Mark Ortega's "Boystown" single available worldwide; release party in Chicago
Thu. February 14, 2013 11:08 AM by Anthony Morgano
Chicago release party and performance, March 9 at Spin Nightclub
Chicago, IL -
Chicago singer, songwriter and entertainer Mark Ortega has released an original dance pop single named after the Windy City's own famous gayborhood. "Boystown," now available on Google Play, Amazon and iTunes worldwide, was co-written by Danny MacArthur, the founding member of the West Coast alt-pop group Crush 333, who also collaborated with Ortega on his singles "Take Me Now" and "Skin Party."
"As with anything I write with Danny, I wanted the song to be dance/pop/electronic," Ortega told ChicagoPride.com. "I wanted it to be the type of song you could jog, workout and dance too. We wanted the song to pay homage to life and love in Boystown."
The song's official conception began one year ago this week when Ortega flew out to L.A. to collaborate with MacArthur, who he calls his "musical muse." (The two met years ago during Ortega's tenure in the L.A. band Digital Soldiers, with members Marss Ramos and Paula Flowers.) Although "Boystown" has since taken on a life of its own, the track started out as a nod to Petula Clark's 1964 pop hit, "Downtown," a campy favorite about finding happiness in the big city.
Like "Downtown," "Boystown" is a song celebrating the hope and freedom found in the urban escape, and especially the gayborhoods like Boystown "where love is always welcome/ and our broken hearts are found." The lyrics utilize the names of famous streets to highlight the gayborhoods of not only Chicago, but San Francisco, West Hollywood, New York and even Tel Aviv. Together, Ortega and MacArthur crafted a song that sings about the draw of the urban gay world, a place where "you could wear yellow neoprene/ without makin' a scene."
"Boystown is like Disneyland," MacArthur told ChicagoPride.com. "There is something for every age of the gay man. In Boystown, there is struggle and strife, all with reality, but always a happy ending."
After moving to Chicago in the summer of 2009, Ortega quickly became a part of the Windy City's LGBT and music scenes. He was a finalist for Windy City Gay Idol and went on to host a series of shows called "Mark Ortega and Friends" at Sofo and Sofo Tap in Andersonville that showcased local LGBT and LGBT friendly talent. Much of this talent came from the connections he made during Windy City Idol and, in fact, fellow finalist Michael McBride lent his voice for some of the the backing vocals on "Boystown."
Ortega's series of shows supported and raised funds for several local organizations, including T2EA (team to End AIDS), TPAN, LAMBDA Legal and the Howard Brown Health Center. He recently organized a Christmas Show at The Glenwood in Roger's Park and last summer he opened for NBC's The Voice finalist Beverly McClellan at Capital City Pride in Des Moines, Iowa.
Ortega is throwing a single release party for "Boystown" on Saturday March 9 at the Boystown club Spin Nightclub, located at the corner of Halsted and Belmont. The single is available for release on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Jango, ReverbNation and others worldwide. For more information, check out his website at http://www.markortegaentertainment.com/.
Event details on CalendarQ
"As with anything I write with Danny, I wanted the song to be dance/pop/electronic," Ortega told ChicagoPride.com. "I wanted it to be the type of song you could jog, workout and dance too. We wanted the song to pay homage to life and love in Boystown."
The song's official conception began one year ago this week when Ortega flew out to L.A. to collaborate with MacArthur, who he calls his "musical muse." (The two met years ago during Ortega's tenure in the L.A. band Digital Soldiers, with members Marss Ramos and Paula Flowers.) Although "Boystown" has since taken on a life of its own, the track started out as a nod to Petula Clark's 1964 pop hit, "Downtown," a campy favorite about finding happiness in the big city.
Like "Downtown," "Boystown" is a song celebrating the hope and freedom found in the urban escape, and especially the gayborhoods like Boystown "where love is always welcome/ and our broken hearts are found." The lyrics utilize the names of famous streets to highlight the gayborhoods of not only Chicago, but San Francisco, West Hollywood, New York and even Tel Aviv. Together, Ortega and MacArthur crafted a song that sings about the draw of the urban gay world, a place where "you could wear yellow neoprene/ without makin' a scene."
"Boystown is like Disneyland," MacArthur told ChicagoPride.com. "There is something for every age of the gay man. In Boystown, there is struggle and strife, all with reality, but always a happy ending."
After moving to Chicago in the summer of 2009, Ortega quickly became a part of the Windy City's LGBT and music scenes. He was a finalist for Windy City Gay Idol and went on to host a series of shows called "Mark Ortega and Friends" at Sofo and Sofo Tap in Andersonville that showcased local LGBT and LGBT friendly talent. Much of this talent came from the connections he made during Windy City Idol and, in fact, fellow finalist Michael McBride lent his voice for some of the the backing vocals on "Boystown."
Ortega's series of shows supported and raised funds for several local organizations, including T2EA (team to End AIDS), TPAN, LAMBDA Legal and the Howard Brown Health Center. He recently organized a Christmas Show at The Glenwood in Roger's Park and last summer he opened for NBC's The Voice finalist Beverly McClellan at Capital City Pride in Des Moines, Iowa.
Ortega is throwing a single release party for "Boystown" on Saturday March 9 at the Boystown club Spin Nightclub, located at the corner of Halsted and Belmont. The single is available for release on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Jango, ReverbNation and others worldwide. For more information, check out his website at http://www.markortegaentertainment.com/.
Event details on CalendarQ