Little Richard
“I did what I felt, and I felt what I did, at all costs.”
Today’s music still got some soul…but we loved this man’s take on rock and roll! This CUT in Blaque feature is considered to be royalty in Rock & Roll: Little Richard.
Richard Wayne Penniman was born December 5, 1932 in Macon, Georgia. Before he became the iconic and incredible Little Richard, he was just a young kid born into a Southern family that loved church. Frequent church-going led Little Richard to become immersed in gospel, and he began to explore different music genres that could be mixed with the sounds of church. Eventually, he left home as a teenager to give his music career a jumpstart. What a start it was; Little Richard had arrived, and he came with grand energy and grand tunes!
Little Richard had a long and fulfilling music career that expanded over 50 years. His extensive discography holds over 20 albums, but he’s perhaps most known for his hit singles, “Tutti Frutti” (1957), “Good Golly Miss Molly” (1958), and “Long Tall Sally”. Despite the name, Little Richard’s stage presence was anything but little. He was known for putting on high-energy performances that showed off his impressive vocal range, styles ranging from early R&B, Black Gospel and Rock-N-Roll. Little Richard was often imitated by white artists who tackily stole his songs for their own covers, but he was granted with well-deserved respect when he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.
Song of the Show
A CUT in Blaque segment highlighting Black LGBTQIA+ musical talent from around our community across genres through a series of artist videos, song snippets, and reviews to increase awareness amongst our people.
Before his death in 2020, Little Richard went on to win several awards and give outstanding live performances. He’ll always be remembered and honored for his talent, but there was another side of him that is in due need of recognition: his impact as an LGBTQ artist. Throughout his life, there were many times when Little Richard struggled with coming to terms with his sexuality. However, it’s often thought that he expressed himself through his music as a way to remedy himself. Even in his early stages of his career, Little Richard often performed in drag, channeling the same flamboyant energy he gave during his non-drag shows. Eventually, Little Richard answered the ultimate question regarding his sexuality in 1995, which only supported his stance as an icon in the community.
Struggling with his sexuality is something that the LGBTQ community may be able to identify with in Little Richard. Coming to truth with yourself isn’t the easiest thing to do at atll; but we hope that there can be comfort found in knowing that Little Richard, a man larger than life with a joyous and flamboyant presence, overcame that same struggle in his lifetime. We hope it offers a bit of hope to anyone in the LGBTQ community grappling with the same task.
What’s something that you most enjoyed about Little Richard and his everlasting impact? Let us know down in the comments below!
Starter Pack: Little Richard
Each Starter Pack playlist is a curated compilation of a Black Queer artist’s greatest musical hits, further exploring the music of the African diaspora. This includes jazz, blues, gospel, rock and roll, hip hop, and R&B.