Sylvester, pictured here in his extravagant ’70s prime, was a genuine trailblazer for LGBTQ+ artists. Earning the sobriquet “Queen of Disco” thanks to hits like “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” which he delivered with a powerful falsetto, Sylvester gleefully subverted pop’s often-rigid gender categories. Heartbreakingly, he died of complications from AIDS in 1988. But he has claimed a place of Pride in music history.