Tag: semler

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Prominent Christian Artist and Atheist Collaborating on Drag Queen’s Album

Drag Queen Flamy Grant (Real name Matthew Blake) is working on a music album about the spiritual trauma he endured growing up in a town where his whole world was a “faith-saturated, fundamentalist, very evangelical space that didn’t exactly embrace a queer kid with cross-dressing tendencies.”

Blake, who describes himself as a “shame-slaying, soothsaying, hip-swaying heathen and infidel” while singing “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord a look. A bless his hearts, we’re gonna leave them feeling shook” has a bit of help on this nasty little endeavor, with collaborators Derek Webb and Grace Baldridge lending a hand.

Webb apostatized several years ago into the purest form of paganism, but used to be the frontman for Caedmon’s Call and had 10 GMA Dove Award nominations and half as many Christian radio hits.

Semler is a queer artist and is a newcomer to the Christian music scene, gaining some publicity after her profanity-laced album briefly the top spot on iTunes Christian and Gospel charts. Her real name is Grace Semler Baldridge, she’s a butch lesbian who’s married to a woman while purposefully altering her appearance to look like a man—giving the impression she’s about one upper chest surgery from becoming transgendered. She is gaining more and more prominence and was instrumental in both Switchfoot and Relient K coming out as gay-affirming- the latter whom she has been touring with. She’s not even close to a Christian, despite what Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the richer (who is also LGBTQ affirming, according to Semler) may say.

According to his website, “Flamy is founder and co-host of Heathen Podcast, a show about breaking up with bad religion; a songstress and musician who performs across the country; and the internet’s polygender preacher, taking on toxic religion by turning looks and tearing down shame in her signature 60-second sermons on TikTok.”

He sought to crowdfund the entire album and has reached his goal, with the introductory video below.


The only real takeaway from this story is how openly subversive Semler is about her desire to see her perverse sexual proclivities become commonplace. This is not some sort of respectable, proper Revoice-attending woman who has all her theology buttoned up and orthodox save for this one area where she deviates slightly, but rather is raving lunatic in a tie-dye shirt wearing a boot on her head and a ‘Gay Pride’ logo tattooed on her neck that is lobbing sophistry bombs in order to start a rainbow war, and all these so-called Christian bands platforming her are complicit in it.



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Relient K Concert Opener Claims Larry and Bob Were ‘Gay’

Last month, the ‘Christian‘ band Relient K came out as pro-LGBTQ, after inviting open and unrepentantly gay musician Semler to join them on their upcoming tour. Semler is a queer artist and is a newcomer to the Christian music scene, gaining some publicity after her profanity-laced album briefly the top spot on iTunes Christian and Gospel charts, with songs with lyrics like this

My Dad’s never cursed in his life
I asked if he smoked he said, “twice”
Well by that standard I’m a God damn failure
I passed blunts the day I married my wife

But I’m a child of God, just in case you forgot
And you cast me out every single chance that you got
And that’s your loss not mine, I’ll be better than fine
You just missed your shot to meet the unholy divine

I’m sayin’ fuck a savior and if She can’t take it then she’s small
I’m gonna ask a lot of questions because I’m giving this my all
You know the people preaching now well they’ve been putting us through shit
And if you don’t sanction that then why are you rewarding it?

Her real name is Grace Semler Baldridge, she’s a butch lesbian who’s married to a woman while purposefully altering her appearance to look like a man—giving the impression she’s about one upper chest surgery from becoming transgendered.

Semler has openly advocated for LGBTQ allies to shout out “gay rights” during Christian concerts in order to force the bands to publicly comment and confront their views on the issue. She recently made news after doing this same thing at a Switchfoot concert, resulting in lead singer Jon Foreman Releasing a pro-LGBTQ TikTok video.

Now, during one of their concerts in Milwaukee, in which she opened for Relient K and after performing several of her pro-LGBTQ songs, she stopped and commented on the state of Veggie Tales, claiming that Larry the Cucumber and Bob the Tomato were a bunch of sodomites, to the raucous cheers and clapping of the audience.

“…Vegetables and their biblical high jinks. We love the VeggieTales. Well, if you’re familiar with the VeggieTales- which actually, let me pause this for a minute- Bob and Larry are gay. Fight Me. I didn’t mean to (start/ stoke?) this but I have. And it’s a hill I will die on. Or I’ll tweet about it.”

She further goaded creator Phil Vischer on Twitter, after he confirmed that these veggies weren’t gay for each other.

What else did anyone expect would happen?

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Christian Band Relient K Comes out As LGBTQ-Affirming

The Christian Band Relient K has functionally come out as pro-LGBTQ, inviting open and unrepentantly gay musician Semler to join them on their upcoming tour.

Semler is a queer artist and is a newcomer to the Christian music scene, gaining some publicity after her profanity-laced album briefly the top spot on iTunes Christian and Gospel charts.

Her real name is Grace Semler Baldridge, she’s a butch lesbian who’s married to a woman while purposefully altering her appearance to look like a man—giving the impression she’s about one upper chest surgery from becoming transgendered.

Semler has openly advocated for LGBTQ allies to shout out “Gay rights” during Christian concerts in order to force the bands to publicly comment and confront their views on the issue. She recently made news after doing this same thing at a Switchfoot concert, resulting in lead singer Jon Foreman Releasing a pro-LGBTQ TikTok video.

She says she plans to have a Pride flag playing behind her on her set.

One of her songs, ‘Toby Mac’ released last year includes these lyrics, showing her affinity for the band that she is now touring with as well as more sexual perversion.

I wanna make my girl a mixtape
Of love songs she’d know were just from me
But the only songs I know are Christian
So I have to think strategically

..Well there’s a drag queen out in Tennessee
She dedicates her act to Amy
Well “Baby, baby” I hope one day she’ll be acknowledged
Like Relient K fucking got my ass through college

Here’s the deal: it’s not like she is a “side B’ Christian- someone who says that they are Christian who is gay but believes it to be sin and so is celibate- that’s its own thing, but at least is more understandable.

When you go on tour with a band that that is openly and unrepentantly engaging in something so vile as sodomy- who has made it her mission to propagate the normalization and acceptance of it, both in her public statements as well as in the music itself, you are wholly complicit in it.

If Relient K thought it was wrong, she wouldn’t be there. If they thought it was right, she’d be right there at their side.

Nice to know where they stand.

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Openly LGBTQ Artists Again Reaches #1 in Christian Music Charts

For the second time this year, openly LGBTQ artist Semler has taken the top spot on iTunes Christian and Gospel charts.

If that name and all the queerish heebie-jeebies go with it sound familiar to you, it should. We wrote about her a few months ago after she shouted “Gay rights!” at a Switchfoot concert, a practice she advocates doing in order to publicly force ‘Christian’ artists to confront their homophobia and outdated and amoral views on homosexuality. (In response to that call out, Switchfoot’s Jon Foreman responded to the coaxing of a queer “Christian” artist questioning his pro-LGBTQ+ creds, telling her that LGBTQ+ people are always welcome at his concerts and that he supports gay rights and freedoms.)

Semler is a newcomer to the scene and is the performing name of Grace Semler Baldridge, a butch lesbian who’s married to a woman while purposeful altering her appearance to look like a man – giving the impression she’s about one upper chest surgery from becoming transgendered.

Semler previously unseated Lauren Daigle to briefly capture the top spot in the rankings around nine months ago with her ‘Preacher’s kid’ album and she’s done it again, passing CeCe Winans, We the Kingdom, and others with her ‘Late Bloomer’ Ep.

https://twitter.com/GraceBaldridge/status/1452839973846073347

Not only is the album featured on iTunes, but the song “Hallelujah (In Your Arms)”, described by the artist as an “anthem of queer joy” is currently featured on Spotify’s Top Christian Artists playlist.

In a move that further shows the cowardice of many Christian musicians and artists, RNS reported that “they reached out to 10 Christian chart-toppers” seeking to ask them about their views of LGBTQ inclusion in the Christian music industry, and “none responded to invitations to clarify their stance.”

 

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Switchfoot’s Jon Foreman Releases Pro-LGBTQ+ Tiktok Video

Switchfoot’s Jon Foreman has responded to the coaxing of a queer “Christian” artist questioning his pro-LGBTQ+ creds, telling her that LGBTQ+ people are always welcome at his concerts and that he supports gay rights and freedoms.

This was all kicked started after musician Semler shouted “Gay rights!” at a Switchfoot concert, something she advocates doing.

Semler is a queer artist and is a newcomer to the Christian music scene, gaining some publicity after her profanity-laced album briefly the top spot on iTunes Christian and Gospel charts. Her real name is Grace Semler Baldridge, she’s a butch lesbian who’s married to a woman while purposefully altering her appearance to look like a man—giving the impression she’s about one upper chest surgery from becoming transgendered.

Explaining that “Christians are disproportionately harmful to LGBTQ people, her goal was to wear her Pride shirt and shout out “Gay rights!” in between songs and then tagging the band on TikTok, hoping that he’ll respond to her in an affirming message and not do some bait and switch like “I love you too.” (By “gay rights” she means the right to marry, the right to be free from discrimination, the right to access any bathroom they or transgendered allies choose, and a host of other ones.) According to Semler, because Christians have been specific in their hurt, they need to be specific in their affirmation.

Lead singer Jon Foeman did not disappoint, responding to her in a way that left her feeling completely affirmed.

https://twitter.com/GraceBaldridge/status/1439332089132765184

Hey Grace. How are you doing? I’m so honored you came to your show last night. I saw your story and wanted to respond and tell you ‘Yes, I support your rights and freedoms.’

I want you to feel loved and supported. I want you to feel treasured and valued and seen. I want all love and joy and beauty and truth for you. Love and embrace have always been central to our story and our song. We need our differences. I’m so glad that you were there last night. In fact, it breaks my heart to think that you would not be accepted.

Let me correct that. You and your journey and your story are welcome at a Switchfoot show.

I said something like this last night and I TRULY meant it: if you look different than me, if you vote different than me, if you believe different than me, if you love different than me: you are beloved. You are my sister. You are my brother. I need you, like you need me, like I need you, like you need me.

Our music has always been for anyone whose open-minded enough to jump into the dialogue. Agnostic. Atheist, Consumerist. Jewish. Muslim. Doubters. Believers. Haters. Lovers. LGBTQ+ and everyone else brave enough to look for meaning and truly jump into that.

No one else is an expert on someone else’s experience. And I can’t pretend to know your pain, I can only know my own, but I know what’s like to feel like you don’t fit in…I don’t know your pain, but I know what it’s like to wrestle with depression and anxiety. I know what it’s like to feel voiceless in a hypocritical culture that feels deeply flawed. I know what that feels like.

And I’m sure you’ve received all sorts of pain and hardship along the way. I’m so sorry. May these wounds heal, may you transcend them, that these wounds would not define you but that you would define them. May you find peace and truth and love on your journey. Keep writing songs, keep creating beauty, keep reaching out, and keep being honest, chasing beauty and truth and light and love. Keep choosing to see the good in people, even folks who might be different than you.

With all love and respect, I hope to see you around sometime.

Semler took his words to heart, explaining that her takeaway is that they are affirming, a comment he later would like and give a little heart to.

I don’t know if you know how meaningful that affirmation was. I am interpreting what you said as being affirming. If I’m incorrect in that, then I really hope you would clarify. Because I think for many queer people of faith, the bait and switch of hearing such encouraging words like yours and then finding out it means something else is heartbreaking.

We have reached out to Switchfoot for comment and will update accordingly.

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LBGTQ Musician Tops Christian iTunes Charts

An openly gay artist has taken the top spot on iTunes Christian and Gospel charts, sending reigning champion Laren “I don’t know if homosexuality is a sin or not” Daigle’s album “Look up Child” to second place, just three above Chris Tomlin’s newest worship album.

The new number one spot is occupied by Semler and her album “Preacher’s Kid.” Semler is a newcomer to the scene and is the performing name of Grace Semler Baldridge, a butch lesbian who’s married to a woman while purposeful altering her appearance to look like a man – giving the impression she’s about one upper chest surgery from becoming transgendered.

https://twitter.com/GraceBaldridge/status/1359947008098799617

Baldridge is overjoyed at what this means for LGBTQ acceptance, telling the Huffington Post:

It’s just been so encouraging and heartening. I keep thinking about how this would have meant so much to me when I was 13 or 14 years old, to see an openly queer artist talk about being queer and struggling with faith and being hopeful with God and being mad with God sometimes. 

I’m so grateful to be part of what I think is a movement towards inclusion within a faith community that has been largely exclusionary…

“Preacher Kid” contains 8 tracks and has a “Parental Advisory” warning on it, due to obscene language that some progressives swoon over but we find tacky, blasphemous and tragic. One example is from her Bethlehem song:

I’m saying ‘F-ck a saviour’
And if she can’t take it then she’s small
I’m gonna ask a lot of questions
Because I’m giving this my all
You know the people preach now
Well they’d be putting us through sh-t
And if you don’t sanction that then why are you rewarding it?

Baldridge herself is a real-life preacher’s kid – in this case, the daughter of an Episcopal priest. Throughout the album, she rants about the church’s refusal to embrace LGTBQ ideology, as well as her experience growing up in the mainstream evangelical experience, with all the goofiness that frequently comprises it.

With stripped-down production and an acoustic vibe she touches on the excesses of youth group lock-ins, short-term mission trips, and this pervasive doubt she seems to experience about God’s existence and her own salvation. Much of her ire is well directed, though only to a point.

Though some may see this as a sign of the times, others are more bullish. Given that she’s not trending on other lists, such as Billboard, it is speculated that LGBTQ audiences are “Gamestopping'” her in order to catapult her to that position, sending her “to the moon” in order to capitalize on the lulz, clout, and memish delights.