Virginia Ernst’s ‘Right [ Gei ]’ a fun song pointing out there’s no need for labels, she’ll decide who she is

Austrian singer songwriter Virginia Ernst‘s latest single was released today, and it’s a cool pop/blues/jazz/rock song with stand-out vocals and a fun feel.

Called ‘Right [ Gei ]‘, the track is an upbeat, positive message from Virginia Ernst to anyone that feels the need to label her.

A message to tell everyone she is completely happy being exactly who she is, and so has no interest in any labels you might want to put on her.

To find out more about ‘Right [ Gei ]’ and why she wrote it, I got together for coffee with Gini Ernst earlier in the week where she told me about the word she hates, and why she feels her new music now shows exactly who she is.

Tell me about the phrase ‘Right [ Gei ]’ and why it’s important to you?

‘Right [ Gei ]’ is not spelled like the normal ‘gay’, as I don’t want to be put into a box somebody else created. So I decided to create something different.

The word ‘Gei’ is a statement about looking outside of the boxes people create for us, and letting everybody have their own self-created box instead if they want one.

A box they can name whatever they want, as long as it describes who they feel they are.

For me, ‘Right [ Gei ]’ is my own little box, but it has nothing to do with sexuality.

It has nothing to do with who you love either – although human beings always want to point that out –  you know, “gay”, “bisexual”, “straight”, “lesbian”.

Especially because, even if I’m in love with a woman and married to a woman, I have never ever said that I’m a lesbian. I hate this word. I totally hate this word.

So I wanted to spell one of these labels differently, as I don’t want to be named something that I cannot stand.

That’s why I created a new phrase – Right [ Gei ] –– because that expresses who I feel I am.

What is ‘Right [ Gei ]’ about?

The song is about accepting who you are because, when you do, other people will start to accept you as well.

If you don’t accept yourself, or you have doubt in yourself, people see you have a weak spot and so they will push it.

But I’m a person that totally knew who I was right from the beginning. I always knew I was in love with girls, and so I never had an ‘outing’. It was just normal for me.

And then people would say “Oh you’re with girls, so you’re a lesbian”, and I would say “No, I’m not. How can you say that?”.

And I just kept thinking, “Why do people think I need to be labeled a lesbian?” — a word I don’t like.

Instead, I want to tell them, here’s a different word for it. My word. Because everybody is a different person. Everybody should be able to live without labels other people place on them.

And that’s what the song is about. Stand up for who you are, even if that means you’re loud, or you’re arrogant, or if you think you’re selfish, or if you think you’re looking good – no matter what it is, stand by yourself.

When you do, other people will accept you. No matter who you are.

You told me a few weeks ago you felt ‘Right [ Gei ]’ was finally expressing who Virginia Ernst is, both musically and otherwise. Why do you think that?

That’s because the song is a good example of what the sound of Virginia Ernst is. The sound I’ve been trying to find.

Because, in the last six years, I was struggling. I mean, I knew exactly who I was on the personal side, but I had problems putting that into my music.

It was so hard for me to find Virginia Ernst – the music of Virginia Ernst – because that music is not mainstream pop or R&B or rock or whatever. I also don’t want to be compared with other artists. I don’t want to be compared with P!nk, I don’t want to be compared with anyone. I only want to be compared with myself.

And that’s why I released ‘Right [ Gei ]’’, because the music and the way it sounds expresses me perfectly just like ‘Gei’ does.

Besides, long before it was released, every time I played the song at a concert people would come up to me afterwards and ask me “What was this last song you played?”

And I felt like, out of every song I sang on stage, that was the song most of my fans were really noticing. Probably because, more than any of the others, that sound expressed exactly who I am.

So, with the release of Right [ Gei ]’, it’s the first time I’ve produced a song because of my fans.

Not because of wanting to be played on a radio station or whatever. Just because this is the sound I like, this is the sound that describes who Virginia Ernst is, and this is the sound my fans noticed.

The ”Right [ Gei ]’ music video

Along with the release of the new single, Right [ Gei ]’ also got a cool music video today.

Directed by Marc Korn, it shows Ernst working (and singing and dancing!) in a restaurant, before she realizes she is late for a date. When she gets to where she is meeting the woman she is dating, it becomes apparent it is also quite an important night. The night she meets the woman’s parents who, it’s obvious from their first reaction to her, are not expecting their daughter’s significant other to be a woman.

The situation though is handled in a fun manner, with Virginia Ernst showing throughout the meal how laid-back and adorable she is as her girlfriend’s father comes to grips with the situation.

A night during which she must have won over the woman’s father and mother, just like she says she will in the lyrics of ‘Right [ Gei ]’:

Your mama will love me,
cause she cant deny that i´m better than guys
I love to be different
I love to be loved
daddy will love me, cause he cant deny that i´m the just right gei

because the next time we see them, mum, dad and girlfriend are arriving at the restaurant she works at, and dad’s all ready with a hug.

Watch Virginia Ernst’s Right [ Gei ] music video below, and then listen to her cool new single on Spotify.

Of course, you won’t just listen to it once though, as this new track gets catchier and more addictive every time you listen to it.

Read: Virginia Ernst’s beautiful song ‘I Saw an Angel‘ is a tribute to her late grandmother

About Michelle Topham

I'm a Brit-American journalist, former radio DJ at 97X WOXY, and Founder/CEO of Leo Sigh. I'm also obsessed with music, anime, manga, and K-dramas. Help!