Getting “freaky and destructive” with Rita Ora
Rita Ora speaks with GAY TIMES about her summer banger ‘Ask & Ye Shall Receive’, her “risky” new era and – very important – Taika Waititi’s stance on pop music.
WORDS BY SAM DAMSHENAS PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROSIE MATHESON Five UK chart-toppers, a black bob-assisted S&M film trilogy appearance and six seasons of speculating whether [insert kooky beast here] is [insert iconic singer here] later… Rita Ora is finally entering her ‘weird’ era.
In the visual for her infectious summer banger ‘Ask & Ye Shall Receive’, the multi-hyphenate embraces her inner Harley Quinn as she strips, serves choreo and terrorises innocent laundromat locals on the same set as the sci-fi epic Everything Everywhere All At Once. “I’m just trying to create a bit more of an uncomfortableness to my visuals,” she says. “Everything feels a bit more left, a little bit risky for me.” Speaking with GAY TIMES ahead of Mighty Hoopla, where she went viral after attempting to duet with a front row queer (camp and iconic, to be honest), the set was a perfect showcase of her banger-filled discography with hits such as ‘Your Song’, ‘I Will Never Let You Down’, ‘Let You Love Me’, ‘Hot Right Now’ and ‘Anywhere’. “You know when your best friend gasses you up?
That’s what I feel like [when I do LGBTQIA+ events],” Ora tells us. “I grew up in that environment, all of my friends were not straight so I always felt a sense of safety and home and acceptance in that community.” Read ahead for our full, chaotic interview with Rita Ora, where she discusses her love for the community, her “freaky and destructive” new era and her husband Taika Watiti’s unexpected status as a pop music connoisseur.