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'Unstoppable' Taylor Dayne to headline rally
by Linda Thornburg
Columbus--I wasn't expecting Taylor Dayne to be so powerful, passionate and articulate about the path she's building for herself-launching her own recording label, and moving into acting in film, theatre and television.
Certainly she has a buxom, full-throttle voice evidenced on her doubleplatinum albums from the late 1980s. Albums, which included the dance hits "Tell It to My Heart, "Prove Your Love," and "Don't Rush Me," and the more tender "I'll Always Love You." These tunes pulsed in every gay bar in the country and found Dayne a following that thrust her onto the charts.
"Had she expected to have such a large gay following?" I asked.
"Well, it wasn't something I planned, but I'll tell you, it's the most loyal group of fans ever," she laughed warm-heartedly.
"Was it an issue for you at all?"
"No. Absolutely not." On her newest album, Naked Without You, Dayne wears many hats.
"It's been quite a challenge really, an opportunity for growth. I've executive produced and co-produced
and written and performed on the album. It's taken a lot of self confidence. . ." she said. "I've been concerned about making sure the nuances of the vocals come through without the music overwhelming them. Nuances that would show my vocal growth over the last several years."
She describes her vocal style as eclectic and passionate, and adds she has a powerful
voice. Yes, she has a powerful voice. That description might apply equally to her burgeoning creative life.
"I wasn't getting the kind of deals I thought I should, and I wanted to grow. I wanted to do the kind of projects I envisioned I could do. It's also a business opportunity.” she said of launching a label (Neptune Records) and a dream, called Great Dayne, to foster other artists.
A performer and businesswoman, Dayne is choosing to be an independent, multifaceted artist in a world that prefers neat, simple labels for women, even when they are artists.
"I started studying acting five or six years ago because it's the kind of performer I envisioned myself being-Barbara Streisand, Cher, Bette Midler, women performers who
are not limited but who do it all."
She acted in three feature films including the role of Marissa in Love Affair with Warren Beatty and Annette Bening. She played the alley cat Mehitabel in Archie and Mehitabel, the play by Mel Brooks; and she's currently working on a half-hour com-
Taylor Dayne
edy project with Bette Midler, The Harlettes. (Remember the first time you saw the Harlettes? Midler sashayed up to the microphone and said, "You didn't know there were so many of you, did you?”)
"Striesand, Midler, Cher. Would you like to produce and direct films?" I asked. "Certainly, I think I could take it on. I could wear those hats," she said with the confidence she'd mentioned earlier.
"What's the source of your confidence?” I asked.
"My creativity. I think that's what I've learned in the last few years. My creative energy is what makes me, me."
Then she pondered balancing the business side with the creative side and being and artist and being a woman.
"Whether you try to give it up as a woman to get married or make babies, that creative part is your core, if you understand... It's the center of what makes my life, my life. I have to be my creative self to be me. It's my identity," she said.
I thanked her for that affirmation. Being an artist is an identity. Honoring that identity becomes a source of strength, a wellspring of personal nourishment, especially for a woman who struggles fully to be a woman and an artist in this culture.. It is a kind of coming out that makes Dayne a good choice for Pride at a level even deeper than her platinum popularity in the clubs. Not coincidentally, she may, like her role models, become a gendertranscending heroine for our entire community.
"What will the year 2000 find the ‘Unstoppable' Taylor Dayne doing?" I asked. She laughed again, “Unstoppable! Well, reaching my goals."
I'm sure she will be. Just as I'm sure she'll bring her powerhouse voice into full-throttle, unstoppable celebration for this year's Pride.
There will be limited reserved seating on the lawn at Bicentennial Park for Taylor Dayne's Pride performance. Proceeds help pay for the Pride Holiday. Tickets for the seats will be $15 in advance or $20 on the day of the March. Tickets are available at Stonewall, 614-299-7764, or online at www.outincolumbus.com. If you order tickets online, there will be a service fee of
$5.
Linda Thornburg is the editor of the Stone
wall Journal. Reprinted with permission.