Gay icon Kensington of AIDS-related illnesses (bronchial pneumonia). Artists particularly embraced by the gay community during the 1980s included Whitney Houston, Patti Labelle, Alaska, Charo, Dolly Parton, Elaine Paige, Amanda Lear, Prince and Mylène Farmer. Several Britons were seen as gay icons, including singers Boy George, David Bowie, George Michael, Morrissey, Pet Shop Boys, Kate Bush, Annie Lennox, and writer Quentin Crisp. Elton John also became a gay icon during this decade, a status strengthened throughout the years. Diana Ross, a long time gay icon, of The Supremes; released a song I'm Coming Out which brought a significance to the phrase of
Gay icon career-long gay following that extended out of Paris and well into the Middle East. In the years since her death, her iconic status has not diminished. As a result of their pro-LGBT activism and their artistry, Taiwanese singers A-mei and Jolin Tsai, Indian actor Anil Kapoor and Indian actress Sonam Kapoor and Hong Kong singer, Leslie Cheung have been called gay icons. Similarly, in European countries such as the Netherlands, Dutch singer and actress Willeke Alberti is widely embraced as a gay icon, due to a combination of her song repertoire, her durability, and her performances in support of manifold