Part of a series on
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people
Sexual orientation
Homosexuality Demographics Biology Environment
History
LGBT history Timeline Social movements
Culture
LGBT community Coming out Pride Slang Symbols Gay village
Rights
Laws around the world Marriage Union Adoption Military service Legal aspects of transsexualism
Social attitudes
Heteronormativity LGBT stereotypes Religion and homosexuality Religion and transgender
Prejudice / Violence
Heterosexism Homophobia Lesbophobia Biphobia Transphobia Violence against LGBT people
Academic fields and discourse
LGBT/Queer studies Lesbian feminism Queer theory Transfeminism Lavender linguistics
LGBT portal
v t e

Gay is a word (a noun or an adjective) that primarily refers to a homosexual person.

The term was originally used to refer to feelings of being "carefree", "happy", or "bright and showy"; it had also come to acquire some connotations of "immorality" as early as 1637.^[1] The term's use as a reference to homosexuality may date as early as the late 19th century, but its use gradually increased in the 20th century.^[1] In modern English, gay has come to be used as an adjective, and as a noun, referring to the people, especially to men, and the practices and cultures associated with homosexuality. By the end of the 20th century, the word gay was recommended by major LGBT groups and style guides to describe people attracted to members of the same sex.^[2][3] At about the same time, a new, pejorative use became prevalent in some parts of the world. In the Anglosphere, this connotation, among younger speakers, has a derisive meaning equivalent to rubbish or stupid (as in "That's so gay."). In this use, the word does not mean "homosexual", so it can be used, for example, to refer to an inanimate object or abstract concept of which one disapproves. This usage can also refer to weakness or unmanliness. When used in this way, the extent to which it still retains connotations of homosexuality has been debated and harshly criticized.^[4][5]

History[link]

Overview[link]

Cartoon from Punch magazine in 1857 illustrating the use of "gay" as a euphemism for being a prostitute. One woman says to the other (who looks glum), "How long have you been gay?" The poster on the wall is for La Traviata, an opera about a courtesan.

The word "gay" arrived in English during the 12th century from Old French gai, most likely deriving ultimately from a Germanic source.^[1] For most of its life in English, the word's primary meaning was "joyful", "carefree", "bright and showy", and the word was very commonly used with this meaning in speech and literature. For example, the optimistic 1890s are still often referred to as the Gay Nineties. The title of the 1938 French ballet Gaîté Parisienne ("Parisian Gaiety"), which became the 1941 Warner Brothers movie, The Gay Parisian,^[6] also illustrates this connotation. It was apparently not until the 20th century that the word began to be used to mean specifically "homosexual", although it had earlier acquired sexual connotations.^[1]

The derived abstract noun gaiety remains largely free of sexual connotations, and has, in the past, been used in the names of places of entertainment; for example W.B. Yeats heard Oscar Wilde lecture at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin.^[7]

Sexualization[link]

The word had started to acquire associations of immorality by 1637^[1] and was used in the late 17th century with the meaning "addicted to pleasures and dissipations."^[8] This was by extension from the primary meaning of "carefree": implying "uninhibited by moral constraints." A gay woman was a prostitute, a gay man a womanizer and a gay house a brothel.^[1]

The use of gay to mean "homosexual" was in origin merely an extension of the word's sexualised connotation of "carefree and uninhibited", which implied a willingness to disregard conventional or respectable sexual mores. Such usage is documented as early as the 1920s, and there is evidence for it before the 20th century,^[1] although it was initially more commonly used to imply heterosexually unconstrained lifestyles, as in the once-common phrase "gay Lothario",^[9] or in the title of the book and film The Gay Falcon (1941), which concerns a womanizing detective whose first name is "Gay." Well into the mid 20th century a middle-aged bachelor could be described as "gay", indicating that he was unattached and therefore free, without any implication of homosexuality. This usage could apply to women too. The British comic strip Jane was first published in the 1930s and described the adventures of Jane Gay. Far from implying homosexuality, it referred to her free-wheeling lifestyle with plenty of boyfriends (while also punning on Lady Jane Grey).

A passage from Gertrude Stein's Miss Furr & Miss Skeene (1922) is possibly the first traceable published use of the word to refer to a homosexual relationship. According to Linda Wagner-Martin (Favored Strangers: Gertrude Stein and her Family (1995)) the portrait, "featured the sly repetition of the word gay, used with sexual intent for one of the first times in linguistic history," and Edmund Wilson (1951, quoted by James Mellow in Charmed Circle (1974)) agreed.^[10] For example:

They were ...gay, they learned little things that are things in being gay, ... they were quite regularly gay.

—Gertrude Stein, 1922

Other usages at this date involve some of the same ambiguity as Coward's lyrics. Bringing Up Baby (1938) was the first film to use the word gay in apparent reference to homosexuality. In a scene showing Cary Grant's clothes going to the cleaners. He is forced to wear a lady's feathery robe. When another character asks about his robe, he responds "Because I just went gay...all of a sudden!"^[11] Since this was a mainstream film at a time when the use of the word to refer to homosexuality would still be unfamiliar to most film-goers, the line can also be interpreted to mean "I just decided to do something frivolous."^{[citation needed]} There is much debate about what Grant meant with the ad-lib (the line was not in the script).^{[citation needed]} The word continued to be used with the dominant meaning of "carefree", as evidenced by the title of The Gay Divorcee (1934), a musical film about a heterosexual couple. It was originally to be called "The Gay Divorce" after the play on which it was based, but the Hays Office determined that while a divorcee may be gay, it would be unseemly to allow a divorce to appear so.

[edit] Shift to homosexual

By the mid-20th century, gay was well established in reference to hedonistic and uninhibited lifestyles^[12] and its antonym straight, which had long had connotations of seriousness, respectability, and conventionality, had now acquired specific connotations of heterosexuality.^[13] In the case of gay, other connotations of frivolousness and showiness in dress ("gay apparel") led to association with camp and effeminacy. This association no doubt helped the gradual narrowing in scope of the term towards its current dominant meaning, which was at first confined to subcultures. Gay was the preferred term since other terms, such as queer, were felt to be derogatory.^[14] Homosexual is perceived as excessively clinical,^{[15][16][17][18]} since the sexual orientation now commonly referred to as "homosexuality" was at that time a mental illness diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).

In mid-20th century Britain, where male homosexuality was illegal until the Sexual Offences Act 1967, to openly identify someone as homosexual was considered very offensive and an accusation of serious criminal activity. Additionally, none of the words describing any aspect of homosexuality were considered suitable for polite society. Consequently, a number of euphemisms were used to hint at suspected homosexuality. Examples include "sporty" girls and "artistic" boys,^[19] all with the stress deliberately on the otherwise completely innocent adjective.

The sixties marked the transition in the predominant meaning of the word gay from that of "carefree" to the current "homosexual". By 1963, a new sense of the word gay was known well enough to be used by Albert Ellis in his book The Intelligent Woman's Guide to Man-Hunting. Similarly, Hubert Selby, Jr. in his 1964 novel Last Exit to Brooklyn, could write "[he] took pride in being a homosexual by feeling intellectually and esthetically superior to those (especially women) who weren't gay..."^[20] Later examples of the original meaning of the word being used in popular culture include the theme song to the 1960–1966 animated TV series The Flintstones, whereby viewers are assured that they will "have a gay old time." Similarly, the 1966 Herman's Hermits song "No Milk Today", which became a Top 10 hit in the UK and a Top 40 hit in the U.S. and included the lyric "No milk today, it was not always so / The company was gay, we had turn night into day."^[21] In June 1967, the headline of the review of the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album in the British daily newspaper The Times stated, "The Beatles revive hopes of progress in pop music with their gay new LP".^[22] Yet in the same year, The Kinks recorded "David Watts".^[23] Ostensibly about schoolboy envy, the song also operated as an in-joke, as related in Jon Savage's "The Kinks: The Official Biography", because the song took its name from a homosexual promoter they'd encountered who'd had romantic designs on songwriter Ray Davies' teenage brother; and the lines "he is so gay and fancy free" attest to the ambiguity of the word's meaning at that time, with the second meaning evident only for those in the know.^[24] As late as 1970, the first episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show has the demonstrably straight Mary Richards' downstairs neighbor, Phyllis, breezily declaiming that Mary is, at age 30, still "young and gay."

There is little doubt that the homosexual sense is a development of the word's traditional meaning, as described above. It has nevertheless been claimed that gay stands for "Good As You", but there is no evidence for this: it is a folk etymology backronym.^[25]

Homosexuality[link]

The LGBT Rainbow Flag

Sexual orientation
Orientations
Asexual Bisexual Heterosexual Homosexual
Gender-based alternative concepts
Androphilia and gynephilia Human female sexuality Human male sexuality Intersexuality Third gender Two-Spirit
Research
Biology Demographics Environment Kinsey scale Klein Grid Neuroscience Non-heterosexual Psychology Queer studies Sexology Timeline of sexual orientation and medicine Non-human animals Homosexual behavior in animals (List)
Category
v t e

Sexual orientation, identity, behavior[link]

The American Psychological Association states that sexual orientation "describes the pattern of sexual attraction, behavior and identity e.g. homosexual (aka gay, lesbian), bisexual and heterosexual (aka straight)". It says, "There is no consensus among scientists about the exact reasons that an individual develops a heterosexual, bisexual, gay, or lesbian orientation. Although much research has examined the possible genetic, hormonal, developmental, social, and cultural influences on sexual orientation, no findings have emerged that permit scientists to conclude that sexual orientation is determined by any particular factor or factors. Many think that nature and nurture both play complex roles."^[26]

According to Rosario, Schrimshaw, Hunter, Braun (2006), "the development of a lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) sexual identity is a complex and often difficult process. Unlike members of other minority groups (e.g., ethnic and racial minorities), most LGB individuals are not raised in a community of similar others from whom they learn about their identity and who reinforce and support that identity. Rather, LGB individuals are often raised in communities that are either ignorant of or openly hostile toward homosexuality."^[27]

The British gay rights activist Peter Tatchell has argued that the term gay is merely a cultural expression which reflects the current status of homosexuality within a given society, and claiming that "Queer, gay, homosexual ... in the long view, they are all just temporary identities. One day, we will not need them at all."^[28]

If a person engages in same-sex sexual encounters but does not self-identify as gay, terms such as 'closeted', 'discreet', or 'bi-curious' may be applied. Conversely, a person may identify as gay without engaging in homosexual sex. Possible choices include identifying as gay socially while choosing to be celibate or while anticipating a first homosexual experience. Further, a bisexual person can also identify as "gay" but others might consider gay and bisexual to be mutually exclusive. There are some who are drawn to the same-sex, and may not have sex, and also not identify as gay; these could have the term 'asexual' applied, even though an 'asexual' generally can mean no attraction, and includes heterosexual attraction that is not sufficient to engage in sex, or where the sex act is not desirable, even though titillation may occur.

Terminology[link]

Some reject the term homosexual as an identity-label because they find it too clinical-sounding;^[16][17][18] they believe it is too focused on physical acts rather than romance or attraction, or too reminiscent of the era when homosexuality was considered a mental illness. Conversely, some reject term gay as an identity-label because they perceive the cultural connotations to be undesirable or because of the negative connotations of the slang usage of the word.

Style guides, like the following from the Associated Press, call for gay over homosexual:

Gay: Used to describe men and women attracted to the same sex, though lesbian is the more common term for women. Preferred over homosexual except in clinical contexts or references to sexual activity.^[29]

Gay community vs. LGBT community[link]

Two girls kissing

Just as the word gay is sometimes used as a shorthand for the term LGBT, so is gay community sometimes a synonym for the LGBT community. In other cases, the speaker may be referring only to homosexual men. Starting in the mid-1980s in the United States, a conscious effort was underway within what was then called the gay community, to add the term lesbian to the name of all gay organizations that catered to both male and female homosexuals, and to use the terminology of gay and lesbian, or lesbian/gay when referring to that community. So, organizations like the National Gay Task Force became the National Lesbian/Gay Task Force. For many ardent feminist lesbians, it was also important that the L come first, lest an L following a G become another symbol of male dominance over women.^[30] In the 1990s, this was followed by another equally concerted push to include the terminology specifically pointing out the inclusion of bisexuals and transgender people, reflecting an end to the intra-community debate as to whether these other sexual minorities were part of the same sexual liberation movement. Most news organizations have formally adopted this use, following the example and preference of the LGBT organizations, as reflected in their press releases and public communications. Today, many people interpret the phrase "gay community" to mean "the population of LGBT people."

Descriptor[link]

A gay bar in Seattle, United States.

The term gay can also be used as an adjective to describe things related to homosexuals or things which are part of the said culture. For example, the term "gay bar" describes the bar which is either homosexually oriented, caters primarily to a homosexual clientele, or is otherwise part of homosexual culture.

Using it to describe an object, such as an item of clothing, suggests that it is particularly flamboyant, often on the verge of being gaudy and garish. This usage predates the association of the term with homosexuality, but has acquired different connotations since the modern usage developed.

Using the term gay as an adjective where the meaning is akin to "related to homosexual people, culture, or homosexuality in general" is a widely accepted use of the word.

People who oppose homosexuality, especially homophobic ones, may use the term gay in the pejorative sense, ascribing the term negative connotations.

Use as a noun[link]

The label "gay" was originally used purely as an adjective ("he is a gay man" or "he is gay"). The term has been in use as a noun with the meaning "homosexual man" since the 1970s, as in "gays are opposed to that policy." Although some dislike this usage, it is common, such as in the case of "LGBT" ("lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender"), and particularly in the names of various organizations such as Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) and Children Of Lesbians And Gays Everywhere (COLAGE). It is sometimes used as a singular noun, as in "he is a gay", such as in its use to comic effect by the Little Britain character Dafydd Thomas.

Generalized pejorative use[link]

When used with a derisive attitude (e.g. "that was so gay"), the word gay is pejorative. While retaining its other meanings, it has also acquired "a widespread current usage" amongst young people, as a general term of disparagement.^[31][32] This pejorative usage has its origins in the late 1970s. Beginning in the 1980s and especially in the late 1990s, the usage as a generic insult became common among young people.^[32]

This usage of the word has been criticized as homophobic. A 2006 BBC ruling by the Board of Governors over the use of the word in this context by Chris Moyles on his Radio 1 show, "I do not want that one, it's gay," advises "caution on its use" for this reason:

"The word ‘gay’, in addition to being used to mean ‘homosexual’ or ‘carefree’, was often now used to mean ‘lame’ or ‘rubbish’. This is a widespread current usage of the word amongst young people... The word 'gay' ... need not be offensive... or homophobic ... The governors said, however, that Moyles was simply keeping up with developments in English usage. ... The committee... was "familiar with hearing this word in this context." The governors believed that in describing a ring tone as 'gay', the DJ was conveying that he thought it was 'rubbish', rather than 'homosexual'. ... The panel acknowledged however that this use... in a derogatory sense... could cause offence in some listeners, and counselled caution on its use.

—BBC Board of Governors, ^[31]

The BBC's ruling was heavily criticised by the Minister for Children, Kevin Brennan, who stated in response that "the casual use of homophobic language by mainstream radio DJs" is:

"too often seen as harmless banter instead of the offensive insult that it really represents. ... To ignore this problem is to collude in it. The blind eye to casual name-calling, looking the other way because it is the easy option, is simply intolerable."

—Tony Grew, ^[33]

Shortly after the Moyles incident a campaign against homophobia was launched in Britain under the slogan "homophobia is gay", playing on the double meaning of the word "gay" in youth culture.^[34]

Parallels in other languages[link]

The German equivalent for gay, schwul, which is etymologically derived from schwuel (hot, humid), also acquired the pejorative meaning within youth culture.^[35]

In the two standards of the Portuguese language (i.e. the Brazilian and European ones), gay, guei, lésbica, homossexual, bissexual, pansexual and bi-curioso/bi-curiosa are among the common acceptable terms for people, along the still widespread used slur "bicha", that as queer in English (with an ironically similar use, pejorative for effeminate men and everyone which is not heterosexual and/or cisgender, but which would also be translated to an informal term for parasitic worm), was increasingly reappropriated by the community from the mid-1990s to the mid-2010s, and there were attempts to make it with at least one other common slur, "viado" (from desviado, "male sexual deviant").^[36] Generally the community is denoted by the English terms or its more direct translations. The sexual orientations can be interchangeably called by homossexualidade/bissexualidade and homossexualismo/bissexualismo without pejorative connotations, although the latter is widely regarded as politically incorrect in Brazil since mid-2000s because of cultural influence from English-speaking countries.

As in English, there is a pejorative use of the term gay in Portuguese-speaking countries among people of all age groups (generally males), but more frequently within the youth culture, frequently translating as flashy, flamboyant, effeminate, coward or lame, acting as a term to designate everything outside the macho gender role of the Iberian and Latin American cultures and thus deemed as improper attitude or item to a male.

The Spanish language usually employ the term homosexual to describe gay people and the community, but also use the English word "gay". The Spanish pejorative slang terms for a gay male, maricón and joto, derive in the former case from the name Maria; in the latter, from associations with dances of similar names. The Spanish slang for a lesbian, manflor, appears to derive from an association with a "masculinized" flower.^[37]

The concept of a "gay identity" and the use of the term gay may not be used or understood the same way in non-Westernised cultures, since modes of sexuality may differ from those prevalent in the West.^[38]

See also[link]

LGBT portal

• Anti-LGBT slogans
• Deviance (sociology)
• Gay bashing
• Gender identity
• Gender identity disorder
• Hate speech
• Heterosexism
• Human male sexuality
• Human Rights Campaign
• Labeling theory
• LGBT rights opposition
• LGBT themes in mythology
• List of gay, lesbian or bisexual people
• National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
• Religion and sexuality
• Sexuality and gender identity-based cultures
• Stigma

Notes[link]

Further reading[link]

• Leap, William (1995). Beyond the Lavender Lexicon: Authenticity, Imagination, and Appropriation in Lesbian and Gay Language. Taylor & Francis. p. 360. ISBN 2-88449-181-3. http://books.google.com/books?id=loqEKRQQ68UC. 

External links[link]

Look up gay or ghey in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Gay

• Gay at the Open Directory Project

v t e Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) topics   Academic fields Discourse LGBT topics in education Gender studies Lavender linguistics Lesbian feminism LGBT literature LGBT/Queer studies Queer theory Transfeminism   Community Culture Anthems Bars Bisexual community Coming out Community center Drag king Drag queen Gay friendly Icons Lesbian utopia Literature Music Neighborhoods Organizations Periodicals Pride Pride parade Religious groups Rodeos Same-sex relationships Slang List of slang Slogans Symbols Tourism Category:LGBT culture   Gender identities Sexual identities Gender identities Male Female Androgyne Bigender Boi Cisgender Genderqueer Girlfag and guydyke Intersex Pangender Transgender Womyn Third sex / Third gender Akava'ine Eunuch Fa'afafine Fakaleiti Femminiello Hijra Kathoey Khanith Mahu Mukhannathun Muxe Bissu Two-Spirit Hermaphrodite Sexual orientation identities Sexual orientations Asexual Bisexual Heterosexual Homosexual Ex-gay Ex-ex-gay Pansexual Polyamorous Banjee Gay Lesbian Queer Same gender loving Non-heterosexual Object sexuality Questioning Related Gender roles Human female sexuality Human male sexuality Sexuality and gender identity-based cultures   History LGBT history History of lesbianism LGBT History Timeline Social movements History of Christianity and homosexuality History of same-sex unions Pederasty Category:LGBT history Pre-modern era Adelphopoiesis Homosexuality in ancient Greece Homosexuality in ancient Rome Homosexuality in ancient Egypt Homosexuality in ancient Peru Homosexuality in medieval Europe 16th to 19th century Mollies Urnings 20th century Gay Liberation Homosexuals in Nazi Germany and the Holocaust Inversion Sea queens Stonewall riots Festival of Light action White Night riots Queer theory 21st century Same-sex marriage Post-Queer Theory   Rights Legal issues LGBT rights by country or territory Africa Americas Asia Europe Oceania List of LGBT rights articles by region LGBT rights topics Adoption Civil unions and partnerships Hate crime laws Legal aspects of transsexualism Military service Parenting Same-sex marriage (Status Timeline) Socialism Sodomy laws United Nations/Yogyakarta Principles LGBT rights movements Gay Liberation LGBT rights groups LGBT rights activists   Sexual orientations – Medicine, science and sexology Biology Birth order Demographics Environment Heterosexual–homosexual continuum Homosexuality and psychology Kinsey scale Klein Grid Mental roots Neuroscience Prenatal hormones Sexual orientation change efforts Sexual orientation identity Timeline of sexual orientation and medicine   Social attitudes Prejudice Violence Social attitudes Anti-LGBT slogans Heteronormativity Gay panic LGBT rights opposition LGBT stereotypes Religion and homosexuality Transgenderism and religion Prejudice & Discrimination AIDS stigma Biphobia Heterosexism Homophobia Internalized homophobia Lesbophobia Riddle scale Transphobia Violence against LGBT people Corrective rape Gay bashing History of violence in the UK History of violence in the US Significant acts of violence against LGBT people Trans-bashing Unlawfully killed transgender people LGBT suicides Category:LGBT LGBT portal

This article appears to contradict itself about his birth name. Please see the talk page for more information. (December 2011)

Billy Crawford
Billy Crawford performing in London in November 2009
Background information
Birth name	William Ledesma Crawford
Born	(1982-05-16) May 16, 1982 (age 30) Manila, Philippines
Origin	New York City, Texas, France, Manila
Genres	R&B, Pop, Soul, OPM
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, dancer, choreographer, actor, businessman, philanthropist
Years active	1998–present
Labels	V2, Universal, MCA
Website	www.billycrawford.org

Billy Joe Crawford (born May 16, 1982) is a Filipino-American recording artist, singer-songwriter and philanthropist.

Crawford is a Bilingual Filipino Singer. His second language is English and he is conversational in French. Crawford not only lived in New York City, USA, but also in Paris for five years and for one year in London. He lived in Los Angeles in 2007. In 2008, he went to Manila to host Pinoy Dream Academy's uberture. He has also hosted the prestigious Miss Earth 2008 held in the Philippines.

He is now a talent of ABS-CBN, a Philippine television network, and was seen in Pilipinas Got Talent as one of the two main hosts together with Luis Manzano.

Early life[link]

Billy Crawford was born in Manila, Philippines, to a Filipina mother named Mayette and an American father named Jack. He has two half-brothers. Crawford was discovered at an early age of 3 years, singing at a bowling alley that his mother visited often. He became a series regular on an afternoon GMA Network television show called That's Entertainment under the name Billy Joe. He attended International Christian Academy in the Philippines until his departure for the US when he was 11 and balanced both his professional acting and academic repertory obligations. He acted in a few movies before he moved to the United States where he started a music career, performing mostly in the United Kingdom and France, as well as in Asia. His pre-career started in Dallas, Texas, USA, where he lived and performed his singing and then moved to New York City. During this time, he legally changed his name to Billy Crawford. He first went to Professional Children's School and then to Professional Performing Arts School in New York City with many other famous professional children, such as Lee Thompson Young, Mandy Moore and Nina Sky. In 1996, he danced with Michael Jackson onstage when he was 14 years old as one of Michael's back-up dancers at the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards.

Albums[link]

[edit] Billy Crawford (1999)

He recorded his first album called Billy Crawford (which included hits such as "Urgently In Love" and "Mary Lopez") when he was 15-years-old. It went straight into the charts in the Philippines and Europe.

"Trackin" (2001)[link]

Crawford was a success as a singer in France with the first single from his album Ride called "Trackin'". In 2001, it put Crawford at the top of the French charts. "Trackin'" has sold 750,000 copies and was certified platinum; it reached a #1 position on sales charts and was #1 in the club charts. The song also made #1 in the Netherlands, #2 in Belgium, #3 in Switzerland and #20 in Germany. It had a great success in Germany and became #1 on the radio and club chart. His second single "When You Think About Me", was also a huge success, and many other successes followed.

[edit] Ride (2001)

By April 2002, Crawford was back on the scene with his second album, Ride. This was certified gold in France (making 100,000 copies) within just a few weeks and gold in Switzerland. The album went on to achieve platinum status in the French market (making 300,000 copies) and a total of 600,000 copies has been sold to date. As for singles, following the success of the second track, "When You Think About Me" (over 250,000 copies sold in France), Crawford returned in September 2002 with a third single from the Ride album, "You Didn't Expect That", which went directly into the Top 5 and was certified gold in December, having sold more than 250,000 copies in just a few weeks. After this grand success, he returned in 2003 with two versions of a previously unreleased track: the English version of "Someone Like You" and a special Franco-English version for France, "Me Passer de Toi", which stayed in the singles charts for some weeks.

[edit] Big City (2004)

	"3 Wishes" (2005) noicon The supposed third single for Big City. "Steamy Nights" (2005) noicon The second single for Big City.
Problems listening to these files? See media help.

The album Big City was produced by some of the best producers in the American music industry such as Kovas (Ghettobeat Production), J Que (from "The Clutch"), Tricky Stewart and Laney Stewart (RedZone Entertainment), The CornaBoyz, Pale Face, Desmond Child and Stargate. He left his old company, V2 records, wanting to expand his career into something bigger.

[edit] Big City Tour Live (2005)

Big City Tour Live is the live release DVD album from Crawford. The DVD was released in France in 2005. It was directed by Michel Jankielewicz, produced by Yves El-Baze and distributed by UMG (2005) (worldwide) (DVD). The budget of this album was €150,000 (estimated).

[edit] It's Time (2007)

It's Time is the fourth studio album by Billy Crawford. The album was released in year 2007 with its first single Like That.

[edit] Groove (2009)

'Groove is the fifth studio album by Billy Crawford. The new CD is a re-working of classic hits from the 70’s to the 80’s.

Music career[link]

Crawford had major chart success in France and other parts of Europe, but did not repeat this success in the United Kingdom and the United States, although his single "You Didn't Expect That" did make the lower reaches of the UK Top 40, peaking at number 35. He also contributed a remix of the Pokémon anime theme song for Pokémon: The First Movie in the series. Crawford also appeared at a popular Filipino American event called "Fiesta Filipina" in 2001 held in San Francisco, California, and American people have become more aware of his name.

Crawford's album Big City was released in 2004 in France and Asia only. The single "Bright Lights" was unable to break into the any Top 10 charts. The second single "Steamy Nights" produced by KOVAS - Ghetto Beat, fared better making Top 40, and was featured on 7 compilations across Europe and was the first single in Germany. Crawford's music video for "Steamy Nights" was shot in Los Angeles, California, and was produced with the same people who worked on the Destiny's Child single "Lose My Breath". Actress Jenna Dewan, who was one of the main characters in the popular 2006 film Step Up, was featured as Crawford's dance partner.

Another song from Candy Store was leaked from the album and received airplay on London radio. Thought to be a duet with Ginuwine, it is featured on the Big City album. After doing the first ever online reality show "the MSN Dance Show", his third single from Big City, "3 Wishes", was canceled by his label. Crawford felt it was time for something new and decided not to re-sign his contract with V2 records. He is writing and producing songs for other artists.

In 2006, Crawford began recording a new album which was expected to be released in 2007. In 2006, he toured during the summer with the L5 in France and in November he was scheduled to return to his home country to shoot a film.

In 2007, he returned to the Philippines for a new dance reality show M.O.V.E for GMA Network. The show searched for six back-up dancers for his Araneta Coliseum concert. After the successful concert, he returned to the United States to work on projects and fulfill several commitments.

In 2008, upon his return to the Philippines, Crawford decided to sign with ABS-CBN as an exclusive artist instead of returning to GMA. He became a regular on the Sunday variety show ASAP and later hosted the 2nd season of "Pinoy Dream Academy", a reality search that involves the skill of singing.

In 2009, Billy returns to acting via Your Song Presents with his partner and fellow singer Nikki Gil.

In 2010, he also hosted Pilipinas Got Talent with his fellow co-host Luis Manzano and both of them won as Best Talent Search Program Hosts in the recent 24th PMPC Star Awards for TV.

Personal life[link]

Crawford did not receive significant media attention after the Big City Tour 2005, mostly being mentioned in a few magazines for his break-up with Lorie, and began a new relationship with Marie Courchinoux (also known as Maryss from Paris) Crawford also dated Mandy Moore for almost a year. Billy is in a relationship with Nikki Gil, a local Filipino artist. They met while they hosted the second season of Pinoy Dream Academy (PDA). He is also close friends with the The Black Eyed Peas, Justin Timberlake as well as *NSYNC, and Matt Pokora a popular French singer.

Amidst his blooming career in the international music scene, most especially in Europe, he decided to reside in the Philippines. His stay in the Philippines for his Move TV show gave Billy friendly connections with many other Filipino actors and singers such as Gary Valenciano, as well as with many other famous actors and singers.

Crawford completed in 2008 his studio engineering course at New York University in New York, United States, and he will plan on getting the diploma.^[1]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Singles[link]

Notes

Awards[link]

• 2002: NRJ Music Awards - Best Newcomer of the Year

_{Billy was awarded for 2002 NRJ Music Awards for "Best Newcomer of the Year" at France.}

• 2003: NRJ Music Awards - International Male Artist of the Year

_{Billy Crawford was given "International Male Artist of the Year" at the NRJ Music Awards 2003 in Cannes, France, on January 18, 2003. He beat Robbie Williams to win the award.}

• 2007: Eastwood Walk of Fame - Billy Crawford

_{On January 15, 2007 he was given a star plaque at the Eastwood Walk of Fame in Philippines and was the first inductee that year.}

• Nov. 25, 2007: Famas (philippines)
• March 26, 2008 : 3rd MYX Music Awards (philippines)
• November 13, 2010: 24th PMPC Star Awards for TV Philippines - Best Talent Program Host Winner (with Luis Manzano) for Pilipinas Got Talent.

Filmography[link]

In 2007, Billy received an offer to do a dance film called "Back Down". He was also supposed to read for a film with Whoopi Goldberg. But these Hollywood productions were pushed back.^[16] Billy's life story has also been shown on the Philippine television drama show Maalaala Mo Kaya.^[17]

References[link]