The lyrics go: “North of Sylvanna we swim in the Palisades/I come out wearing my brother's red hat/There on his shoulder my best friend is bit seven times/He runs washing his face in his hands/Oh how I meant to tease him/Oh how I meant no harm/Touching his back with my hand I kiss him/I see the wasp on the length of my arm.” Take, for example, the song ‘The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out to Get Us!’ from his 2005 album ‘Illinoise’. While there is nothing discernibly queer about the ‘Chicago’ singer’s work, the ambiguity of his lyrics often makes for a good cover for queer emotions and thoughts. It’s always personal.įor many, however, Stevens’ music is also wholeheartedly gay. In a way, his music is a kind of religious experience. They encourage a strange kind of vulnerability, unlocking a storm of deep, unsettling emotions.
Stevens’ songs are ethereal - sometimes maximalist electronica, sometimes folksy, sometimes minimalist indie - and full of rich, heartbreaking stories about flawed and broken people. The 44-year-old musician is unique in many respects. Reddit threads, questions on Quora, and even the Facebook pages called “Is This Sufjan Stevens Song Gay Or Just About God?” and “Heteros Desperately Trying To Interpret Sufjan Stevens Lyrics As Platonic” seems to have found no answers. For fans of Sufjan Stevens, the question of the singer-songwriter’s sexuality remains unanswered.
