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This 80s pop star is writing LGBTI-friendly songs for schools
Songstress ViX Perks, lead singer/songwriter of all-girl chart band ‘We’ve Got a Fuzzbox and We’re Gonna Use It’ has continued to produce music through the decades and more recently to promote LGBTI inclusion.
After achieving worldwide success with chart hits including ‘Rules and Regulations’, ‘Pink Sunshine’ and ‘International Rescue’, ViX’s career has taken a different twist – she’s now a project manager and composer for LGBTI charity Educate & Celebrate.
As a patron of Educate & Celebrate, ViX has composed original songs with actions from children’s books that have a LGBTI friendly theme, to help kids celebrate differences.
Some of the books the songs are based on are internationally known such as ‘King and King’ by Linda De Haan and Stern Nijland about two princes who fall in love and marry.
Gay Star News interviewed Vix about her decision to promote LGBTI equality through her music:
Why did you want to decide to get involved with work with LGBTI young people?
As a Brummy born and bred, I am extremely proud to be part of a wonderfully diverse and tolerant community that celebrates difference. Therefore, I am very passionate about equality, which of course starts with equality in education. My late father, Roger Perks was a Headmaster who received an OBE for Services to Education; he believed that education was ‘The Golden Key’ to change, opportunity and success. He would be very proud of me I’m sure!
What made you choose Educate & Celebrate?
I wanted to be involved with a forward thinking, vibrant, creative and exciting organisation and to make a real difference. I see the difference we make every single time we work with students, staff, parents etc. We challenge with common sense, with humour… and with the law! The Equality Law means nothing if we say it’s ok to be homophobic but not to be racist!
What is your personal favourite of all the songs you have written as primary school resources and why?
Ooh… that’s tricky! I love them all! I wanted to write in a fair variety of styles, from nursery rhyme Mama, Mommy and Me to the big anthemic We Are All Born Free. Current faves are probably The Odd Egg, The Crocodile Who Didn’t Like Water and 10,000 Dresses. It was really fun composing for these fab books. I’d love to create videos for these songs – maybe with Makaton signing!
Any chance of a ‘We’ve Got a Fuzzbox…’ reunion?
We released the single Pop Muzik and toured the UK in 2010 which was ace! Sadly, we lost Jo to cancer not long after this, so I’m really grateful we had this opportunity to gig and have fun together. Maggie and I are currently writing a book about Fuzzbox, which is going to be bostin and there is a lot of interest for us to go out and do the retro/80s festivals, so who knows! Watch this space…!
What is a ‘Fuzzbox’?
Well, you with the filthy minds can think what you like (cough cough! Do remember we were 16 year old innocent schoolgirls!) but a fuzzbox is actually a distortion pedal for a bass or guitar to make it sound fuzzy!
Elly Barnes, CEO of Educate & Celebrate said:
‘Vix is a super talented coach, performer and composer and can work and enthuse students of all ages; The results of her work with young people have resulted in an EP of equality songs, stunning performances in our showcases and now a whole SING-A-LONG with Educate & Celebrate songbook of 25 songs for all to download for free. We are planning further LGBTI-inclusive projects together to engage more schools in our programme as music and movement is fun and accessible to all.’
The post This 80s pop star is writing LGBTI-friendly songs for schools appeared first on Gay Star News.
Mel Spencer
www.gaystarnews.com/article/this-80s-pop-star-is-writing-lgbti-friendly-songs-for-schools/
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