Features

VIDEO: Heather Small’s Mardi Gras Moment

Category: Features Created on Wednesday, 06 March 2013 02:57 Written by Pez

It was a fitting highlight of the 35^th annual Sydney Mardi Gras party, so we decided to look at the interesting evolution of Heather Small’s ‘Proud’.

After enjoying a string of hits, Manchester group M People parted ways in 1998 to pursue solo ventures. The biggest success came with the debut single of their lead singer. Heather Small co-wrote ‘Proud’ with producer Peter-John Vettese (whose credits include Annie Lennox, Geri Halliwell, plus Australia’s own Tina Arena & Darren Hayes). The idea hatched when Vettese asked Heather what she would like to do in the studio that day, & she replied "I just want to do something that makes me feel proud".

Upon release in 2000 it was a reasonable hit, peaking at #16 on the UK chart. The inspirational ballad was quickly adopted as a gay anthem of sorts, being highlighted in the very first episode of US series ‘Queer As Folk’ (along with appearing on both their first & final soundtrack compilations).

As ‘Queer As Folk’ came to an end in 2005, the finale brought things full circle, building the iconic closing scene around a new club remix of the track.

That same year, ‘Proud’ was named as the official song of the successful London Olympics bid. Take a moment to think how camp it is for a track to be simultaneously identifiable as both a song of gay pride & a sporting anthem!

By November of 2005 Oprah Winfrey invited Heather to perform on her talk show. Winfrey was so moved; she continued to use ‘Proud’ as a recurring theme to celebrate her show’s 20^th anniversary. Since then, the song has been used in countless commercials, film soundtracks & political campaigns.

Adding to the camp value is the running gag on current UK comedy smash ‘Miranda’, where the character Stevie constantly references the hook.

We’ve long thought Heather would make a great Mardi Gras performer, so when she was confirmed as part of the 35^th anniversary line up, we knew this would make for a heart-swelling moment. 

Check it out!