At no more than a week’s notice Erin McKeown will release a new EP, According To Us, on Friday. Lead single ‘The Queer Gospel’ is a response to the ongoing trend of ‘religious freedom’ legislation being passed by some US states, and the recent controversy over North Carolina’s so-called ‘bathroom’ laws. The song was written before the shocking and tragic mass shooting at an LGBT nightclub in Orlando, but has gained new meaning for McKeown as a result. “The hatred and discrimination directed towards our LGBT community is not just laws and talk, it has again manifested as violence and lives have been lost,” she said. “My song asks that you ‘love us as we are / See us and we’re holy / In this shall we shall ever be / wholly ourselves.’ I sing this now with the added plea for everyone to do whatever they can to stop homophobic violence.”
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