The Swedish pop star revealed that the LGBTQIA community inspired some of the tracks on Venus
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY PAUL EDWARDS
Zara Larsson has been bringing us hits like Lush Life, Never Forget You, and Ain’t My Fault since the start of her career in 2014. It’s no surprise that her latest album – Venus – is already getting fans on the dancefloor. In a recent interview with The Advocate, the Swedish pop star revealed that this new record was actually inspired by the LGBTQIA community.
One of the tracks entitled You Love Who You Love has quickly been adopted as a queer anthem. For Zara, that was kind of the whole point. “It was actually inspired because it was Pride in Stockholm!” she told the Advocate. “Let’s just write about loving whoever you want to love. Love is beautiful. Love is amazing. You’re right, of course, I’m an ally. Everyone who has a brain is. Of course, you can love whoever you love.”
The pop star continued, explaining that the title track was also a queer song. “That song, [written by] Violet Skies, was actually inspired from her first experience falling in love with a girl!”
So Venus is a pretty queer album? “Absolutely,” Zara revealed.
Throughout her decade-long career, Zara has been a firm LGBTQIA ally. In this recent interview, she spoke candidly about the love and gratitude she had towards the queer community. “I’m so thankful for [the community], ever since the start,” she said.
Last year, Zara made headlines when she shut down a TikToker who falsely accused her of using a homophobic slur. Responding to the video – which was later dubbed as “satire” by the TikToker – Zara said: “I get that it’s a joke, but we need to make a study on what it is that makes white gay men feel like making a woman look homophobic is the funniest thing ever.”
“Everybody who knows me knows that I am an ally,” she continued. “I’ve always been, and I will always be.”
Venus is available to stream now.
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