The stars are coming out for this year's GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles!
Taking place annually in both Los Angeles and New York, GLAAD's Media Awards honors the TV show, films, and creators and all that they do “for fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of LGBTQ+ people and issues. Since its inception in 1990, the GLAAD Media Awards have grown to be the most visible annual LGBTQ+ awards show in the world, sending powerful messages of acceptance to audiences globally.”
And this year, GLAAD announced that some major superstars — Christina Aguilera, Bad Bunny, and Jeremy Pope, to be exact — will be honored with some of their most prestigious awards!
Scroll through to find out more about this year's GLAAD Media Awards honorees! The 34th Annual GLAAD Media Awards will be taking place in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton on Thursday, March 30.
Jeremy Pope will be honored with the Stephen F. Kolzak Award.
“Jeremy Pope is a multi-faceted out performer who has broken barriers across Broadway, television, and film, earning two Tony Award nominations, a Grammy Award nomination, an Emmy Award nomination, and a Golden Globe Award nomination,” GLADD said about Pope.
“His breakthrough film role as Ellis French in Elegance Bratton’s autobiographical first feature The Inspection follows a closeted Black gay man through Marine Corps Recruit Training in the 'Don’t Ask Don’t Tell' era. That performance earned him his first Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama, as well as a Film Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Lead Performance.”
“Pope’s rise from stage to screen began in 2018, when he earned two Tony Award nominations in the same season – one for Best Lead Actor in A Play for his Broadway debut performance in Choir Boy and a second nomination for Best Featured Actor in a musical for his performance in Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations. Pope was soon cast in Ryan Murphy’s series Hollywood, where he earned an Emmy nomination for his lead performance as aspiring Black screenwriter Archie Coleman. Pope also had a meaningful arc in Pose. In the final season of the FX series, his character, Christopher, gave audiences a sense of visibility and belonging for trans experiences and for those living with HIV.”
“Pope is about to wrap his Broadway run as Jean-Michael Basquiat in Manhattan Theater Club’s The Collaboration. Later this year, he will be seen revisiting the role on the big screen.”
Bad Bunny will be honored with the Vanguard Award.
“Bad Bunny’s advocacy and outspoken allyship for the LGBTQ+ community has reached millions around the world,” GLAAD said about Bad Bunny. “Named Spotify’s most-streamed artist of 2022, with 8.3 billion streams globally, the three-time Grammy-winning artist uses his craft to powerfully speak out as an ally to transgender people and advance equality for the LGBTQ+ community, bringing his own voice to the forefront to help others see themselves in the world.”
“As he reimagines the Latin urban music genre, LGBTQ+ people and issues remain in the vanguards of equality and inclusion for him, especially those in Puerto Rico, where he was born. His live performances and music videos cast an array of voices, experiences, and backgrounds, showcasing queer love and affection on full display. For his music video for “Yo Perreo Sola,” he dressed in drag, telling Rolling Stone, 'I did it to show support to those who need it. I may not be gay, but I’m a human.'”
“In a performance for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the rapper paid homage to Alexa Negrón Luciano, a trans woman murdered in the city of Toa Baja, wearing a shirt in Spanish that read: 'They killed Alexa, not a man in a skirt.' In 2019, the artist also helped influence a movement to force former Puerto Rican Governor, Ricardo Rosselló, to step down from office, after being exposed for corruption and anti-LGBTQ attitudes.”
“Moving from sound booth to the big screen, Bad Bunny plans to executive produce the forthcoming Netflix adaptation of the New York Times bestselling novel They Both Die in the End which features a queer Latinx storyline.”
“Previous GLAAD Vito Russo Award recipient Ricky Martin told Rolling Stone that Bad Bunny is an 'icon for the Latin queer community.'”
Christina Aguilera will be honored with the Advocate for Change Award.
“Christina Aguilera, who has one of the most celebrated voices in history, has used her platform to be a bold advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, advancing conversations around LGBTQ acceptance and more, through music,” an official statement from GLAAD reads. “Most recently, her impact on the LGBTQ+ community was realized after Club Q Colorado Springs shooting survivor, Michael Anderson, invoked her lyrics as he testified before the U.S. House Oversight Committee on LGBTQ+ violence. In 2002, Aguilera dedicated her single, “Beautiful,” to the LGBTQ+ community, with the line “words can’t bring us down” becoming a personal mantra for many queer people. The song brought a unique awareness and a sense of compassion in the face of hate, earning Aguilera a Special Recognition honor at the 14th GLAAD Media Awards. Last year, the seven-time Grammy-winner celebrated 20 years of “Beautiful” with a brand new music video, reminding people of the importance of accepting themselves for who they are.”
“A staunch supporter of LGBTQ+ rights and a visionary for representation, Aguilera raised over $500 million for HIV research with MAC cosmetics in 2004, spoke out loudly against Proposition 8 in 2008, and brought trans dancers and drag artists into the limelight during the 2012 American Music Awards. Following the Pulse Nightclub mass shooting in Orlando, Aguilera dedicated the song “Change” to those affected by the tragedy with proceeds from the song going to victims’ families. She later penned a “Love Letter to the LGBTQ+ Community” for Billboard in 2017. Her very own Pride collection was launched in 2021, to proudly support two nonprofit organizations: TransTech and TransLash. Using the power of music to build bridges and demand change, Aguilera has redefined what it means to be a true advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, creating spaces for queer voices and talent to be known and thrive: from performing alongside breakthrough LGBTQ+ artists like Anitta, Syd, Kim Petras, Chika, and Michaela Jaé, to condemning anti-LGBTQ legislation like Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law.”