Do the names Jakub Kwieciński and David Mycek sound familiar? They might. The gay Polish couple made headlines when they came out to family, friends and complete strangers in 2016 while performing a lip-synced version of Roxette’s “Some Other Summer.” Well, they’ve done it again, this time to Taylor Swift’s 2019 summer sensation “You Need to Calm Down” off her Lover album.
“You Need to Calm Down” was released by Swift at the start of LGBTQ+ Pride Month (June 2019) in an effort to denounce homophobia. The Pop star sings, “You just need to take several seats and then try to restore the peace / And control your urges to scream about all the people you hate / Cause shade never made anybody less gay.”
Later she asks, “Can you just not step on his gown?”
The accompanying video went viral after it was released, in part due to Swift’s superstar cohorts, including her once “Bad Blood” subject Katy Perry. Queer Hollywood (Billy Porter, Ellen DeGeneres and Adam Rippon) made appearances alongside the two leading ladies as well.
Kwieciński and Mycek chose to re-purpose “You Need To Calm Down” in hopes of pushing back against a reported rise in homophobia and transphobia in their home country, according to HuffPost. The cast in their video was a little more personal, with local advocates, politicians and media personalities taking center stage. As of Thursday afternoon, more than 125,000 viewers had seen their video.
And now you can, too:
Kwieciński and Mycek married in 2017.
“It is really amazing tribute to the LGBTQ community,” Kwieciński said of Swift’s original video version. “We wish [Swift] was Polish because with her open heart and power, she might change a lot here. Polish artists don’t support our community too much. They don’t want to lose conservative fans and don’t want to upset the government, which is in charge of our national television.”
Gazeta Polska, a conservative publication, began distributing “LGBT-free zone” stickers in July. Kwieciński said he hoped music would create a safe and accepting place for his people.
“Poland is one of the most homophobic countries in Europe, so people usually are afraid to express themselves,” he said. “We need to let people know us — show them that we are their doctors, neighbors, hairdressers and so on.”
Watch Swift’s original video:
Watch Kwieciński and Mycek’s “Some Other Summer” video: