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7 times P!nk proved she’s an amazing LGBTQ+ ally ahead of her Summer Carnival tour

Jun 11
Written by Jonny Yates

Ahead of P!nk kicking off her Summer Carnival Tour we’re looking back at her best ally moments. (Chiaki Nozu/WireImage)

P!nk is opening the 2024 leg of her Summer Carnival Tour across the UK and Europe this June.

The pop icon will open the concert tour in Cardiff at the Principality Stadium on 11 June before heading to the likes of Liverpool, London, Glasgow, Dublin, Amsterdam and Stockholm.

Fans can expect to hear some of her biggest hits alongside gravity-defying stunts and an extravagant set.

Since her debut in 2000, the singer has been a fierce ally for the LGBTQ+ community as well as providing us with bops, colourful music videos and amazing live shows for more than two decades

To mark the tour, we’ve put together some of P!nk’s best moments including when she’s been an incredible ally for the community.

You can check them out below, plus fans can get their hands on tickets for the tour from Ticketmaster.

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1. “Dear Mr. President”

One of P!nk’s biggest ally moments is her track, “Dear Mr. President”, which became a queer anthem after it was released in 2006. It features vocals from the Indigo Girls, whose members, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers both identify as lesbians.

The track criticizes several areas of George W. Bush’s administration and terms in office, including the Iraq War, No Child Left Behind Act, opposition to gay marriage and the gay rights movement in general and perceived lack of empathy for poor and middle-class citizens.

The standout lyric for LGBTQ+ people is the line: “And what kind of father might hate his own daughter if she were gay.”

During a live recording at Wembley Arena the line receives a huge cheer from the crowd as a graphic in the background reads: “Gay marriages in Ohio: 0” and “Jobs lost in Ohio since 2001: 255,000”, which is the year Bush became president.

The song went on to become a top 10 hit in Australia, Germany, Belgium and Austria and was performed live across the I’m Not Dead Tour.

2. P!nk receiving the Ally for Equality Award

The singer received the Ally for Equality Award at the 14th Annual Human Rights Campaign Nation Dinner in 2010 and opened her acceptance speech in the most Pink way.

She said: “I’m Alicia, I’m a Virgo, I’m 31, I’m gay,” to loud cheers and applause.

But after a pause she then goes on to say, “actually I’m not, but that doesn’t actually matter, my point is I would like the same boring response that I get from ‘hi I’m a Virgo’, I would like ‘hi I’m gay’ to elicit the same type of response”.

The singer also said: “I don’t want there to be gay marriage, I just want there to be happy marriage, and last marriage and healthy marriage. And I look forward to a day where we don’t have to talk about it.”

3. Pink’s discography

From “Raise Your Glass” to “Get the Party Started” and “So What” to “Trouble”, P!nk has released some of the biggest pop hits of all time.

Her singles have become the soundtrack to Pride events and many people’s queer lives from the feel-good lyrics like “raise your glass if you were wrong” to the more emotional moments.

This includes the likes of “Family Portrait”, “Who Knew”, “What About Us” and “Try”, there’s always a P!nk song for every moment and every mood that many LGBTQ+ have connected to.

4. Her MTV Video Vanguard Award acceptance speech

In her inspiring acceptance speech for the MTV Video Vanguard Award, the singer noted a number of LGBTQ+ artists who “wave their flag and inspire the rest of us”.

She recounts a conversation with her daughter Willow, who said to her “I’m the ugliest girl I know”. And the singer responded with a PowerPoint presentation featuring androgynous artists who “live their truth and are probably made fun of every day of their life” including George Michael, Elton John and Freddie Mercury.

She added that when people make fun of her appearance, they call her “too masculine”, that she “looks like a boy” and that her “body is too strong” but said “we don’t change, we take the gravel and the shell, and we make a pearl”.

“We help other people to change, so that they can see more kinds of beauty,” P!nk said.

5. P!nk saying she’s an ‘honourary lesbian’

Pink has a dedicated LGBTQ+ fan base. (DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty)

In 2012 while promoting her album, The Truth About Love, P!nk spoke about her dedicated LGBTQ+ fanbase in an interview with The Advocate, joking that she’s an “honourary lesbian”.

She said: “They’ve been the most loyal part of what I do. They’ve been my most loyal friends, to be honest. I’ve had a lot of my gay boys around, but my gay girls are my rootstalk.

“They’re my honesty in an ocean of bulls**t. I should be gay by the way that I look and the way that I am. I just happen to not be. But it just makes perfect and complete sense.”

Of her diverse following, she added: “I just feel like it’s bringing people together and it’s rad.”

The singer also shot down tabloid rumours about her sexuality, with some reporting that she’s bisexual. She said: “That wasn’t my truth, and I like truth. I like absolute truth.”

6. Cher played God in P!nk’s music video

In 2021 P!nk released the music video for her song “All I Know So Far” and it featured none other than fellow gay icon Cher, who literally plays God.

Talking about the music video P!nk said: “This song was written as a letter to my daughter. And this video is a culmination of working with Dave Meyers over the last 22 years. In all ways, it’s a full circle moment!”

While Cher tweeted about her appearance, saying: “I’m so proud to be in P!nk’s video, she is a great artist and has made it through the jungle to be ‘Pink’ on her own terms! In many ways this is my struggle to be who I am… in many ways it’s every woman’s struggle.”

7. P!nk pledged to give out banned LGBTQ+ books at her concerts

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In November 2023 while on tour in the US, singer teamed up with PEN America to donate thousands of copies of frequently banned books to fans who attended her gigs in Florida – the state with the most banned books in public school classrooms and libraries.

“Books have held a special joy for me from the time I was a child, and that’s why I am unwilling to stand by and watch while books are banned by schools,” she said during an Instagram Live discussion with PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel and poet Amanda Gorman last month.

“It’s especially hateful to see authorities take aim at books about race and racism and against LGBTQ authors and those of color. We have made so many strides toward equality in this country and no one should want to see this progress reversed.

“This is why I am supporting PEN America in its work and why I agree with them: no more banned books.”

P!nk’s Summer Carnival 2024 tour dates

P!nk will open the tour in Cardiff on 11 June and take the Summer Carnival Tour to venues across the UK and Europe, with multiple shows in the likes of Liverpool, London, Dublin and Amsterdam.