This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY® and does not replace talking to your healthcare provider about your condition and your treatment. (bik-TAR-vee)
MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BIKTARVY
BIKTARVY may cause serious side e ects, including:
Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection. Your healthcare provider will test you for HBV. If you have both HIV-1 and HBV, your HBV may suddenly get worse if you stop taking BIKTARVY. Do not stop taking BIKTARVY without first talking to your healthcare provider, as they will need to check your health regularly for several months, and may give you HBV medicine.
ABOUT BIKTARVY
BIKTARVY is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in adults and children who weigh at least 55 pounds. It can either be used in people who have never taken HIV-1 medicines before, or people who are replacing their current HIV-1 medicines and whose healthcare provider determines they meet certain requirements.
BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. HIV-1 is the virus that causes AIDS.
Do NOT take BIKTARVY if you also take a medicine that contains:
dofetilide
rifampin
any other medicines to treat HIV-1
BEFORE TAKING BIKTARVY
Tell your healthcare provider if you:
Have or have had any kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis infection.
Have any other health problems.
Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Tell your healthcare provider if you become pregnant while taking BIKTARVY.
Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Talk to your healthcare provider about the risks of breastfeeding during treatment with BIKTARVY. Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take:
Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-thecounter medicines, antacids, laxatives, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist.
BIKTARVY and other medicines may a ect each other. Ask your healthcare provider and pharmacist about medicines that interact with BIKTARVY, and ask if it is safe to take BIKTARVY with all your other medicines.
POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF BIKTARVY
BIKTARVY may cause serious side e ects, including:
Those in the “Most Important Information About BIKTARVY” section.
Changes in your immune system. Your immune system may get stronger and begin to fight infections that may have been hidden in your body. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any new symptoms after you start taking BIKTARVY.
Kidney problems, including kidney failure. Your healthcare provider should do blood and urine tests to check your kidneys. If you develop new or worse kidney problems, they may tell you to stop taking BIKTARVY.
Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a serious but rare medical emergency that can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: weakness or being more tired than usual, unusual muscle pain, being short of breath or fast breathing, stomach pain with nausea and vomiting, cold or blue hands and feet, feel dizzy or lightheaded, or a fast or abnormal heartbeat.
Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain.
The most common side e ects of BIKTARVY in clinical studies were diarrhea (6%), nausea (6%), and headache (5%).
These are not all the possible side e ects of BIKTARVY. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any new symptoms while taking BIKTARVY. You are encouraged to report negative side e ects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Your healthcare provider will need to do tests to monitor your health before and during treatment with BIKTARVY.
HOW TO TAKE BIKTARVY
Take BIKTARVY 1 time each day with or without food.
GET MORE INFORMATION
This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY. Talk to your healthcare provider or pharmacist to learn more.
Go to BIKTARVY.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5.
If you need help paying for your medicine, visit BIKTARVY.com for program information.
Gilead.
PEOPLE WE LOVE
AS WE EMBARK ON OUR 35TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR, WE ARE THRILLED TO CONTINUE TO HIGHLIGHT THE INCREDIBLE PEOPLE IN ENTERTAINMENT WHO INSPIRE AND SHAPE OUR WORLD. This month’s features center around People We Love and celebrating the diverse voices and brilliant talents that have not only left their mark on the entertainment industry but have also made significant contributions to the LGBTQ+ community.
In a world that’s constantly evolving, entertainment remains a powerful vehicle for storytelling, advocacy, and representation. From actors, musicians, comedians, writers, and directors, LGBTQ+ individuals are not only icons but trailblazers—paving the way for more inclusive, authentic portrayals of our community. But beyond the glitz and glamour, these individuals are People We Love for their strength, courage, and commitment to being unapologetically themselves.
One of the new administration’s first acts in office was to erase trans identities with the stroke of a pen. This barbaric executive order also removed many trans protections and health care options. We must unite to defend all LGBTQ+ rights, and specifically trans rights and equality, now more than ever! We will not be silenced. We will not go back into the shadows. We must stand united and proud!
In this issue, our exclusive cover story delves into the life and persona of Murray Hill, a transgender entertainer and comedian from New York City. Hill’s impact on the drag king and LGBTQ + community cannot be overstated. As a pioneer in the scene, he has paved the way for countless performers, challenging traditional gender norms and pushing boundaries. His larger-than-life personality makes him the self-proclaimed “hardest-working middle-aged man in show business.” Whether it’s through
his groundbreaking performances, advocacy work, or simply living out loud, Hill reminds us of the importance of visibility, authenticity, and community. We hope you’ll be as inspired by his story as much as we are.
Another important voice in both the Latinx and LGBTQ+ communities is José Rolón, leading advocacy and family discussion, while being a business role model to his kids as a top event and wedding planner. Rolón made queer history as the first gay father to be featured on the cover of Parents Latina Magazine and represents a real and true American family life.
Because entertainment has the power to shift perceptions and spark conversations, it’s essential that we continue to support artists and creators who amplify our voices. Metrosource strives to tell stories that are diverse, inclusive, and reflective of the world we live in.
We also seek out and spotlight global destinations that are welcoming for LGBTQ+ travelers, restaurants to indulge in, and shops to visit. The current attack on anti-discrimination policy, and DEIA initiatives represents a huge blow to progress made in those areas and it’s more important than ever to align ourselves with establishments that champion fairness and respect for all individuals. While we face challenges from roll backs of these hard-won protections, we can still make an impact by choosing where we spend our time and money. By supporting businesses that uphold the values of inclusion and equity, we send a strong message that we will not allow progress to be undone. Let’s continue to lift up the places that honor our identities and treat everyone with dignity and respect. Our collective commitment to this cause is more crucial than ever.
As always, thank you for being part of this journey with us. We are proud to share these stories with you, and we are grateful for the amazing people and places that make our world a more colorful and inclusive place.
Los Angeles
6475 E. Pacific Coast Hwy., #438 Long Beach, CA 90803
New York
511 Avenue of the Americas,
COVER: Murray Hill
Photography by: Bettina May
CURATED BY
MICHAEL WESTMAN
THESCOPE
LISTEN
AUSTIN COVEN
THE HUMMINGBIRD CABIN
EMBEDDED IN THE REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT OF HOUSE MUSIC BIRTHED BY LGBTQ+ DJ’S AS A MEANS OF DEMONSTRATING FREEDOM AND EQUALITY, AUSTIN COVEN AIMS TO CHANNEL THIS SAME RAW ENERGY LAID OUT BY HIS PREDECESSORS. By embracing the genre’s origins and aiming to shatter their limitations, the Long Island-based musician crafts sonic landscapes that are equal parts unpredictable as they are unforgettable. His debut album The Hummingbird Cabin releases in February 2025.
“Rubbing Alcohol”, a new single off the album, is a boisterous anthem focusing on the pangs of queer heartbreak that combines silky smooth vocals with lush, witch-house synths. Wrapped in the irresistible allure of electropop, “Rubbing Alcohol” casts vulnerability with empowerment, creating a sonic pleasure with its healing powers. “It’s a celebration of surviving the sting of love and emerging with a renewed sense of self,” says Coven. Listen on Spotify or Soundcloud.
QUEER EYE SEASON 9
STREAMING ON NETFLIX
YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY: IN VEGAS, WHAT HAPPENS HERE, STAYS QUEER. So, for their ninth season, Queer Eye’s Fab Five are making big things happen for a handful of heroes living in Sin City.
This time, however, the series gets a little makeover of its own. Interior designer Jeremiah Brent joins the cast alongside original hosts Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown, Antoni Porowski, and Tan France. But their mission remains the same: transforming the lives of everyday people from the inside out.
If you have an eye for interior design, you’ve surely come across Jeremiah Brent’s work over the past decade. Based in New York City, Brent is the founder of his own full- service interior design firm, Jeremiah Brent Design, which launched in 2012 with locations in New York City and Los Angeles, as well as the lifestyle brand Atrio. With a finely honed intuition and sophisticated sensibility, Brent has worked his magic on countless properties across the world. But no matter the home, Brent begins each project by developing an in-depth familiarity with his clients’ emotional lives and personal journeys before personally installing each and every space — making him a natural fit for the Queer Eye family.
And family just so happens to be his driving source of inspiration. Brent is married to fellow interior designer Nate Berkus, with whom he shares two young children. The couple frequently collaborate on a host of high-profile projects, including the HGTV docuseries The Nate & Jeremiah Home Project. Brent has previously appeared in Netflix’s Say I Do, the Emmy-winning Home Made Simple, and The Rachel Zoe Project He’s also the author of his recently released debut book The Space That Keeps You, an emotional design book that explores what gives spaces meaning.
The Fab Five again assist a fresh crop of heroes with their finetuned expertise in style, grooming, interior design, culture, and food and drink. As we all know well by now, everybody who comes across the Fab Five leaves with lessons that they’ll take with them everywhere — guess what happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas after all.
LOVE YOU MADLY, HOLLY WOODLAWN
A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE WITH ANDY WARHOL’S MOST FABULOUS SUPERSTAR
BY JEFF COPELAND
$22.95 AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER AT FERALHOUSE.COM
A YOUNG, ASPIRING WRITER DESPERATE FOR A BREAK…and the legendary Andy Warhol superstar who gave him the story of a lifetime.
By the mid-1980s, Holly Woodlawn, once lauded by George Cukor for her performance in the 1970 Warhol production and Paul Morrissey directed Trash, was washed up. Over. Kaput. She was living in a squalid Hollywood apartment with her dog and bottles of Chardonnay. A chance meeting with starry-eyed corn-fed Missouri-born Jeff Copeland, who moved to Hollywood with dreams of ‘making it’ as a television writer, changed the course of BOTH of their lives forever.
Love You Madly, Holly Woodlawn is a story of how an unlikely friendship with a young gay writer and an, ahem, mature trans actress and performer created the bestselling autobiography of 1991, A Low Life in High Heels. This book about writing a book is a celebration of chutzpa and love as Holly, the embodiment of Auntie Mame, introduces Jeff to the glamorous (and sometimes larcenous) world of a Warhol Superstar. In turn, Jeff uses his writing (and typing) talent to give Holly the second chance at fame she craved.
In turns hilarious and heartwarming, Love You Madly, Holly Woodlawn is a portrait of the real Holly who loved deeply, laughed loudly, and left mayhem in her wake.
Features dozens of archival and personal photographs, including a full-color insert of rarely seen editorial fashion portraits—foreword by queer icon and author Simon Doonan.
For nearly 30 years, Jeff Copeland worked as a show biz hobo, hopping from one gravy train to the next. He was nominated for an Emmy (yay!) and lost (boo!), and has enjoyed working on fun, interesting, and exciting content for a variety of TV networks and film studios, including Discovery, Animal Planet, HGTV, ABC, FOX, and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
WINTER PARTY FESTIVAL 2025
VARIOUS VENUES
MIAMI BEACH, FL
THE NATIONAL LGBTQ TASK FORCE’S WINTER PARTY FESTIVAL 2025 MAKES A SPLASHY RETURN TO MIAMI BEACH FOR ITS 32ND ANNIVERSARY FROM FEBRUARY 26 - MARCH 4, 2025. Winter Party is an annual dance and music festival featuring a week-long series of events benefiting local and national LGBTQ+ organizations. This year’s “Dance is Revolution” themed celebration features an eclectic mix of music, community programming, and entertainment that embodies the mantra, “Live free. Play hard. Give back.”
“For those who’ve joined us before, you know this week-long symphony of music and movement is part of what unites us to celebrate, connect, and honor the joy that fuels our strength,” Kierra Johnson, President of the National LGBTQ Task Force, said in a statement. “We would be remiss not to highlight why the Winter Party Festival remains a thriving cornerstone of queer culture as one of the last remaining community owned circuit parties. Part of the answer lies in the very ground we gather upon. Florida — a state where hateful, anti-LGBTQ rhetoric is rampant and harmful policies are piloted — has become a testing ground for authoritarian strategies designed to suppress our existence. Historically, the policies that take root here are then exported to harm other communities.”
The Winter Party Festival attracts over 10,000 attendees from around the globe each year. This year, the festival will feature more than 12 exciting events spread across 10 world-class venues in iconic Miami and Miami Beach — renowned for their vibrant energy and celebration. Guests will be treated to electrifying performances by international DJs including Chus, Karsten Sollors, Tom Stephen and more. Winter Party Festival passes are now available at winterparty.com.
EXPERIENCE
YOUNG JOON KWAK: RESISTERHOOD
FEB 14, 2025 - JUL 27, 2025
LESLIE-LOHMAN MUSEUM OF ART 26 WOOSTER STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10013
LESLIELOHMAN.ORG
YOUNG JOON KWAK’S WORK BEGINS WITH TOUCH. MOLDS AND IMPRINTS OF BODIES - THE ARTIST’S OWN, AND THOSE OF FRIENDS, LOVED ONES, AND COLLABORATORS - ARE DIS- AND RE-ASSEMBLED, BURNISHED AND JEWELED. The resulting works bear intimate human traces and yet remain anonymous, moving in and out of recognition. They shimmer in their distortions and imperfections, presenting us with bodies both frozen in time and in perpetual transition: in the midst of youth, aging, gestation, or gender transformation.
RESISTERHOOD includes new commissions and works made over the past ten years, a series of neon sculptures for the Museum’s public window gallery, and a soundscape composed by Xina Xurner (Kwak and Marvin Astorga) with Johanna Hedva, Anna Luisa, and Dorian Wood. Taken together, these artworks are a mobilizing call for a new politics of queer and trans resistance: embracing a playful erotics, and celebrating imperfection, abjection, ambiguity, and uncategorizable ways of looking and being.
Young Joon Kwak (b. 1984, Queens, New York; lives and works in Los Angeles) received a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in
2007, an MA from the University of Chicago in 2010, and an MFA from the University of Southern California in 2014. They are the founder of Mutant Salon, a queer-transfem-BIPOC collective beauty salon and collaborative art and performance platform. They are also the lead performer of the drag-electronic-dance-noise band Xina Xurner. Their work has been widely exhibited at galleries and museums internationally, including at the Hammer Museum’s biennial exhibition Made in L.A. 2023: Acts of Living. Their solo exhibition, Resistance Pleasure, was recently on view at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (2024). Kwak is a recipient of the Trellis Art Fund grant (2024); Artadia Los Angeles Award (2024), California Community Foundation Fellowship for Visual Artists (2022), Korean Arts Foundation of America Award (2020), Rema Hort Mann Foundation Emerging Artist Grant (2018), Artist Community Engagement Grant (2016), and Art Matters Foundation Grant (2016). Their work is in the collections of Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento; Dallas Museum of Art; MSU Broad Art Museum, East Lansing; and Speed Art Museum, Louisville.
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YOUNG JOON KWAK, UH, AS IF! (STILL), 2014. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
LAZY SUSAN
SHE’S NOT LAZY, SHE’S A WINNER, BABY!
BY ALEXANDER RODRIGUEZ
SHE’S A SINGER, SHE’S A DANCER, SHE’S A PODCASTER, SHE’S A DRAG QUEEN, AND SHE’S A WINNER, BABY.
From the land that gave us the outlandish drag styles of Priscilla Queen of the Desert, hailing from Upwey, a suburb of Melbourne, comes the winner of Drag Race Down Under season 4, Lazy Susan. Lazy Susan is anything but lazy. She’s a consummate entertainer whose hustle has clearly paid off. Her distinct sense of humor and zany drag aesthetic instantly set her apart in the industry. With her colorful childhood beginnings, her drag journey was destined.
I grew up in a house that was very theatrical, very camp. My dad is like the gayest straight man that ever existed. My mom was a big old dag (eccentric) and a massive theatre nerd. And then my sister is an improv comedy sort of gal. So, there was really no chance of not having at least a little bit of a sense of humor coming out of that environment.
This colorful environment paved the way for Lazy Susan to come into her own when realized she might not be like the other boys.
I was lucky enough to go to a very kind of progressive hippie school up in the Sherbrooke Forest. It was like Montessori - that style of school - but the cheap home brand version. So I was out at around 13. There were a lot of gays
at my school. We were all quoting Will & Grace mercilessly at each other. I was always like the other boys at my school because we were all massive flaming homosexuals and it was a great place to be out.
Despite her young age, Lazy Susan’s early drag influences come from classic sources. My first kind of drag exposure was the childhood ones, Some Like It Hot, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Tootsie. But the most significant early drag influence for me was the film Torch Song Trilogy with Harvey Fierstein, which is still to this day my favorite film. That has influenced so much of my outlook and everything that I take into drag. If you haven’t seen that film, seek it out because it’s amazing. Anne Bancroft,
Harvey Feirstein, need I say more?
Film in general has always been part of Lazy Susan’s life. From childhood to earning a BFA from film school, she has found her inspiration from cinematic personalities like Pedro Almodóvar, John Waters, and Todd Solondz ( Welcome to the Dollhouse and Happiness ), anyone who, according to her, is a twisted homosexual. These kinds of films have created Lazy Susan’s style. How to describe Lazy Susan’s looks? It’s hard to put down in words.
I like to dress like a woman who has just done a 12-hour shift at like a tall window, like that’s my dream aesthetic. I love uniforms and polyester suits and name tags. There usually has to be some element of dank in the drag.
As a citizen of Australia and the United States, she actually auditioned for Drag Race for both iterations. One of her audition tapes featured her parents. What was the winning factor for her last audition tape that got her cast for Down Under season 4? She simply puts it – “Desperation.”
Watching herself go through her season was eye-opening. What did she learn the most about herself?
Watching the show back, the thing I learned, and the thing that I think every Drag Race girly learns, is what you actually look like. It’s a traumatizing experience. So, I learned just to make my makeup bigger. How about that?
Now with so many iterations of Drag Race, there are a number of winners in the industry. How is Lazy Susan going to use her crown, what kind of legacy does she want to create?
I think the key to a good reign is bloodshed, like the most bloodshed. Going on the show is not about getting everyone to like you, it’s about finding the people that you are in sync with and then taking them off back to your weird little corner of the drag world. I’m eager to just find as many of the people that are into the sort of things that I’m into and then make content and ideas and things for them. That’s the thing about having so many winners now, not all of them need to be everything to every person. We now have a winner for every different type of queer out there. I hope to find sweaty, dank homosexuals to entertain.
Lazy Susan is the first queen to be crowned by Michelle Visage, who took the reigns over from RuPaul this season. For Lazy Susan, Visage’s presence wasn’t just about hosting a
show, it was about adding that mother energy to the show. The two also bonded over the loss of their mothers, adding a bit of glitter to grief.
She’s incredible. It’s amazing watching the season back and the meticulous care that she has for the contestants. She’s adaptive, she didn’t just do a one-size-fits-all all. She got to know our personalities and started to know how to receive us and what sort of advice and ideas to give to us. Like I think the way that both me and Max (another season 4 contestant) had conversations about the passing of our mothers was very different because Max and I have different feelings. I’m a real staunch atheist. When people say, “I think your mom’s looking down on you from heaven.” I’m like, “No, she’s not. She’s in a box in my sister’s living room.” Michelle even adapted that kind of conversation with me when I was in that sit down with her in the final episode, we were talking about the moms. “Yeah, my mom died,” and she says, “How about two mothers dying?” because obviously Michelle has lost both her biological and adoptive mother. That is specific, that is her being irreverent with a girl who talks in that kind of way and then offering a really different kind of softer care to someone who’s in a much more fragile state and has more of a feeling about God and heaven and those sorts of things. I really appreciated that in her.
Torch Song Trilogy was not just an early inspirational film for Lazy Susan but also was a source of comfort in working through her grief of losing her mother.
Going back to Torch Song Trilogy, there’s this great line in that film that definitely provided me a lot of solace, it is when Anne Bancroft talks about losing her husband and she says, “Uh, grief is like wearing a new pair of glasses. At first, it’s all you can think about, and it feels like it’s changed your entire life. And it’s not that it ever goes away, it’s just that you get used to it and it becomes part of your everyday life.” That’s how I think about grief. I feel it and live through it. You can’t try and obfuscate grief. It will come for you no matter what. You really have to live in it.
Dealing with death has also been tonguein-cheek for Lazy Susan. Her popular podcast is called Death to Everyone and is an outlandish look at pop culture and the Apocalypse. Would you expect anything tamer from the eccentric mind of this title-winning queen?
GOING ON THE SHOW IS NOT ABOUT GETTING EVERYONE TO LIKE YOU, IT’S ABOUT FINDING THE PEOPLE THAT YOU ARE IN SYNC WITH.”
The podcast is about two celestial goddesses, two drag icons, Zelda Moon and Lazy Susan, deciding what we’re going to put in our doomsday bunker from human culture. For example, which Spice Girl, which road sign, which drink, which thing from 7-11? So they all like going to the bunker while the rest goes into the apocalyptic wasteland. Living in the times that we’re living in, it’s kind of impossible not to think that we’re constantly on the brink of annihilation. So, we wanted to do something that at least made a bit of a joke out of it and had a bit of fun. We also just wanted a way to talk shit about everything that we could think about. What would Lazy Susan exile from her bunker for 2025?
Mr. Beast is, unfortunately, going to be fraying in the apocalyptic wasteland unless he does something really camp soon. We just left Monster Energy drink; they’re going out in the cold in favor of Red Bull. Red Bull is making it into the doomsday bunker because it’s much chicer and fem coated. So yeah, these are the kinds of important questions that we do tackle. Which puppet gets into the bunker is so important because how do we memorialize puppets at the end of days?
Barreling into 2025 with a Drag Race crown, Lazy Susan does not want to slow down and has her sights on a feature film for this year. And her poignant message to her fans?
Bow to my reign or expect death. It will be swift. [Laughs] ■
Follow Lazy Susan on IG: @MsLazySusan Death to Everyone is available wherever you listen to your podcasts
All episodes of Drag Race Down Under Season 4 are now available on WOW Presents Plus.
MURRAY HILL LEANING INTO LOVE
BY ALEXANDER RODRIGUEZ
I DON’T WANT TO BE TREATED ANY DIFFERENTLY THAN ANYBODY ELSE. I WANT TO BE TREATED THE SAME. I WANT TO HAVE THE SAME RIGHTS AS YOU.”
MURRAY HILL IS LARGER THAN LIFE. HE’S GOT A BIG PERSONALITY, A POSITIVE OUTLOOK ON LIFE, AN INFECTIOUS STYLE OF BANTER, AND AN ENDEARING DEMEANOR. It is all presented in a colorful package, suit and all. But it is not just a persona. After chatting with him for just a few minutes, it is clear that he is the real deal. Talking to him is like talking to everyone’s favorite guy at the bar. He’s got stories, jokes, and opinions on life. He’s also got a lot of talent that has taken him from the New York club scene to the stage and screen. You never know where he is going to pop up, from cameos in films to burlesque, from opening for rock bands to performing at parties for Liza, from performing in his one-man show Murry Hill As Himself to co-starring in the hit HBO show Somebody Somewhere. He’s a throwback to classic Hollywood in the style of Benny Hill and Sammy Davis Jr. but with modern flair. He’s unapologetically queer and has moved our community forward in media representation, but without pomp and circumstance, just a lot of heart. There’s a joy to Murray, whether you are talking to him in person or seeing him on stage or screen, but his persona and outlook belie a challenging beginning.
I grew up in a conservative Catholic household and a conservative town. So, my home life was pretty rough. My public life, which when you’re that young is going to school and afterschool programs and sports and all that kind of stuff, is where I really blossomed. I had two very different lives, and I think that set me up quite nicely for the birth of the persona. As I got older, I think I used my humor as a way to disarm all my relationships with people in the town, at church, and my own family. My comedy was to disarm them so that we would all be on the same level. I say it in my show, “If you’re laughing, you can’t be hating at the same time.” It’s actually impossible. So I’ve always had a big personality. Murray looks like all my Italian uncles, and it came out of survival and a coping mechanism, and I’ve made a career out of it and I’m using the same tools that I created to survive then, 40 years later. I’m going to keep building bridges and disarming people so that everyone sees the humanity in the heart first.
Murray knew early on that he wasn’t like the other kids around him.
In first grade I was obsessed with femme teachers, but in a disproportionate way. When I got a couple of years older, I didn’t want to play with the girls, I was just enamored by them. So, I was doing my sports, playing with the guys, tomboy stuff. Then I remember, and this is ridiculous, in Dirty Dancing there’s that scene with Patrick Swayze at Jennifer Grey in the water. He lifts her up and she’s got that wet t-shirt, ahhh. That’s my first memory of consciously being attracted to a woman. And then as quickly as I realized that I was sitting with my brother, and he was like, “What are you talking about? That’s wrong!” Right away it was bad, wrong. So, I was always fighting repression and conservative ideologies and Catholicism and all that stuff. Any feeling I had for a girl or a teacher was bad, bad, bad. I didn’t come out until college. I was a little late bloomer.
Murray would shed his conservative life and find his home, and ultimately his persona, in the heart of the East Village in the mid1990s, becoming part of the queer club family that would pave the way for other LGBTQ personalities.
What I loved about the nightlife scene was it was all open arms. At that point, New York was a little bit affordable, and everyone went to New York to be accepted for who they were and to find themselves, and to not be judged and discriminated against. The thing about nightlife that was so beautiful, and that I slipped right into, is that it showed me by action, and by these wonderful people, all about chosen family. Back then in the East Village, there were clubs every single night with RuPaul, Mario Diaz, Jackie Beat, Justin Bond, Lady Bunny, Linda Simpson, all those folks. You could go out every single night and spend all this time with these people and you would never ask them about their time before New York. This is our family; this is our safe space. This is where we can be who we are at 2:00am on Avenue A. New York nightlife for me was like going home and understanding what family was. We had so much fun.
I met so many colorful people and that’s when I developed a persona and created an act. At The Cock (club) I sang “My Way” at 3:00am. Everybody was loaded on something. I was definitely on the booze train, and I was so drunk, I couldn’t remember the words! But it was like we were singing at a pub in Ireland. But that was the first time I didn’t know the words, so I just put the microphone out.
You have to understand, I’m on a tiny shoebox platform as the stage, clip lights on me, and 200 sweaty people loaded. I put the microphone towards them, and everybody sang out “Myyyyyy waaaaayyy!” I still do that in my act, 30 years later, I put the microphone out to the crowd, and they sing along.
For all the many projects Murray has been a part of, he’s always been referred to and labeled as the community he comes from. Media headlines refer to him as drag king, trans, or queer man Murray Hill. In Murray’s ideal world, those labels wouldn’t be a necessity.
I think there needs to be room for some nuance here because some people need to
THE BIGGEST THING THAT GOT ME TO WHERE I AM IS I DID NOT STOP IN THE FACE OF DEFEAT.”
identify themselves verbally, and that’s what they want to do. “I’m queer” or “I’m trans” or whatever it is, to declare an identity and take up that space and be empowered by it. My whole thing about how I was raised, part of a generational thing, is I don’t want to be treated any differently than anybody else. I want to be treated the same. I want to have the same rights as you. I want to be addressed by my name, I don’t need to have 40 things in front of it. My personal political stance is I am so much more than my sexual orientation and my gender identification. If you said in front of every man like “the male comedian Dave Chappelle,” it sounds weird, right? Because it
doesn’t happen. That’s where I come from, I just want to be addressed and seen as an equal.
Murray has been a trailblazer in the drag king world. This coming year, Murray will host King of Drag on Revry TV. It is the first ever televised drag king reality series. Having performed as a drag king since 1995, Murray is elated to be the hype man for the drag king community.
There’s been a lot of controversy over the years that drag kings want to get on RuPaul’s show. My whole motto in this has been, from the very beginning, “If you don’t see yourself represented, go out and represent yourself.” I’ve never wanted to be a contestant on Drag
Race, because I am not a drag queen. I would like to be a guest judge, but I don’t want to be a contestant because I want to showcase OUR community. We have to have our OWN show. And that’s not as a separation or a different silo, but this is a community that exists. And I was part of the early representation and now it’s all over the country, and it’s all over the world. And I think it’s important for me because I finally broke through some mainstream media with TV and film and now I’m in a position where I can bring everybody else up and get the spotlight on the kids and show everybody what this scene is. And it’s not just the opposite of drag queens and it’s not just drag kings being like Drag Race, it’s this whole community of people that don’t get the representation, they don’t get the bookings, they don’t get a chance to be on TV ever.
I’ve pitched the show for decades. The response? “What’s a drag king? No one’s going to watch this, it’s too niche.” We could fill up your whole magazine with all the rejections. So, when I met Damian from Revry, I knew that he was not your typical streaming CEO gatekeeper. You have to make an effort to do this, you actually have to make an effort to be inclusive and to be intersectional. It takes action, you can’t just say it. So, when I was speaking to him, I realized that he knew what he was talking about in terms of intersectionality, and he knew this community, and he was in full agreement that it’s time for this community to have its own show and to be represented. The difference between talking to him and any other network executive that I’ve talked to in the last 20 years is that I didn’t have to start off my meeting explaining who I was and explaining who drag kings are. We were already past that and we were in agreement that this has to happen and we’re going to do it.
Regardless of the long list of queer descriptives that come with Murray’s celebrity status, he has managed to break through to mainstream media. He appeared with Amy Schumer in Hulu’s Life & Beth, alongside John Cena and Awkwafina in Paul Feig’s hit movie JACKPOT!, and co-starred with Bridget Everett in HBO’s Somebody Somewhere, and served as a special guest correspondent for ABC News and Hulu. How did he manage to bridge the gap between queer and mainstream work?
The biggest thing that got me to where I am is I did not stop in the face of defeat. As much rejection as I received from networks,
MURRAY IS THE MANIFESTATION OF SURVIVAL ON AN UNWAVERING MISSION TO REPRESENT THE GOOD AND THE COMPASSION AND EMPATHY FOR EVERYONE, AND TO REPRESENT THE QUEER COMMUNITY. ”
from theaters, from clubs, so much this whole 28 years I’ve been doing this, what’s kept me going is the audience. And it’s kind of what’s going on today. The loudest noises are the “no’s” and the “who are you?” niche. “Nobody wants to see this.” And then I’m playing in Alexandria, Virginia, making everybody laugh, being as edgy as I always am and there are all kinds of races, all kinds of ages, folks from the military, politicians… and they’re all coming together and laughing. So that’s what kept me going because I saw it, I saw that Murray isn’t something to be afraid of, it’s something to celebrate. I bring people together and that goes back to the early days of disarming folks. I believed in myself even though, and I’m not going to lie, I’ve been impacted by a lifetime of discrimination from my own family, to society, to the increased trolling on my Instagram page since the Presidential Inauguration. In the face of hate, I’ve kept going.
Even with Murray’s celebrity status, he still has to explain his identity from time to time.
In a Metrosource exclusive, Murray revealed that he recently filmed with Arnold Schwarzenegger for the upcoming film, Man With the Bag. Murray was blocking a scene that he was sharing with Arnold while dressed in a Santa suit. The director kept referring to Murray and Arnold was confused as to who the director was talking about, because the director kept saying “he” and “him.” Murray was unphased.
At that moment, I saw the bigger picture that I am with one of the biggest, most masculine, straightest action heroes in the history of show business. A big A-list star. I am Murray Hill with Arnold Schwarzenegger! Now am I going to sit there and be offended that he’s misgendering me and doesn’t know what the hell’s going on? Or am I going to use this opportunity to have empathy? Obviously, he wasn’t coming from a negative place. He just
didn’t know what was going on. It’s not part of his world. Or was I going to use my humor and compassion? This is a huge moment for me to be with him, for trans men, for drag kings. It just hasn’t happened before. So, I made it a warm, funny interaction and he looked at me and said, “I think I get it now.” And then action. And then he was patting my shoulder. And that was it. So, part of me being mainstream is I haven’t wavered who I am, which is a warm, open person who wants everybody to get along.
This February, Murray will embark on the West Coast tour of his one-man show, Murray Hill As Himself. The show is a throwback to the old Vegas-style shows (in fact, he will appear in Vegas) with a band with big opening and closing numbers, guest stars, and plenty of comedy. Think Don Rickles meets Belle Barth. Murray will make fun of everything that is going on in the world, not through anger but through camp. Through his comedy, he will hit some hard points, including the current political attack on the queer community. Proceeds from the show will benefit One Voice, a non-profit dedicated to providing goods, services, and opportunities to the underprivileged, including everything from crisis intervention to long-term programming that lifts families out of poverty, while providing avenues for the rest of the community to become involved in helping families in need. Currently, One Voice is helping the families and workers affected by the Los Angeles fires (onevoice-la.org). His stop in LA on February 20th will be at Lodge Room (lodgeroomhlp.com), and on February 22nd he will be at the Revolution Stage Company (revolutionstagecompany. com) in Palm Springs.
In addition to his touring show, Revry’s King of Drag, and other film projects, Murray will release his memoir Showbiz! My Life As a Middle-Aged Man through Simon & Schuster. Even with a star on the rise, he remains humble and down to earth. The loud suits, jokes, and big band numbers are not an act, they are elements of who Murray really is. How is Murray the person different than Murray the persona?
As long as I’ve been in show business, I’ve been in therapy. I don’t think all my show business gigs have covered the cost of my therapy, but that’s another story. Murray is the manifestation of survival on an unwavering mission to represent the good and the compassion and empathy for everyone, and to represent the queer community. I feel like I’m old school, looking out for everyone and
I think personally, I am the survivor. I know it’s a very subtle difference, but it’s like me, the person, had to go through all the shit from my own family, my own community, starting from day three up until two days ago with someone telling me I need to go to a mental hospital and find Jesus and go on Lithium. I take all that in and I survive that because I choose to use it in a positive way. We all have friends who are beaten down, suffer from depression, and who may have suicidal thoughts and are scared. I have all those things too, but I’ve managed to get through it and use it. Murray is my reward for survival. I got through my own life, I’m still standing, and now people can see my energy and my openness, and my desire for equal rights and anything I do. And now I get to do it on TV, people can pick that up. I go to Palm Springs where people can pick that up. So, Murray’s the reward for the struggle.
And Murray’s message to his fans?
Keep your chins up. My live shows are about being a fun, respite, safe place for people to laugh and to be who they are. No one’s going to get trolled or anything. And what I would say to people is to lean into these experiences and your community. In LA, you see everything that’s happening with the fires. But what is happening there is the community and people are taking care of each other. That’s beautiful. And that’s how we’re going to get through all this. So, what I would tell people is to lean towards the love, be present in your community, limit that social media, come to the show, and we’re going to be all right. ■
Follow Murray Hill on IG: @MurrayHill
REBECCA BLACK SWEET SALVATION
BY MEGAN VENZIN
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ALMOST A DECADE AND A HALF AFTER HER CONTROVERSIAL TEENAGE DEBUT, QUEER MUSICIAN REBECCA BLACK STILL TURNS THE POP-WORLD UPSIDE DOWN WITH VIRAL MOMENTS AND IRRESISTIBLE EARWORMS. In her next project SALVATION, she presents what’s possible when utter selftrust prevails.
The internet is a fickle place. A fast-moving URL can turn a hopeful soul into an overnight phenomenon, and criticism can shift the narrative just as fast. Only the surest of themselves can ride the wave, gaining something akin to a superpower for their tenacity.
Rebecca Black’s got it. Whether navigating studio sessions for her forthcoming ‘SALVATION’ or dominating the decks at Boiler Room parties where she rips 140bpm techno with a signature hyperpop edge, the queer singer, songwriter, and DJ enlists passion (and a little hindsight) to fuel her limitless approach to music making.
Learning to trust herself took time, and Black admits that journey is far from over. But when Metrosource catches up with the independent pop disruptor on a video call from her Los Angeles home, she’s the picture of pure confidence.
“Originally, it wasn’t even supposed to be recorded,” she shares of her recent performance for the aforementioned club promoter. “I had said, ‘no, I’m just gonna go in, get my bearings, and do it.’ And as soon as I finished the set, I remember immediately going to my manager and being like, ‘Why was I so scared to do this?’” Luckily, the Boiler Room team captured the footage of her high-octane performance which hovers at some 1.2 million YouTube views at time of writing. “The energy in the room was truly crazy, especially being for the fact that it was 6pm in the boondocks of D.C.,” she recalls of the explosive set, which includes original edits alongside blistering reworks of hits by Björk, N*SYNC and Lana Del Rey. “You can see 20 minutes in, this adorable cutie next to me offers me poppers, and I literally was like, ‘Girl, it’s 6!’” she adds with a telltale smirk.
Black is quite used to instigating feral behavior, after attaining online fame in 2011 for decidedly varied reasons. Even with the more mature star peering back at us from our laptop screen, it’s still hard to believe that this viral Boiler Room moment arrives 14 years following her release of ‘Friday’ — a certified internet-breaker remembered for its scathing
jeers-turned-adoring cheers.
In the now legendary video, a then-teenage Black crunches cereal, rides shotgun and belts in tribute to the (undisputed) best day of the week. That almost four-minute work of art simultaneously launched her entertainment career and detonated her personal life. Black’s cautionary tale went on to stoke a broader conversation about the dangers of bullying, an area of activism where the songstress continues to pour her energy today. Since coming out as queer in 2020, she’s also partnered with a range of LGBTQ+ organizations like the AdCouncil, GLAAD and Best Buddies, noting that she’s felt a sense of solidarity and acceptance from the community since the very beginning. “With my story in particular, and it took me a long time to wrap my head around this, but there was a very clear resonance with feeling like an outcast and feeling misunderstood and immediately being written off as one thing,” Black divulges of her theory as to why queer audiences were among the first to champion her leftfield pop aesthetic. “And obviously there’s the conversation around camp and irony and nostalgia that I think queer people are always the first to tap into, because I think they’re always ahead of their time.” In
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other words, real sees real.
Overcoming adversity is key to living one’s truth, and even after being forced to switch high schools due to harassment, Black held her head high. “I fought my family on the right to continue doing what I did after my experience, because they thought I was absolutely crazy to continue in an industry that is as lethal and confusing as music,” Black reveals candidly. “There’s always been a gut feeling that this was just what I knew I was supposed to do.”
In the aftermath of ‘Friday’, she sought new ways to explore her passion on her own terms. A sweltering remix of the life changing tune emerged on its 10-year anniversary, this time featuring Black alongside rainbow icons Big Freedia and Dorian Electra. There is also plenty of poking fun in later catalogue selections and promotional content, too (the quirky teaser to her debut album ‘Let Her Burn’ in which a faceless figure opens Russian dolls to reveal Black’s transformation from ‘Friday’ innocent to “Edge Lord” is one such example.)
This tongue-in-cheek trend continues with her newest project ‘SALVATION’, which hit the airwaves on January 24. The music video for the lead single — an electro-house banger called ‘TRUST’ — spotlights a fashionably-fitted Black inside a drab courtroom, offering a cutting metaphor for the overexposed celebrity experience. “Being in the court of public opinion is kind of the thesis of what this project is,” Black explains of the core message. “I was at a point where I really had to learn to embrace exactly who I was, whether or not people understood it, and go exactly forth where I felt was right.”
Black succeeds in this mission — the seven-track collection is a bold celebration of self-acceptance. It also slays, kicking off with the pumping four-to-the-floor title track in which Black’s soaring voice regales a quest of saving herself. “I’ve written a lot of heartbreak stuff, and this album is pretty on the other side of that coin for me,” she says, noting that its themes and beats are built for the clubs. Overall, ‘SALVATION’ retains the thoughtful songwriting prevalent throughout 2021’s ‘Rebecca Black Was Here’ EP and the full-length 2023 follow-up ‘Let Her Burn’, but boasts more propulsive tempos, and rolls deep in dancefloor-driven basslines.
Fans of ‘Hollaback Girl’-era Gwen Stefani will get their kicks from ‘Sugar Water Cyanide’, another bouncy anthem that lays on the Y2K textures. “I couldn’t even tell you what exactly we were referencing on the day,” she says of the groove’s sweetly toxic title. “We immediately
THERE’S ALWAYS BEEN A GUT FEELING THAT THIS WAS JUST WHAT I KNEW I WAS SUPPOSED TO DO.”
got on this tip and started with this very baby vocal, and we left the room with the song pretty much completely finished. I remember playing it in a session the next day and being like, ‘How the f*** did we do this?’”
Despite what some listeners might assume, this thumper materialized pre-Boiler Room madness. “This music has been a part of my blood for way longer than that,” Black says, adding that formative artists like late producer SOPHIE also influenced its unbridled sonics. “The song is really about the relationship you have with someone that feels like a drug,” she shares of the playful lyrics that liken a passionate encounter to a sugar rush. She takes a sip from a red can and continues, “I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s like the relationship that I have with Coke Zero, because I love it so much.”
Much like her favorite drink, there’s an air of effervescent bravada throughout the pop collection which draws from genres across the electronic sphere. This energy is most palpable in ‘Twist the Knife’, a bold finale that harkens back to broadway epics like Chicago’s ‘Cell Block Tango’, and sends Black’s vision soaring to new heights of avant garde splendor. “What would be a perfect way to cap this off other than a song about me murdering a man for a woman, and creating this world of what that feels like in terms of self-freedom and being unleashed from the chains of yourself?” Black asked herself when searching for the record’s sinful climax. The result is a cinematic drum-and-bass scorcher, backed by some of the most expansive production elements we’ve heard behind Black to date.
It’s a triumphant ending to ‘SALVATION’, a project that shows a pop star embracing her power at a time when audiences need external reassurance. “As queer people, young people, and the people who would be the kinds to listen to me or Chappell [Roan] or Charli [XCX] or Sabrina [Carpenter], I think there is a need for something sweet amongst the depressive and something to continue to push the energy forward in a time where it feels like things are rushing back against us,” Black says, noting other fearless female pop stars who’ve pushed the envelope during this tumultuous era. “I do think there are some parallels to this time from when I was a middle schooler and just kind of figuring out how to be conscious in the universe for the first time.”
One difference is crystal clear, however. With life’s lessons in her bag, Black’s discovered that salvation starts inside herself, and she’s never looking back. ■
MAX EMERSON TIME FOR A FRESH START AFTER BREAKUPS, FIRES, AND TEARS
BY ALEXANDER RODRIGUEZ
THE NEW YEAR STARTED OFF WITH THE WORLD WITNESSING HEADLINES ABOUT THE FIRES IN LOS ANGELES THAT HAVE DECIMATED OVER 50,000 ACRES AND KILLED AT LEAST 27 PEOPLE, BECOMING ONE OF THE WORST NATURAL DISASTERS IN THE STATE’S HISTORY. And, at the exact moment of this writing, the Hughes Fire broke out consuming over 9,200 acres in just a matter of hours. It is one thing to read the headlines, it is another thing entirely to be a direct victim of this tragedy, losing everything in a place you called home. Max Emerson, YouTuber, actor, author, director, and LGBTQ personality, received the news that the home that he and his fiancé Andrés restored and meant to grow their family in was burning to the ground. Max would lose more than just the house and its belongings, not even having been given the opportunity to evacuate properly. But surprisingly, he is moving forward and focusing on the future rather than his losses.
I experienced it entirely online. I still haven’t seen the house. I just got back to LA last night. I was flying from Switzerland to Utah for a job, and Andrés was coming up from Chile to meet me there. I had heard about the fires when leaving Switzerland, and by the time I was in Utah, the house was long gone. After that, it was just about picking up the pieces and putting things together. We had some neighbors that stayed behind and they managed to get footage of the house burning down. That gives me a huge sense of closure. I don’t think everybody has the experience of
watching their house in full inferno mode. For me, there’s something at work here with all of that. The most tragic part about our house burning down is that Andrés quit his job to become a visual artist and had four years’ worth of paintings in a closet downstairs. I could cry right now just thinking about it. He had just booked his first solo show, an international show in Chile, and was literally on the way back to the States to pick up the art to go to the show. Fortunately, he was able to photograph a lot of that stuff. I’m sure on some weird, deep, cosmic level, it is a lesson in
permanence, but this is the part of that lesson that just sucks. And that’s just what it is.
Max posted footage of his house burning down on Instagram. It is devastating. Mere days after the couple posted a moving video sharing that they were safe and stable, Max and Andrés made a loving statement, sharing that after nine years, they were separating. As they put it, they “still love each other fully, deeply, and unconditionally. That love doesn’t end; it evolves.”
The media went crazy sharing headlines of their breakup. Max has continued to post to his over 1 million followers on social media, showing that
he is returning to some semblance of normality. Single and without a home.
I’ve always just posted compulsively to social media. Even though social media has put a lot of pressure on my relationship, which is now on pause, I know that there are a lot of people invested and connected, and there are people who care about us, and me, who want to know that we’re okay. The fact of the matter is, we are okay. For me at least, there’s no point in sharing this big sad, sob story. Our house burned down. It’s sad, it sucks, but it is just stuff at the end of the day.
I THINK MY ARC WITH GRIEF HAS BEEN TO NOT JUST PLOW THROUGH, BUT ACTUALLY LET YOURSELF FEEL THE FEELINGS AND ALLOW YOURSELF TO NOT BE OKAY.”
Max didn’t have time to grieve. Work and the need to focus on the future of his solo career brought him to a branded two-week influencer stint in the heart of the Colorado mountains. Even while focusing on continuing to work, he is trying to give himself some grace to focus on his mental health.
That was not a response to my house burning down. Those were just jobs and things that I already had confirmed, and I could not think of a better place to be. As much as I wanted to be here for and with my community and help, I felt like I would just be in the way. I’m just one more displaced person to jack up the real estate market. I’m from Florida and have a lot of experience with hurricanes, but fires are really, really scary to me. I very much feel like I’m on the other side of the grief in a lot of ways. Of course, it comes in waves and is not linear, but for about the first week, I just had to budget an hour and a half a day to not be okay. And if I thought I was going to get away with it one day and be like, “Oh, I didn’t cry today!” No, it’d catch me. My body’s nice to me though, it gets it out of the way at times when it’s not inconvenient or embarrassing. Like I’ll just randomly wake up at three in the morning and start crying, and then I’m good. I feel like the endorphins from the crying kick in, and I look at all the love and opportunities that are just being hurled at me and then it’s all right. That being said, my social battery is about 50% of what it normally is.
Max has become a highlighted name in the queer community. His film projects like DipSpit, Earwig, and Hooked solidified his work as an actor, producer, writer, and director. His autobiography, Hot Sissy – Life Before Flashbulbs,
detailed his “redneck” teenage years growing up in Florida and was well received. On YouTube, he has become extremely popular for his diverse collection of videos that include unfiltered thoughts on life, thirst traps, and his ongoing series Stuff Every Queer Kid Should Know. On social media, he continues to gain followers because of his appreciation and promotion of the LGBTQ community and, let’s be honest, his shirtless and underwear pics. His relationship ended up being a big part of his social media. The two announced their relationship, would film content together, announced their engagement, talked about going through the adoption process, and posted their breakup on social media. Does Max have any regrets about sharing so much about his relationship with the public?
Absolutely not. There’s nothing about my relationship that I regret. Part of the issue with what was happening is that I became the spokesperson for the entity that is us. And that’s not fair to him. That’s too much responsibility for me and it was just causing problems. Right now, everything that’s happening to us is a sign that it’s time for a break. We had a failed adoption that failed for a reason. Our house literally burned to the ground. That happened for a reason. We’ve had a lot of communication issues in the last few months, and we’ve decided to just take some time apart. So having something like this, simplified things for us so we can just make a full, clean break early while we still like each other. That is huge.
There is a level of grief and maybe even embarrassment to admit online that your very public relationship isn’t working out. But I
think it’s also just a part of relationships. Not everyone wants to be around each other all the time. We have huge opportunities coming up for both of us, but they’re literally on different continents. I think the lesson for us right now, as a relationship, is to find ways to care about each other and love each other without the same sort of attachment that we were putting on ourselves, that we were having put on us by a bunch of strangers randomly weighing in on our relationship. After nine years, I think it’s time to reestablish ourselves as individuals because as fun as it is, doing happy couple content, there’s nothing more miserable than doing happy couple content when you’re fighting. It feels so inauthentic. When there’s just all these great offers and jobs and opportunities for us to go be a happy couple, we’re going to take them because it’s fun. But then that takes up the real estate and opportunity for me to be an actual filmmaker and for Andrés to be a visual artist. It’s everything in the universe that’s telling us to go be individuals and develop the lives and careers that we want independent of each other. It’s not to say that this may not work out in the future, but just definitely not right now.
Social media, especially in the queer community, can be smoke and mirrors with content creators always putting their best foot forward. With Max losing his house, the reality of his relationship being public news, and now having to start fresh, does he feel less pressure to present the glossy version of his life?
I am first and foremost a cheugy millennial. My job through college was a model during the toxic Abercrombie era. My first impulse is usually to make it look good before I put it out there. But I feel like that’s in anything I do, I always want something to be aesthetically pleasing, whether it’s how I’ve designed and laid out my home, or if I’m going to plate a dinner. I like things to have an aesthetic balance to them. But I actually don’t think that I was super successful with social media until I started learning how to be vulnerable.
My first large crowdsource project was for a film I wrote, a narrative about homeless youth called Hooked. It was a reaction to all the predatory behavior I’d been experiencing from people within our own community. One of the big arcs of that fundraising is that I had a whole fake relationship with Kyle Krieger. We fake dated for a month and we fake broke up. It’s all very meta and it’s all happening again. But through the course of that month
of fundraising, I had these celebrity cameos that functioned as mentors, helping me channel that vulnerability and authenticity and acknowledgment that not everything is awesome all of the time. So again, I think when it comes to regret and sharing your relationship on social media, yes, people need role models, as pretentious as that sounds, for how to go on vacation with your partner and not just fight in the hotel room the whole time. Yes, there needs to be examples of ways to celebrate your love and do it in a healthy capacity, but there also needs to be role models on how to break up and how to still care about each other. It’s not my first choice of a storyline, but that’s the truth right now.
Max is moving forward and taking his followers with him for the ride, bumps and all. He has some big international projects happening and hinted at a major project he can’t talk about right now. Even with everything he has
gone through in less than a month, he is oddly optimistic and does consider the fires a type of personal cleansing. That is not to say there is no grief. Many people, and many from the queer community, have lost everything in the Los Angeles fires. Some are moving to different states, some are staying and trying to rebuild their lives, and many are displaced with no actionable plan in sight. From his own dealing with grief, Max offers his advice.
I think my arc with grief has been to not just plow through, but actually let yourself feel the feelings and allow yourself to not be okay. Don’t run from those feelings. Feel them because you’re going to feel them whether you want to or not. And the harder you fight it, the more it’s going to hurt. So do that, feel those feelings, but then when you’re done, get to work, get off your ass, and keep going. ■ You
WE ARE JUST OUT THERE PUTTING OUT POSITIVITY, SAYING NO MATTER WHO YOU WANT TO BE, WHAT YOU WANT TO BE, NO MATTER WHAT KIND OF FAMILY DYNAMIC YOU WANT TO HAVE, IT’S ALL POSSIBLE.”
JOSÉ ROLÓN BLENDING LGBTQ AND LATINX
FAMILY VALUES
BY ALEXANDER RODRIGUEZ
IN A WORLD WHERE GAY SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT CREATORS BECOME FAMOUS FOR STRIPPING DOWN, LIP-SYNCHING, OR DANCING TO THE LATEST TREND, JOSÉ ROLÓN HAS MADE A NAME FOR HIMSELF AND HIS THREE CHILDREN ACROSS THE PLATFORMS FOR BEING THEMSELVES, ENCOURAGING ACTIVISM, AND CELEBRATING FAMILY LIFE. At the heart of every one of their posts is unabashed unconditional love. Their social media perfectly captures family life while challenging the norms of what an American family looks like, especially as we head into a political administration determined to define what a normal family should be. While running the household as the single father to Avery, Lilah, and London, José has become an important voice in both the Latinx and LGBTQ communities, leading advocacy and family discussion, while being a business role model to his kids as a leading event and wedding planner. He has been featured on national media outlets that include MSNBC, The Today Show, and Good Morning America, and made queer history as the first gay father to be featured on the cover of Parents Latina Magazine. He represents a real and true American family life.
He is an East Coast native with a family from a Puerto Rican background. Family life growing up was the complete opposite of the environment Rolón established for his kids. While abuse and addiction were part of his household, he also had to deal with the expectations of being a Latin male while dealing with his sexuality.
I grew up in a Puerto Rican neighborhood and something that you learned very quickly growing up is at the time, certainly in the late eighties and early nineties, there were two things you didn’t talk about in the Latino community: AIDS and being gay. I knew that pretty early on in the sense that whatever it was I was feeling, it wasn’t the right way to feel.
I grew up in a very machismo household and it was all about being a man. It was all about not talking about your feelings. I was an only child, and I was very effeminate growing up. I remember my dad always saying things like, “Don’t stretch your S’s.” I didn’t even know what that meant. I was like, “I’m sssssssorry, what do you mean?” He would say things like, “Walk like a man.” I didn’t even know what that meant. A couple of times he did call me a little faggot. So, it was very ingrained that there was a certain way to be a male in a Latino community and a Latin household. And my father was a firefighter, he was a Marine. It doesn’t get any more
machismo than that.
José’s father would eventually get into drugs and pass away from complications from AIDS after contracting the virus from a shared needle. His father died before José came out. While some Latin households find it hard to break a cycle of abuse and addiction, he made the decision to create a family life for his children that he did not have.
I would say the thing you do learn as you become a parent, you have a little bit more empathy for how your parents were. My parents had me at 17, so they were babies raising baby a baby. When you grow up in such a volatile household that’s filled with drugs and machismo and anger, you don’t know what the lesson is when you’re older and you carry resentment with you. But then when you become a parent, what becomes apparent is the lesson you get. You do the exact opposite. My mother was very kind and affectionate and loving and all that. But with my father, I just do the opposite. I’m super affectionate with my kids. I never heard my dad say, “I love
you,” not once. There’s not a day where I don’t say, “I love you” multiple times. We have this thing every single time we go to bed, or we leave each other: it’s “I love you.” One says, “I love you more.” And the other one says, “Impossible.” We are just a very touchy-feely family. Growing up in a machismo household, what’s important for me with my children is to make sure that they are being raised with a lot of empathy and compassion and to be able to stick up for other people that are around them who might feel less than, and to make sure we’re putting out as much positivity as we can, as opposed to keeping everything so locked up within four walls, which is how I grew up. José did finally come out in college, after a pivotal life moment where his two worlds collided. He was invited to his first-ever Latin night at a gay club. He tears up as he remembers walking into that club, at age 19, and seeing men dancing Salsa and Merengue with other men. José’s parents were salseros and would compete in dance competitions. This was the inspiration for him to live life authentically.
It was the first time in my life that I saw there was a possibility that those two worlds could exist together. And that’s sort of been part of my mission since I know that we are typically known as, not my words, but other people have said that we are bridging the gap between Latinx and the LGBTQ community while remaining relatable to all families. I hold that very proudly.
Being queer has helped shape José’s role as a father and break down Latinx familial stereotypes.
Being part of the LGBTQ community allows us to be more fluid and be more in touch with our feelings and our emotions. Generally, we’re pretty sensitive to begin with, and we’ve dealt with a lot of adversity, not only just being Latino, but now having to deal with discrimination against being a gay man or a gay boy. We know what it’s like to feel less than on so many levels that when we have the opportunity to come out of that on the other side and to be able to, in our desire to raise kids, make it easier for us to show them compassion and show them our feelings, because the last thing we would ever want them to feel is less than. So they’ve seen me cry. They’ve seen me cry because I’m happy, because I’m angry, because I’m feeling sensitive while watching a movie. I want them
to know that it’s okay to express their feelings because when they hold it in, like we probably witnessed growing up, it just comes out in such volatile ways. Being part of the LGBTQ community and then having the opportunity to raise children has allowed me to break a lot of those cycles for the next generation. Hopefully, machismo will just be something that the old ancestors used to be like.
Becoming a social media sensation was not part of José’s plan. As a leading New York City wedding planner, his work was at a standstill when Covid hit. He was stuck at home with three kids, having to take on multiple roles.
Anyone who was a parent was stuck with triple duty. We had to parent, we had to homeschool, and then if we had our own businesses, we had to try to make that survive. Having three kids and three different classes, it was just a lot of chaos in the house. And so, I needed a way to break up this craziness. The initial thought was, “Oh, I got this. I can put things in line and be organized.” I realized very quickly that it was more about making sure that my kids’ mental well-being was far more intact than what they were learning in school. What I started to do is just make a bunch of silly videos. We didn’t do it for people out there. We did it for ourselves. It was purely self-serving to
just do things that were entertaining and then post them. Some videos started to go viral, and I found that so interesting because I think we were just doing what we were doing. But that’s when I realized that for a lot of the families, it didn’t matter if we were Latinx or LGBTQ, our stuff just seemed relatable to so many people who were going through the same thing.
As the family’s social media started to take the spotlight, so did José’s personal story of how he became a single father. Seven years prior, his husband passed away unexpectedly. Rolón found himself alone with an eight-month-old son and with twins on the way. He announced the family’s pregnancy while giving his husband’s eulogy. His story of love, perseverance, and positivity became a much-needed headline during Covid. The media outlets started to reach out and he found himself sharing his story on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Ellen’s Game of Games, as well as making queer history as the cover of Parents Latina Magazine becoming the first gay father ever featured. He tears up once again as he remembers being chosen.
I remember when they called me, I just bawled my eyes out. I couldn’t believe it. There were a few pivotal moments for me, but that was a moment where it was like, wow, there’s something really bigger happening outside of our small world. We really are making an impact. To be able to be a gay man on the cover of a parents’ magazine that is geared towards the Latino community, which as we know, can be very homophobic. The fact that they took that risk and put us on the cover was amazing. Rolón and his family would appear on the magazine again in 2022 and 2023. With that came speaking engagements where he has been able to share his family story and promote LGBTQ representation in family life. What message would he give to straight, Latino parents?
I would say my message to other Latinos, straight Latino fathers, in particular, is two things. One, we’re just as exhausted as you are trying to get the kids out the door, lol. We’re still making sure we’re feeding our kids. We’re still trying to keep our culture intact. We might be a little bit more colorful than you guys, but we are not that different. We are still parenting. We are still doing the same things. Secondly, I would encourage them to allow their children to be their authentic selves. If their daughter wants to go out and play sports and be aggressive out on the field, let them do that. If you have a son who wants to be in the kitchen
because he loves the idea of cooking, let him do that. Let them be who they are. Because growing up, we weren’t allowed to do that. I very openly allow my children to do what they want, within reason, of course, as long as it’s all safe and wonderful.
Even with the positive messages his family’s social media puts out into the world, their platforms are not shielded from keyboard warriors. When Rolón and his children held a mock funeral for Goya, a Latin-owned food company whose CEO decided to support Trump, social media had a lot to say. His post was featured alongside Ivanka Trump’s and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s on Instagram. The discourse became so heated, that José received death threats.
I thought it was funny, but I also wanted to make a statement that we were no longer going to be in support of these products for the time being. It went viral. People were divided between the Latino community and the Trump supporters because the Latino community was upset because they felt like we were encouraging taking jobs from the Latino community, away from Goya. In my mind, I’m like, no, I just don’t think the person at the top should be in that position. And then, of course, I had all the Trump supporters come after us. This was pretty early on, and I was like, oh, there is something bigger outside of our bubble here, and I need to think a little bit more carefully about how my children are collaborating in these videos whenever it’s political. That was the one thing that was a bit of a shift. Now, do I allow my kids to get involved in political content? I do more now because they are older. We are five years in, they are 11 and 10, and they have a bigger understanding. But at the time, I definitely had to think a little bit more responsibly about protecting my children, because, of course, I didn’t want death threats.
Despite the continued success Rolón has with his social media, even in the face of Meta and TikTok changing its policies, he remains staunch in only creating content when the family wants to. He is not keeping to a concrete schedule or putting out content just for content’s sake. He refuses to be beholden to brand deals that don’t make sense or require the family to do what it doesn’t want to do.
We were in the public eye when they were five and six. It was organic, and it was just stuff that we started to share. There was no pressure anywhere. My kids loved doing them. They had fun being silly, during the pandemic, and they got to see me in a way they would’ve never seen
me otherwise. And they loved that. And then they got in on it. For them, it was just entertaining entertainment and just having fun with their dad. Now, as they’re older, they understand, they have zero pressure, so there’s no grooming or forcing them to be in the spotlight. You’ll see videos where they’re in and videos that they’re not. Our family is comfortable being on screen and we’re okay with that. When they turn of age, or even before that, if at some point they’re like, “Not only do we not want to do this anymore, but can we go through some of your videos and delete embarrassing ones?” I will absolutely, without question, do that.
The Rolón has expanded even further. No, not more kids but with the addition of José’s partner Thomas. The two just celebrated two years together. After some dating trials and errors, Thomas has made a welcome place with José and his children.
By the time I met Thomas, I realized the traits I needed to look for were someone who shows up with compassion, who has respect for your journey, and who is okay with me honoring who the children’s father was. Someone who’s going to be the calm to my storm, and someone who the children will love too. There was this nice balance of appreciating who he is as someone I would want to get to know, not only with my children, but when my children are far beyond the home. I think that’s a mistake that a lot of single parents make. They obsess over whether they will be perfect for my kids. It just so happens, Thomas is perfect for my kids, but that wasn’t my single focus. It’s really been magical. We did feel complete before he showed up but now there’s this wholeness that feels calm to all of us, and everything feels just right.
Being honest with his children is the foundation for his relationship with them. On a national scale, being open and honest about being queer and queer issues to youth is José’s mission and very necessary, especially when queer discussion is trying to be limited in classrooms.
What people don’t see on our social media feed is all the hundreds of messages we have gotten over the last five years from LGBTQ+ youth, and from mothers of LGBTQ+ children who are crying and saying, “I’m so happy we have you to show our son that this is possible. You make us as parents feel less scared for our children and the things that they’ll face.” So it’s good now that in 2025, we have made a lot of progress and that we are just a very small grain of sand where there’s some light for some people out there that come across our feed that will inspire them because visibility is important. And that’s not to say that our model is the way everyone should be. We are just out there putting out positivity, saying no matter who you want to be, what you want to be, no matter what kind of family dynamic you want to have, it’s all possible.
Away from the social media spotlight, what kind of legacy does José want to create for his family?
I think this might sound a bit cliche, but I want it to be very clear that the legacy I leave behind when I’m long gone, and my children look back that they see we were a million percent on the right side of history. We were proactive in being on the right side of history. We were at the White House three times for a pride event. We were part of Kamala Harris’s campaign. I want them to look back and say, we did that. We handed out hot apple cider, hot chocolate, and coffee to people who were standing in line to get their Covid test in the middle of January when it was freezing. Outside of the media, outside of the posts, we were out there doing good things for people. That’s what I want the legacy to be.
And his message to his family’s fans?
My message to my fans? That even feels uncomfortable to say. [Laughs] I would say just thank you for allowing us in your homes and allowing us to be a positive light in your world, no matter what you’re going through, in good times and in bad times. We aren’t going anywhere no matter what happens on any of the social media platforms. We’re here to stay and we hope they keep staying with us for the ride. ■
You can follow José and his family on IInstagram: @NYCGayDad
MODERNISM WEEK IT’S A VIBE!
BY MICHAEL WESTMAN
IF YOU WERE A CHILD OF THE 70S IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, YOU WILL REMEMBER THE ANOINTED “Plumber to the Stars” – Jack Stephan – “Plumbing and heating problems? Your man is Jack Stephanski… Jack Stephanovich… Jack Stephanino... no It’s STEPHAN, JACK STEPHAN!”
Jack Stephan founded Jack Stephan Plumbing & Heating in 1946, and Adee Plumbing & Heating in 1949, and began advertising on television in 1965. “ADEE-DO!” The pop culture campy commercials certainly stuck in the minds and hearts of a generation, as Jack Stephan became a household name.
Fast forward to Palm Springs 1969, where Stephan bought and completely remodeled the now iconic Deepwell home, which he dubbed “Stephan’s Folly,” and lived until 2014. Stephan realized his One Thousand and One Nights–inspired fantasy, with the help of friends in the design and furniture industry. The comprehensive adornment of all surfaces speaks to the entrepreneur’s desire to stand out. “In keeping with his attention-grabbing advertising style,” the Los Angeles Times reported in his 2014 obituary, “Stephan drove Rolls-Royces and maintained a flashy wardrobe, including mega-carat diamonds and suits in his favorite color, red.”
This grand 3,250 square foot estate style home is a showcase of design and Palm Springs style. A fanciful blend of custom textures, patterns, and vibrant colors. From the many different types of crushed velvet wallpaper in fuchsia, pinks and oranges, to the deep shag carpeting, to the avocado green tiled sunken tubs, and the yellow appliance accented kitchen… the property holds a bold, flamboyant charm that you cannot help but love. Cozy, unique, and only in Palm Springs.
The property, designed by architect Robert Lewis and constructed in 1965, is rich in local history and celebrity stories. Every corner of this flamboyant residence tells a story of high-roller charm with former party attendees and neighbors such as Eva Gabor, Hugh Hefner, William Holden, Elizabeth Taylor, and Liberace. One can imagine celebrities gathering around the retrochic curved bar for a martini and cozied-up on the plush L-shaped sofa in front the massive fireplace for a round of Backgammon.
Everything in this incredible home has been painstakingly maintained and preserved as it was originally conceived in 1969. The property has had a few different owners since Stephan’s passing in 2014. The current owners, Kristy and Scott Parent, had been searching for a home in
“WE FELT A DISTINCTIVE ‘VIBE’ WITH THIS HOME, AND SO WE RENAMED IT ‘THE VIBE’.”
Palm Springs for a couple of years, and once entering Stephan’s Folly, they instantly fell in love with its unique history and charm. “While this wasn’t what we were initially searching for, we appreciated it the minute we first saw it, and knew we needed to continue the story,” says Kristy. “We felt a distinctive ‘vibe’ with this home, and so we renamed it ‘The Vibe’,” says Scott.
With its solid history and new name, The Vibe is participating in Modernism Week for the FIRST TIME, so you’ll get to tour and party at one of the coolest properties in the desert on February 20th from 6 to 8:30pm. You’ll enjoy full bar service featuring custom cocktail creations, tray-passed hors d’oeuvres, groovy music, go-go girls, and disco balls! Dress to impress at this one of kind event. For tickets, visit go.modtix. com/f/2025/vibe-house.
MODERNISM WEEK
And if you can’t make the Modernism Week party – I have even better news – you can now STAY in this groovy house through Natural Retreats at www.naturalretreats.com/property-detailpage?name=the-vibe-7349. The Natural Retreats collection of luxury vacation homes offers travelers a distinguished selection of properties in iconic destinations across the United States—from the granite peaks of the Rockies to the desert oasis of Palm Springs to the epic views of Big Sky to the luminous waters of the Emerald Coast. You can visit them at naturalretreats.com/destinations/palm-springs. It’s Cocktail Time!
For the 60s party at The Vibe house, visit go.modtix.com/f/2025/vibe-house and follow The Vibe on Instagram @thevibepalmsprings
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Modernism Week (February 13-23, 2025) is now celebrating 20 years of celebrating appreciation of midcentury architecture and design, as well as contemporary thinking in these fields, by encouraging education, preservation and sustainable modern living as represented in the greater Palm Springs area. The annual 11-day festival will feature more than 350 tours, programs and events, with a portion of ticket proceeds benefiting Modernism Week (a non-profit organization) and other local preservation, neighborhood, and community groups. The first Modernism Week event in February 2006, showcased the world-renowned midcentury modern architecture of Palm Springs. Among the members of the initial steering committee were representatives from the Modernism Show & Sale, Palm Springs Preservation Foundation, the Palm Springs Modern Committee, the Palm Springs Historical Society, and Palm Springs Art Museum. Today, more than 60 other non-profit organizations, businesses and neighborhood groups collaborate with Modernism Week to help produce Modernism Week tours and events.
For all 2025 tours, presentations, events, and experiences, visit modernismweek.com.
Photos by Natural Retreats
ESCAPE TO A CARIBBEAN PARADISE
SAILROCK’S GAY-FRIENDLY RETREAT IN
SOUTH CAICOS
BY MONTE MATHEWS
FOR GAY TRAVELERS, THE CARIBBEAN CAN BE A MIXED BAG. Some destinations open their arms wide to welcome the community, while others greet guests with a chilly reception. Fortunately, there are islands that embrace inclusivity, offering unforgettable escapes for gay couples, friends, or families looking to soak up the sun. Enter Turks and Caicos—an archipelago that offers breathtaking beauty, a warm atmosphere, and the exclusive Sailrock Resort, where paradise takes on a whole new meaning.
THE CARIBBEAN’S MOST WELCOMING ISLANDS
When you’re dreaming of a tropical getaway with crystal-clear waters, powdery beaches, and an atmosphere of acceptance, the Caribbean should top your list. Several islands in the region welcome LGBTQ travelers with open arms, offering vibrant Pride parades, beach parties, and world-class resorts. Turks and Caicos, in particular, stands out as a serene haven.
Though not overtly advertised as a gayfriendly destination, the people of Turks and Caicos are known for their warm, laid-back attitude, making it an ideal spot for visitors seeking tranquility. And for those who value privacy and luxury, Sailrock Resort on South Caicos is a gem that guarantees an unforgettable stay. Small wonder Sailrock was one of only four Gay-friendly hotels in TravelPulse’s list of the Caribbean’s Best Resorts for LGBTQ travelers.
WHERE LUXURY MEETS INTIMACY
Nestled on the pristine beaches of South Caicos, Sailrock South Caicos is an exclusive five-star boutique retreat, perfect for anyone looking to unwind in style. This paradise boasts a stunning location on its own peninsula, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Caribbean Sea on the other. With just 1,200 residents on the entire island, South Caicos offers unparalleled peace and seclusion.
Sailrock caters to all travelers, singles, families, and groups, with accommodations that redefine luxury. Choose from Ridgetop Suites, featuring panoramic views and decadent touches like outdoor showers, or opt for spacious Beachfront Villas equipped with private pools and pathways leading to the shore. Whether it’s a romantic getaway or a friends’ retreat, Sailrock delivers an experience tailored to your needs.
UNPARALLELED EXPERIENCES
At Sailrock, every detail is crafted for your ultimate relaxation and adventure. The resort’s Great House serves as the heart of activity, offering an infinity pool, exquisite dining, and specialty cocktails. Be sure to try the Sailrock Martini, a signature creation from Food and Beverage Director Kubir Dhungana.
From The Great House Restaurant & Bar’s wrap-around terrace, you can enjoy sunrise and sunset views of the Atlantic Ocean and Caicos Bank and experience the ever-changing hues of the turquoise waters below. A rotating menu showcasing seasonal ingredients and the catch of the day. An ideal setting from which to relish Caribbean flavor and classics with new-age twists. Their signature Blue Margarita is always a good choice. But they have a wide range of exquisite mixology options, along with an extensive wine collection. The perfect spot for pre-dinner drinks or a relaxing nightcap.
The Cove Restaurant & Beach Bar on Sailrock Beach offers Caribbean cuisine with a creative twist. Breathtaking views of the Caicos Bank, a casual ambiance, and an innovative menu provide a delightful alternative to Great House, the resort’s main restaurant. Relax in a hammock, read in the shade of a beach umbrella, or take your seat at the bar.
You can even schedule a private chef for an in-villa, gastronomical theater experience, and watch as your customized menu is prepared before your very eyes.
For those seeking rejuvenation, the Na Spa provides Balinese-inspired treatments in open-air cabanas, where the soothing sea breeze enhances every massage and facial. Prefer a more active escape? Sailrock offers activities like kayaking, paddleboarding, and Hobie Cat sailing. Don’t miss a guided excursion with Activities Director Ben Zerin, who can take you fishing, snorkeling, or exploring uninhabited islands.
A TEAM THAT FEELS LIKE FAMILY
What truly sets Sailrock apart is its exceptional hospitality. From the moment you arrive, you’ll feel like a cherished guest among friends. Led by Managing Director André Boersma, Sailrock’s team represents a global tapestry of talent, bringing expertise and warmth to every interaction. Whether it’s your villa’s personal chef or the resort’s attentive spa therapists, every staff member is committed to making your stay extraordinary.
GETTING THERE
Reaching Sailrock is about to get even easier. While most visitors fly into Providenciales (home to Turks and Caicos’ international airport), starting February 2025, American Airlines will offer non-stop flights from Miami to South Caicos’ Norman B. Saunders Sr. International Airport—just minutes from the resort.
AWARD-WINNING EXCELLENCE
It’s no wonder Sailrock has been recognized as the Caribbean’s Leading Luxury Island Resort by the World Travel Awards for five consecutive years. With its blend of natural beauty, luxurious accommodations, and world-class service, Sailrock is a slice of heaven on Earth.
Ready to plan your getaway? Visit sailrocksouthcaicos.com for reservations
Whether you’re celebrating love, chasing adventure, or simply seeking peace, Sailrock welcomes you to create memories in paradise. ■
TRIO TASTE, STYLE, AND VISION
BY MICHAEL WESTMAN
TRIO HAS BEEN A FIXTURE IN THE PALM SPRINGS COMMUNITY SINCE 2009. But not wanting to rest on its laurels, it swung for excellence when owner Tony Marchese recently hired Executive Chef Gladis Lizarraga to bring her culinary expertise to the kitchen – boy did he hit a homerun! Chef Gladis has brought a new vigor to the dining experience at TRIO – with innovative dishes, fresh farm-to-table ingredients, and a presentation that is as beautiful as it is delicious.
With over 15 years of experience in the restaurant industry and a background in chemistry, Chef Gladis Lizarraga brings a unique blend of precision and creativity to the kitchen. Most recently, she served as Executive Chef at Wildest Restaurant & Bar in Palm Desert, where her leadership earned accolades including Palm Springs Life’s “Best of the Best 2022” and OpenTable’s 2022 Diners’ Choice Award.
Growing up on the Pacific Coast of Mazatlán, Mexico, surrounded by fresh seafood and bold flavors, Gladis developed a deep love for cooking at an early age. Inspired by her mother’s traditional Mexican recipes, she learned to appreciate the intricate balance of flavors that define exceptional cuisine.
“Enjoying delicious food and drinking a good wine go hand in hand with enjoying life. A great chef doesn’t just follow recipes—they bring their unique style and vision to every dish, making it truly special,” says Chef Gladis.
My husband and I had the pleasure of dining at TRIO after the new year and was truly impressed with the complete dining experience. We began our culinary adventure with three starters – Crab Croquettes, Hamachi Crudo, and Beet Tartare. The crispy Crab Croquettes were served with a fresh lemon aioli which complimented the delicious fresh crab meat. The Hamachi Crudo - Yuzu, Alice Oil, Lemon Radish, Fresno Chile - was bright, acidic, and colorful with the addition of Micro Flowers, for a harmonious flavor profile. But the award for the most unique starter was the Beet Tartare – Avocado Mouse, Vegan Horseradish Aioli, Toasted Faro, Micro-Greens – which actually looked like Ahi, but instead was the most amazing Beet dish I have ever experienced. This dish is also a great option for our Vegan/Vegetarian friends. Pair this with a crisp white wine and you’ve got a meal!
Don’t skip a pasta course. Chef Gladis prepares all the pasta from scratch daily and is well worth at least a share plate before moving on to mains. We opted for the Oxtail Ragu - Torchietto Pasta, Peppers, Braised Greens, Ricotta, Fresh Herbs. The smooth, silky texture and rich flavor of the oxtail was brought out by the use of the herbs and slow cooking, and the curves of the pasta soaked up the flavorful sauce. With Main Courses we went for a little surf and turf variant, beginning with the Diver Scallops. Scallops are always a favorite of mine, and these were heavenly on a bed of Roasted Fennel and Red Curry Squash, accompanied by a phenomenal Pistachio Pistou and Meyer Lemon Sauce. And for the turf, the Duroc Pork Chop with Yam Puree, Spiced Carrots, Spinach, Roasted Tomatillo Sauce, and a local Date Chutney/ Vinaigrette. This thick chop was incredibly tender and juicy, and full of luscious aromas and flavors. Duroc pork is often referred to as the “Black Angus of Pork,” due to its flavor profile that sets it apart from its counterparts. The marbling of this cut of meat not only enhances its tenderness but also infuses it with a luscious buttery texture that practically melts in your mouth. The Date Chutney/Vinaigrette was made from Coachella Valley dates and added a touch of sweetness to the dish.
Although we were thoroughly stuffed, Chef Gladis brought out one of her signature desserts, Dutch Apple Pie with Salted Caramel Gelato. Warm and delicious spiced apple strudel paired with creamy, salty and sweet gelato. This was a special treat to end the evening.
Whether you’re a local regular or a first-time visitor, TRIO promises an extraordinary dining experience is awaiting you. Cheers!
TRIO is located in the heart of Palm Springs at 707 N Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, California. Open every day for dinner beginning at 4pm, plus brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 2pm. Visit triopalmsprings.com, opentable.com, or call 760-864-8746 to make a reservation. ■
HOW DO I LOVE THEE? LET ME COUNT THE WAYS
BY MEGAN VENZIN
OUR LIVES ARE MADE FULLER BY THOSE WE ADMIRE. OF COURSE, THERE ARE THE FRIENDS AND FAMILY — BOTH CHOSEN AND BY BLOOD — WHO ADD COLOR TO OUR DAYS. But there is an even wider net work of individuals who shape our perspectives and brighten this existence. That is what this issue of Metrosource is all about — from the comedians who make us laugh, to the DJs who move our feet, to the artists, activists and visionaries who encourage us to think of things that are much larger than ourselves — there are just so many people we love. For this month’s NYScope we pulled a handful of the city’s best happenings all brimming with the kinds of characters who make this world a special and de lightfully quirky place. Pick any event on this list and you’ll see, there’s a sampling of your squad to be found on every corner.
CUPID’S UNDIE RUN
FEBRUARY 8, 2025
THE DL ROOFTOP BAR
95 DELANCEY ST., 3RD FLOOR NEW YORK, NY 10002
Gather the daring friends among your flock, strip down and start shuffling because Cupid’s Undie Run returns to the Lower East Side just ahead of Valentine’s Day. Bringing a whole new meaning to the term “brisk jog” this quick, skivvy-clad onemiler may sound silly but it’s all for a damn good cause. To date, the annual fun run has raised more than $21.7 million for the Children’s Tumor Foundation, so bare all and be a hero! The day starts with a pre-game party complete with boozy drinks, followed by a skin-revealing jaunt through one of Manhattan’s most iconic neighborhoods. After the run it’s back to the city chic rooftop bar at The DL for an unforgettable dance party with live DJs, refreshments and memories starring a full cast of your half-naked homies. Register as an individual or form a team to participate in the “largest pantless run” in the country. On your mark, get set, disrobe at cupids.org
EDGES OF AILEY
THROUGH FEBRUARY 9, 2025 THE WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART 99 GANSEVOORT ST. NEW YORK, NY
Come experience what museum curator Adrienne Edwards dubs an “extravaganza” at Edges of Ailey — a first-of-its-kind large-scale mixed media exhibition honoring the life and times of famed choreographer, Alvin Ailey. Known for his visionary contributions in dance, this special showing features works from more than 80 artists including names like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Romare Bearden, Faith Ringgold, Alma Thomas, Jacob Lawrence, Rashid Johnson, Kevin Beasley and Kara Walker among many others, plus more than 90 live performances by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, brought to life in the Museum’s third-floor venue. In this immersive, 18,000-square foot exhibition visitors can also come to know the personal inner-workings of Ailey’s life with an enthralling collage of his achievements and signature choreographic movements, which stream across an 18-channel video installation from the powerful filmmaking minds of Josh Begley and Kya Lou, with oversight from the aforementioned Edwards. February marks the tail end of this stunning showcase, so be sure to visit the Whitney for a jawdropping exploration of one of Black America’s most innovative creators. Dance through Ailey’s life at whitney.org
DUNGEONS & DRAG QUEENS
FEBRUARY 14, 2025
CAVEAT NYC 21A CLINTON ST
NEW YORK, NY 10002
Suit up for a new style of homebrew when a trio of drag queens engage in a high-energy game of the tabletop roleplaying sensation Dungeons and Dragons, live at Caveat NYC. Comedian Paul Curry serves as Dungeon Master, with an assist from musical improv extraordinaire Carson Cutter who will be on hand to guide a night filled with peril and push-up bras during this hilarious play-by-play. If you missed its legendary off-Broadway run at SoHo House, you now have a second chance to experience interactive, improvised fun, with this performance featuring Kylie Mooncakes, Little Piece and Ma’amshe. Whether you succeed or fail your epic quest is beside the point — after all, the dice gods have spoken. Have a monstrously good time when you roll the dice at caveat.nyc
HORSE MEAT DISCO NYC
FEBRUARY 15, 2025
KNOCKDOWN CENTER 52-19 FLUSHING AVE. MASPETH, NY 11378
Knockdown Center — a 50,000-square foot, multi-venue arts and music space — celebrated 10 years of late nights and epic performances in 2024. Another collective is stopping by to celebrate their own second decade of jaw dropping events, and that group is pioneering UK stalwarts, Horse Meat Disco. After springing forth from humble beginnings at The Eagle Pub in Vauxhall, London in 2004, Horse Meat Disco’s famous foursome of Luke Howard, James Hillard, Severino Panzetta and Jim Stanton emerged sensations, bringing their playful brand of throwback dance music to queer parties and festivals the world over. And 20 years after their inception, their roots in NYC’s vast nightlife expanse — where they previously hosted regular parties at venues like the legendary Output — run deep. For this installment, scene firebrands Colleen “Cosmo” Murphy and Dangerous Rose are along as direct support, too, so you know it’s going to be a fun ride. Giddy up at knockdown.center
GVS PRESENTS: TATE MCRAE “SO CLOSE TO WHAT”
ALBUM RELEASE PARTY
FEBRUARY 22, 2025
9 BOB NOTE
270 MESEROLE ST.
BROOKLYN, NY 11206
Be among the first to hear the sweltering new tunes of Canadian pop songstress Tate McRae over full amplified sound at 9 Bob Note — East Williamsburg’s most salacious nightspot. There’s a dance party going down in celebration of McRae’s latest studio album ‘So Close to What’, compliments of allstar DJs like P_A_T and Stefan Daniel. If that’s not enough to get your tail shaking, fans can expect pop-up drag shows too, adding fresh flair to the diva’s most irresistible hits. Trust, queens like Fabiana Love, Jamie CD and Tina Twirler will bring their fiercest renditions of ‘2 hands’, ‘stay done’ and ‘it’s ok, i’m ok’ to a turned up dancefloor. By the end of the night, you’ll have heard the entirety of the new LP in all of its sparkling glory, plus the rest of the discography that made McRae one of our faves. Snag your tickets, but don’t get “Greedy” — after all, we gotta save room for all the city’s most loyal “tater tots.” Be the first to hear it at 3dollarbillbk.com.
THAT SHOW HOSTED BY CHRIS GETHARD
FEBRUARY 26, 2025
UCB NEW YORK THEATRE
242 E 14TH STREET NEW YORK CITY, NY 10003
Chris Gethard is a long-form warrior — and it shows. Perhaps you’ve seen the comedian weave improv magic during one of Upright Citizens Brigade’s star-studded ASSSSCAT nights, or while playing ringleader to the eponymous public access program, The Chris Gethard Show. Those who’ve caught him on stage know he’s a man that puts well-earned laughs over quick thrills. Now, he’s bringing that mindset to UCB New York Theatre with “That Show hosted by Chris Gethard” featuring the comedy scene’s most hilarious newcomers plus a live band, who — according to its online description — are “all uniting to put on a show that’s not about gathering three minute videos for tik tok, it’s about putting on a live show that knocks you, the audience, right on your f*cking ass.” If venturing out at 10PM on a Wednesday sounds daunting, don’t fret — this good time is also available via Livestream. Get to giggling at ucbcomedy.com.
POWER NETWORK: A BLACK HISTORY MONTH CONVERSATION AND CELEBRATION
FEBRUARY 27, 2025
CARNEGIE HALL
STERN AUDITORIUM / PERELMAN STAGE
881 7TH AVE (CORNER OF 57TH ST. AND 7TH AVE.)
NEW YORK, NY 10019
February is the month where we honor black visionaries and their contributions to culture, education and beyond, and this year that dialogue continues in Carnegie Hall’s hallowed Stern Auditorium with a mind-opening night of discussions and world class entertainment. Host Ed Lover joins Earn Your Leisure’s Rashad Bilal and Troy Millings for a panel covering topics from finance to future-building with insights from other industry titans, followed by a stunning lineup of live performances from legends like Hip-hop pioneer Rakim, DJ Spindarella of Salt-N-Pepa fame and orchestral perfection compliments of Igmar Thomas’ 32-piece Revive Big Band orchestra. The night’s expansive offerings are sure to get you moving in your seat and thinking about the empowering days ahead. Join the conversation at carnegiehall.org
Lead Greedy Photo by Baeth
Chris Gethard
LGBT YOUTH CONFERENCE
MARCH 18, 2025
SUFFOLK COMMUNITY COLLEGE
533 COLLEGE RD. SELDEN, NY 11784
Hop aboard the Long Island Railroad and make your way to the 29th annual LGBT Youth Conference for an informative day rooted in activism and advocacy. For nearly three decades, this yearly event has engaged young people from across New York state in educated discussion about how to promote equality and push the LGBTQAI+ community forward. This year’s workshops cover pressing topics such as Growing & Energizing Your Gay Student Alliance (GSA), Anti-bullying & Leadership, LGBT History & Media Representation and more. Registration for these collaborative sessions will remain open until March 12th or when capacity is full. Make a difference at lgbtnetwork.org
OKLOU (LIVE)
MARCH 21 AND 22, 2025
ELSEWHERE
599 JOHNSON AVE. BROOKLYN, NY 11237
To listen to French singer oklou is to experience a beautiful slice of lucid existence. Inspired by the music of queer artists and their commitment to a “quest for freedom” she pumps out dreamlike productions that toe the line between experimental and avant-garde pop, with the occasional brush of R&B to keep things fresh. Buzzing off the release of her gorgeously composed 2024 ‘Harvest Sky’ EP and the ethereal follow-up single, ‘choke enough’, oklou lands in The Hall at Elsewhere to bring two nights of mind-bending electronic magic. These shows are likely to pack out fast, so get your tickets early. Prepare to be mesmerized at elsewhere.club.
NEW YORK RESTAURANT SHOW
MARCH 23 - 25, 2025
JAVITS CENTER
429 11TH AVE.
NEW YORK, NY 10001
Whether you are a working food industry professional or an entrepreneur with a plan to open that wine and tapas bar of your dreams, the New York Restaurant Show bestows the knowledge and inspiration necessary to inform your next steps. Featuring innovative exhibits, gourmet cooking demonstrations, action-packed competitions and informative courses all in one sprawling location, this annual attraction has something for everyone. Your favorite faces from New York’s world class dining scene are destined to be in tow, too with names like Master Chef Tom Collichio and Melba Wilson among the list of beloved names. Attend the hallowed NYC Hospitality Bash for the Boros — a celebratory networking night uniting more than 800 thought leaders of hospitality industry — or treat yourself to the New York Restaurant Show’s three-day educational program with classes for experienced and aspiring restaurateurs covering modules such as menu development, bar and beverage, technological advances and more. If you want to enrich your skills or make a career pivot in 2025, this multi-day offering holds delicious answers for you. Now we’re cooking at newyorkrestaurantshow.com.
Oklou Photo by Gil Gharbi
Courtesy of New York Restaurant Show
NEW YORK BAR SOURCE
CHELSEA
BARRACUDA
This Chelsea lounge features cool music, cute crowds, wild drag shows, and talent competitions hosted on the tiny stage in the rear. Rumor has it RuPaul visited to “scout” Bob the Drag Queen at this classic watering hole. 275 W. 22nd St. at Eighth Ave., NYC 212-645-8613
BOXERS CHELSEA
A big gay sports bar outfitted with flat screens broadcasting all manner of games, multiple counters, pool tables and a smoking patio out back. A long bar faces a pizza oven dispensing mouth-watering pies to munch on while watching “the game”. Hottest bartenders in town? See for yourself! 37 W. 20th St. between Fifth and Sixth Aves., NYC 212-624-5942. boxersnyc.com
THE EAGLE
This dark and cruisy leather bar to end all leather bars boasts a great rooftop deck and some of the sexiest, burliest guys in NYC. 554 W. 28th St. between Tenth and Eleventh Aves., NYC 646473-1866. eagle-ny.com
GYM
At this popular after work sports bar, a team of plasma-screen TVs broadcasting the hottest games, a pool table, and a basement dugout. Who are those cuties behind the bar? Pop in to get to know them (Admit it, you already follow them on IG). 167 Eighth Ave. between 18th and 19th Sts., NYC 212-337-2439. gymsportsbar.com
EAST VILLAGE/LOWER EAST SIDE
THE BOILER ROOM
A throwback to the days when the East Village was a haven for the punky and funky, this dark and comfy no-frills lounge is popular with the college set, attitude-free, and rocks with an eclectic mix of music and scruffy pool players. 86 E. 4th St. at Second Ave., NYC 212-254-7536
OSCAR WILDE
Acclaimed mixologist Johnny Swet sets the scene at this clever cocktail lounge. Ironically situated at the former headquarters of NYC’s Bureau of Prohibition, this glorious tribute to Ireland’s great writer is the gastropub to end all gastropubs. Marvel at relics such as their Belgian piano from the late 1890s, antique clocks, and intriguing bronze statues celebrating the late great Portrait of a Dorian Gray scribe. 45 W. 27th St. at Sixth Avenue., NYC 212-213-3066. oscarwildenyc.com
REBAR
Sexy Chelsea hangout where G Lounge (may she rest in peace) used to be. This neighborhood bar has a masculine industrial décor, a hot staff, and draws all kinds of men (especially local muscle bears) and boasts not distractions – sports, porn, dancers or otherwise. Their concept is simple: people meeting people. 225 W. 19th St. between Seventh and Eighth Aves., NYC 212929-1085. rebarchelsea.com
EAST VILLAGE
CLUB CUMMING
Willkommen, Bienvenu, New York! Alan Cumming opened the swank new East Village performance-based club, and everyone’s invited. Cumming teamed up with Benjamin Maisani, Darren Dryden and Daniel Nardicio for this sassy adventure. Think backstage of an actual Berlin Cabaret where anything goes. Drag Race viewing parties, Drink & Draw, knitting (yes, knitting), and Cabaret (of course!) 505 E. 6th St. between Aves. A and B, NYC 212-777-2555. clubcummingnyc.com
THE COCK
Longtime late-night haven for naughty go-go boys and those in search of debauched shenanigans. Late nights are the infamous and the ever-popular Monday nights culls an elite yet shameless crowd of naughty boys and nightlife glitterati. 29 Second Ave. between First and Second Sts., NYC. thecockbar. com
NOWHERE
Ultra-mellow East Villager with distressed rustic décor, a pool table and what may be the smallest back room ever. 322 E. 14th St. between First and Second Aves., NYC 212-477-4744. nowherebarnyc.com
PHOENIX
The typically crowded Phoenix holds video games, a pool table, a jukebox, and a diverse crowd in an exposed-brick space as uncomplicated as its vibe. Daily Happy Hour runs from 4-8 and Saturday nights Wrecked party brings all kinds of cute boys (& Queens) to the East Village. 447 E. 13th St. at Ave. A., NYC 212-477-9979. phoenixbarnyc.com
HELL’S KITCHEN/MIDTOWN WEST
ATLAS SOCIAL CLUB
Josh Wood, Benjamin Maisani, Pablo Raimondi, and Asi Mazar hit a home run with the starry opening of the Hell’s Kitchen hotspot. When celebs like Andy Cohen, Anderson Cooper, and Cher start making cameos the neighborhood definitely takes a closer look. 753 9th Ave. between 50th and 51st Sts., NYC 212-262-8527.
FAIRYTAIL LOUNGE
Glittery centaurs and other enchanted-forest motifs distinguish this cozy lounge in way-west H.K. Theme parties, specialty cocktails and guest DJs add interest. 500 W. 48th St. between Tenth and Eleventh Aves., NYC 646-648-3897
FLAMING SADDLES
When they’re not mixing up vodka sodas in glass steins, bartenders jump up on the bar to do choreographed boot-scootin’ to Achy Breaky-type tunes at this one-of-a-kind Hell’s Kitchen tavern. Red saloon décor and a small selection of down-home nibbles add to the authentic Western feel – call it Coyote Pretty. 793 Ninth Ave. at 53rd St., NYC 212-713-0481. flamingsaddles.com/nyc
HARDWARE
Cheap drinks are poured at the front bar and fun tunes are spun for the rear dance floor at this easybreezy neighborhood haunt. In the summer, a garage door swings up, letting the scene spill onto the street. When DJs aren’t doing their thing, live performers like Shequida, Lagoona Bloo, Brita Filter, Boudoir Lefleur & Kimmi Moore hit the stage. Opens at noon daily. 697 Tenth Ave between 47th and 48th Sts., NYC 212-924-9885. hardware-bar.com
HUSH
Missing Therapy? Hush! There’s a naughty new bar in town and there’s never been a better time to check it out. Well, if you stop by before 9:00 p.m. you can get $3 off all drinks. The space is cute, hennies. We’ll see you on the dancefloor. 348 W. 52nd St. between Eighth and Ninth Aves. NYC hushhk.com
INDUSTRY
The owners of Barracuda and Elmo opened this capacious venue features couch-filled nooks, a game room with a pool table and an industrial design that’s a nod to its parking-garage past. Holly Dae, Egypt, Pixie Aventura, and Kizha Carr shake things up on a weekly basis at this popular hotspot. 355 W. 52nd St. between Eighth and Ninth Aves., NYC 646-476-2747. industry-bar. com
THE Q NYC
Alan Picus and Frankie Sharp joined forces with Billy Porter, Zachary Quinto, Charlie Carver, and Jake Shears to open one of the most epic nightlife spaces in NYC. Think four floors right smack in one of the biggest gayborhoods in the world. Pop in any night of the week and dance you’re a** off. 795 8th Ave. between 48th and 49th Sts., NYC theqnyc.com
RISE BAR
Kings of NYC nightlife royalty joined forces for a tres fabuleux yet unpretentious Hell’s Kitchen watering hole right in the middle of everything. Dance all night every Friday and Saturday, you deserve a little R&R, don’t you? 859 9th Avenue., NYC 646-892-3313. risebarnyc.com
THE RITZ BAR & LOUNGE
This upscale boy boîte boasts plenty of places to perch on multiple levels inside and outside — although the kickin’ sound system makes it hard to settle down. 369 W. 46th St. at Ninth Ave., NYC 212-333-2554.
THE SPOT
Happy Hour happens every day until 9:00 p.m. at The Spot. Pop in for weekly parties and catch local nightlife celebs like Ariana Trenta, Brenda Dharling, Pissi Myles, and more. Looking for Drag Brunch? Look no further! Seating happens at 12:15 and 2:30 every Sunday. Bring your dollars! 599 10th Avenue, NYC thespotbarnyc.com
EAST SIDE
THE TOOL BOX
This two-level dive bar hosts dance parties with a DJ and cute go-go boys on Friday and Saturday nights on the main floor, while the downstairs is a cozier lounge. 1742 Second Ave., between 90th and 91st Sts., NYC 212-348-1288. thetoolboxnyc.com
THE TOWNHOUSE
Two levels of mature gents and their younger fans humming along to dance tracks and swaying to songs from Chicago and everything in the Jerry Herman oeuvre. 236 E. 58th St. between Second and Third Aves., NYC 212-754-4649.
UNCLE CHARLIE’S
This effervescent lounge, tucked on top of an unassuming store on a quiet block, boasts a patio and piano room, which hosts live entertainment. 139 E. 45th St. between Third and Lexington Aves., NYC 212-661-9097. unclecharliesnyc.com
UPPER WEST SIDE
SUITE
This adorable lounge attracts Columbia gays with their leopard-print lamps, cozy leather banquettes and the occasional drag star entertaining on the small stage. 992 Amsterdam Ave. between 109th and 110th Sts., NYC 212-222-4600. suitenyc.com
UPTOWN
ALIBI LOUNGE
This popular Harlem bar & lounge is a great spot for after work. Everybody need an alibi, right? Choose from their selection of specialty cocktails and order a little nibble, while you’re at it. 2376 Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. at 139th St., NYC 917-472-7789.
WEST VILLAGE
CUBBYHOLE
Called home by the local lesbian crowd (though a few boys are usually thrown in for good measure), this small, unpretentious West Village bar features a capricious décor that’s heavy on the fish. 281 W. 12th St. at Fourth St., NYC 212-243-9041. cubbyholebar.com
THE DUPLEX
The Duplex is the city’s oldest continuing cabaret/piano bar. Downstairs, the staff performs in between bouts of serving. Upstairs is a more traditional boy bar and an intimate room that books cabaret acts. 61 Christopher St. at Seventh Ave. South, NYC 212-255-5438. theduplex.com
THE HANGAR
Neighborhood guy’s guy bar that attracts a diverse crowd grooving to classic gay tunes. 115 Christopher St. between Bleecker and Hudson Sts., NYC 212-627-2044
HENRIETTA HUDSON
Jam-packed lesbian club/lounge with a multicultural crowd that’s gay-boy friendly. 438 Hudson St. at Morton St., NYC 212-924-3347.henriettahudson.com
JULIUS’
Once the Village’s oldest continuously operating bar went gay in the 1950s, it would go on to become the city’s oldest gay bar. On a normal night, it’s a comfy place for cheap drinks, burgers, and fries, but once a month, the party Mattachine turns it into a crowded, rowdy dance affair with excellent vinyl music. 159 W. 10th St. at Waverly Pl., NYC 212-243-1928. juliusbarny.com
MARIE’S CRISIS
Old-school sing-alongs are on tap at this long-running piano bar. There’s no fuss and no frills at this latenight theater queen hot spot. Stop in and “sing out, Louise!” 59 Grove St. at Seventh Ave. South, NYC 212243-9323. mariescrisis.us
THE MONSTER
A Sheridan Square stalwart where fabulous guys and dolls sing along to their show tunes upstairs while legendary DJs play to the fun crowd downstairs. 80 Grove St. at Seventh Ave. South, NYC 212-924-3558 Open Mon-Fri, 4pm-4am; Sat & Sun, 2pm-4am.
PIECES
You’ll either be singing to retro dance tracks or laughing at the antics of drag queens at this longtime West Villager. Ms. Vodka Stinger’s B-Movie Mondays are always worth a stop. Show starts at 8:30 sharp. 8 Christopher St. at Sixth Ave., NYC 212-929-9291. piecesbar.com
ROCKBAR
For boys who prefer fur over sheen, there’s this butched-up bar with a fist-pumping soundtrack and cheap drinks. Things get steadily burlier and beefier as the night goes on…attend one ROCKSTRAP and you’ll be more than hooked. If you’re on GROWLr there’s a good chance your notifications will start to flutter inside. 185 Christopher St. at Weehawken St., NYC. rockbarnyc.com
STONEWALL
Daddies, faux thugs, and girls who like girls rule the roost at this two-story birthplace of gay pride. Every night of the week offers a different theme, from drag-hosted game shows to karaoke to beer blasts. 53 Christopher St. at Seventh Ave. South, NYC 212-488-2705. thestonewallinnnyc.com
TY’S
This Ye Olde Boy Bar serves a loyal and friendly Christopher Street clientele — young, old and everything in between. NYPD and Firemen especially welcome. 114 Christopher St. between Bleecker and Hudson Sts., NYC 212-741-9641. tys.nyc
OUTER BOROUGHS & BEYOND
3 DOLLAR BILL
Self-declared as “Brooklyn’s Premiere Queer Bar & Performance Venue”, 3 Dollar Bill is known for their legendary parties and literally brining all the fine boys & gurls to the yard. They are the largest queer venue in Brooklyn and ready for your visit. Go ahead & live your life at 3 Dollar Bill (but be sure to look cute!) 260 Meserole St. Brooklyn 3dollarbillbk.com
ALBATROSS
Homey Astoria bar with a pool table and jukebox. Sultry bartender/host Dean Dante heats things up with his now legendary parties where everyone has a chance to explore their fantasies. 36-19 24th Ave. at 38th St., Astoria, NYC 718-204-9045. albatrossastoria.com
C’MON EVERYBODY
Popular Brooklyn Queer space, known for great cocktails, fun parties, and hot live music shows. C’mon Everybody is a queer owned and operated bar and independent venue that was founded by the desire to amplify the underserved creative voices of the LGBTQ/QTPOC people (and allies). 325 Franklin Ave. Brooklyn cmoneverybody.com
FRIEND’S TAVERN
This bar seduces the large Latino gay community with theme nights and daily drink specials. 78-11 Roosevelt Ave. at 78th St., Jackson Heights, Queens 718-397-7256. friendstavern.net.
GOOD JUDY
Good Judy is a lounge, dance floor, piano bar, patio, and home for Queers + allies to join together in unity and solidarity. Meet your Good Judy for happy hour and plan on closing the joint! 563 5th Avenue, Brooklyn goodjudybk.com
ICON ASTORIA
Fasten your seatbelts because you’re in for an unexpected ride at this hot NYC bar nestled into the backyard of Astoria. Beefcake dancers and NYC nightlife legends flock to this unassuming watering hole for great beats, impressive drag performances, and all-around friendly faces. 31-84 33rd Street., Astoria, NY 347-808-7592. iconastoria.com
GINGER’S
Especially popular with lesbians, this long and dark bar has a popular jukebox and an outdoor garden. 363 Fifth Ave., Park Slope, Brooklyn 718-788-0924
METROPOLITAN
This B-burg bar is comfy and cozy with a fireplace, jukebox, and a sprawling warm-weather patio. 559 Lorimer St. at Metropolitan Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn NYC 718-599-4444. metropolitanbarny.com
MUSIC BOX
Fun neighborhood bar great if you’re in Jackson Heights and looking for a pint or a little fun. 40-08 74th St. at Roosevelt Ave. 718-457-5306
THE ROSEMONT NYC
Sexy mixed Williamsburg cocktail bar with a great happy hour and fun weekly entertainment. Looking for Mr. Right, Mr. Right for tonight or just a fun gurls night out? They’ve got you covered. 63 Montrose Ave., Brooklyn, NYC 347-987-3101. therosemontnyc.com
