Floridian: Two for the show

Two for the show

Gay icon Elton John and gay basher Eminem are singing together at the Grammys. For them, it's savvy business. But it has divided the gay community.

By GINA VIVINETTO

The furor following the recent announcement that Eminem and Elton John will perform together at the Grammy Awards on Wednesday had better die down or no one will hear the Dynamite Duo.

Why all the fuss? Well, Eminem, 28, nominated for four Grammys this year for the hate-filled masterpiece The Marshall Mathers LP, has been branded the most homophobic recording star in pop history by gay rights groups such as GLAAD, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

And Elton? Well, John, 53, is the world's most famous gay guy.

Eminem invited John to duet with him. The older singer told one newspaper that Eminem's invitation was an "olive branch" offering, a goodwill gesture, to the gay community.

The two are supposed to perform an Eminem hit, most likely Stan. That sounds about right, considering that this year, John has been found more in the press -- frothing over the brilliance of Em's disc -- than on the pop charts.

The duet, while aligning two seemingly polar opposites, is causing plenty of division.

In this corner

Politicians and pundits would have you think every gay and lesbian person on the planet feels betrayed by John's acceptance of Eminem's invitation to perform.

"We're flabbergasted and shocked," said GLAAD's Cathy Renna. The group has planned a protest outside Los Angeles' Staples Center, where the Grammys are held, during the show's broadcast Wednesday.

"It's really shocking for the gay community, which looks at Elton John as someone who has contributed so much to helping people understand us.

"To share a stage with Eminem is completely antithetical to all the work he's done."

Just last year GLAAD gave John its Vito Russo Entertainer Award for "furthering the visibility and understanding" of the gay and lesbian community. Now the organization says John's latest action has "violated the spirit" of the award.

Members of the British gay rights group OutRage liken the collaboration to "a Jewish performer doing a duet with an avowed Nazi."

In that corner

Eminem says in interviews that he's no homophobe. He sticks to the same story he used to defend songs about killing his wife and raping his mother: He's just joking. Don't take the lyrics seriously. They're just words.

Want an example of Em's gay bashing?

My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge
That'll stab you in the head
whether you're a fag or lez
Or the homosex, hermaph or a trans-a-vest
Pants or dress -- hate fags? The answer's "yes."

In another song, Em cites Gianni Versace, the late fashion designer shot to death in 1997, and incidentally one of Elton John's closest friends:

Hey, it's me, Versace
Whoops, somebody shot me!
And I was just checkin' the mail
Get it? Checkin' the "male."

Lyrics like that, on The Marshall Mathers LP, have made some careful listeners conclude that John's duet with the rapper reeks of both self-marketing and selling out. Such criticism is nothing new for John, who in 1992 took the stage with Guns N' Roses singer Axl Rose, at the time under fire for anti-gay lyrics, to perform Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. It was supposed to be a tribute to the late Freddie Mercury, Queen's singer -- and, by the way, a gay man. Then came John's quick -- some say crass -- rewrite of his classic Candle in the Wind to commemorate the death of another good friend, Princess Diana. It couldn't have been too bad an idea; the song became the best-selling single in pop history.

In the middle of the ring

But not all gay people perceive John as a betraying Judas or a gay Uncle Tom.

In fact, the gay community mirrors the mainstream, with its elders balking at Eminem's diatribes and the younger folks shrugging them off -- and snapping them up -- as humor in bad taste.

Many younger gays and lesbians see John's agreement to perform with Eminem as a courageous act, one that will open doors and prompt dialogue.

"I think it's commendable for Elton to accept Eminem's invitation," says Dave Helmuth, 28, of Tampa, manager of Tomes & Treasures, a gay and lesbian bookstore in Hyde Park. "He's still representing the gay community. My hope is Elton will shed some light into Eminem's fear or homophobia."

Helmuth says gays should have faith that John is doing this to break down barriers. "It gives me more respect for John. It's an alliance they are forming."

Besides, Helmuth added, what was the star supposed to do?

"If Elton would have turned his back on Eminem and refused the gesture, that would have closed the door," Helmuth says. "It would have killed the potential to open those lines of communication."

As for the opinion of groups like GLAAD? They shouldn't be trying to police the actions of gays and lesbians, Helmuth says.

"Who are we as the gay community," Helmuth asks, "to expect Elton John as an individual to only do what pleases us?"

Over a game of Trivial Pursuit at A Different Grind, a gay coffeehouse in Hyde Park, Geoff Rutzen, 21, and Steve Carde, 22, both of Tampa, say that they would have watched the Grammys anyway, but the duet makes it a must-watch.

Rutzen thinks Eminem's homophobic lyrics are all for attention.

"I don't even think he really feels that way about gay people," Rutzen says. "Everything he says and does is to be controversial and to sell records. I don't care what he says about gay people. And, whether his lyrics inspire other people to beat up gay people, that's their problem."

Carde says he owns an Eminem CD. He understands why some in the gay community think John is disrespecting them.

"When Eminem makes derogatory remarks about gays, we only have so many people to defend us," Carde says. "If there's one person in the entertainment world who can stick up for us and represent us, it's Elton John."

But he disagreed that John had to take the offer.

"If he had declined the offer, it would have made a statement," says Carde. "It would have let the world know that it's not okay to be ignorant."

But, Carde says, nothing bad can come from the duet.

"You're uniting two opposite ends," Carde says. "They're collaborating their talents to prove that they can put differences aside and work together, just like society can. We can learn from this."

A knockout for everyone?

Actually, lots of good could come out of this duet -- particularly for the performers.

Eminem gets to look like he really isn't such a gay basher.

As Rutzen says, "It will show people that Eminem doesn't have all those hard feelings toward gay people, without him having to say anything at all or make a big apology. It lets Eminem off the hook."

John, who has been composing music for Disney films for the past decade, gets to look hip. Maybe he'll be discussed for his art once more and not his financial woes.

Helmuth, the Tampa book store manager, sees this fresh interest in John as a good thing for gay people.

"If this duet brings a new generation more attention to or respect for Elton John, then it's a victory for the gay community," Helmuth says."If any fan of Eminem or hip-hop gains respect for Elton John, it's a victory."

Who benefits most?

The Grammy folks. The awards show, controversial only for its notorious unhipness, wins big time.