Have you held space for "Defying Gravity" lately??
If you're still on the hellsite that is X (fka Twitter), you may have noticed a new Wicked-centric meme format pop up in the past 48 hours.
Allow us to explain.
It all began started thanks to an interview clip from The Advocate Channel, in which EqualPride's own Tracy E. Gilchrist spoke with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande about Wicked's most famous song, "Defying Gravity," and what it means to people.
"I've seen, this week, people are taking the lyrics of 'Defying Gravity' and really holding space with that, and feeling power in that," Gilchrist says in a clip edited for Instagram.
The familiar instrumentals play in the background as Erivo appears to have an emotional reaction.
"That's really powerful," she replies as Grande takes her hand to seemingly comfort her. "I didn't know that was happening."
EXPAND
Soon, the clip was shared to X, where Wicked fans who have been eagerly gobbling up every moment of Erivo and Grande's press tour for the film latched onto the most memorable parts. And there were quite a few.
I can't tell what my favorite part of this video is: the solemnity in announcing people have been "holding space" for the lyrics of a 20 year old song, Cynthia acting like she personally wrote it, Ariana holding onto Cynthia's index finger, or the reveal of "a couple of posts" https://t.co/eDDUNcvaRn
— maya 🦇 (@irish_goodbi) November 22, 2024
— sassy cathy (@oohweehuman) November 21, 2024
i want to talk about this video for six hours uninterrupted I’ve watched it so many times since yesterday that I have it completely memorized and have been muttering the words to myself alone in my apartment
— rayne fisher-quann (@raynefq) November 21, 2024
was there a gas leak where they did these interviews. i’m dead serious should they have checked the carbon monoxide detectors https://t.co/zci9Cf38uv
— laurinha 🦠 (@ecto_fun) November 22, 2024
I've come to the conclusion that this clip only make sense if you assume that ariana and cynthia believe they wrote wicked themselves https://t.co/XD3dX1qRaj
— buzzfeed jenny ITALIA 🇮🇹 (@buzzfeedjenny) November 22, 2024
I’m completely mesmerized by this clip .. it’s almost like they are speaking a language I don’t understand . I can’t catch the sense of it for a single moment. I’m not understanding the words or the feelings or the energy at all. It’s amazing https://t.co/eU35OoMzvf
— Daniel Liu (@danieldayliuis) November 21, 2024
ariana supporting cynthia as she learns that people are taking the lyrics of defying gravity and holding space with that https://t.co/05twFMfWVH pic.twitter.com/k2JEK5DF0Z
— Saint Hoax (@SaintHoax) November 22, 2024
watching this makes me feel like im huffing gasoline its so surreal like why is ariana holding her singular finger like that. what does holding space for the lyrics mean. “thats exactly what i wanted” you didnt write the damn musical and its been out for years https://t.co/cWP8q6753p
— breakfast (@ouchowwie) November 21, 2024
https://t.co/aqRoP7myAl pic.twitter.com/DQgRVEncTc
— wiLL (@willfulchaos) November 22, 2024
Granted, it can be difficult to gather context from a short clip, so Gilchrist explained how the whole thing actually came about.
"When I posed the question to Cynthia about people holding space with the lyrics to 'Defying Gravity,' It was two days after the election, and everyone I knew in the LGBTQ+ community was trying to make sense of what we might be facing," she said.
Reasoning aside, the video went viral, and it was ultimately both the idea of "holding space" for the lyrics of "Defying Gravity" and the reaction Erivo had to it (and Grande to Erivo) that made the biggest splash.
You have to be chronically online to understand a number of these, but enough of us are that the meme is working. And, perhaps best of all, it even seems to be doing exactly what the press tour intended in the first place — get more people to the theaters for Wicked.
"I loved [Erivo's] response, and I love that people are having a laugh, because I know I could use one about now," Gilchrist tells PRIDE. "I never considered I’d become a meme, but as an unrepentant showqueen, I’m thrilled that it’s for something this campy in response to a movie I love. Now go see Wicked!"
