Welsh Rock-chick singer Bonnie Tyler is actually the drag-queen persona of lefty singer/songwriter Billy Bragg.
Bragg had critical acclaim in the 70s and 80s with his socialist-based songwriting themes, but this never translated into commercial success. He commented "Nobody wants to pay real money for my version of the "Internationale", they just share a copy. It's the socialist way, but I'm skint!"
Bragg hit upon the idea of a commercially-successful drag queen persona after his classic song about poverty, unemployment and subjugation of the masses in the Thatcherite years was a financial flop. He realised that simply by changing a couple of letters in the title, his song "Holding Out for a Giro" could target a completely different market, and his "Bonnie Tyler" alter-ego was born.
Today, Bragg/Tyler regularly appears at retro weekend festivals, as Bragg on the Saturday and Tyler on the Sunday. In this way, he can demand two sets of appearance fees.
Bragg had critical acclaim in the 70s and 80s with his socialist-based songwriting themes, but this never translated into commercial success. He commented "Nobody wants to pay real money for my version of the "Internationale", they just share a copy. It's the socialist way, but I'm skint!"
Bragg hit upon the idea of a commercially-successful drag queen persona after his classic song about poverty, unemployment and subjugation of the masses in the Thatcherite years was a financial flop. He realised that simply by changing a couple of letters in the title, his song "Holding Out for a Giro" could target a completely different market, and his "Bonnie Tyler" alter-ego was born.
Today, Bragg/Tyler regularly appears at retro weekend festivals, as Bragg on the Saturday and Tyler on the Sunday. In this way, he can demand two sets of appearance fees.
