Frank Ocean’s song “Chanel” has been widely interpreted as a “bisexual anthem.”
Ocean famously shared an open letter about his sexuality mere days before his debut album, 2012’s “Channel Orange,” was set to drop.
“4 summers ago, I met somebody. I was 19 years old. He was too,” he wrote on Tumblr. “By the time I realized I was in love, it was malignant. It was hopeless. There was no escaping, no negotiating with the feeling. No choice. It was my first love. It changed my life.”
That same year, Ocean declined to label himself bisexual in an interview with GQ.
“I’ll respectfully say that life is dynamic and comes along with dynamic experiences, and the same sentiment that I have towards genres of music, I have towards a lot of labels and boxes and shit,” he said.
Many songs on “Channel Orange,” as well his 2016 sophomore album “Blonde,” see Ocean using male pronouns to address his lovers. However, many more of his lyrics illustrate attraction to women.
Ocean’s 2017 single “Chanel” is widely interpreted as an allegory for bisexuality: “My guy pretty like a girl / And he got fight stories to tell / I see both sides like Chanel / C on both sides like Chanel,” he sings in the hook.
