep House explores the history and evolution of LGBTQ+ nightlife, reflecting on the cultural importance of queer spaces, the changing nature of community, and how music has soundtracked identity, activism, desire, and belonging. Together, they discuss everything from London's disappearing gay bars and club culture to dating apps, generational shifts, and why the messy, unpredictable magic of queer nightlife still matters. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer The Music continues with singer-songwriter David McAlmont. Joining Jake Shears, he reflects on breaking through with McAlmont & Butler’s iconic hit Yes, navigating Britpop as an openly queer Black artist, and the industry pressures to hide his identity. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of Queer the Music we have indie rock darling Baby Queen. Joining Jake Shears, she reflects on the creative and personal journey behind her deeply honest new album, I Hope You Don’t Remember Me. They get deep on topics such as ego, rejection, therapy, queer identity and the pressure of life in the music industry. She also talks about how stepping away from expectations helped her rediscover her voice and create her most personal record yet. It’s a great episode, be sure to tune in! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of Queer the Music we’re featuring DJ, promoter and nightlife icon Jodie Harsh. Joining Jake, she traces her journey from sneaking into London’s legendary gay clubs as a teenager to building one of the capital’s biggest queer parties. Together they discuss drag, addiction, sobriety, the evolution of queer club culture, and why creating spaces for joy has never been more important. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer the Music continues with Swedish pop trailblazer Tove Lo. Joining Jake Shears, she reflects on the song that changed everything, Habits (Stay High), the freedom of becoming an independent artist, and her journey from Stockholm songwriter to one of pop’s most fearless voices. The pair also discuss bisexuality, body confidence, queer club culture and the power of radical honesty in songwriting, alongside the making of her bold new album, Strut. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 4 of Queer The Music launches today in discussion with Placebo’s iconic frontman Brian Molko. In this special, extended edition, he and Shears discuss everything from their mutual love of David Bowie to outlier-status in alternative music and media. The episode also notably marks the 30th anniversary of Placebo’s radical breakout hit, ‘Nancy Boy’. Originally written in reclaim of a slur, ‘Nancy Boy’ explores themes of sexuality, gender and identity: it is now widely regarded as a defiant act of protest that continues to resonate with new audiences today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jake Shears’ hit Queer The Music podcast returns for its fourth season. Kicking off with an episode featuring Placebo’s Brian Molko, this follows a double win for the number 1-charting podcast at the prestigious Webby Awards (including ‘Best Music Podcast’), with guests for Season 4 already set to include Swedish pop queen Tove Lo plus DJ, alt-pop artist Baby Queen and drag royalty, Jodie Harsh. Entering its biggest and most ambitious season to date, Queer The Music celebrates the music, artists and cultural moments that have shaped LGBTQ+ lives, also shifting politics, perception and popular culture in plain sight. Stay tuned for a new episode dropping every Wednesday at 6pm. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Christmas has come early as Jake selects some of his favourite bits from the last 3 seasons. Really just a reminder to go back and listen to the episodes you've missed - there have been some brilliant conversations - wishing everyone a Happy New Year and thank you for listening to Queer The Music in 2025! We'd love to hear from you - get in touch via instagram @queerthemusicpodcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this special episode of Queer The Music Jake is joined by the brilliant Rebecca Lucy Taylor aka Self Esteem. With a critically acclaimed new album, a concert tour and book under her belt this year, the pair have plenty to catch up on. Listen as Jake and Rebecca discuss their highlights of the year in queer music, answer questions from listeners, reveal what 2026 has in store for them and tell us who they’ll be kissing under the mistletoe. We'd love to hear from you - let us know who you would like to hear on Queer The Music - you can get in touch via instagram @queerthemusicpodcast or leave us a review See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's our season finale and we're delighted to be joined by Roddy Bottum, best known as the keyboardist of Faith No More. Back in 1990 Roddy found himself in the spotlight in the rock world as its first openly gay star. In this special episode Jake and Roddy celebrate Faith No More's breakthrough hit 'Epic' and they discuss what it was like to be the only out queer in rock, on tour with Guns N' Roses and Metallica, his important friendship with Courtney Love and Curt Kobain and his brilliant memoir 'The Royal We'. Thank you for listening to Series 3 of Queer The Music! Keep an eye out for some special bonus episodes dropping next month... We'd love to hear from you - let us know who you would like us to feature on Queer The Music ⁠@queerthemusicpodcast⁠ via Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Queer The Music we celebrate Grace Kelly - the debut single from Multi-platinum, BRIT Award-winning, and Grammy nominated global pop visionary Mika. Listen to Jake and Mika's fascinating conversation about Mika's childhood, the struggles he faced, how he found sanctuary through music, his creative process and how he created the hit single Grace Kelly which shot to the top of the UK charts and stayed there for 5 whole weeks . Mika's new single Modern Times is out now We'd love to hear from you - let us know who you would like to hear on Queer The Music - you can get in touch via instagram @queerthemusicpodcast or leave us a review See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week's episode celebrates the anthemic song 'Queen' by Perfume Genius. Singer-songwriter Mike Hadreas aka Perfume Genius first emerged around 2010, his music has been described as ‘dreamy and melancholic’, ‘grandiose yet intimate’ and over the course of seven studio albums he continues to shapeshift while still sounding completely himself. He joins Jake to talk about the making of the song, the video, his creative process, influences and his brilliant latest album 'Glory'. Perfume Genius is currently on tour in the UK before heading to Australia. He is playing at the Roundhouse in London on the 11th of November - check his website for other shows. https://perfumegenius.org/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week is a big one - we are celebrating the iconic The B52's. A band that paved the way for queer artists through their unapologetic on-stage identity and camp aesthetic. Their non-conformist attitude and unique sound has had a huge and lasting impact on rock and pop music - you can witness their influence on artists from Boy George to Chappell Roan. Jake credits them with the very existence of The Scissor Sisters and was thrilled to speak to one of his all-time musical heroes Kate Pierson for this special episode. You can watch the whole episode on YouTube here We'd love to hear from you - please get in touch via Instagram @queerthemusicpodcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joining Jake Shears for this episode are Abigail and Georgia from one of the most talked-about bands of the moment…The Last Dinner Party. 2024 was a huge year for them; they landed a deal with Island Records, released their critically acclaimed debut album, 'Prelude to Ecstasy', supported The Rolling Stones, Lana Del Ray, Florence and the Machine and The Arctic Monkeys, and topped it off with sold-out solo tours and two Brit Awards. It seems there’s no stopping this indie-rock, baroque-pop band, their second studio album 'From The Pyre' has just dropped and they’re off on a huge, international tour so we're lucky Abigail and Georgia made time to drop into the Queer The Music studio to talk about their creative process, how they met, what Queer music means to them and the meaning behind their song 'My Lady of Mercy'. You can watch the whole episode on YouTube here We'd love to hear from you - please get in touch via Instagram @queerthemusicpodcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the second part of the legendary Billy Porter on Queer The Music with Jake’s Shears where we hear the Tony, Grammy and Emmy award winner talk about his queer musical influences, politics, Pose and how playing Pray Tell, the flamboyant Master of Ceremonies in the New York City ballroom scene, changed Billy’s life You can watch the whole episode on Mercury Studios YouTube channel here We'd love to hear from you, get in touch via Instagram @queerthemusicpodcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.