Måneskin bassist Victoria De Angelis has explained that her home country of Italy is still “very conservative” when it comes to homosexuality, and recalled how she was made to feel “uncomfortable” for dating women.
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The 23-year-old was speaking in a new interview when she explained how traditional attitudes are still rife within society, and how it impacted her as an openly queer musician.
Born in Vatican City, Rome, De Angelis said that her sexuality drew some unwanted attention in her home country, and that residents there would make her feel “uncomfortable” regarding the relationships she had.
“I remember when I first started dating girls, I felt people really staring,” she admitted to The Big Issue (via Music-News). “These things can really make you uncomfortable, even if it’s not such a big deal compared to what other people deal with. But I still just wish it could be completely normal.”
Elsewhere in the interview, however, she did go on to explain that she is hopeful that times are changing, and that the younger generations are educating their elders to be more accepting of the LGBTQ+ community.
“It’s very conservative still, in Italy,” she said. “It’s a very Catholic country and many, many people still believe, because of that, that it’s a sin to be homosexual. So that’s why many people still can’t get over this.
“But hopefully the younger generations are opening their minds more, and even if they are religious, they can learn to be more respectful and tolerant towards people that just have their own sexuality. I think that’s a step that is starting now in Italy but it’s still gonna need time.”
She proceeded to explain how Måneskin strive to create a safe and accepting environment for their fans, regardless of their gender identity or sexuality.
“We’re about freedom. So we would really just like to live in a more respectful world, where everyone can be safe and allowed to be who they are, without having to deal with any racism, homophobia, misogyny, or violence of any kind,” she explained. “We want to spread the message of believing in yourself and finding the courage to be who you are. But also… the fucking idiots should stop being such dicks you know?”
Earlier this year Måneskin also addressed accusations of queerbaiting. Speaking to The Guardian at the time, de Angelis accused those making the accusations as creating “more hate”, rather than working together to fight oppressive stereotypes.
“Sometimes [the accusations are] so extreme. It’s stupid for queer people, who should fight these stereotypes, to label it as this and create more hate,” she said. “The fact [Raggi and David] are straight doesn’t mean they can’t wear makeup. Or heels.”
Last week (May 9), the Italian rock four-piece sold out their headline show at London’s O2 arena — performing some of their fan-favourites including ‘MAMMAMIA’, ‘GASOLINE’ and ‘I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE’, which was performed twice.
In a four-star review of the performance, NME praised the band for capturing the “party energy” that was reminiscent of some of rock’s finest.
“Most bands would kill to just have a fraction of the charisma that oozes out of Måneskin, but here it feels like you have four people all vying to be the frontperson. Teens scream back at bassist Victoria De Angelis and axe-master Thomas Raggi who, both on their knees, are competing to see who can shred harder,” it read.
“Meanwhile, the flair of Ethan Torchio draws the eye to the back of the room more than most drummers; as a unit, they hark back to the party-starting energy of latter day Prince and 3RDEYEGIRL.”
The post Måneskin’s Victoria De Angelis says Italy is “still very conservative” when it comes to homosexuality appeared first on NME.
