If you’ve ever wanted a queer-coded country anthem that combines childhood nostalgia with high camp, Orville Peck and The Wiggles just delivered. The masked crooner and the legendary Australian children’s music group have teamed up for Friends of Dorothy, a twangy little ditty that has LGBTQ+ fans tipping their rainbow cowboy hats.
The track is part of The Wiggles’ upcoming country album Wiggle Up, Giddy Up!, and while it’s ostensibly about their beloved character Dorothy the Dinosaur, anyone with even a hint of gay history knowledge knows what’s really going on. “Friends of Dorothy” has long been coded slang for gay folks, a phrase used in the days when queerness had to stay under wraps. It was a wink, a nod, a way to identify your people. Now, thanks to Peck and The Wiggles, it’s a full-on musical celebration.
Let’s be clear: the song itself isn’t screaming GAY! in neon pink letters. But between the lyrics—“We’re friends of Dorothy / We’re friends of Dot’s / If you’re a friend of Dorothy’s / You’re friends of mine”—and cheeky references to queer lingo like “what’s the tea” and “you are fierce,” it’s obvious who’s meant to feel seen by this little country bop. It’s the kind of subversive joy that The Wiggles have been serving for years, and with Orville Peck’s unmistakable baritone, it hits even harder.
For those not in the know, “Friends of Dorothy” as a phrase has a long, fabulous history. Some say it dates back to literary legend Dorothy Parker, who surrounded herself with LGBTQ+ creatives, but most agree it’s a reference to The Wizard of Oz. Judy Garland’s Dorothy Gale—an outsider on a technicolor journey, finding chosen family and standing up to oppressive forces—became a gay icon, and her fans, well, they were her “friends.”
With country music finally making space for more LGBTQ+ artists, Peck’s involvement in Wiggle Up, Giddy Up! makes perfect sense. The album also features Dolly Parton (who, let’s be real, is basically LGBTQ+ royalty), Lainey Wilson, and Dasha, proving that country music’s queer awakening is far from over.
At a time when drag bans and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric are making headlines, a children’s music group teaming up with an openly gay artist to celebrate “friends of Dorothy” is the kind of defiant joy we need. The kids watching today might not pick up on the history just yet—but someday, they’ll realize just how revolutionary a bunch of brightly colored Aussies and a masked cowboy really were.