Main image: Lil Nas X at the 2021 BET Awards
2021 proved once and for all that a global pandemic can’t stop queer excellence. All year long, openly LGBTQ artists, activists, and creatives broke lavender ceilings, scored prestigious industry awards, and even spurred real-world change. Below, read up on 15 queer pop culture moments that defined 2021.
Russell T. Davies’s London-set drama about gay life in the early days of the AIDS crisis was a commercial and critical success, but its biggest win transcended the screen. After the show’s February premiere in the United Kingdom, orders for HIV tests quadrupled.
“It’s honestly amazing to see a real-time response to the show, and it’s blown me away,” It’s a Sin star Olly Alexander told Logo in February. “I think it’s shown how much there needs to be a conversation really still, about not only HIV, but people’s sexual health, people’s mental health.”
