When presented with the Advocate for Change Award at a New York ceremony, the 'Medellin' singer pays tribute to her first dance teacher and mentor who took her to her first gay club.
- May 6, 2019
AceShowbiz - Madonna confessed she "felt like an outsider" as she was presented with the Advocate for Change Award at the 2019 GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday night, May 04.
The 60-year-old pop icon was given the honour at the ceremony in New York Hilton Midtown for her lifetime of work promoting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) acceptance in popular culture.
Madonna was introduced onstage by her "A League of Their Own" co-star, Rosie O'Donnell, and began her emotional speech by confessing that she wasn't popular when she was a teenager.
"Growing up I always felt like an outsider, like I didn't fit in. It wasn't because I didn't shave under my armpits, I just didn't fit in," she shared.
She then paid a sweet tribute to her first dance teacher and mentor.
"The first gay man I ever met was named Christopher Flynn," the "Hung Up" hitmaker explained. "He was my ballet teacher in high school and he was the first person that believed in me. That made me feel special as a dancer, as an artist and as a human being. I know this sounds trivial and superficial but he was the first man to tell me that I was beautiful."
She cheekily added, "He took me to my first gay club in downtown Detroit. I told my dad I was having a sleepover at a girlfriend's house – that got me grounded for the rest of the summer."
The pop superstar also revealed that she was inspired to fight for LGBTQ rights after the deaths of two of her close friends.
"After I lost my best friend and roommate Martin Burgoyne and then Keith Haring, happy birthday Keith, I decided to take up the bull horn and really fight back," Madonna said.
GLAAD is the world's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer media advocacy organisation.
The event, hosted by "RuPaul's Drag Race" alum and "A Star Is Born" star Shangela, also honoured TV host Andy Cohen, singer Janelle Monae and comedienne Samantha Bee.
Here is the winner list of the 30th annual GLAAD Media Awards:
- Advocate for Change Award: Madonna
- Vito Russo Award: Andy Cohen
- Outstanding Drama Series: "Pose" (FX)
- Outstanding Variety or Talk Show Episode: "Trans Rights Under Attack" Full Frontal with Samantha Bee (TBS)
- Outstanding TV Journalism Segment: "Same Sex Couple Reacts to Supreme Court Ruling" CNN Tonight with Don Lemon (CNN)
- Outstanding Film -- Limited Release: "Boy Erased" (Focus Features)
- Outstanding TV Movie or Limited Series: "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story" (FX)
- Outstanding Music Artist: Janelle Monae, "Dirty Computer" (Bad Boy Records)
- Outstanding TV Journalism -- Newsmagazine: "Conversion Therapy: God Only Knows" CBS Sunday Morning (CBS)
- Outstanding Newspaper Article: "He Took a Drug to Prevent AIDS. Then He Couldn't Get Disability Insurance." by Donald G. McNeil Jr. (The New York Times)
- Outstanding Digital Journalism Article: "Bermuda Same-sex Marriage Ban Means Trouble for Tourism and Cruise Ships” by Ryan Ruggiero (CNBC.com)
- Outstanding Digital Journalism -- Video or Multimedia: "March for Our Lives and LGBT activism. 'They're definitely linked for me,' says Emma Gonzalez" by Beth Greenfield (Yahoo! Lifestyle)
- Outstanding Blog: Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents
- Outstanding Scripted Television Series (Spanish-Language): "Elite" (Netflix) and "Mi marido tiene mas familia" (Univision) -- TIE
- Outstanding TV Journalism Segment (Spanish-Language): "Primera Pareja Gay en Casarse en un Consulado Mexicano" Noticias Telemundo Mediodia (Telemundo)
- Outstanding Film -- Wide Release: "Love, Simon" (20th Century Fox)
- Outstanding Comedy Series: "Vida" (Starz)
- Outstanding Reality Program: "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" (Netflix)
- Outstanding Documentary: "Believer" (HBO)
- Outstanding Individual Episode (in a series w/o a regular LGBTQ character): "Someplace Other Than Here" The Guest Book (TBS)
- Outstanding Kids & Family Programming: "Steven Universe" (Cartoon Network)
- Outstanding Video Game: "The Elder Scrolls Online: Summerset" (Bethesda Softworks)
- Outstanding Comic Book: "Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles", written by Mark Russell (DC Comics)
- Outstanding Magazine Article: "Can a Transgender Woman Get Justice in Texas?" by Nate Blakeslee (Texas Monthly)
- Outstanding Magazine Overall Coverage: Variety
- Outstanding TV Journalism -- Newsmagazine (Spanish-Language): "Entrevista con Luis Sandoval para National Coming Out Day" Despierta America (Univision)
- Outstanding Digital Journalism (Spanish-Language): "Asi pinta la television hispana a los personajes LGBTQ, una representacion preocupante" por Daniel Shoer Roth (ElNuevoHerald.com)
- Special Recognition: Nanette (Netflix)
- Special Recognition: TransMilitary (Logo)
- Special Recognition: (Spanish-Language): "House of Mamis" (INTOmore.com)
