10.19.18 V9-21
Music: Hear Me Out: 7 Not-To-BeMissed LGBTQ Artists
Book: Growing Up Queer
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Contents
FENUXE
8 AGENDA
12
HEAR ME OUT: 7 NOT- TO-BE-MISSED LGBTQ ARTISTS
22
PHOTOS: I PUT A SPELL ON YOU.
26
OUT AND ABOUT
27
GROWING UP QUEER
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Published by Fenuxe Magazine Management, LLC © 2017 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. 925B Piedmont Ave NE Suite 168, Atlanta GA, 30309 Phone: 404.835.2016 | Fax: 404.835.2356 Opinions and claims made by advertisers are those of the advertisers only. Fenuxe accepts no liability for any claims made by advertisers. The views and opinions expressed in this issue are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency of Fenuxe Magazine Management, LLC.
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5
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Publisher This is a great year to be PROUD!! While we are smack dab right in the middle of a most turbulent time in history, and while we watch some of the most hard-fought gains for our community being stripped down, a most positive thing which I observe is the engagement our community to fight even harder, to come together to stand up for all of our marginalized friends and family. I watch our youth march with our elders, so that our collective voice is heard and seen. When out about town, I overhear conversations within our beloved shops, bars, restaurants, and nightclubs…. “our town halls” involving politics, world events, and the changing landscape of our community.
6: October 19, 2018
This is today, and this is our future!!! it’s exciting to interview young gay artists making an impact on our world Ricky Rebel, and the world being passed down to the future generation. And what a privilege to have stars of international status and profile, such as our conversation with Keira Knightly to carry a flag for our community, and to choose roles which expose the humanity of our people and which tells the real stories of our lives. I want to thank everyone for an amazing pride 2018. This year was amazing and we had loads of fun. As we continue this year let’s remember to love one another and we are all on the plant together.
Fenuxe Calendar
October Tour of Southern Ghosts 33rd Annual “A Tour of Southern Ghosts” – At this bewitching time of the year, why not visit Stone Mountain Park and go on an evening adventure to the Historic Square for a “tour” with ghosts? The tour features fun and spooky ghost stories from the Antebellum South; great fun for young, old, and of course, a perfect family outing.
MORE INFORMATION:
9 Dates · Oct 11, 2018 - Oct 27, 2018 Stone Mountain Park 1000 Robert E Lee Blvd, Stone Mountain
Shalloween w/ Sasha Velour winner of RPDR Season 9! WUSSY returns for the 4th annual SHALLOWEEN Dance Party featuring SASHA VELOUR winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 9! Come bump uglies with Atlanta’s undead weirdos! We wanna see your freakiest Drag, Spooky Sadboys, Trash Queens + Swamp Kings, and Velour inspired couture.
MORE INFORMATION:
Friday, October 26, 2018 at 9 PM – 2 AM Heretic
11 to 27
26 27
Halloween in the Highlands Block Party We say it every year, and this year is no exception…”IF THERE IS ONLY ONE HALLOWEEN PARTY YOU JOIN THIS YEAR...THIS IS IT!” Don’t take our word for it! Check out the video and pictures. Ticket Includes: Special event wristband, FREE Admission Entry to all bars, clubs & restaurants (NO COVER CHARGES), complimentary shots, 3/2/1 Specials ($3 Cocktail or $2 Beer or $1 Shot), exclusive food & drink specials, DJ’s & live music. Tented parking lot & more! MORE INFORMATION:
Saturday, October 27, 2018 at 6 PM – 2 AM 752 N Highland Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30306
Office: 678.298.1600 cell: 706.761.2578
10: October 19, 2018
Hear Me Out: 7 Not-To-BeMissed LGBTQ Artists Looking to support the sounds of our community? To start, add these acts to your gaylist. By Chris Azzopardi
MNEK You’ve heard English singer, songwriter and producer MNEK behind the scenes, writing for artists like Madonna and Beyoncé (yes, he co-wrote a Lemonade jam, Bey’s “Hold Up”). But with his Capital Records debut, the 23-year-old UK rappersinger steps into the spotlight, seeing his own artistic vision through with a 16-track album meant to be heard as a full album, a defiant move in a singles-driven music industry. Black and gay, MNEK knows the struggle to thrive in a majority-rules world, which he writes about on the album’s standout, “Correct,” a call-to-arms for queer people, served through the musical guise of a big party bop. Words to live by: “Yas bitch, stay fabulous, honey.”
Donna Missal As is the case for many aspiring musicians who climb YouTube’s ladder, New Jersey’s Donna Missal stormed the internet first, racking up 11 million combined streams. The demand opened the doors to her first album, the soulful This Time, released in September on Harvest Records. Produced by Tim Anderson, known for helming projects by Solange and Halsey, the sexually fluid LA-based singersongwriter’s rock-meets-soul sound is as intoxicating as her lyrical content, which she says reflects “taking chances for yourself, figuring out who you are and really standing behind that.”
John Duff Sassy, frequently shirtless IG sensation John Duff took his social clout to the next level with the release of his song “Girly,” a frothy pop romp celebrating femme power (“let’s get girly, flip our hair, we don’t care”). Its accompanying video is a tribute to a pantheon of gay icons. In the clip, he delightfully mirrors the precious mannerisms of Mariah in her 1999 “Heartbreaker” video along with her signature look – a midriff halter top, cut-off jeans – while also recreating other iconic music-video scenes from Madonna, Britney, Beyoncé and Christina Aguilera.
Shea Diamond
Michael Blume
Activism is art in Shea Diamond’s case. Performing songs to fellow prisoners while serving time in various Michigan prisons, the trans singer-songwriter and her inspiring narrative soon fell into the nurturing hands of star producer Justin Tranter, who Diamond has called her “fairy godmother.” Tranter produced songs from Diamond’s first EP, released this year. For the album, the artist channels her personal struggles as a trans woman of color living in a time when the trans community is under attack. Now, particularly, her soulful croon is a voice that needs – and demands – to be heard.
Michael Blume, an alumni of Yale University whose future was once academia-bound, almost didn’t pursue music as a career. But after joining an on-campus a capella group that toured the world, performing in 35 countries, the New Jersey-bred, NYC-based singer has forged a flourishing musical career for himself. Queer and other human rights issues still rest heavy on his mind as illustrated by his latest release. A follow-up to his 2016 debut When I Get It Right called Cynicism & Sincerity, the six-song EP’s musically diverse palette – from trap hip-hop to gospel and electronica – is the conduit for his pointed and passionate activist convictions.
Chris/Christine and the Queens Pansexual French pop singer, songwriter, producer and choreographer Hélöise Letissier yearned to break down gender constructs, so she fashioned an androgynous look, started going by “Chris,” and used her new persona (previously, her professional alias was Christine and the Queens) as the title of her sophomore album, released in September. One of the most exciting pop albums of the year, Chris holds a mirror to the artist’s personal journey, boldly framing her newfound identity in assertive retro beats that throb and empower.
Faultlines Folk-pop trio Faultlines pulled no punches with their Trump-targeted words on “Rain,” released early this year. The fired-up anthem is in the stomping soul style of 1960s protest songs and blends the earthy voices of band members Todd McCool, Ashley Morgan and John Flanagan, who draw upon urban pop and roots country for the gritty call-to-action. Their lyrics rouse: “There’s a man in a big white house trying to take your voice away,” they sing. “Do nothing and stay silent if you think that it’s OK.”
13
the
ethel merman disco christmas spectacular! WORLD PREMIERE Book by PAUL CONROY & Musical Arrangements by NICK SILVESTRI Imagining what Ethel Merman’s unaired 1979 Christmas television special would be like.
December 6-22, 2018
Tickets: $15 and up Out Front Theatre Company 999 Brady Avenue, Atlanta
www.OutFrontTheatre.com
OUT & ABOUT
PHOTOS
BLAKES PRIDE 2018 PHOTOS BY: SHER PRUITT
Thank You, Atlanta! Our mission is to bridge communities to brighten the lives of Georgia's children in need.
24,372 Backpacks Donated Since We Started
See you next year!
New look and feel, same great cause!
December 16th 2018 at Opera
• Phott with Santa • Silent & Live Auctions • Raffles & Games
• Catered hors d'oeeres • DJs & Live Shows • Adult Beverages
VIP ckets $250 (+Toy) General Admission ckets $25 (+Toy) Purchase tickets in advance at forthekid.org and bring an unwrapped toy valued at $20+
forthekidatl
PHOTOSHOOT
18:October 19, 2018
24: October 19, 2018
OUT & ABOUT
PHOTOS
26: October 19, 2018
TRIPPS YAPPY HOUR BY ANDREA DWYER
BOOK REVIEW
G
rowing up is hard.
Most sentient adults would agree, and decline a chance to ‘teen again; between changing bodies, Mean Girls, bullies, and facing adulthood, it’s enough to have endured it once. But for kids who are “different” on top of all that, there’s hope, as Mary Robertson says in “Growing Up Queer.” In the early years of the Obama administration, after the repeal of DADT and after three states made same-sex marriage legal, Robertson began volunteering at her local LGBT Resource Center, specifically, in the basement teen hang-out called Spectrum. She was working on research and she hoped, over time, to interview Spectrum’s teen clientele but she was nervous: as a cisgender straight woman, what would the kids tell her? Plenty, as it turned out.
> CREDIT | “Growing
Up Queer” by Mary Robertson
While there were gay, lesbian, and transgender teens at Spectrum, the majority of the youth Robertson studied called themselves “queer,” a wider sexuality- and genderencompassing identity specifically separate from “gay” or “lesbian.” As one young man indicated, identifying as queer was easier than repeatedly resetting his selfidentity as he learned more about himself and the people he might be attracted to . Many of her interviewees told Robertson that they knew early in their lives that they were not heteronormal. Many teens told stories of recognizing their own interest in same-sex actors and performers when they were young, and of precocious selfacknowledgment of same-sex leanings. One claimed innocence that compelled him to ask for clarification on slurs, thus learning negativity about his feelings long before he knew his feelings “had a name.”
Robertson says that suicide rates for LGBTQ students are inflated, but she also notes that today’s queer teens have access to an abundance of support: her subjects often noted family attitudes that have shifted with the times, and there seems to be more acceptance from peers. Gay-Straight Alliances weren’t widely known in high schools until the 1990s but today, most larger schools have a GSA and nearly every state in the U.S. has at least one LGBT center. For her queer subjects, this is good news, says Robertson . On the future, she says, “This is what gives it so much promise.” As eye-opening and reassuring as it is, this book may be a challenge. “Growing Up Queer” can sometimes read like a thesis paper made of cardboard, perhaps due to its original intent for research. When the narrative dips like that, it feels a lot like when your newly-PhD’d brother expounds on his favorite subject: it grows complicated, often unnecessary, and sometimes redundant. Thankfully, author Mary Robertson gets out of the way enough to make a reader want to forgive such transgressions and just enjoy the teens she meets. There’s life in them, deep introspection and philosophical thought, as well as acceptance covered slightly with the scabs of perseverance. Their voices are real and need no explaining. Indeed, they do offer hope. That makes this book accessible, but academics may get more from it than will casual readers. Tackle “Growing Up Queer” if you wish, but understanding may come hard.
By: Always Overbooked... Terri Schlichenmeyer The Bookworm Sez, LLC bookwormsez@gmail.com
27
OUT & ABOUT
PHOTOS
28: October 19, 2018
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