Rebecca Black Is All Grown Up

Getting down on Friday.

We all remember “Friday,” the immortalized viral hit that put Rebecca Black on the internet’s musical 12 years ago. But Rebecca Black is so much more than that: she is a queer icon in her own right, and she just dropped her debut studio album “Let Her Burn.”

Black came out as queer in 2020 and has collaborated with other queer artists, such as Dorian Electra and Big Freedia on a remix of “Friday.” Before Black was the confident 25 year old artist she is now, she faced isolation and depression after the release of the original “Friday,” and the queer community had her back.

“The only people I would see fight for me or even just empathize with me were people who were queer and who really understood my experience,” Black told Them. “That was really helpful for me as a kid, to be like, ‘Okay, this isn’t that bad. I can figure this out. I’m not alone.’”

“Defining anybody by what they created as a child is horrible. But I got through it. If my story can help people with something that is traumatic or anything that is really difficult, great.”

Black’s sexuality and queerness is front and center at her new album, especially on tracks like “Doy-Eyed.” Black sings, “Get down, my turn, scream my name / Handcuff me to the bed frame.”

“My intention is like, here I am as a pop star, take it or leave it,” Black told Them. “No matter what happened to me before this, I am here to make music that is just as good and exciting as everybody else out here. And if you don’t see it and don’t want to take it, that’s fine, but just know that that’s why I’m here. I’m not here just to redeem myself.”


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