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Interview: Jay Brannan on Around the World in 80 Jays

Brannan discusses his new EP and the odds of getting a job after broadcasting video of himself singing on the toilet.

Interview: Jay Brannan on Around the World in 80 Jays
Photo: Nettwerk

“Sorry, I hope I’m not talking in circles,” Jay Brannan says, apologizing for a bit of rambling that was more articulate than he thinks. The 31-year-old singer-songwriter, who made a splash in John Cameron Mitchell’s Shortbus, and has since gone on to build an avid following thanks to touring and YouTube, has quite a lot to say, which is nothing new. From cranking out cheeky, poetic tracks and engaging his audiences with anecdotes to baring his soul (and more) on camera since the dawn of the social-media boom, Brannan has long been hooked on expressing himself, preferably without censors. As he tells it, he’s also hooked on globetrotting, a passion he’s merged with his love of language on his new EP, Around the World in 80 Jays, which dropped this week.

Featuring nine international cover songs that Brannan croons in six different languages (among the selections is Selena’s upbeat—and offbeat—single “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom”), Around the World in 80 Jays has all the singularly buoyant yet defiant attitude Brannan’s fans have come to expect, while doubling as a vehicle to help share what he’s gained while constantly getting his passport stamped. The EP release comes just before two shows this weekend at New York’s Joe’s Pub, a favorite haunt of Brannan’s, and soon to follow is a world tour in the fall. Often returning to the themes of language and travel, Brannan chatted with me at length about his “horrible” German, his stance as a gay artist, David Lynch, and the odds of getting a job at 50 after broadcasting video of himself singing on the toilet.

Any of your Facebook fans can see that you’re constantly posting photos of the places you’ve been, so it seems only natural that you’d release something honoring your travels. When did you feel like you’d hit enough map points to do something like this?

Well, traveling has become this addiction of mine. There’s something about exploring new places that really makes me feel alive, and I think that’s something I’ve searched for my entire life. It’s kind of become a drug for me. The covers EP came about from the fact that I’ve gotten to perform in so many different places, and it was also inspired by a trick I learned from John Cameron Mitchell. He taught me about learning a song in the language of a country that you’re visiting, because people really appreciate it. So I started doing that, and people responded to it. And I think they think it’s funny that you’re trying to sing in their language and you’re really horrible at it. So I amassed this collection of foreign-language cover songs from touring, and I’ve wanted to record them for a long time. And I’m sure no one can understand what I’m saying [laughs], but I just wanted to do it, so finally I did.

And it has you singing in six languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, and Portuguese. Which was the hardest to nail down?

Probably German, because I have the least amount of knowledge of German. I mean, I’m obsessed with languages, honestly; it’s one of the few academic interests that I truly have. I lived in Canada as a child, so I learned some basic French. I’m from Texas, so I’ve been around Spanish my whole life. I’ve taken some basic lessons in Italian and Portuguese. My German is absolutely horrible, so I’m sure that song [“Du Hast den Schönsten Arsch der Welt”] sounds pretty scary to a German speaker. But it’s a fun song if you know what it means.

What does it mean?

Well, it was this super-big club hit in Germany, and Switzerland, and Austria, and it has these really poetic, beautiful lyrics, like, “Your hair is so beautiful,” “You have the softest skin,” and “I love your eyes.” And it all rhymes in German, so it’s kind of clever-sounding. But then the last line is like, “You have the sweetest ass in the world.” [laughs] So it’s a little bit tongue in cheek.

And you were once a proofreader of legal documents for a translation company? That sounds like it might be a boring job, but relevant and helpful for your purposes here.

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Yeah, it was a little bit tedious. The company translated legal documents, and I was one of the people who proofread the translations. I mean, I proofread the English ones, and I didn’t necessarily understand them because it was a very high level of language, from a scientific and legal perspective. But you could still proofread for basic grammar and make sure it matched the original document. And although it was tedious, it was a really good job to have. It really made it possible for me to pursue music because it was well-paid, and it was flexible, and I could work nights and weekends. And since it was an independent contractor job, I could travel for a few weeks on tour and things like that. Plus it was really close to my house.

So language is tied to your career in a lot of ways.

Yeah, it’s just something I gravitate toward. I have a genuine fascination with it. Even with English; that’s part of the reason I enjoy writing my own songs. You can play with language in a way that lets you say what you want to say, but also sounds interesting, or clever, or lets you put a different spin on an old cliché. Do you speak any of those languages [on the EP]?

Sadly, no.

Your last name looks like it’s Norwegian or something.

Yeah, well, I’m part Swedish. So the name has Swedish roots.

But you don’t have any Swedish-language skills?

No. Nor have I been to Sweden.

You should go. Stockholm is really pretty.

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Where haven’t you been?

[laughs] Lots of places. I have been lucky enough to visit lots of major cities in the world, and like I said, it’s become this sort of obsession, so I’ve found ways, via [frequent flyer] miles or friends who work for airlines, to go to completely random places where I don’t get to work. But I can still drop in on a budget, just to take some pictures.

You’re someone who started gaining a following through MySpace and YouTube before social media was “the thing.” You’ve really weathered this arc of how modern people put themselves out there. Do you ever feel like, “Hey, I was way ahead of you guys on this”? Like when you love a song before it’s popular?

[laughs] Well, no, I don’t. If anything, I feel lucky, I guess, because I came into that world at a very specific moment in time. And it was the right moment for me. There was this small-window period where the Internet was available to everybody, and there were all these tools that you could use to create content, and put it out there, without any obstacles or roadblocks. There were no gatekeepers deciding what kind of content could reach the masses. All the major labels, for example, hadn’t yet accepted that [social media] was here to stay, so they weren’t on board, and it was kind of a free-for-all. In those days…listen to me, like it was a million years ago! [laughs] But, really, in those days there was no customizable content on the home page of YouTube, so anybody who went to the site saw whatever the site chose to feature that day. And I was featured on the home page one day with this “Soda Shop” video that I posted, with me on the toilet with my pants down. I wasn’t expecting to get much attention from it, but within an hour, I had 2,000 emails. And I don’t think that could happen anymore. Because the major labels have now gotten involved too, and they’ve established direct relationships with the site. So when you go to YouTube today, you’re seeing a Beyoncé video; you’re not seeing a kid in a bedroom.

Throughout the time you’ve been putting yourself out there, you’ve posted some pretty personal videos, from the irreverent to the emotional, and by now I’m sure plenty of people have seen PJ DeBoy sing into your ass on camera in Shortbus. What’s too private?

Hmm, I don’t know. A lot of that I’ve done intentionally. Not because I want attention or because I want to make waves, but because so much of what my path has been has involved this sort of unfiltered expression. And I think that’s what people have related to, or responded to. I mean, sure, it’s uncomfortable, and I’m vulnerable. And especially now, as I get older, I look back and I’m like, “Oh my God, no one’s ever going to hire me for a real job when I’m fucking 50.” They’ll be like, “Who the hell is this person doing videos on the toilet with his pants down, and posting pictures of himself crying on his Facebook page?” But I have these impulses, thoughts, and expressions, and I’ve challenged myself to be like, “Well, you know what? Maybe the world shouldn’t be like that. Maybe we should be allowed to be real, and human, and to share what’s really going on, and to say things that are important, even if they’re not the most socially acceptable.” And guess what: That’s always been the stuff that I’ve done that’s gotten the biggest response.

Your song “Soda Shop,” which was featured in Shortbus, is one of your best-known songs. Are you basically required by your fans to play it at every gig? Or am I thinking too much in the past?

[laughs] No, I mean, they like it. I call it my “big dance hit.” It’s sort of the one song that people can really bop around to. I used to feel really obligated, like, “Oh, I have to play ‘Soda Shop’ at every show,” or I have to play “Housewife,” or “Half-Boyfriend”—whatever song I thought people were responding to at the moment. But somehow, over the years, I’ve amassed this catalogue of songs. I used to have a hard time picking enough songs to fill an hour, and now I have a hard time picking which songs to fill the hour. So, I’ve certainly played shows without playing “Soda Shop.” And nobody threw anything!

You’re known to engage with your audience between songs as well, with stories and such. Do you feel like you have better material for those portions now that you’ve done more traveling? Or are you just fine talking about the news or what you had for breakfast?

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I’m not sure. That kind of thing just comes naturally to me, I think. I don’t necessarily plan it as part of the show. I’m kind of a nervous rambler, and I feel like talking in between songs breaks down whatever wall might be between you and your audience. People who are really shy might feel like they’re not in the room, or like they’re watching a TV screen or something at a live show. But if you push them a little, I think it breaks down that barrier, and really, it’s mostly just to make me less nervous. [laughs] Plus, I write a lot about loneliness, or heartache, or rejection—a lot of heavy stuff. And even though I do it with a sense of humor, the talk can break up the mood a bit too.

I guess I’m wondering if when you’re roaming around Stockholm, you’re thinking, “Oh, I can’t wait to tell the New York audience about this!”

Yeah, well, when I’m touring, I’m definitely in that mindset, yes. Because all of this crazy shit constantly happens. And maybe just to me. I don’t know. But, yeah, I will take note of certain stuff and be like, “Oh my God, I have to tell everybody about that show because it’s so ridiculous!” [laughs]

You certainly haven’t shied away from political statements either, and you open this EP with a cover of Sinéad O’Connor’s “Black Boys on Mopeds,” a pretty politically charged song with some strong things to say about England. Why Sinéad? And what do you think of England?

I love England. And I love Sinéad O’Connor. I’ve become a big fan of hers in recent years, because I missed her the first time around. I was raised in a very conservative home where we listened to a lot of church music and stuff, so when she was on the radio and everything I wasn’t really a part of it. But then I saw a Sinéad O’Connor concert on a JetBlue flight once, and I was like, “Wow, that woman can really sing!” It never occurred to me what a mind-blowing vocal she has. So I started getting into her music and covering her songs that were simple enough for me to play. And with [“Black Boys on Mopeds”], I love her tone, I love the melody of it, I love the simplicity of it. If the lyrics can be interpreted literally, I know what it’s about for her, but for me, it’s not necessarily about England. It’s kind of about everywhere. We all have struggles and oppression by the majority. However, I learned that song as a cover for a U.K. tour, because I was like, “Hey, it talks about England—it can be my England-themed song.” And then I started singing it and I was like, “Wait, Sinéad doesn’t even like England.” [laughs]

Speaking of universal, as a gay artist, have you noticed a lot more mainstream acceptance or embrace of your work over the last few years? Because things have changed a bit since you started gaining exposure.

I don’t know. I kind of just do what I want to do. I’ve never really defined myself in terms of any particular demographic or group of people. I don’t hide or fight anything, but I also don’t grasp onto or exploit anything. You know what I mean? Maybe some people think I do, but what I try to do, and what’s important to me, is to just be an individual and express whatever it is that I’m feeling. I’ve always taken my own path and I think that’s been the only option for me, because of the kind of person I am. I mean, sure, I’ve been lucky enough to get some mainstream exposure, and I’ve pushed really hard to try to do both. I’ve drawn attention from a lot of gay-oriented press and media, for which there’s a whole industry. But it doesn’t, in my mind, necessarily represent, or have anything to do with, what it means to actually be a gay person. It’s generally more based around stereotypes, or whatever the most visible faction of gay people is. And a lot of that crowd has been more interested, and more inclined to talk about what I’m doing and invite their friends, but I’ve also pushed hard to gain a balance. Because that’s what I want for gay people, and, you’re right, it’s changing.

Going back to the tracks on Around the World in 80 Jays, you also have “Llorando” on there. How much did Mulholland Drive influence that selection, because I pretty much flipped out when I saw it was on there.

[laughs] Yeah, I mean, that’s the only reason I know that song. It’s because of that movie.

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Are you a David Lynch fan?

No, actually. I don’t really know much of his work. I happen to think that that movie is amazing. I have no idea what it means. I can’t follow it. And for me, the brilliance of it is that no one really understands what it means or what it’s about, and somehow it still manages to be so compelling from start to finish. And that scene is beautiful, and that woman, Rebekah Del Rio, sings that song amazingly. I couldn’t touch that. But sometimes I just cover songs for fun. It’s not a competition. Thank God.

Are you going to do a video for it and collapse at the end?

[laughs] Maybe. We’ll see. It’s not a bad idea.

The audio would have to keep going after you fall, of course.

Yeah. Well, that’s how I sing it at home anyway, in the mirror.

R. Kurt Osenlund

R. Kurt Osenlund is a creative director and account supervisor at Mark Allen & Co. He is the former editor of Out magazine.

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