Conchita Wurst spoke out this week about perceptions of sexuality and of the LGBT in an interview with BBC’s Newsbeat.
In the interview the reigning Eurovision champion stated that:
“We need to stop talking about sexuality. The moment we reach that point when it is not important anymore, we’ve reached a goal which is a long way in front of us. You have to be respectful. Don’t ask for respect if you are not respectful. It’s not dependent on your sexuality, gender or skin colour. It should be in focus to live a respectful life.”
Tom Neurwith is best known for his drag persona Conchita, who rose to superstardom following a win at last year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Since then Conchita has become a gay icon promoting LGBT rights and has been invited to perform at Pride events all over Europe.
Wurst has experienced transphobic and homophobic attitudes first hand with some nations threatening to boycott her performance at Eurovision last year and in particular Armenia’s singer Aram MP3 who said her act was “unnatural”. In addition to that ex-Eurovision commentator Terry Wogan said that Conchita has made a mockery of the contest and has “turned it into a freak show”.
