Stop Calling ‘Y.M.C.A.’ a ‘Gay Anthem’

Village People singer Victor Willis has called on the media to stop calling his band’s 1978 hit single “Y.M.C.A.” a “gay anthem.”

In a long post to Facebook, Willis — who commonly performed dressed as a police officer — addressed the famous song’s history.

“There’s been a lot of talk, especially of late, that ‘Y.M.C.A.’ is somehow a gay anthem,” the singer noted. “As I’ve said numerous times in the past, that is a false assumption based on the fact that my writing partner was gay, and some (not all) of Village People were gay, and that the first Village People album was totally about gay life.”

Willis went on to insist that he “knew nothing” about YMCA’s “being a hang out for gays” when he wrote the song’s lyrics.

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“I therefore wrote ‘Y.M.C.A.’ about the things I knew about the Y in the urban areas of San Francisco such as swimming, basketball, track, and cheap food and cheap rooms,” he explained. “And when I say, ‘hang out with all the boys’ that is simply 1970s black slang for black guys hanging-out together for sports, gambling or whatever. There’s nothing gay about that.”

Willis went on to threaten legal action to those who continue to call “Y.M.C.A.” a gay anthem.

“Come January 2025, my wife will start suing each and every news organization that falsely refers to ‘Y.M.C.A.,’ either in their headlines or alluded to in the base of the story, that ‘Y.M.C.A.’ is somehow a gay anthem because such notion is based solely on the song’s lyrics alluding to elicit activity for which it does not,” the singer declared, adding that such insinuations were “defamatory, and damaging to the song.”

Victor Willis Thanks Donald Trump for Using ‘Y.M.C.A.’ at His Rallies

Elsewhere in his lengthy Facebook post, Willis addressed the use of “Y.M.C.A.” at Donald Trump rallies.

“Since 2020, I’ve received over a thousand complaints about President Elect Trump’s use of ‘Y.M.C.A.’ With that many complaints, I decided to ask the President Elect to stop using ‘Y.M.C.A.’ because his use had become a nuisance to me,” Willis noted. However, the singer’s stance on Trump’s usage softened as he saw other artists refusing to let the controversial politician use their songs.

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“I simply didn’t have the heart to prevent his continued use of my song in the face of so many artists withdrawing his use of their material,” Willis explained. Trump’s embrace of “Y.M.C.A.” has also provided a financial windfall for the singer.

“’Y.M.C.A.’ is estimated to gross several million dollars since the President Elect’s continued use of the song,” he admitted. “Therefore, I’m glad I allowed the President Elect’s continued use of ‘Y.M.C.A.’ And I thank him for choosing to use my song.”