Welcome to Salem, Django James.
Yesterday, Django, the prominent queer singer, songwriter, and solo artist, shared one of his new songs, “Daisies” on the historic soap opera, Days of our Lives. The heart-wrenching track plays across a montage of various relationships in turmoil (a hallmark of the soap opera genre) to close out the episode.
“It’s the first sync I’ve ever had, and it’s the most private song that I’ve ever written,” Django says. “I literally wrote it in a therapy session about suicidal ideation, and I never planned on playing it to anyone. My brother was like ‘This is an anthem. We’re recording this.'”
The story of how “Daisies” ended up on Days of our Lives actually goes back many years for Django.
Growing up queer, he was bullied in school, even in a city like Los Angeles that is known to be liberal and progressive. His next-door neighbor, Genesee Nelson, was his best girlfriend who always accepted him and supported him.
“We were just, like, the freaks in the class,” Django says.
Genesee’s father, D. Brent Nelson, has worked in the music department on Days of our Lives since 1992. Brent and Django knew each other very well, but Django was always too shy to pitch Brent his music. Then after Genesee showed her father “Daisies,” he immediately knew it was a fit for the show.
“I paid for this album on my own from massage work. I have no manager, and I’m getting my first sync. It’s just a dream come true,” Django says.
More than being excited about his own career, Django is proud this song is helping to spread awareness around wider issues and perspectives. Not only is his presence as a queer artist on such a popular show an important step forward (Days of our Lives has had several LGBTQ characters and relationships throughout its long history), but he applauds the show for broadcasting a song that is forthright about mental health issues to a national audience.
The average age of Days of our Lives viewers is over 60. Through songs like “Daisies,” the show introduces perspectives that many people in that generation did not grow up with.
“Certain places in America feel very uncomfortable because they’ve designed this unrealistic, unobtainable life that just isn’t human. It’s designed to protect them from their own shame, which is silly because that’s part of the human experience,” Django says. “It’s just been so long that these voices have been silenced, and there’s still so much work to be done, especially in the trans. community. But at the same time, I just got to be grateful because I guess humanity has its own timeline, and so does the entertainment industry.”
Django James will soon release his new album Good Boy through which he will continue to share his messages advocating for the queer community and mental health awareness. But until then, you can hear his song “Daisies” in episode 14,891 of Days of our Lives. Streaming now on Peacock.
Photo courtesy of Django James via Facebook
