When it first hit the web late September, pop star Zolita’s music video for her newest single, “Somebody I F*cked Once” (2021) became an almost-overnight hit. This newest contribution to pop didn’t just grab attention for its honest and provocative lyrics, but rather for the spin it puts on the overdone high-school romance troupe, and of course: its unique list of guest stars.

@portalzolitabr on Twitter

The self-directed video pulls viewers into a world reminiscent of any 90’s or early 2000’s-era high school romcom (Think: Mean Girls, Bring It On, and 10 Things I Hate About You). Popular girls in pink cheerleader uniforms, football bleachers, and of course… Prom.

SIFO shares the story of Zolita, who plays herself, grappling with the fear of judgment, ridicule, and the heteronormative expectations of her high-school peers. The video is spent gathering up the courage to dump her boyfriend, and instead go to prom with the girl whom she has fallen for, Gia. 

Zolita (full name Zoe Montana Hotzel) is openly lesbian, and has written about her sexuality in her music extensively throughout the past few years. This is definitely not the first time she has shared music with the world about her experience navigating love as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. And although she’s just 27, she is no stranger to the viral fame that is possible, thanks to YouTube. As just one example, the video for her 2015 release, “Explosion” (2015), has shot northwards of 19 million views since it began gaining serious traction in December of 2020. Dozens of other self-produced videos for her music, like, “Holy” (2016), “Come Home With Me” (2018), and “Bedspell” (2020), continue to tack on thousands more streams by the day.

But what has the internet buzzing about “Somebody I F*cked Once” has a lot to do with the atypical character arcs Zolita was able to bring to life, and the new ways in which content creators are connecting and collaborating in an online age. Gia’s character is played by Tatiana Ringsby, known to most—at least those on the online landscape—as Tringsby, or the nickname Tatchi. Similar to Zolita, Tatchi has also come to terms with their sexuality in the public eye, as a model-turned-content-creator on YouTube, TikTok, and other platforms.

Photography by SIFO, in GayTimes UK

After first coming out to the internet-world as bisexual in March of last year, Tatchi has since become a leading voice, rejecting both external and internalized heteronormativity. They have and continue to share their non-linear journey of identifying as a nonbinary and a fluid human being. But having tread little, if at all in terms of music, it was refreshing (and a little surprising) to see them work in collaboration with Zolita on SIFO.

This is a new phenomenon: artists not just creating content from themselves to put into the void of the internet, but connecting across disciplines, and collaborating with other creators to put out something entirely unique. And while it is incredibly true that the internet can be an alienating space, rooted in toxic comparisons and in forcing non-conforming people to fit a certain mold, it is also opening doors for queer creators to be seen in new ways, which is incredibly needed. SIFO and Zolita as an artist provide some much-needed queer representation in the pop landscape, which is more often than not dominated by love songs covering pop artists’ heterosexual relationships.

Many, many more conversations need to be had about where the representation has been for lesbian artists in pop music, and where it continues to be for queer women of color—why it seems like music creations like SIFO tend to be viewed as one-hit-wonders as opposed to being consistently imbedded into the pop music scene. But it’s not unreasonable to say that Zolita is helping pave the way for many more queer artists to begin to take up the space they deserve in pop. For now, she has the internet teeming with excitement for her next move, sure to also be a viral success.

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To little surprise, Zolita uplifts other openly queer artists that are killing it in music via her Spotify! To check out her playlist, “damn it feels good to be gay” and stream her music, click below. 

Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7hZsKbx3g2PyP9il2YYE4H?si=0c608f4d238d4c72 

Zolita: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7nnTzZ5tZrPx14iDnmjksU?si=3Bpdc2g-QmGaJntWYPS0lw&dl_branch=1 

Written by Madeline Roorda

Featured image by @portalzolitabr on Twitter

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