American singer-songwriter Beth Ditto was BOTD in 1981. Born Mary Beth Paterson, she grew up in poverty in rural Arkansas. In 1999, she moved to Washington with two friends, forming indie rock/punk band Gossip, and releasing their first studio album in 2001. They shot to success with their 2006 electro-disco album Standing in the Way of Control. They found particular fame in the UK, where the album’s title track became the unofficial theme song for hit television series Skins. Much of the band’s visual appeal came from Ditto’s Cleopatra-inspired hair and make up, theatrical dress sense and body positivity, and she was hailed as a role model for plus-sized women. In 2007, she wrote a fortnightly advice column for the Guardian newspaper titled What Would Beth Ditto Do?, focusing on body image issues. Gossip released two further albums before disbanding in 2012. Ditto has since pursued a solo music career, launched two plus-sized clothing collections for women’s fashion retailer Evans, and modelled for Jean-Paul Gaultier and MAC cosmetics. She made brief appearances in Gus Van Sant’s 2018 film Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot, and the TV series On Becoming a God in Central Florida and Monarch. She published a memoir, Coal to Diamonds, co-written with Michelle Tea, in 2013. Openly queer since forever, Ditto married her long-term girlfriend Kristin Ogata in 2012, announcing their separation in 2018. She is currently dating trans musician Ted Kwo.