Q Lazzarus - Goodbye Horses (1988)
A legend, a missed muse, gone too soon and not nearly as known as she ought to be.
Yesterday I watched a gorgeous film about the life of the incomparable Diane Luckey, professionally known as 'Q Lazzarus' by director Eva Aridjis. This is not a formal review just the tip of what sits on my chest. I have so much to say about Black female artists who go down unconventional music paths like rock, synth pop, metal, etc. For so long, and still to this day, Black female vocalists are expected to do the R&B, smooth jazz or soft "urban" sound strictly because of their race and gender. I see so much of myself in elders and sadly now ancestors like Q. She was there before anyone else and died without her just due. She was a question mark to white suits looking to market her when it was really quite simple. Presence, beauty, talent, vitality. Late 80s was the perfect time to launch a soulful alternative Black voice like Q Lazzarus, but executives do not see visions. Her lack of success in the music industry led her into a period of drug addiction, prostitution, time in Rikers and an almost complete denial of her past as a singer. Thankfully she emerged on the other side and I take so much pride in her.
To Diane Luckey,
Thank you so much for paving a way even when you didn't have the time in the sun that you deserved.
You shine in my heart and your legacy lives on in my practice.
