Culture

RuPaul and More Pay Tribute to Ari Gold, Groundbreaking Musician Who Died at 47


 

Ari Gold, the trailblazing and openly gay dance music artist who collaborated with the likes of Cyndi Lauper, Diana Ross, and Boy George, has died at age 47. RuPaul shared the news on Twitter over the weekend, writing, “Until we meet again, dear friend.”

Gold’s death followed his yearslong public battle with cancer, which began when he was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) in 2013. He was declared cancer free in 2019 following a bone marrow transplant, and even recorded a podcast while in recovery, A Kiki From the Cancer Ward, featuring special guests including RuPaul, Laverne Cox, and Peppermint.

A mainstay of New York’s queer music scene, Gold also performed under the monickers Sir Ari and Gold Nation. The video for his 2004 track “Wave of You” was the first by an out queer artist to appear on Logo TV. He was perhaps best known for 2007’s “Where the Music Takes You,” featuring vocals by Sasha Allen, which appeared on Billboard’s Top 10 Dance Club Songs chart.

In a personal essay for NewNowNext the year before undergoing a blood transplant, Gold was candid about how important being openly gay was to his work as a musician. “I was an out and proud gay pop music artist at a time when many feared that being open about their sexuality would ruin their careers,” he wrote. “I made every attempt I could to wave the gay flag, from using male pronouns to men-on-men love scenes in my videos. I told stories from a pointedly gay perspective.”

Cox shared a tribute to Gold on Instagram, writing, “I’m so grateful to have known you. I’m better because you have been a part of my life.” She reminisced about the time the two spent “at the club back in the 90’s talking intersectional feminist and queer theory in a corner for far too long.” The collage of photos Cox shared feature the two friends coming up together through the years.

Gold released seven studio albums over the course of his career. When he appeared with RuPaul in the 2007 film Starbooty, he called the drag superstar “the closest thing I’ve known to a mentor.” Gold’s friends and fellow queer artists have continued to share their tributes.

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