Schitt's Creek and the music of Boygenius both feature high up on the list of the internet's favourite things. Big news for the Twittersphere (or X-sphere?), then, as Dan Levy took to the stage at GQ's Men of the Year party in London to toast current GQ cover stars, Lucy Dacus, Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker.
In his toast to the supergroup, Levy paid tribute by comparing to them to arguably the greatest-ever supergroup that came before them: the trio of Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt.
“One of my all-time favourite albums is an album Boygenius didn’t make,” he said. “It’s called Trio. And it marked the first time Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt came together to collaborate on music that’s as relevant today as it was when they recorded it in 1987. Pushing back on the patriarchal idea at the time that “girl singers” should fear one another as space invaders. Because apparently, we could only handle, like, one at a time?”
He continued: “Almost a decade after that album was released, Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker were born. And little did they know that they would one day take that baton and fucking run with it. Musicians having found each other thanks to the magnetic pull of shared loves and passions and choosing to make something cool together because it seemingly felt right. Pooling their collective brilliance without ever dishonouring or compromising the importance of their individual voices. Making music that holds you like a good friend on a bad day, speaks to you like the kindest parts of your conscience, and saves you… a lot of money on therapy.”
Ironically, when Boygenius took to the stage after his toast, they lifted up the value of their own ‘throuples’ therapy before the release of their debut album, The Record, last year. “Our therapist referred to us as girls, and she noticed us simultaneously shrinking,” said Dacus, who led their speech. “And she said, Oh, what would you like to be referring to as? And we all said boys.”
“She was like, 'It seems like you have a group gender expression that is more masculine, and if not manhood then something sillier, like boyhood,” she added.
The trio then dedicated the rest of their time to the trans community, urging people in the room to use their power to protect them from harm. “We recognise that we're being celebrated here for showing up masculine, and we're really lucky to be able to come see you as we are in a light hearted and playful way,” said Dacus. “This is so easy for us and it hasn't been easy for so many people over history. I just want to shout out all of our trans friends and family and people before us who are taking more risks when we're taking. Not everyone gets applause for wearing a tie.”
“So, if you're celebrating us, then celebrate the trans people in your life and protect them,” she closed her speech saying.
Boygenius formed as a supergroup back in 2018, but released their debut album in 2023 after a reunion of sorts. “I feel more at home on tour with these guys than I do in my current home,” says Dacus about her bandmates in their Men of the Year cover story.
Since getting the band back together, so to speak, with the recording of their album and a tour that's seen them go from performing in front of crowds of 5000 to over 20,000, the group has emerged as a beacon of queer joy for their fans. “That is what makes [the job] meaningful to me,” says Baker. “To be away from my family when they need me to be there, to be doing things that I find inane or self-serving. I’m like, ‘Dang, look at all those kids’. Like, actually, there’s 25,000 little gay kids out there who’ve heard us talk about things like: be inside of your life. Pay attention to your friends. It’s worth it to live.”
Elsewhere on the night, Ncuti Gatwa, Jeremy Allen White and Andrew Scott were honoured.
