Danni Minogue Quotes Rumors of "X-Factor"'s Danyl Johnson's Sexuality On-Air. Shocks Even Simon Cowell

As far as I know, Danyl has been openly Bi from the audition process, but even though he wasn't, Dannii only addressed them as rumours not as fact, giving him the oppurtunity to deny if he wanted to. His response was "I'm not ashamed". The furor over this is down to the fact that mentioning anyone as non-straight is very taboo on these kinds of programmes. Tonight, Simon referred to the death of Stephen Gately, but failed to mention his civil partner, despite referring to his relatives and the boys in Boyzone. Can you imagine him not mentioning his wife if he was straight and married?

And speaking of Simon. I wouldn't give him too much praise. Danyl is his act and the reason he got mad at Dannii was because he didn't want potential voters to be put off. Also I believe that Danyl's hurt look was more to do with both Louis and Cheryl telling him he was cocky, unlikeable and that he hadn't won the show yet.

I think Dannii should be supprted. The judges have spoken about everything to do with the contestants in the past including backstage antics and personalities, families and proffessions, and yet because Dannii mentions that a contestant is bisexual, in the context of the song he was singing, she has gone too far. I think this is more to do with the homophobia of the media and the public, than a fault of Dannii's.

PS: I actually don't agree with the point Danni was making. If he is bisexual, he's still be honest if he sings about a girl. But I don't think it was such a terrible thing to say.

I watched Danyl's rendition of And I Am Telling You (still IMO Jennifer Holiday tops Jennifer Hudson's rendition - there's no comparing the two as Jennifer Holiday's is THE VERY BEST) and didn't quite get the thunderous applause from the audience with that weak performance and what was Simon Cowell doing pulling a "Paula Abdul?" I felt he just didn't want to go against the audience + he didn't want to come off and say something negative after the comments Danii made about changing the gender in the lyrics "if we're to believe what's been said about Danyl in the press."

As handsome and cute as Danyl is - he just didn't do a good job singing  "And I Am Telling You."

Forgive me but, as I understand it Danyl Johnson is on the record to have said he dates men and women, that gender is not important to him, that says he is bisexual even if he didnt say the word. So this rumours thing is ridiculous, she didnt out anyone or said something people already didnt know.

Where she was wrong, and by that I mean unprofessional, was to bring his personal life to the competition, there is really not a reason to do that. It was uncalled for. And while her delivery was bad, I did wonder: Why would anyone feel the need to change the lyric of the song? It is a legitimate question, but she should not have used his personal life to ask it.

Finally, to say that Danii Minogue has a homophobic bone in her body is right down ridiculous, she has a lot more ties and has probably done more for the gay community than her more famous sister.

I think this is more standard operating procedure for the british tabs than anything else.   

Since I'm in North America, it's hard for me to tell the context of any media quotes and of the judges' relationship with the contestants. To me, he did look annoyed by Danni's talk of gender, but he didn't seem devastated or anything. And he did say "I'm not ashamed" later.

I do think her comments were out of place. In a perfect world, Dannii's words would be a harmless observation. But in the current world, they could come accross as a snide insult. And, this might not have been the case for Danyl, but it could be demoralizing to a performer, even if he's not at all ashamed of himself. The judges' evaluations should be useful information that the contestants can apply to their performances. 

Danyl has been coy with the press about being bi, so there was some merit to Dannii's comment, particularly since his rendition of the song was merely ok, nothing great and certainly not the masterpiece that Simon tried to portray it as.

In fact, what Dannii should've said is that by acknowledging the press comments and NOT changing the pronouns in the lyric, it would've made the performance that much more daring and genuinely memorable.

it was a delayed reaction. - from this mornings papers.

 

i agree with

Bountiful 'in a perfect world, dannii's words would be a harmless observation.'

Joseph

The X- factor is well known for doing things that will boost their ratings; they once "fired" one of the judges only to bring him back and are constantly creating rumours about feuds between the two female judges and contestants. I think Danni knew exactly what she was doing by officially outing Danyl - she was making sure that everyone in the viewing public knew he was bisexual, in the hope that it would sway some of the bigots votes away from him, because he's such a fierce contender. I think the best moment is when the crowd is booing, and you can see Danyl saying "I'm not ashamed" over the top if Cheryl Cole. Love it.

I mostly agree, Ed - I think Dannii put her foot in her mouth.

Dannii isn't homophobic. Her 'joke' relied on there being something amusing, and probably salacious, about a cute guy singing about loving another guy, but if we're going to start calling 'girls who hang out with gay men' (amongst whom Dannii happily numbers herself) homophobic if they sexualise and objectify queer men, then we need'll a different word for the people who are trying to take away our gay civil rights. ;)

But Dannii was pretty rude. Danyl is 'out' (on the AfterElton criterion), but he obviously wasn't comfortable with Dannii making his sexuality the subject of a joke. Public humour about a person's sexuality is only appropriate when that person is completely comfortable with it - the humour, that is. 

Dannii's comment also broke a major taboo. Even out artists on major labels almost invariably sing opposite-gender or gender-neutral lyrics. I wish Dannii had instead asked a serious question about why artists and producers feel that mass audiences can't 'relate' to same-sex lyrics. But for Danyl to do what Adam Lambert didn't, and bet his survival in the show on singing about a guy, would take a leap of faith, even in increasingly tolerant 21st-century Britain.  

I know she is not shy about revealing her past use of botox, but even granting that I'd personally say that it is all in the delivery - she didn't look like she was saying it in a jovial or teasing manner, rather more like she was sniping.

I wouldn't say it was a hurtful comment though, but it was totally irrelevant to her role of offering a critique so consequently inappropriate for the circumstance.

Of course it is also likely a big set-up; build support for the guy who is both bisexual and a favorite (not 'traditionally' considered vote-winning properties, though I don't honestly recall a bi-identified guy on a UK talent show), while also raising the profile of the most neutral judge...

One of his September quotes certainly lends a little weight to that conspiracy theory:

“I don’t like to conform or be put into one box or another and if I’m honest all the judges are good-looking. If I like someone’s personality it doesn’t really matter what they look like or what sex they are.

“Dannii and Cheryl are both beautiful and I’m a bit cheeky, so I played up to them a bit during the performance to get them on my side.

“I suppose if I had to choose, I’d prefer Dannii because she’s got a great personality. I reckon you could have a good night out with her – she’d be up for dancing and a laugh. I would love to have her as my mentor so I could get to know her a bit better.”

Sounds to me like he is fairly out and not adverse to a Minogue team-up maneuver...

N.B. Simon Cowell wears a suit & tie in the X-Factor finals because it makes him a little more authoritative/professional, which in turn makes his opinion seem a little more important even when he is blatantly Abdul-arizing his own acts (quite successfully) - which then in turn helps swing the public votes a little his way.

If the US finally launches its own X-Factor or otherwise puts him in a competitive environment, 99% sure you'll see him in a suit over there - and likely toning down his Seacrest bandiage too.

did anything wrong. Danyl freely decides to told the press that he likes men and women, he even make jokes about it, so i agree with her, there's no need to change lyrics of the song.

And i agree with Cheryl too, there's a thin line between confident and arrogant. Danyl has the potential to win the contest, right now Jamie is better, but it's obvious that Simon prefers Danyl. But he needs to start to nail his performances.

This year the show is pretty gay, because all boys are not exactly the epithome of masculinity, in fact there's a gift over internet, with Ethan (the american boy who was eliminated) and Lloyd, being very friendly with each other.

This is a british show, and i don't think we can judge it by american standards. Will Young won Pop Idol, with a lot of gay rumours surrounding him, and Alex Parks was openly lesbian when she won Start Academy. In AI, there's always gay rumours about someone, but the most similar to an openly gay contestant was Adam Lambert, even he wasn't openly gay in the contest (everybody who wasn't blind knew he is gay)

He was crying due to the fact that he knows hes not that likable and Louis mentioned it. He has come out as Bi, its been in the papers and no one cares.

Danni was probably just trying to have a bit of banter with him and it went wrong, shes no homophobe.

 

As for Simon not mentioning Stephen Gatelys partner well I presumed when he mentioned his family that included his husband.

God knows Simons not a homophobe, pretty much his best mate is Louis walsh!

I'm going with she should be fired. I've said before outing is not something that should be done without a valid reason. There was no reason for that.  Whether it was unintentional or not, it was an absolute lack of common sense that she should be held accountable for. Her "apology" was not an apology it was an explanation. 

The comment that changing a gender in a song wasn't needed was  the dumbest comment I've heard from any judge on any reality show.

Simon deserves his applause and hopefully Danyl will get more votes than ever.  (Though I have to agree with the comment he needs to loose the attitude comment)

Oh my God! I cannot believe that AfterElton has the tenacity to post an article like this. Danni did nothing wrong!! I am so gobsmacked...I was angry at the mainstream press for their reaction, but I did not for one second think that the gay community would take it this way too. I thought I would come on here today and see an article backing Dannii. And this is why:

1) Danni was completely right. There was no need for Danyl to change the lyric from 'man' to 'girl'. Danyl is openly bisexual. By changing the lyric it was if he was being ashamed of who he is. That is all she was trying to say.

2) People are blowing all this out of proportion. As usual. Danni was not outing Danyl, because he is already out. By making her comment, she was not shifting focus away from the performance itself, especially when she said he was brilliant anyway. She was making a stand on the way sexuality is treated when it comes to shows like this.

3) The only reason why the straights are up in arms about this, is because they don't want their favourite X Factor contestant to be openly singing about men. They secretly agree with Danyl changing the lyric and the reason why they are attacking Danni like this, is because she called them out on this bullshit. But at the same time they don't want their homophobia to be noticed, so they wrap it up in arguments like 'Danni shouldn't have been talking about Danyl's sexuality, it has no place on a show like this, it should all be about his performance and peformance only...e.t.c' They are the ones that are pathetic.

That third point is why I think the straight media are blowing this out of proportion, but why are the gays doing it? Is it because the straight community are shouting homophobia and so we have to too? This site is completely unfathomable sometimes.

I think Dannii's delivery was a little awkward and what might be suitable as a joke backstage may not go over as well onstage. And if it was intended to rattle a performer she is not mentoring and create a little drama for the show, then 2 demerits for her.

I remember Danyl's interview and just wish people would actually realize that whatever they say or do in the public arena stands a very good chance of biting them in the ass further down the road. How about private lives being private? In the age of Twitter, I still see no reason to know every last detail of the lives of people I will never meet.

I remember a conversation with my dad about how he and my mother were sure one of my nephew's friends might be gay. This said in a disapproving tone. I asked him if he was planning on having sex with him. He said no. I said then what does it matter to you if he is or not? It's his life. If he's a good person, it shouldn't matter. I have deeply Republican parents who think the only good gay is a hairdresser or maybe has a job in the theatre and not so secretly believe the rest of us might be child molesters or just haven't found the right woman yet. And they wonder why I never call.

Anyway. My quibble? While I think Danyl's performances are a little dramatic for my tastes, I've yet to see any evidence anywhere of him being cocky and unlikeable. Quite the contrary, in fact.

I have, however, seen us gays dogpile on him for any number of imagined sins. "oh, another flamer comes out as bi, quelle surprise!" and the like. Reminding me of the late Michael Callan's assertion that the idea of a "gay community" was a polite fiction.

"Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself.
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)"
Walt Whitman Song of Myself

Hes not even a little camp, Honestly in Britain no one cares hes Bi, its more "outrage" that Danni might have been using that fact against him, most people are on HIS side not hers.

If you watch him perform in the auditions he comes across as very self confidant and he knows hes good, This is Britain, we do not like people like that, we like them meek and humble....

The X Factor.  That is all.  Being supportive of the gay community was the furthest thing from her mind when she made those comments.  She was determined to come out this season with both guns blazing, doing whatever it took to win - and she's done it.  Danyl was/is an early favourite, so she came out to take him down with innuendo-laden off-hand remarks.  This shows a number of things.  1. She couldn't find something in his performance to criticize, so she used media to sway opinion.  2.  By making such comments so early in the running, she's showing either a decided lack of confidence in her own team or a deep, ruthless, bitchy streak a mile wide - or maybe a little of both.  This is unfortunate for her own team as the girls may now suffer from the backlash against Dannii that is currently going on in many places.  It also takes focus away from all the other singers on the show.  It's no longer "The X Factor", it's "The Dannii Factor"; and people will be tuning in to see what she does or doesn't do next.  While the furor may help the over-all ratings of the show, it has seriously detracted from what the show is about - people of talent finally getting their chance at the brass ring.  It's Danyl's business if he wants to give his opinions on his own personal likes and dislikes to the press off camera, and I think what he said on the topic was one of the nicest things I've read in a long time.  A man like that is a lovely human being.  Dannii knew very well what she was doing and why she was doing it when she made reference to Danyl's comments in the press.  Some may say that she simply made a stupid mistake.  I don't know many women who are that stupid, but I do know quite a few who are just that nasty.