By Mike Sain't Louis ·
Vota Malena Gracia: galactic elections on planet GAYFOLK
A new planet has been discovered, and it's called GAYFOLK. With that intergalactic news-bulletin headline begins the story of Vota Malena Gracia (Vote Malena Gracia), one of the craziest and most affectionate songs in my whole universe.
The plot is camp science fiction. On planet GAYFOLK an unexpected crisis breaks out: Donald Trump and Elon Musk want to buy it. An entire planet of freedom and queer art, put up for sale as if it were just another company. And to stop it, galactic elections are called.
And who stands? Malena Gracia and Noemí Argüelles, turned into symbols of a very colourful resistance. I love imagining that campaign: shiny posters, rallies with glitter, debates on a spaceship. Facing the tycoons, two artists who have been part of this country's popular culture for years.
A tribute with flowers
For me this song is, above all, a tribute to Malena Gracia. A homage to her spirit and everything she represents for many people: diversity, love, camp irony in the face of greed and power. The music video plays with the idea of taking her to the very top, to the presidency of a planet, which is where I think she deserves to be.
There's a phrase in the story that sums up the tone very well: here beauty becomes a political act, «una flor frente al acero» (a flower against steel). I really like that image. There are no weapons or aggressive speeches; there's colour, humour and style as a way of defending a place where everyone can be who they are.
What amuses me is how serious a joke can get. Behind the parody of galactic elections there's a very clear idea: free spaces aren't for sale, and they have to be defended with whatever we have to hand, even if it's sequins.
It's a song to put on on any election day, or at any party where people toast the eternal divas. I dedicate it to you if you've ever wanted to vote for someone just because they brighten your life. On planet GAYFOLK, that vote counts double.