Up-and-coming gay artist Chris Cali just released his new mixtape 'Pharaoh', complete with a sexy video for the super-danceable track 'Never Let Me Go' (see below). The video was recently featured on Out.com, as was an op-ed written by Cali himself on what he calls the "limited tropes of gayness" in music.Cali took some time out of his busy schedule to chat with me about his new music, his favorite artists, and the ups and downs of being openly gay in the music industry.
Drew: Where are you based out of and how long have you been in the music industry?Chris Cali: I'm based out of New York City and I've been singing my whole life, but I began pursuing music professionally in 2004.
I'm still figuring this out, but I'm hoping one of the pros will be finding an audience that is looking for more representation in the media, and will therefore embrace what I'm trying to do, which is simply present myself authentically. The cons I suppose would be that our culture likes to compartmentalize people and judge them based on what category they fall into, so there will no doubt be people out there who will automatically dislike me as an artist simply because I'm open about my sexuality.
Who are some of your favorite gay artists?
I've been a big fan of Cazwell for many years. Mykki Blanco, Le1f, AB SOTO are some other contemporary artists I like. There's a lot of exciting stuff going on in gay hip-hop right now. I hope to see more expansion of a gay pop scene as well.
How would you describe your new mixtape, Pharoah, and what are your musical influences/inspirations?My new mixtape is basically the culmination of what I've been working toward since I started making music. My goal as a musician has always been to make accessible material. While I draw influences from all types and genres of music, I'd say hip-hop, R&B and pop are my primary influences. And since I'm a Scorpio and I tend to be somewhat emotional, making music is always cathartic for me. So even if it's a pop song I try to write in such a way that even songs that are simplistic lyrically have a deeper meaning to me. For example, the track "Killa" is on one level a veiled reference to sexual prowess, but on another it's like a cautionary tale of my own experience being wounded in love and then inflicting that pain on to others. I don't think that pop music has to be devoid of substance and I hope people who hear the mixtape can see that. And lastly, I'm still growing and finding myself as an artist and as an individual. I basically taught myself how to make music, so every record I've made so far is all part of my learning process, and I hope to be able to continue to progress.
What message do you have for readers of MileHighGayGuy?
One thing I've definitely learned is that not everyone is going to like my shit; that's just the nature of being an artist. I don't expect an LGBT audience to just jump on my bandwagon because I'm gay. But I would hope that people will appreciate the balls it takes to put yourself out there, especially as a gay artist. I think visibility is key for the community, as is a wider range of representation. I think I offer something different than the typical images of gay men we see in the media, and I hope the audience sees that as well.
