Legendary singer-songwriter Grace Slick said her commitment to the LGBTQ community inspired her to license one of her biggest hits to Chick-fil-A.
Starship’s 1987 smash, “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” is featured in a commercial that humorously touts the fast food chain’s new “CowzVR Delivery” virtual reality experience. The clip, which can be viewed above, made its television debut during the Grammy Awards on Feb. 12.
In her Feb. 21 Forbes op-ed, the 77-year-old singer-songwriter and member of Starship’s predecessor, Jefferson Airplane, explained that she was well aware of the 2012 controversy that erupted after Chick-Fil-A President Dan Cathy publicly spoke out against same-sex marriage. But when the company’s ad agency requested the use of her song, Slick said her answer was “f**k yes” ― because she supports queer rights.
So when Slick agreed to license “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” she decided to “strike back at anti-LGBTQ forces” by donating her entire Chick-fil-A paycheck to the civil rights advocacy group, Lambda Legal.
“Chick-fil-A pisses me off,” Slick wrote. “I firmly believe that men should be able to marry men, and women women. I am passionately against anyone who would try to suppress this basic human right.”
Noting that fans may think she wrote the article “just to cover my ass for allowing a company whose practices many find morally objectionable to use Starship’s music,” she added, “I hope more musicians will think about the companies that they let use their songs; we can use our gifts to help stop the forces of bigotry.”
Lambda Legal’s Deputy Director of Education and Public Affairs Lisa Hardaway applauded Slick’s efforts. “It’s not only great fun but also a great honor to be part of Grace’s plan to undermine Chick-fil-A’s anti-LGBT spending by re-routing their money to us,” she told The Huffington Post. “And just as important as the dollars is the way in which Grace made a public example out of the company’s homophobic actions.”
You can read Slick’s full Forbes op-ed here. The Huffington Post has reached out the Chick-fil-A for comment.
CORRECTION: The original version of this article named Slick as a co-founder of Jefferson Airplane. She replaced Signe Toly Anderson.
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