MEGAN THEE STALLION UNLEASHES “PLAN B” AFTER TEASING SNIPPET DURING OPENING WEEKEND OF COACHELLA
3x GRAMMY® Award-winning superstar, entrepreneur and philanthropist Megan Thee Stallion released her eagerly-awaited new single “Plan B” ahead of her upcoming set at the second weekend of Coachella.
The Houston native initially teased the track during a dazzling performance at Coachella’s opening weekend in front of hundreds of thousands of fans. The hype around the snippet, which samples Jodeci’s “Freek’n You (Remix)”with Wu-Tang Clan, quickly spread online as fans quickly clamored for Megan to drop the full-length single.
The release of “Plan B” comes on the heels of a scorching stretch for Megan, who teamed up with Dua Lipa to unleash their powerful collaboration “Sweetest Pie” in March and is now Top 10 at pop radio. She delivered a dynamic performance of “Sweetest Pie” at the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Awards, where she was also honored with the Trailblazer Award.
Megan followed her iHeartRadio Music Awards appearance with a special rendition of “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” at the 2022 Oscars that also included Encanto cast, Luis Fonsi and Becky G.
To kickoff her 2022 Hot Girl Summer, Megan will perform at the Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 15, where she is also nominated for Top Rap Female Artist. She came away victorious in the same category in 2021.
GARDENER RECORDINGS RELEASES RUSSIAN DOLL MUSIC FROM THE NETFLIX ORIGINAL SERIES
Gardener Recordings is excited to announce the upcoming release of Russian Doll: Seasons 1 & 2 (Music From The Netflix Original Series), available April 20th on all major digital platforms, coinciding with the Season Two launch on Netflix. Composed by Joe Wong – who has worked on some of Netflix's biggest hits including Master Of Noneand the To All the Boys… franchise, and their critically lauded The Midnight Gospel -- the album consists of his dream-like original score with highlights from the breakout first season and the highly anticipated second season. The album takes the listener on a journey through life, death, space, and time.
The first season of Russian Doll follows a woman named Nadia who is caught in a time loop as the guest of honor at a seemingly inescapable party one night in New York City. She dies repeatedly, always restarting at the same moment at the party, as she tries to figure out what is happening to her. Season Two is set four years after Nadia and Alan saved each other and escaped the time loop in Season One — but now they’re stuck in a new kind of loop. This season, Nadia and Alan discover an unexpected time portal that sends them both on an era-spanning adventure through the past. The two must search for a way out of the loop together.
"In many ways, we think of ‘Russian Doll’ as a musical, with the score serving to bridge and guide us through the rollercoaster of Nadia’s puzzle box adventure," notes Natasha Lyonne, the show's co-creator. "With the new season, we knew we wanted to use the investigative beats of the season one cues as a jumping off point to an ever more dense and psychedelic landing. The soundscape also allows us time to sit with some of the higher concept moments in the hopes of making them feel personal to the viewer’s life experience."
"The score to Russian Doll is constructed much like the eponymous nesting doll,” notes Wong. “I developed a series of leitmotifs which can function alone or nested inside one another, resulting in fugue-like cues. This season, our characters time-travel to historical Hungary, as well as 1980s New York. When deciding on the musical palette for this season, I imagined the sound of a Lisztian figure transported a hundred years into the future. This episode--the season finale--contains an intermingling of all of the main themes from both seasons, imagined through this sonic lens.”
Of her collaboration with Wong, Lyonne adds,"It’s always such a joy to get to watch Joe work -- he’s like a one man Jughead band. My only hope is that someday I get to see him work with a full orchestra as we bring our next joint project to life.”
TRACKLIST - ‘RUSSIAN DOLL: SEASONS 1 & 2
(MUSIC FROM THE NETFLIX ORIGINAL SERIES)’
1. Death Air
2. Hard Reset
3. Tompkins Square
4. Bodega Register
5. Fractured Loop
6. Horse Huff
7. Stack Two
8. Shabbat Shalom
9. Alan’s Exercise
10. Alan’s Elevator
11. Calling John
12. Ruthie Vibes
13. An End
14. Fanfare
15. Showtime
16. Dream Mother
17. Tone Seven
18. Guardian Angel
19. Analog Doll
20. Inside Her Mind
21. Jelly Towel
22. Doctor
23. Secret Room
24. Where’s Ruth
25. Astor Palace Tunnel
26. Motherlode
27. Cistem
28. Family Train
29. Searching
30. Exit Death Air
ABOUT JOE WONG
Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
Joe Wong is a Los-Angeles-based recording artist, composer, producer, and podcast host. As a composer, Joe Wong’s projects range from Emmy-winning series Russian Doll and Master Of None; to critically lauded The Midnight Gospel, beloved hit YA film series To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before; network favorites including Kenan (NBC) and The Big Leap (Fox); and meticulously-bizarre outsider fare such as Chad (TBS) and Superjail! (Adult Swim). In between those extremes, he has scored Sundance-winning narrative features and award-winning documentaries including The Pool, Independent Lens and 6 Days to Air.
Wong’s acclaimed debut solo album, the psychedelic, orchestral Nite Creatures, was released by Decca/Universal in 2020.
His podcast/radio show, The Trap Set, is a about the lives of musicians is hosted and co-produced by Wong. Over the course of over 300 long-form conversations, the show has revealed the life stories of a diverse group of icons. The exhaustive roster of guests includes punk luminaries like Ian MacKaye, cult legends such as The Shaggs, Cuban jazz virtuoso Ignacio Berroa, pop superstars such as Sheila E. and Phil Collins, and everyone in between.
Joe co-produced Fred Armisen’s Grammy-nominated Netflix special Standup For Drummers.
JEANNETTE Story of a Puerto Rican Female Bodybuilder Survivor of the Pulse Nightclub Shooting in Florida
JEANNETTE, set to world premiere THIS WEEK at the San Francisco Int’l Film Fest this Saturday, April 23rd is directed by acclaimed queer filmmaker Maris Curran (Five Nights in Maine).
This intimate vérité documentary is about a survivor of the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, Jeanette is a queer Puerto Rican and single mother and competitive bodybuilder who uses her unforgettable strength to transform her life as she struggles to heal in the aftermath of trauma.
The film begins in the aftermath of the Pulse nightclub massacre and follows Jeannette as she recovers, backslides and eventually finds support and healing through community. The film provides a window into Jeannette's life -- her strained relationship with her mother, her identity as a lesbian and mother to her teenage son and her roots in Puerto Rico. Taking a vérité approach, director Maris Curran creates an indelible window into one woman's life -- her strength and vulnerability -- in the aftermath of trauma.
JEANNETTE is a film about resilience that gives an audience the opportunity to move past the headlines and ask: in the wake of tragedy, how do we move toward wholeness?
Said director Maris Curran, “I set out to create an intensely intimate film that honestly reflects Jeannette’s world. The film is a manifestation of a relationship Jeannette and I forged over four and a half years. The gaze of this film is from one woman looking directly to another."
JEANNETTE is the feature documentary directorial debut of acclaimed queer filmmaker Maris Curran, whose films have shown at Berlinale, TIFF, MoMA, the NY Times Op-Docs, and PBS’s Independent Lens. Among her films are her feature narrative debut, Five Nights in Maine (2016) starring David Oyelowo, Diane Wiest, and Rosie Perez; and two documentary shorts, The Man Is the Music (2016) and While I Yet Live (2018). She holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, was a Fulbright Fellow, and is the past recipient of an SFFILM/KRF Filmmaking Grant.
After World Premiering at the 2022 San Francisco International Film Festival in Documentary Competition, JEANNETTE will be playing festivals throughout the year, with official announcements to be made soon.
MARYZE SHARES NEW SINGLE "EMO"
NEW ALBUM 8 OUT MAY 6TH ON HOT TRAMP RECORDS
Last month, Maryze announced her debut LP 8 with a stormy-sweet queer nightclub-ready banger "Experiments" along with a steamy music video via Wonderland. Today, the Montreal-based artist shares a new single, and it's equally as delectable. If "Experiments" highlighted the queer popstar's smooth R&B vocals and knack for writing powerful sex-positive anthems, then "Emo" shows off the artist's more sensitive, emotional side and indie rock roots.
Emo is the song Maryze always wanted to write to her high school boyfriend. It tells the tale of a love story turned toxic, when you realize the person you thought you knew never really cared. “Did you ever listen to the songs I sent to you?” she asks repeatedly, sounding hurt and angry that her ex never took the time for things that meant something to her. She’s at a point where she’s checked out and numb, no longer fighting for a relationship that isn’t working anymore. The vibes are emo/rock/punk with vocal inspiration from Avril Lavigne and Paramore, bass tones emulating Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz (Maryze’s longest standing crush that her ex used to make fun of her for liking, calling the band lame), and a nod to Green Day’s tremolo guitar effect from “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”.
"I made the song with producer and long-time collaborator Solomon K-I (who is featured on guitar)," Maryze shares. "We actually met playing in an indie rock band 10 years ago and our former drummer Graeme McDonald is featured on live drums."
"Emo" drops on April 8th. Take a listen here and stay tuned for her debut LP, 8, due out May 6th.
LINKS
TikTok | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Bandcamp | SoundCloud | Spotify
MuMu Shares "The Bitch in Me" Single
NYC singer-songwriter MuMu throws shade with her newest release, "The Bitch in Me," a punchy song about clashing personalities and what happens when you give in to your inner bitch. It’s a bop with totally relatable, cleverly comedic lyrics. MuMu’s storytelling is so on point, we feel like her best-friend across the table exclaiming, "Yaaas girl, spill that tea!"
"The Bitch in Me" was inspired by a real person (who shall remain unnamed) who’s world revolves around money and aristocracy. The only thing they’re passionate about is securing the best table at the new Michelin five-star restaurant. MuMu confides, "I feel like a bitch saying all this even now after I’ve written a song about it. I was raised in a family of six women. Women are my muse. I write and sing for them. I live and love with them. I wanted desperately to love this new neighbor-woman, but she brought out the bitch in me."
She continued, "What I learned in the process of writing this song was that it’s ok for me to not like everyone. I don’t need to be puking hearts and farting rainbows all day every day wherever I go. I can get angry, I can be resentful, I can write a bitchy song about my bitchy neighbor and hope to goddess she never hears it."
"The Bitch in Me" is a lyrically brazen F.U. that compels us to dance like no one is watching with arms and legs thrashing about as if we’re attempting to burst through the hierarchical stigma that’s been cast upon us. It’s an anthem for the other 99%.
MUMU LIVE
05/27 – Bowery Electric – New York, NY
06/12 – North Jersey Pride – Maplewood, NJMUMU LINKS
Website | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok | Soundcloud | Bandcamp
BenDeLaCreme is Ready To Be Committed | Solo Tour
Get Tickets Now
Get Tickets Now
Photo Credit: Liz Nicol
Global drag icon and RuPaul’s Drag Race star, BenDeLaCreme, will embark on her biggest solo tour yet as star and Lead Producer – April 13 through July 16, 2022 – with her critically acclaimed, narrative-cabaret, “BenDeLaCreme is...READY TO BE COMMITTED” (produced by BenDeLaCreme Presents). This one-queen extravaganza is a hilarious and heartfelt spectacular that blends burlesque, comedy, and original music with her signature Terminally Delightful charm.
After years of people asking the aggressively effervescent queen if she can “please, settle down,” BenDeLaCreme is finally ready to tie the knot in something besides her corset. Now, all she needs is a potential spouse. And a dress. And a cake. And the ability to consider others.
Photo Credit: Liz Nicol
It’s a relay race to the altar as DeLa dodges pervy Grindr suitors, bitchy wedding-cake-toppers, and the errant arrows of Cupid himself! Join the blushing bride as she tackles the pitfalls of love, marriage, and romance in a limited engagement about the limitations of engagements.
After the original iteration of the “Ready to Be Committed” tour was postponed in 2020, the 2022 tour has increased in size. BenDeLaCreme’s 2021 holiday tour, “The Return of the Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show, LIVE!” with co-star Jinkx Monsoon, marked the queen’s highest grossing tour under BenDeLaCreme Presents, further showcasing DeLa’s growing impact within the drag and theater industry as a producing powerhouse. She also became the first drag queen to produce a feature film (under pandemic restrictions) with “The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Special” (2020), landing BenDeLaCreme Presents an exclusive licensing deal with streaming giant, Hulu. The film won “Lockdown LOL” at the 2021 Queerties.
BenDeLaCreme says, “After two long years of postponements I’m OVER-FREAKING-JOYED to be bringing my new solo show back on the road! And I gotta tell you all: this one’s a doozy! ‘Ready to Be Committed’ is the story of one queen who searches for love and finds a whole lot she never bargained for—Bitchy brides, pervy Grindr guys, corpse-eating cats, song, dance, and more puppets than you ever thought you’d see at a wedding. I can’t wait to share DeLa’s special day with all of you! Save the date!”
Written, directed, and produced by BenDeLaCreme, “BenDeLaCreme is...READY TO BE COMMITTED” showcases the multifaceted superstar at her best. The show played to sold-out crowds in New York City and Provincetown upon its debut in 2019.
Photo Credit: Eric Paguio
2022 Tour Dates for “BenDeLaCreme is...READY TO BE COMMITTED”:
4/13 thru 4/17 - Oasis (San Francisco, CA)
4/19 - Big Night Live (Boston, MA)
4/20 - Warner Theatre (Torrington, CT)
4/21 - State Theatre (Portland, ME)
4/23 - Academy of Music (Northampton, MA)
4/24 - Asbury Lanes (Asbury Park, NJ)
4/27 - Variety Playhouse (Atlanta, GA)
4/29 - Muse (Minneapolis, MN)
4/30 - Majestic Theatre (Detroit, MI)
5/1 - Wooly's (Des Moines, IA)
5/4 - Sony Hall (New York, NY)
5/6 - Texas Theatre (Dallas, TX)
5/8 - Emo's (Austin, TX)
5/12 thru 5/15 - Dynasty Typewriter (Los Angeles, CA)
5/17 - The Depot (Salt Lake City, UT)
5/18 - Summit (Denver, CO)
5/20 - Amaturo Theater | Broward Center (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)
5/21 - The Plaza Live (Orlando, FL)
5/23 - 9:30 Club (Washington, D.C.)
5/24 - Union Transfer (Philadelphia, PA)
5/26 - Thalia Hall (Chicago, IL)
6/2 - Old Fruitmarket (Glasgow, UK)
6/4 - Northern Stage (Newcastle, UK)
6/5 - Crescent Theatre (Birmingham, UK)
6/7 thru 6/12 - Leicester Square Theatre (London, UK)
6/14 and 6/15 - Home (Manchester, UK)
6/17 and 6/18 - Old Market (Brighton, UK)
7/1 - Aladdin Theatre (Portland, OR)
7/5 thru 7/10 - The Triple Door (Seattle, WA)
7/13 - Vogue Theatre (Vancouver, BC)
7/15 - Phoenix Concert Theatre (Toronto, ON)
7/16 - Rialto Theatre (Montreal, QC)
Photo Credit: Liz Nicol
Felix III Interview SXSW 2022
We got to chat with Felix III during SXSW 2022 at the iconic Cheer Up Charlies in Austin, TX. This up and coming, queer, singer/songwriter had a lot to share. We talked new single After Hours and Felix even answered fan’s questions live via Twitter.
JVN POP-UP SALON | SXSW 2022
JVN Pop-Up Salon SXSW 2022 | Janet St Paul Salon 110 San Antonio St #130 Austin, TX
The Fab Five have taken over my hometown of Austin, Texas once before with season 6 of Netflix’s Emmy award-winning show Queer Eye— and guess what? I never got the chance to meet Jonathan Van Ness.
So when we heard about a JVN pop-up salon as part of SXSW, we hauled ass over! Inspired by the Getting Curious’ star’s new products, JVN Hair, salon owners Janet St. Paul and Natasha McMillen partnered with SXSW to create an inclusive space for attendees to enjoy some much needed pampering.
Partners in Business & Life: Natasha McMillen (left) & Janet St Paul (right)
Salon owner Janet St. Paul told Unleashed LGBTQ:
“What I love about this event is.. if you look around, in every chair, you’ll see a different age, gender, race. This makes us very proud.”
She also notes her excitement in partnering with JVN Hair:
“As a business owner, stylist, and member of the LGBTQ community, I’m so grateful for this opportunity… Not to mention I’m a huge fan of JVN!”
Gary Riggs, Wesley Smoot, & Natasha McMillen
Natasha McMillen mentions seeing five small children who traveled hours with their parents, waiting most of the day to get their hair styled and a glimpse of their hero, Jonathan Van Ness. “They came in with fashionable star-shaped yellow glasses feeling pumped to meet JVN. The way Jonathan resonates with such a broad audience is a testament to his work; there’s an energy that is just as infectious and genuine in-person, as it is on screen.”
The theme for this pop-up was called Come As You Are, which Gary Riggs described as: “Very fitting.”
Queer Eye’s Jonathan Van Ness & Unleashed LGBTQ creator Wesley Smoot SXSW 2022
When asked what the JVN pop-up experience at SXSW was like, Jonathan Van Ness told Unleashed:
“It’s been fabulous, I love being in a salon. I’m working alongside so many talented stylists and getting really positive feedback about our new products. The experience is kind of surreal, we put a lot of care in developing JVN Hair. We launched in August 2021, so it’s amazing to see it all in this capacity. There’s so much more to come.”
Jonathan Van Ness tells readers, products are now available at: jvnhair.com, Sephora, and of course Janet St Paul Salon.
DOLLYVERSE PRESENTED BY BLOCKCHAIN CREATIVE LABS- SXSW 2022
By Wesley Smoot
Dolly Parton and James Patterson in conversation with Connie Britton at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse at SXSW
SXSW 2022 was an absolute success. Many like myself, had the opportunity to network with industry leaders, interview award-winning talent, and attend the many outstanding film screenings and music showcases.
With that said, there will always be specific moments that stand out in everyone’s South by experience. For me, it had to be none other than: Dollyverse.
On March 18, the final days of SXSW 2022 Blockchain Creative Labs hosted Dollyverse at ACL Live Moody Theater. The event opened with multiple country music acts.
Following these performances a panel ensued, moderated by Emmy-nominated actress Connie Britton. Connie discussed the release of the novel Run, Rose, Run, with the legend herself, Dolly Parton and best-selling co-author James Patterson. (I already ordered mine)
Dolly Parton and James Patterson at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse at SXSW
I was beyond myself to learn, prior to the panel, music icon Dolly Parton would be performing only feet away from me and my team. This was to be her first ever appearance and performance at SXSW.
To be perfectly honest, I was expecting maybe three or four songs (and I would have been more than content with that). Dolly Parton delivered a full show to a packed audience, opening each song with heartwarming stories that included growing up in Tennessee, standing out amongst her peers in a Penecostal upbringing, and of course love & family. Dolly performed her biggest hits spanning decades, leaving audience members at times in tears or laughter. To this day, no one does it better.
Dolly Parton performs on stage at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse at SXSW
Other highlights included Blockchain Creative Labs providing attendees with their own Dolly Parton NFT.
Scott Greenberg, the CEO of Blockchain Creative Labs (BCL), partner for the event, said that Parton is “the perfect person to introduce to the mainstream audience an easy-to-use, Web3 experience that will live-stream her SXSW event and provide them the opportunity to own and enjoy her music.”
While NFT was undoubtedly the buzzword of SXSW 2022, I am still working to understand its values and applications. Dolly Parton had this to say:
““I’m almost always up for trying something new and different, I’d say releasing NFTs at my first ever appearance at SXSW, definitely counts as new and different!””
Dolly Parton performs on stage at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse at SXSW
Dolly Parton performs on stage at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse at SXSW
Dolly Parton performs on stage at ACL Live during Blockchain Creative Labs’ Dollyverse at SXSW
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent: Film Review
When I was initially approached with the opportunity to attend the world premiere The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent and write a review of the film, I was hesitant. I’m not the biggest Nick Cage fan in the world, I was honestly of the opinion his films were corny, lame, and they peaked at National Treasure, as that was the last film of his I recalled seeing. After all, a film of Nicholas Cage, of all actors, playing himself? Even from the first trailers appearing on my Instagram feed I was skeptical on whether the finished product would be a watchable film for people who weren’t devoted Cage enthusiasts. What I was surprised to find was an endearing love letter to Nick Cage himself, his fans, and his work. The metatextual narrative was refreshing, the comedy left the whole theater in a roar of applause and laughter multiple times, and it even had some homoerotic tension between the main leads and Cage with… himself?
The film begins as a character study on Cage himself, highlighting his broken relationship with his fictional daughter and wife due to his overcommitment to his work. This first act portrays Cage as an egotistical, washed-up actor struggling to find work. Feeling his career is over, he takes a risk by attending the birthday party of a self-proclaimed Nicholas Cage superfan played by Pedro Pascal. From here the film transforms into a spy-action drama in which the CIA uses Cage as a special operative to uncover the dark underbelly of this superfan’s cartel operation, believing him to have kidnapped the daughter of a South American political candidate. Throughout the film, Nick and Javi desperately try to draft a film together. Believing that Cage’s estranged relationship with his family is giving him writer’s block, Javi flies his family out to his compound in Spain. We discover later that Javi, Pascal’s character, is being manipulated by the real kingpin, his cousin. Cage’s daughter Addy, played by Lily Mo Sheen, is then kidnapped by the Javi’s cousin, and the film reaches the climax after Cage stabs the kingpin of the operation. The film closes on the final product of the film being a dramatization of the film we watched with the family reunited, clearly in higher spirits than what we saw in the first act.
"Nick Cage (Nicolas Cage, left) enjoying a welcome drink on Javi Gutierezz's' (Pedro Pascal, right) compound in Mallorca, Spain. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate
The film being drafted by the main characters is a metatextual commentary on the movie we’re watching. While Javi and Nick are drafting the film, if you listen carefully, their ideas for the film line up with the plot points. At one point in the story, in an instance of foreshadowing, the main characters change their story from a character driven narrative structure to an action film. They even say the meta film has “something for everyone,” which rings true for The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Even those who normally don’t enjoy Cage on screen will appreciate this one. I really liked this method of storytelling because it sets it apart from other films. It’s not like anything I’ve ever seen before.
There are countless references to the earlier works of Nick Cage, and likely most of them flew right over my head. Some of the few I did catch included Cage walking into the pool and having Javi dive in after him, referencing Leaving Las Vegas. Javi’s grotesque wax sculpture of cage holds replicas of the golden guns he wielded in Face/Off. Even internet culture is referenced when Cage notices a sequin pillow of his face hiding among the collection of memorabilia owned by Javi.
Tiffany Haddish ("Vivian", left) snaps a quick selfie with Nicolas Cage. (“Nicolas Cage”, right) while undercover at the airport in THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT. Photo Credit: Karen Ballard/Lionsgate
It's clear that the film was a labor of love for director Tom Gormican. In fact, Cage originally wasn’t interested in the film until he discovered how much appreciation for his workGormican held. Cage said during a Q&A after the screening, “Tom wrote me a very thoughtful, very enthusiastic letter, and I realized that he wasn’t trying to do like a(n) Andy Samberg SNL sketch mocking whatever so-called Nick Cage is, but that he was actually interested in some of the earlier work and wanted to maybe showcase that…”
Now, let’s get into the gay stuff. The film immediately gets representation points for casting everyone’s favorite gay Neil Patrick Harris as this fictional Nick Cage’s manager. Early in the film they go into a spa to receive a very homoerotic massage in which a masochistic Harris enjoys a flogging session on a massage table while Cage is visibly uncomfortable.
Neil Patrick Harris ("Richard") chats on the phone with his client Nick Cage in THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate
The chemistry between the main leads is incredible, and when viewed through a queer lens adds another level of depth to their relationship. One of the first interactions between the leads, Pedro Pascal comes out by the pool clad in only a button down and a speedo. Call it a European thing, but through a queer lens, one might see this as an invitation to gaze. Nevertheless, Cage seems to act a bit shocked by Javi’s openness.
Javi Gutierrez' (Pedro Pascal, right) attempts to hide their paranoia that people are watching them. Javi Gutierrez' (Pedro Pascal, left) and 'Nick Cage' (Nicolas Cage, right) zooming through the mountains of Mallorca, Spain. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate
Javi’s obsession with Cage is claimed to only be a parasocial appreciation of his work, but come on, who are they kidding? Anyone that keeps a wax figure of their idol must be a little bit attracted to them. They even exchange an “I love you” near the end of the film, despite this being handwaved away with Javi being attracted to his assistant. Bi representation, maybe?
Of course we can’t talk about homoeroticism without touching on the scene in which Nick Cage makes out with a younger version of himself who also happens to be a figment of his imagination. It’s the only explicitly homosexual act on the screen, so I had to mention it if we’re speaking on queer theory.
Overall, the film really does have something for everyone. Cage’s campy acting, the over the top action, the adorable bromance between the leads, the genuinely laugh out loud comedy, all of these aspects wrapped up in a little bow results in an amazing feature for both Cage fans and haters alike. This film changed my perspective on Cage’s career, and I can see it doing that for others too. See it in theaters April 22nd.
The True Story Behind Addison Heimann's 'Hypochondriac'
When director and screenwriter Addison Heimann went home at Christmas time three years ago, he saw his mother experiencing a manic episode. Having dealt with his mother’s bipolar disorder since he was 12 years old, Heimann had grown numb to her outbursts, smoking weed to cope with the emotional fallout. When we went back to LA, he began to experience physical manifestations of his childhood trauma.
Addison Heimann
Heimann’s latest film, Hypochondriac, which made its SXSW debut this past weekend, tells the story of a Hispanic potter who loses function of his body as a result of childhood trauma. The film is largely inspired by Heimann’s own experience with his mother.
“In the first scene, his mother almost killed him in a state of psychosis,” Heimann tells Unleashed LGBTQ. “Now he's in the 30s, living his best life, when his mother starts coming back into his life by leaving these very mysterious voicemails. At the same time, he gets injured at work, and the two events kind of conflate together.”
Courtesy of XYZ Studios
Heimann experienced a similar breakdown three years ago, following his Christmas visit home. Upon his return to LA, Heimann experienced multiple ailments, including nausea, dizziness, head fog, and arm tingling.
“I did this smartest thing I've ever done in my life,” Heimann says sarcastically, “I visited Dr. Google, which, you know, is accurate and doesn't make anything up. WebMD is our friend, right? Dr. Google told me that I was dying of ALS. My friend's brother had just died of ALS, and I suffer from intrusive thoughts and OCD. I latched on to that immediately, and no one was going to tell me otherwise. I was convinced that this was happening.”
Courtesy of XYZ Studio
At the time, Heimann was working as an assistant at a production studio. Determined to prove to himself that he wasn’t dying of ALS, he tried to carry heavy objects up multiple flights of stairs, performing functions outside of his job description. He later developed a repetitive strain injury in his arms.
To combat the pain, Heimann did “the dumbest and most LA thing” he’s ever done, and scheduled a holistic massage.
“After that session, my tendons would swell,” Heimann recalls, “to the point where it's too painful to lift a fork, too painful to shave, I can't type, I can't text, I can't do anything. My arms basically lose function.”
This was the beginning of a three-month recovery journey for Heimann, spending 12 hours a day on the couch, browsing Netflix. He would later develop a knee injury while using a stationary bike.
Courtesy of XYZ Studios
He eventually began physical therapy, and once he got to the point where he could lift five pounds, he felt his mental state improving. This improvement was short-lived, as the head fog, nausea, and dizziness returned. He spoke with his aunt, who is a doctor, and she told him he may have multiple sclerosis.
Heimann then put out calls and emails to several neurologists, to no avail.
Courtesy of XYZ Studios
“Nobody could see me for like, three months, and I was like, ‘Ok well, I'd rather know if I'm dying now,’” Heimann recalls. “I found a neurologist who had just opened up and she was like, ‘Tell me what's going on.’ I just send her my dissertation of everything that's going on. I was just like, ‘You know what, I haven't told anybody the whole story. I'm just going to fucking do it.”
Fortunately, the neurologist took him seriously. Heimann successfully scheduled an appointment for an MRI test on his muscles, the results of which proved surprising.
“I get all the results back,” Heimann says. “They come back clear, and all my symptoms go away.”
Heimann still deals with the trauma of his mother’s violent outbursts every day of his life, but credits the support of his community for helping him get through it.
With Hypochondriac, Heimann hopes viewers will feel encouraged to ask for and accept help.
Courtesy of XYZ Studios
“This is the story of how I got from the worst possible time in my life to accepting help,” Heimann says. “I don't know what exists after that. All I know is that we're always going to carry our stuff with us but it's manageable. There are going to be hiccups and slips along the way. But as long as we keep our community together and push forward, we’ll be ok.”
Hypochondriac will screen Tuesday, March 15 at 3:15 PM and Thursday, March 17 at 9:45 PM in Theatre D at Alamo Drafthouse Lamar
Unbounded Bash Puts Queer and Trans BIPOC Performers at the Forefront
Television shows like Pose and Legendary have reminded us of the trails blazed by the queer and trans heroes before us. They have also portrayed ballroom culture and how underground balls were a quintessential part of queer and trans liberation. This Wednesday (March 16), Unbounded Bash will bring a real-life ball to Austin’s Coconut Club as part of SXSW.
Spearheaded by Unbounded Agency, Unbounded Bash celebrates queer and trans people of color, and will feature performances by various queer and trans acts. The bash will feature three different activations.
“We have At the Discoteca hosting the DJ showcase,” says Unbounded Agency founder Anita Obasi. “At the Discoteca is a traveling party celebrating Black music for the queer and BIPOC community. We also have live performances that will precede the Dirty South Ball.”
The Dirty South Ball will be hosted by Austin’s iconic House of Lepore and will feature previous cast members from Legendary, along with various regional houses, including Puerto Rican house, Laboratoria Boricua de Vogue.
Unbounded Agency was invited to be an official presenter at SXSW in 2020, however, COVID-19 forced the conference to shut down. Obasi, however, says Unbounded’s return couldn’t be more timely.
“72 hours before the events, we basically had to cancel everything,” Obasi says. “So it was definitely a really hard moment for everyone involved. But it's really exciting to be able to bring everyone back and put our best effort in. I think it was also a blessing in disguise in the sense that we've had two years to reflect on ourselves as a whole, and then come back to the table feeling more refreshed and renewed.”
Born and raised in northern Virginia, Obasi is a first-generation American of Nigerian and Indian descent. She arrived to Austin in 2013 after graduating college and landing a job in the tech industry.
Obasi worked with a group of people who ran a coworking space called Topology, a 2,000-square-foot warehouse in which she and her peers operated the space as a creative hub. The warehouse has since been torn down, But Obasi was determined to use her creative and collaborative spirit to make a difference in the community she holds dearest to her heart.
“I was trying to figure out how to take the ethos of that space and turn it into something that could exist without walls or without necessarily a physical location,” Obasi says. “And part of the ethos of Topology was incorporated into our own personal values. And for me, it was creating space for queer and BIPOC people.”
Obasi founded Unbounded Agency in 2018, with a mission to organize events centering queer and trans people of color. Unbounded Bash will celebrate the voices she sought out to amplify during the genesis of her company.
With a line-up of predominately Black and Latinx performers, Unbounded Bash aims to remind us of all the reasons why we love queer culture. Performers include Argentinian DJ Tayhana, Xa’Pariis Nike of Legendary fame, non-binary rapper Babiboi, and Chicago house legend DJ Shani.
“DJ Shani is very representative of the true nature and history of house music, which is something that, as it has become popularized has seen more of a ‘white bro-y’ face to it. We're excited to have her here to remind people of the roots of house music and specifically the depth of Black history in that space.”
Although Obasi now resides in Los Angeles, she is elated to return to Austin, the city she called home for six years. For her, there is no other city where she would rather launch Unbounded Bash.
“I think people forget that queer and BIPOC identities still continue to exist in Texas,” Obasi says. “We're all human beings who exist in this space and we need to take up space and remind people that we are existing and thriving.”
Unbounded Bash kicks off Wednesday, March 16 at Colorado Club. SXSW badge holders will have priority entry. RSVPs and more information about the showcase can be found at unboundedagency.org/sxsw.
The Queerties, the Awards Show that Celebrates the Best in LGBTQ Entertainment and Pop Culture, Premieres on Revry and YouTube
New York, NY – March 14, 2022: The Queerties 10th anniversary award show will begin streaming on Revry and YouTube on Wednesday, March 16, the first time in its history that the fully-produced live show ceremony will be viewable on national TV. The Queerties is a celebration of entertainment and pop culture moments that defined the past year in the LGBTQ community. Produced by the LGBTQ entertainment news site, Queerty, the ceremony is designed to uplift and spotlight LGBTQ creators, tastemakers, and storytellers who are not often recognized at other award shows. “We’re like the People’s Choice awards, but super gay, and with way more drag queens,” says Dan Tracer, Queerty’s Editor in Chief who co-hosts The Queerties 10th anniversary award show with RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World’s Mo Heart. This year’s event honors Pose’s Michaela Jaé Rodriguez with the Icon Award and RuPaul’s Drag Race season 13 winner Gottmik with the Groundbreaker Award. Celebrities appearing at The Queerties 10th anniversary award show include Murray Bartlett (White Lotus), Robin De Jesus (Tick Tick Boom), Amy Schneider (Jeopardy!), Ryan O’Connell (Special, Queer as Folk), Aubrey Peeples (Nashville), and a bevy of RuPaul’s Drag Race favorites including Bianca Del Rio.
Nominees for The Queerties 10th anniversary award show were selected by the editorial team at Queerty. Winners were then voted on by Queerty readers. Queerty received over 1.4 million votes for categories ranging from the “Badass” award, honoring the top LGBTQ newsmakers, to “Closet Door Bustdown”, recognizing brave notables who shook up mainstream America with their coming out stories. “When folks are out and proud, and making waves in the world, we think it’s important to honor that,” continues Tracer.
The Queerties 10th anniversary award show is packed with comedy, fashion and over-the-top fierce lewks, but there is a serious side to the ceremony, too. “A large reason for this event is to shine a light on independent LGBTQ artists,” says Scott Gatz of Q.Digital, the parent company of Queerty. “Whether they are creating indie music videos, web series, YouTube content, TikToks, or posting on Instagram, the Queerties strives to honor creatives who are making content, with or without the support of a brand or a studio.”
Queerty decided to televise this year’s ceremony after the success of last year’s virtual event. “While we were thrilled to be able to return to an in-person celebration for The Queerties 10th anniversary award show, with a fully vaccinated and tested crowd, we wanted to viewers at home to join the party as well,” Gatz explains. Revry, America’s first LGBTQ streaming network, made for an ideal partner. The show will also stream on Queerty.com and Queerty’s YouTube and Facebook channels.
“We have so much to celebrate this year,” says Dan Tracer. “The LGBTQ community made significant strides in pop culture that will have a lasting impact on the next generation of queer youth.” He points to Queerties Icon Award Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, a trans women of color who made history this year as the first trans actor to win a Golden Globe, and the first trans woman to earn an Emmy nomination in a lead acting category; both for her work on Pose.
In her Queerties acceptance speech, Rodriguez reflects on her career accomplishments and the legacy she hopes to leave. “All I wanted to do was inspire the youth. To encourage them to dare to be who (they) are and never be afraid of what anyone says. Instead, challenge them to be more open and understanding of the people that we are, which is fabulous.”
The Queerties 10th Anniversary award show will begin streaming on Revry, Queerty.com, and Queerty’s YouTube and Facebook channels this Wednesday, March 16 at 9pm ET/6pm PT. For more information and the complete list of Queerties 10th anniversary winners, visit https://www.queerty.com/Queerties2022/
David Hernandez Bares All In New EP And Book
Don’t @ Me - EP Cover Image David Hernandez
David Hernandez is baring it all. And not just on his new EP Don’t @ Me. To accompany Don’t @ Me, Hernandez is releasing a coffee-table book full of his nudes in tandem with the musical project this Friday (March 11).
Hernandez is no stranger to public nudity. Before conceptualizing Don’t @ Me, or his book #NSFW, he starred in a Las Vegas production of Naked Boys Singing. On his Instagram page, he often dons a jockstrap, showing off his backside, while posing seductively in nature or against a solid backdrop.
“My friends, when I go to their houses, especially in New York, they have these coffee table books, like the dick book, or like the ass book,” Hernandez tells Unleashed LGBTQ. “You open it up, and it's just all of these beautiful nude photos. They’re just so well done and tasteful that I wanted to join the likes of those coffee table books.”
The former American Idol top 12 contestant began working on music before signing onto Naked Boys Singing, however, the feelings of sexual liberation he felt while naked on stage kickstarted his musical process.
“I was inspired just to be myself,” Hernandez tells Unleashed LGBTQ, “to feel free to, honor the sexual side of myself and the nudist side of myself. The content on the EP is very adult, it's honest, and it’s gay as well. And I thought my image also fits that same exact thing, and I feel free and liberated through this experience. So why not release it to the world and show all sides of me, literally?”
Hernandez learned how to record and produce his own music during the pandemic, using programs like Splice, Ableton, Pro Tools and Garageband. He was mostly going into the studio for cathartic, therapeutic purposes, and didn’t have any initial plans to release a project.
“I was just dropping lyrics and vocals in my microphone,” Hernandez says. “And then. when I got to Vegas, I was just inspired by my sexual nature and being naked on stage. I was finally, finally thinking ‘Wow, you look really good after this fitness journey, you should be proud of yourself.’ The content [of the EP] changed a little bit. I started writing about how it feels being an adult gay male, how it feels during sex and how it feels with my anxiety.”
David Hernandez #NSFW
Although the recurring theme of Hernandez’s new projects is sexual liberation, the singer does take time to address the haters.
On Don’t @ Me’s title track, Hernandez claps back at people who have tried to hinder his success. For the first time, he addresses the naysayers who dragged his name through the mud during his 2008 stint on American Idol.
The song opens with a Fox News sound clip of an anchor revealing news of a pre-Idol Hernandez working at a male strip club. “Don’t @ Me” then continues with Hernandez “speak-singing” the lyrics “see my ass on Instagram, see my dick on OnlyFans.”
“I'm just going to place now like where not only have I like forgiven the people that dragged me, like Perez Hilton, and all the news outlets, and stuff like that,” Hernandez says, “but I've moved on from that, and I wanted to the EP to be the bookend for all of that. And I think you'll hear that. The EP, just like the book, is about liberation, self-expression and freedom.”
Move, I’m Gay Podcast Celebrates 100th Episode
Move, I’m Gay, the podcast starring Francisco and Brendan (better known to listeners as Franny and Brenda) is out now with its 100th episode. Taped live each week from their studio in Portland, Oregon, the show has gained a national following for the comical camaraderie between its two seemingly polar-opposite hosts. While Franny dishes on the latest entertainment dirt, and maybe belts out a Top 40 hit or two, Brenda references obscure gay historical facts. There’s also a bit of politics thrown in, as the two banter, laugh and drink their way into listener’s hearts.
“I had never been a fan of podcasts,” admits Francisco. “I have only listened to a couple and most of them have been true crime, so it’s interesting to find myself hosting a comedy show. Honestly, the real reason I’m here is I broke my leg and I needed something to do with my life.”
The pair had only hung out with each other casually before starting the Move, I’m Gay podcast in February 2020. “We have very different personalities,” Brendan explains. “Francisco is up on trends and I’m slightly clueless to them, but we seem to mesh well in terms of our interaction and it's nice to have solidified our friendship through two years of weekly recordings.”
The show’s segments are a favorite among listeners. In the “Gay of the Day” segment, they highlight some of the outstanding accomplishments of individuals in the LGBTQ+ community. “We love heaping praise on the bravery of celebs like Lil' Nas X and JoJo Siwa who have come out loud and proud and others like Jeopardy! champ Amy Schneider who are raising LGBTQ+ awareness on unexpected platforms,” says Francisco.
“It’s also encouraging to be able to report on progressive legal news, especially the expanded rights being enjoyed by queer people all around the world,” Brendan adds.
But with the sugar comes the medicine. The pair regularly share their real-life trials and tribulations, like in the “Hog Hunters" episode when Brenda was forced to come to terms with the truth about the man he had been speaking with on Tinder. “I had to be convinced live during the episode that I was being catfished. All of the obvious signs were there but I simply wasn't willing to admit it.”
In their “Bless This Mess” segment, Franny and Brenda lament on the week’s most shameful events. “Some of our most heated shows from last year were centered around transphobia and the right's increasingly unhinged fight against BLM and voter's rights, and their refusal to believe that we’re in the middle of a God damned global pandemic,” says Francisco.
“In the beginning, we didn’t expect the Move, I’m Gay podcast to be so political,” he continues. “It was meant to be more about our shared love of the free Britney movement and detest for Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop with maybe a few bits about Wendy Williams burping and farting simultaneously while live on air tossed in for good measure.”
Both agree that being LGBTQ+ today is inherently political. “We realized pretty quickly that avoiding the serious topics would come across as tone deaf, and that’s the last thing we want the show to be,” Brendan explains.
The podcast has been a learning experience for the pair. “I've found that my favorite shows are when we’re our real selves, imperfections and all,” says Francisco.
Brendan agrees. “Being authentic seems to be working for us. Like the great Cheryl Lynn sang in her 1978 self-titled debut studio album, 'Got to Be Real'."
Listen to the Move I’m Gay podcast on Spotify. Follow on Instagram.
AFTER THE RAIN, COMES THE RAINBOW- BIGOTRY HAS NO PLACE AT SXSW
SXSW is just around the corner and we hope ya’ll are ready!
This 9-day conference and festival is welcoming artists and industry professionals from around the globe to meet in Austin, Texas for one of the most highly anticipated comebacks of the last three years.
Celebrate the start of SXSW 2022 at the Big Gay Kickoff Party on March 11 at Rain for the biggest, gayest party in town.
While Texas has already been a hotbed for controversial legislation following the appalling abortion bill carried out by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, there seems to be even more on the horizon.
Gov. Abbott's recent order requires the state's child welfare agency to treat gender-affirming care for young transgender Texans as child abuse.
SXSW organizers released this statement Wednesday:
“We unequivocally denounce actions by Governor Greg Abbott to put transgender children and their families in harm’s way. We will continue to use our platform to elevate voices from the LGBTQ+ community.”
There is currently a considerable number of LGBTQ+ speakers, panels, films, and musicians included as part SXSW 2022. It seems regardless of the political climate, SXSW and its organizers will continue to show support to our community, providing a space for conversations that include marginalized groups like the transgender community.
While things are bleak at the moment it’s important to band together and in solidarity and ensure voices are continually heard in the great State of Texas.
Because as we all know: After the rain, comes the rainbow.
Jonathan Van Ness
Attending SXSW? Do check out TRANSforming Comedy:
TRANSforming Comedy is a conversation centered around transgender comedy creatives in the world of film and television. In the face of disproportionate and divisive debate, comedic writers and filmmakers with the lived experience being transgender challenge the reflexive overrepresentation of dramatic treatment of trans stories through the radical genre of comedy. Audiences will hear and learn how comedy can change culture, inviting connection through shared humor and catharsis through laughter.
Additional LGBTQ+ events can be found here.
Dad Throws Teen Party to Celebrate Her First Period.
Ok, not exactly, but not-not exactly.
The Karuk Tribe (Northern California) have long performed a ceremony called a Ihuk. Not familiar?, neither was I. Ihuk is a coming of age celebration for a young girl’s transitions into womanhood following her first menstrual cycle. Not something many girl’s might want announced, let alone celebrated with friends and family.
But why is the subject of menstruation taboo?
Long Line of Ladies is a documentary short directed by Rayka Zehtabchi and Shaandiin Tome. While both fairly young, they’re no amateurs to filmmaking.
Rayka Zehtabchi is an award-winning director. In fact, her film Period. End of Sentence (available on Netflix) made her the first Iranian woman to win an Oscar. Shaandiin Tome has some bragging rights of her own. Her award-winning, break-out short film "Mud (Hashtł’ishnii)" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2018.
Loves it.
We got the opportunity to ask some questions to these accomplished and talented directors about their new documentary short, Long Line of Ladies, being featured this March at SXSW 2022.
Pinkies up, now sip!
Directors: Shaandiin Tome & Rayka Zehtabchi
What inspired you to make this documentary?
This documentary has been a long time coming. On Rayka’s side, this short doc is almost like a reprise, but with a different approach, on menstrual equity in communities. Her short documentary Period. End of Sentence., was an exploration into a community that treats menstruation as taboo. With the help of The Pad Project, there was the wish to make something that was more of a celebration rather than a detriment. On my (Shaandiin’s) side, I have been in the space of Indigenous Film and Media since I’ve started my career. So, I’m always on a trajectory of finding ways to uplift and make the Indigenous narrative known and celebrated.
How did you first hear about The Karuk Tribe and Ihuk.
Rayka did a lot of research, I think weeks or months, of exploring different communities that celebrated menstruation. She found a website that was a recent documentation of the Ihuk ceremony by Ty’ithreeha Allen; it was from her perspective, having recently gone through it. Rayka reached out to Pimm Allen (her mom) and then found out that she had another daughter, Ahty, that was about to go through her ceremony. So, the stars aligned in such a lovely way for us to begin meeting with the family and finding ways to listen and understand more of their story.
Was it a culture shock to see something that is not openly discussed be celebrated?
Speaking more for myself (Shaandiin), it wasn’t as much of a culture shock. I am Diné (Navajo), and we have a similar coming of age ceremony called the Kinaaldá. However, because of boarding schools, my family wasn’t as established in tradition, and I opted out of mine because of how intimidating I thought it was. I think if I saw something like this when I was younger, it would have inspired me to take pride in who I was at the time and delve deeper into what it meant for me to be a young Diné woman. It’s astonishing to see a family that is so in tune to who they are and how they pass knowledge to their children; I think a lot of what people might see as a culture shock isn’t necessarily just how menstruation is talked about openly, but how the whole community is so much different than what we see in a western culture.
What do you hope this documentary helps accomplish for young girls and the public’s perception of menstruation?
Ahty should be the one to answer this question. She is the reason this whole project came together, and all because she wanted to put a positive image out there of what it means to be a young woman coming of age. Rayka and I have talked about it a lot where we wish we could grow up again, knowing what we have learned from this process. Overall, this documentary helps create a perspective of how a whole community comes together to uplift a woman, and she isn’t able to go through this process alone. I think that speaks for what a lot of young women are hoping for at this time in their lives; it’s not an individual taking. It takes a strong community.
Any upcoming projects we should look out for?
We are always working, haha. But we actually have a similar journey in wanting to go back to our originating passion of film, narrative! We have been on a fortunate journey of being able to document life in front of us, but we also both love to craft worlds and find expression through them. So hopefully, we will both be working on narrative projects (but if I had to bet, Rayka will have something out sooner than me!)
So let's hear it for the girls!… and these accomplished young filmmakers who took it upon themselves to share a culture and tradition that celebrates, uplifts, and makes women feel seen, respected, and included. Let’s see to it that one day conversations like these will be normalized. Period.
Long Line of Ladies premiered at the 2022 Sundance Festival and is scheduled for SXSW 2022:
March 13, 2022, 11:30 AM Rollins Theatre at The Long Center
March 14, 2022, 9:00 AM Online
March 17, 2022, 6:45 PM Alamo Drafthouse Lamar D
Drag DJ-production Duo JAWBREAKERS Release Debut Music Video - "Boyfriend"
Kali Forni-Kate and Sabrina Babyslut are drag producer/DJs! Together, they are known as the Jawbreakers. In their first EP, Just A Taste - being released through Vicious Recordings, the label that discovered Avicii when he was a teenager, and released his first ten records - the duo dish out delicious dance, pop and tech house songs that reflect on their live DJ shows. "Boyfriend," the EP’s first single, is out now. It’s video emphasizes how Kali and Sabrina not only DJ their parties, they are their parties.
Just A Taste, the debut EP from the drag-duo DJ-production team known as Jawbreakers, dishes out dance, pop and tech house songs suitable for clubs and partygoers at home enjoying a late-night kiki. “The EP is a sampling platter of beats with something for everyone,” says Kali Forni-Kate of Jawbreakers. “It’s Just A Taste, because there is 100% more to come,” adds her collaborator, Sabrina Babyslut. With songs like “This Is Dirty” and “Ciao Bella,” the EP reflects the group’s live DJ shows that emphasize how Jawbreakers are not only playing the party, they are the party. "Boyfriend," the EP’s first release, is a modern-day remake of Ashlee Simpson’s 2005 hit that chronicled her stealing Wilmer Valderrama from Lindsay Lohan. The Jawbreaker version features vocals from Amunda (formerly from Operator Please). Its accompanying music video, directed by Nyssa Mitchell, conceptualized by Jawbreakers with editing and FX by Zachary McSweeney, is a technicolor dream, with Kali and Sabrina dressed in eye-catching lewks. The Just A Taste EP is being distributed through Extrovert Music, a division of Vicious Recordings, and will be available on Apple Music, Spotify and all digital platforms on April 1. Jawbreaker’s “Boyfriend” music video is available on YouTube.
Kali and Sabrina first met in 2016, performing in a Britney Spears tribute show in Melbourne. They immediately clicked as both came from similar middle-class, nuclear family backgrounds, discovered drag via their passions for musical theatre, and began their individual adventures into the art form after high school. When they learned of their shared interest in music production, they decided to join forces as a DJ duo. They bought a mixer and six months later they were in business.
“The biggest hurdle was deciding who stands where in the booth,” Kali explains. “Sabrina is left-handed and I’m right. We had to fight over who uses the left and right DJ decks. Swapping throws off our groove!”
Their Jawbreakers name harkens back to the iconic candy from their childhoods and the 1998 teen film that starred Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart and Julie Benz as the “it” girl clique who reign supreme in their high school. “It’s a reflection on how the drag that we do is heavily inspired by pop culture,” Kali continues. “Like the girls in the movie, we dress to have fun and through the music we play and the energy that we exude, it makes everyone want to party with us!”
The duo has already headlined several international festivals including Sydney Mardi Gras and Milkshake Festival in Netherlands. Their next big gig will be Summer Camp Festival where they will perform alongside Years and Years, Big Freedia and The Veronicas. They are also slated to perform the next Goodlife U18 event, as well as Adelaide Festival, St Kilda Festival and Melbourne Pride.
“We have been keeping an eye on Jawbreakers for several years,” says Damien Platt of Extrovert Music, a division of Vicious Recordings, the label that discovered Avicii when he was a teenager, and released his first ten records. “When Kali and Sabrina presented us with demos of the EP, we were instantly fans of the music. It's fun, its camp and its quality music.”
Jawbreakers is not Extrovert Music’s first foray into gay dance floor music. Label co-founder Andy Van, of the band Madison Avenue, had a #1 dance anthem with “Don’t Call Me Baby”. More recently, Sgt Slick’s recut of “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!” went gold and has become a major queer anthem. “Extrovert Music is focusing on dance pop/disco/commercial/cross over releases,” Platt continues. “A majority of our new signings and existing roster who identify as LGBTQIA+ are producing this sound.”
While Jawbreakers’ unique look has helped attract attention to their work, Sabrina admits that performing as hyper feminine drag artists has made it harder for fans and the music industry to take the duo seriously. “We’ve had straight DJs hit on us and others wonder who the random chicks were in the booth,” she explains. “But way more people have shown their support and their desire to see us succeed.”
“We’re lucky to live in an era when queer culture is proving that we can be a force in any and every industry,” Kali adds. “Never underestimate what a queen can achieve. It only makes us work harder.”
Jawbreakers’ “Just A Taste” is being distributed through Extrovert Music and will be available on Apple Music, Spotify and all digital platforms. The “Boyfriend” video is available now on YouTube. Follow on Instagram @ JawbreakersDJ
Film Review- Death on the Nile
by Arnold Wayne Jones
More than a century after the publication of her first novel, Agatha Christie remains the best selling novelist of all time. Think about that: The only authors who are more widely read are Shakespeare (a playwright!) and God (the Bible… though maybe that should be classified under fiction as well). That’s a lot of wide-ranging appeal. On the other hand, popularity doesn’t always translate into brilliant writing. Christie’s skill was plotting more than characterization. Those who populate her novels tend to be types – chatty cousins, blustery retired soldiers, Bohemian young women, moustachioed Lotharios. They serve her stories more than they live in our imaginations.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
Her more than 50 full-length books featured her most famous detective, Hercule Poirot, 33 times, and even he was something of a cipher. Fussy, stout, ageing, he exuded sexual repression channeling his puritanism into nosiness. And in a series of films starting in the 1970s, usually starring Peter Ustinov, his pinched emptiness became a delightful vessel for scenery chewing and the flamboyant “I suppose you’re all wondering why I’ve called you here” reveal. It’s fun.
So fun, in fact, that one of my favorite popcorn movies has always been 1978’s Death on the Nile, with its portmanteau of former superstars (Bette Davis! Angela Lansbury! David Niven!) – a tour of Old Hollywood glamour with a satisfying conclusion and few consequences.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
Alas, our society has changed. Despite how depressingly epidemic remakes have become, old-school entertainments usually must gesture toward justifying themselves by adding a post-modern veneer. And so Kenneth Branagh’s long-delayed remake of Death on the Nile, just in theaters, begins not with a juicy teaser to set up what’s to come, but a black-and-white prologue set decades earlier, in the trenches of The Great War in Europe, when a young soldier named Hercule uses his little gray cells to best the enemy and plan a wise military attack that nonetheless has a dire result. Those scenes explain Poirot’s celibacy, his outrageous whiskers and perhaps his hesitancy to solve the crime at the center of the story. It’s not just popcorn fun anymore … it’s meaningful.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
Don’t get me wrong: some of the many delights on this tour of the Nile are its dazzling costumes, its breathtaking landscapes, its glittering atmosphere and parade of beautiful stars. And anyway, most of the character work is foisted on Branagh himself, who not only directs but play Poirot (as he did in his last Christie remake, 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express), so he’s up for the challenge and happy to instill a little po-mo gravitas on this frothy confection, letting the updates imbue it with more relevance. While the novel was written and set in a much less woke decade, the changes reflect a 21st century mindset. The original cast was a lily white as an albino eating a mayonnaise sandwich on Wonder Bread during a blizzard, so retrofitting, for instance, Salome Otterbourne not as a boozy romance novelist as a black world-weary jazz guitarist seems wise and organic, while interracial and same-sex romantic entanglements reflect an unspoken reality of the era.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
And the cast turns out to deliver performances beyond their remit. Sophie Okonedo, as the aforementioned Otterbourne, has none of the drunken bravada brilliantly rendered in the original by Angela Lansbury, but replaces it with a thoughtful cynicism and air of mystery and menace. Annette Bening, always one of the screen’s most watchable actresses, embraces her role as a devious matriarch. The legendary British comedy team of Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders reunite with an unexpected divergence from the source material that nonetheless makes perfect sense, and would have even in the 1930s.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
Death on the Nile has always boasted one of Christie’s most serpentine yet satisfying solutions, and one concern I had going in was whether the screenwriters would pay proper homage to the source material or muck it up just to be unexpected. Without revealing any spoilers, I can attest that many of the changes in character and plot keep you guessing without while still offering a nostalgia tour of the elements that have always made Christie’s bubblegum prose enjoyable.
Don’t mistake the stylistic updates as a pretentious rejection of the novel. This is still a drawing room murder mystery with all the ridiculous melodrama you’ve come to expect, but its careful tailoring or the saggy parts presses vintage glam into familiar clothes.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
Film Review- FLEE
by Arnold Wayne Jones
By its very nature, Flee is the kind of movie that risks being reductively shuttled into the category of novelty, if not outright gimmicky: It’s a documentary, but it’s also animated (portions are intercut with life-action footage), though it uses tons of live-action footage; it touches on about a half-dozen hot-button topics, from a same-sex relationship to a same-sex relationship including a Muslim to a story about a refugee (same guy!) and he’s a refugee from the Mujahideen in Afghanistan to Russia, two countries where unrest has dominated the news for a year. Why, if it were a fiction film, they’d’ve cast Daniel Day-Lewis and let him walk away with a fourth Oscar. (They might even make him a paraplegic with a speech impediment, just to seal the deal.) The fact it is the first film ever to receive three “best film” Oscar nominations – Best International Film (it’s in Dari and Danish, as well as English and few others), Best Documentary Feature and Best Animated Feature (it’s only missing Best Picture) – could brand the guilt-watch movie of the year.
Courtesy of NEON
That would all be a shame, though. Try to look beyond the circumstances that almost defy you to say anything negative for fear of being canceled by the Woke Police, and see instead its bona fides: Flee is an exceptionally powerful, but emotionally accessible, film – in turns heartfelt, heartbreaking and heart-warming.
Courtesy of NEON
Flee tells the true story of Amin (voiced in the dubbed version by executive producer Riz Ahmed), looking back on his innocent childhood in Kabul before life went to shit. As a 6-year-old, Amin would think nothing of putting on his sister’s dress and playing in the streets, and though he wasn’t sexually active, he knew he was attracted to men. That made him stand out among the traditional Muslim culture, one where, as Amin recalls, “gay people didn’t exist. There wasn’t even a word for them – they brought shame upon the family.” Without the vocabulary or context to give shape to his feelings, though, he just settled in to life, a kid largely untouched by the civil war that raged along the countryside. Eventually, though, the politics and violence would hit home.
Courtesy of NEON
One of the subtle achievements of the film is how the hand-drawn animation marries with the gentle tone to conjure the authentic, quotidian experiences of an extraordinary boy living out an ordinary boyhood that was anything but ordinary. Like John Boorman’s Hope and Glory, Steven Spielberg’s rendering of J.G. Ballard’s Empire of the Sun or more recently Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast, Flee captures the twinging melancholy of a dire situation as seen from the perspective of a callow but sensitive child unable to grasp the pending tragedy. But it layers on the component of sexual awakening to this slightly familiar trope, and shows it with delicate verisimilitude. In the present-day scenes, the affection between Amin and his fiance Kasper are sweetly loving; in the past, his comically regretful recollection of his attraction to movie muscle men like Jean-Claude Van Damme will flash familiarity to every former gay boy who knew his nature before he had the words for it.
Courtesy of NEON
Amin and his family eventually escape Afghanistan, but their precarious immigration status, harrasment by authorities, unscrupulous human traffickers and Amin’s burgeoning sexual awakening and concomitant shame make for a horrific tale of modern survival while simultaneously reinforcing the resilience of spirit, even as the situations become increasingly dire. We know it is ultimately a triumphant tale – after all, Amin lived to tell it – but it burrows deep before then, echoing the well-worn sentiment in the gay community that family is the one you make for yourself, and that it does get better.
Courtesy of NEON
The slightly staccato anime style recalls Miyazaki’s wistful memory films, while the “shots” where the filmmaker/interviewer is shown behind the scenes joking with Amin (behind the scenes of an animated film? Whaaa?!) and sometimes abstract images give the film its disarming meta-ness. A meta-docu-cartoon? If it sounds twee, the effect is anything but. Flee transcends its simplified logline to be something profoundly emotional.
Courtesy of NEON