Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: MIKA

Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip:

MIKA

 

In my big gay church there is a wing dedicated to The Divas Who Represent. They're not all flashy or cocks of the walk - in fact, some never officially came out of the closet during their lifetime - but they are all extraordinarily gifted, sharing their songs, music, and insights, allowing the world at large to learn, in the most subtle of ways, what it's like 'being green'. Thanks to their gifts and their bravery, they help make the world a little more gay every time their voices are heard. And that's been their true super power all along... their voice; they were heard. They mattered. And, whether they liked it or not, they represented!

One such talented soul? MIKA.

Voice of a siren... frequently leading our hearts to break.

He's created beautiful musical landscapes, songs for the ages. They are air, they are light, illuminating and infusing our souls.

Yes, it's pop music, but filled with such grace, a sense of movement, each musical phrase a master brush stroke. 

The beauty of it? He's only just begun. There's so much more to come.

The truly gifted are forever evolving, revealing pieces of themselves and sharing personal observations. 

I, for one, love the view through MIKA's eyes.

The gospel according to him?

Well, here are three from the lips, dropping from his lips.

The topic?  Identity.

"When you're not part of a club, you have to find another way of surviving."

"Never had any idols, ever. I never had any posters, nothing."

"I was quite the quiet teenager. I was a bit of a loner, a little bit of an outsider."

"Most of the people who write pop music were outsiders at some time in their life."

"I was always told that I was too strange or that I was too cheesy by different groups of people, like the record companies said I was way too weird and the indie people wouldn't even let me in their band."

"I found school pretty tough. I got the mickey taken out of me at school."

"I was always told I was ugly. I still think I am ugly. I know I've got an odd face and you can't tell me otherwise."

"I wish I had more guts when I was younger because then I would've said things to people's faces instead of just running away all the time."

"They say shyness is a form of egotism, and you are only shy because you care too much about what people think of you. And maybe its true, maybe I am just an egotist."

"I have opinions on everything. I'm a stubborn old mule. The biggest problem is keeping my mouth shut."

"Part of me sees myself as talented, and the other part sees me as strange. Ideas get stuck in your head and nothing changes them. Not even fame."

"I lack trust in others."

"I am very suspicious of people."

"In the past, it weighed on me because nobody in my family is gay. I had no role models so I had to find my own way."

"I never talk about anything to do with my sexuality."

"In my older songs, I used to hide behind fictional characters to deflect attention away from myself."

"Some people make records that are defined by their sexuality, but mine really are not."

"I write songs to turn myself into something else. And then I become that, and I want to become something else."

"I've never, ever labeled myself."

"Identity for me is something that has to be played with and explored, and not become complacent about or uninterested in."

"I've always said in the press, I can fall in love with a man. I can fall in love with a woman. And I've always said that I have no shame in that."

"In fact, no one has ever really wanted to go on a date with me."

"I am terrible at relationships."

"You can't believe the amount of speculation you get over your private life."

"I am totally unapologetic about pop music."

"I was brought up in many different cultures, moving around all the time, and I find my identity in my songs. I project the identity I want to have throughout the songs that I write."

"I think my music generally transcends a lot of genres."

"Everything I do is very visual and very aural, so I don't read music, and I draw as much as I write out lyrics."

"I think, 'How could anybody mock a good pop song?' It is timeless; it transcends barriers; it breaks down every single type of social barrier that you can possibly have. It can deal with the most difficult subjects, even if it abstracts the subject matter."

"Strangely, I feel that I become increasingly reclusive in my normal life and more open and candid in my music."

Grace Kelly - Mika

Hurts (Remix) - MIKA

 C’est la Vie - Mika

And one last parting shot...

"I'm not creating an enigma or leaving mystery, I'm just respecting myself enough as an artist to give myself room to grow and not to be devoured all in one go."

"I really want people to know me, to find out about me, and if they really like me, to stick with me."

"We all have to be dishes on a plate eventually, with the way we are marketed, but I have no intention of being a cheap Chinese all-you-can-eat buffet."