MGM Resorts International
Bob Dylan, St. Vincent, and Kesha appear on a new six-song project celebrating LGBTQ pronouns in music, The New York Times reports. Universal Love was funded by MGM Resorts International with the intention of creating songs to use during same-sex marriages, but is available to stream on Spotify for anyone, regardless of marriage plans. The project takes traditional love songs and flips the pronouns, turning classics like "And Then He Kissed Me" into queer-friendly tracks.
“If you look at the history of pop music, love songs have predominantly come from one heterosexual perspective,” said Tom Murphy, a co-producer of Universal Love, in a statement to the Times. “If we view music as something that brings people together, shouldn’t these popular songs be open to everyone?”
The songs' publishers were reportedly highly supportive, making for an easy recording and release. Bloc Party's Kele Okereke, who came out as gay in 2010, joins Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard and country musician Valerie James to round out the album. The Times notes that all artists except Dylan have a history of supporting LGBTQ causes, but that Dylan was reportedly particularly enthusiastic about the project, jumping to choose his own song.
Stream Universal Love below.