O&AN | December 2014

OUTANDABOUT NASHVILLE.COM

DECEMBER 2014 VOLUME 13 | ISSUE 12

TranS Issues Take New Focus in Nashville

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12.14

Wedding Announcement Joshua Ty Johnson & Michael Dale Popham

Josh and Michael met in church, as all good Southern, Middle Tennessee bible-belt boys do. Love at first sight blossomed, over the course of the next ten years, into a remarkable relationship, like the beautiful magnolia trees they were so often surrounded by in the green rolling hills of Nashville.

As Josh’s celebrity grew and developed, and the ocean-kissed coast of California beckoned, Josh and Michael decided to “go west” and loaded up the truck, bound for Beverly Hills. Hollywood success eventually led to celebrity green rooms and awards shows.

Eventually culminating in the rollout of the Josh Johnson signature line of luxury home décor—launching Winter 2014—the journey they have been on has truly been one akin to that of the proverbial yellow brick road.

With the turn of the tide toward affirming same-sex marriage, Josh and Michael felt the time had come to express publicly their enduring love through the traditional custom. Set amid the hallowed halls of Music City’s brick and mortar homage to the legends of Country music, their deep roots in and great respect for Tennessee’s musical contribution will be evidenced by a sparkling celebration of love without inequality.

With their lives centered on a deep belief in God and daily acts efforts to exhibit Christian principles through action, Josh and Michael strongly trust that the Bible Belt will soon come to realize and embrace that we are all God’s children, that God is love, and that love is love.

Living a loving relationship is not a lifestyle. In the meantime, the only validation required for their sacrament is the support of the intimate, “true” relationships that surround their mutual life.

Thus, surrounded by their family and friends, Josh and Michael will enter the state of holy matrimony this very month. Congratulations!

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Writers: Jaz Dorsey, Jane Dupree, James A. Grady, Amy E. Hall, Jonny Lim, Alek Mina, Michael Price, Amy Sulam, Cody Tracey, Bobbi Williams Photographers: Julius Greene, Timothy GreenfieldSanders, Jeff Schuler, Michael Herman Cover/Feature Photographer: Julius Greene Political Cartoon: Damon Xanthopoulos National Advertising Representative: Rivendell Media 1248 Route 22 West Mountainside, NJ 07092 212-242-6863

OPPORTUNITIES

Out & About Nashville welcomes volunteer writers, photographers and videographers throughout the year. If you’re interested in contributing to our publication, send an email to editor@outandaboutnashville.com with a resume, contact information and samples of your work if available.

Our volunteer staff is unpaid, but contributors do receive credit for their work in our print publication and online. Those seeking an internship in journalism or mass communications are strongly encouraged to apply.

LEGAL Dear Out and About Nashville readers, we would love to receive photos and announcements for other Middle Tennessee LGBTQ weddings or engagements.

While we cannot guarantee print placement for every submission, we look forward to sharing your joy with our readers. @jamesallengrady

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2014

13 Bartenders 14 Nightlife 17 Dining 18 Community 21 Looking Good/Feeling Good 22 Places 23 Professional Services

Last year, O&AN re-launched our GayFaves community survey after a six-year absence.

While the results were impressive that first year, our second year into our reboot of GayFaves has exceeded our expectations. The Nashville community was even more engaged this year, and we saw a nearly forty-five percent increase in nominations over last year.

What is perhaps most surprising in this year’s results is how little changed in some categories. In Nightlife, for instance, only ONE winner is NOT a repeat from last year.

Nashville’s LGBT community, it seems, is not fickle with regard to its favorite bars, clubs, and entertainers! It’s not surprising that the one change was in our favorite Non-Gay Bar, as

Beyond the Edge was replaced by a most worthy location.

So, as you peruse the GayFaves section of this month’s issue, see whether you agree with our readers’ picks for Nashville’s favorite spots to pamper, play, and get things done, as well as our favorite people and organizations.

We hope you’ll take to Twitter and let us (@outandaboutnash) know whether the majority #GotItRight on a pick, or #GotItWrong!

But don’t just Tweet about it: next year remember that these choices were nominated and voted for by you, our readers. So if you aren’t satisfied, try out some places, share your great finds with us, and see if 2015 might hold some new GayFaves!

@O U T A N D A B O U T N A S H

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THE NEW GAME PLAN

Southern Baptists Rebrand the Anti-LGBT Agenda ALEK MINA | @RazProse

As I walked from the Gaylord atrium to the convention hall, the conversations I couldn’t help but eavesdrop gave me pause. It was the second morning of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission’s (ERLC) national conference, “The Gospel, Homosexuality, and the Future of Marriage.”

Many attendees were downright giddy to hear ERLC’s new “game plan” for “regaining all the lost yards”—lost because of the bankruptcy of reparative therapy, the decisions of “activist judges,” and a shifting court of public opinion. Tuesday’s sessions would feature two “ex-gays-but-don’t-call’em-that” Christians who exemplify the second part of this new “game plan.”

First to take the field was Rosario Butterfield, author of Secret Thoughts of an Unlucky Convert. Who better to “convict” us LGBT people than a former lesbian, feminist, tenured English professor and postmodernist who eventually found Christ after meeting a pastor of “an obscure, reformed denomination” and is now a different pastor’s wife and home-schooling mom?

The president of the ELRC opened by asking, “What do evangelical Christians just not get about the LGBT community?”

“One of the first things that I firmly believe you don’t get,” Butterfield replied, “is that in this very room, and in all of your encounters, you will meet and know and love people whose original sin has left the thumbprint of unwanted homosexual desire.”

it’s time

Butterfield also told the audience they needed “to repent about all the gay jokes [they] have told and all the hardness of [their] hearts.” Why? Since God has set apart the chosen, even some in the LGBT community, those in attendance “are arrogant and theologically vapid when [they] believe [they] know who these people are.”

Now, this might sound progressive.

Quickly, he progressed from using drugs recreationally to dealing them to other students (and even one professor), and he began having promiscuous sex. He was expelled three months shy of graduation for poor academic performance and his extra-curricular activities.

“Now, it’s important to know,” Yuan cautioned, “that not all gays and lesbians

relationship by liberating myself from my desires and my sexuality, and live as a follower of Jesus.”

To “unpack” these narratives, LGBT persons who are “built” for marriage (and, Butterfield reminded the audience, not all are) must marry someone of the opposite sex, or be asexual. So, this new “game plan” may sound familiar: simultaneously proclaim that LGBT

But, in a later panel, Butterfield also stated, “If you start with sexual orientation as fixed, you condemn that person,” and that, “When we talk about chastity, we’re not talking about repression.”

And chastity brings us to the next speaker, Christopher Yuan, who coauthored Out of a Far Country with his mother.

Whereas Butterfield appealed to this audience as the former secularist academic turned believer, Yuan modeled his narrative on the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Yuan, a former Marine, had come out during dental school and cut himself from his family.

do drugs, [and not all are] promiscuous.

Unfortunately, that’s part of my story.”

Though I appreciated the caveat, I can’t imagine it meant much to the “true believers” around me.

After the D.E.A. busted Yuan, he was “charged with the street-value equivalent of 9.1 tons of marijuana.” In prison, he found Christ after retrieving a Gideon’s New Testament from a trashcan. Two weeks after that, he learned he was HIV+.

For him, the dilemma was “either abandon God and pursue a gay relationship, by allowing my desire for [a] relationship to dictate how I lived. Or abandon pursuing a monogamous gay

identity and tolerance comprise a “Trojan Horse” for the persecution of a religious super-majority, while reducing our identities to pathological behaviors to be overcome.

A theme of the conference, ironically enough, was that we are all “born this way,” if “this way” refers to the stain of Original Sin. Or, to quote Butterfield, “People are not different.

Original Sin is the great leveling playing field. It has democratized everything.”

After a three-day conference about the supposed religious, legal, and cultural “threats” LGBT equality poses, however, I’d say the ground is anything but level.

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2014 TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE Gizzy Fowler Murder Reshapes 13th Annual Nashville Event JONNY LIM | @jayohenenwhy

The Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) honors the memories of those who lost their lives in anti-transgender violence. It is annually held on November 20th. TDOR began after Rita Hester, a transgender woman, was murdered in Allston, MA, on November 28, 1998.

A transgender advocate, Gwendolyn Ann Smith, held a vigil in order to honor Hester’s memory, sparking the “Remembering Our Dead” web project.

The campaign went viral but Hester’s murder went unsolved.

According the Smith, “The Transgender Day of Remembrance seeks to highlight the losses we face due to anti-transgender bigotry and violence.

I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost. With so many seeking to erase transgender people—sometimes in the most brutal ways possible—it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice.”

TDOR raises awareness of the hate crimes committed against transgender people, while providing a space to publicly mourn and honor those who have lost their lives due to hate. Also, during the week of November 10—14, organizations and individuals across the country participate in Transgender Awareness Week in order to raise awareness about transgender and gender non-conforming.

This year’s 13th annual TDOR

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Nashville event was held at ScarrittBennett Chapel. For those in Nashville, the Nov. 12th murder of Gizzy Fowler, a transwoman in Nashville, lent the event increased urgency. Gizzy’s mother was in attendance to mourn and honor her daughter.

Marisa Richmond, the first trans woman elected to public office in Tennessee, opened the event. She explained that all gather in order “to remember those who were taken from us far too early because they were different.” Fredrikka Joy Maxwell then read a spoken word poem, “Lullaby for a Child of God.” Shaun Arroyo from T-Vals, an transgender education and support organization, spoke of a future when “there are no new names to add to the recitation.” He also addressed Nashville’s history of transpeople working together to help people and emphasized that, despite the causes of sadness, people should also be proud of what has been accomplished for the community and for the cause.

“We are a beautiful and accomplished people ready to contribute. We can take pride in a community that refuses to forget those who can no longer be here with us today. We can take pride in a community that refuses to accept the circumstances that led us to no longer share our time with too many,” Arroyo said.

LaSaia Wade, a Nashville activist fighting for trans visibility, spoke of the

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

DECEMBER 2014

grief and frustration she feels at acts of violence against trans people and the loss of another of her sisters, Gizzy Fowler, because of a lack of understanding and tolerance. Wade vowed that the community would not stay quiet about this cause, and announced a march in February.

Marisa Richmond closed the event with a call to action, encouraging those with knowledge of the Fowler case to contact police. She also encouraged the audience to contact every state legislator in support of bills being promoted by Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition to protect minorities from discrimination and intimidation.

At a reception after the event, audience member Lauren Taylor, echoing Richmond, said, “It’s important for transpeople and all of those in the LGBTQ community to make an effort to be seen and heard.”

For more information about transgender issues in Tennessee, visit www.tvals.org/, and www.facebook.com/tntpc.

THERE’S A NEW ‘SHERIFF’ ON CHURCH STREET New Precinct Commander Lokey Committed to Diversity JAMES A. GRADY | @jamesallengrady

Major changes in the organization of the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) have shifted responsibility for Nashville’s “gayborhood” in the Church Street corridor. Back in August, MNPD officially opened its new Midtown Hills Precinct, under Commander Kay Lokey.

Before her promotion, Commander Lokey had served as a captain in the Domestic Violence Division. The eighteen-year veteran of MNPD is also a lesbian, making her the third woman and the only openly LGBT commander of one of MNPD’s eight precincts. For a profession so dominated by straight males, this seems like an impressive number.

Lokey said this reflects a conscientious effort on the department’s behalf. “I have confidence in our recruiting,” she

said. “I was a lieutenant in recruitment, when we set up a booth at Pride the first time. We really want our department to reflect our community but…we have to be creative and show people that this is a great career. We’re looking for individuals with a good moral compass, who have compassion, and want to better the community we live in.”

When asked about what changes would result from the introduction of a new precinct, Lokey explained, “Well, you know, when we added the Midtown Hills precinct, we took some territory from South and West, around forty-seven square miles. Church Street is under our span of control now.”

The familiar faces of Nashville West will still be seen in the gayborhood, though.

Lokey said, “As far as individuals that are familiar, you pretty much have the same people in play. Lt. Dave Levitt, who runs midnight shift in Midtown Hills, transferred from West. Many of our sergeants came from there as well.”

One change, however, is that Midtown Hills has a smaller area of coverage than West did. Thus, Lokey explained, “The people and the method of communication is the same, but now we have more focus. West was so huge! We can now better focus on Midtown, Broadway, and Church. If nothing else, it’s probably improved communication.”

When asked how her LGBT identity would affect her work on Church Street, she said, “My identity has not been the focus of my work.” She did, however, acknowledge that she saw cases of samesex domestic violence in her previous post where she was able to help because of her sexual identity. “At moments where I feel

it’s appropriate or needed, I reach out.”

Indeed, Lokey will be no more and no less an advocate for LGBT interests than for any other: “When I put this uniform on, what I try to demonstrate to the community is that I care about their quality of life, their needs and concerns. But I’m here for everybody, not just a part of it. We can’t reach out and say we’re here to serve all members if we don’t represent them— that’s why diversity is so important.”

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DECEMBER 2014

FORTUNE TELLING...HER STORY Feimster Dishes ON Her Career, Family AMY SULAM | @Amysulam

It’s been a wild ride for Fortune Feimster since she was a semifinalist on Last Comic Standing in 2010. The comic, who spoke with Out & About Nashville in advance of her upcoming show at Zanies, credits the show with giving her a leg up

when she applied to appear on Chelsea Lately six months later. “People knew who I was when I applied, it helped me stand out.”

The level of success she has achieved surprised Feimster. “I never grew up thinking I would do this for a

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living.” But, she explained where her interests originated: “I grew up watching Carol Burnett with my grandmother. I loved it. I watched SNL (Saturday Night Live) religiously. I would VHS record it.

I would watch it over and over so I could do the sketches for my friends at school.”

Though she had already been working in comedy for five years and had an extensive background in theatre and improv, and had also worked as a journalist, Feimster identifies her stint as a writer and panelist for Chelsea Lately as the break that jumpstarted her real career. “The show is what officially made me a working comic,” she said.

Not every offer she’s received is an amazing one though, she said, explaining, “There are some things that come across my manager’s desk that just aren’t right for me. Basically I’m turning down porns left and right!” Feimster has also learned that show business can have its ups and downs. Ironically, as a longtime SNL fan, she got her first big taste of this working with one of the show’s most successful female alums, Tina Fey. To Fortune’s dismay, the show, Cabot College, wasn’t picked up, but she said of working with Tina Fey, “She’s an icon at this point. It was such a treat to work with her!” Cabot College wasn’t the end of her working relationship with Fey. Fortune recently sold a sitcom about her family to ABC, which will be produced

by Fey and which promises to be a hit comedy!

It will be great to see a sitcom written about such a wonderful, accepting family. For those in the know Fortune’s mom is an outspoken advocate and supporter of the LGBT community.

“I am so lucky they support me,” she said proudly. “My mom goes above and beyond to support the whole community.

I’m lucky I came from a place where I can be free to be me.”

Fortune did say, however, that being an open lesbian in entertainment doesn’t give her any pressure to be a role model.

“I just try to be a good person every day.”

When it comes to those who think her talents are only for the niche market of the LGBT crowd, she said, “I’m a lesbian comic but I cover topics that everyone can relate to. People can see we’re just like everyone else.”

Demonstrating her broad appeal, Fortune even took some questions from an 8-year-old fan during our interview: Little Girl: How are you today?

Fortune: I’m great!

Little Girl: Do you like cookies?

Fortune: I like them too much!

Little Girl: What’s your favorite color?

Fortune: It’s Blue Little Girl: How long have you been going at comedy?

Fortune: 9 years Little Girl: Do you watch Drag Race? It’s my favorite show.

Fortune: (laughing hysterically) I catch it when I can. I think it’s awesome that’s your favorite show!

Feimster clearly enjoyed letting her hair down a little. Life can be hectic for a comic: “In L.A., I’m constantly on the go. When I’m touring, I treat it as a mini getaway.

I go sightseeing and try to relax. I’m lucky I’m usually only gone Thursday to Sunday, so I don’t get homesick.”

But she won’t be too homesick in Nashville.

A native of North Carolina, Feimster says she sees her upcoming shows in Nashville as an extended homecoming. “I grew up in North Carolina. Nashville wasn’t far away.

This part of the country feels like home to me.” She’s thrilled about the shows and said, “They’re right between Christmas and the New Year, so have your holiday party at my shows!”

Feimster will be at Zanies in Nashville on Friday, December 26th to Sunday, December 28th, with two shows each on Friday and Saturday and one show Sunday night.

For more information, visit http://www.nashville.zanies.com/.

@O U T A N D A B O U T N A S H

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NASHVILLE CARES THROUGH JANUARY 25 Presenting Sponsors

L YNN & K E N MEL KUS M E LKU Hospitality Sponsor

This exhibition is organized by the Frist C enter for the V isual Arts

T HE F R I S T CE N T E R F O R T HE VI S U A L A RT S I S S U P P O RT E D I N PA RT B Y

The Frist Center for the Visual Arts gratefully acknowledges the Friends of Italian Art. This exhibition has been made possible in part by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, and the Robert Lehman Foundation.

DO WNTO WN NAS HV I LLE 9 1 9 BRO ADWAY

FRI S TCE NTE R. O RG

FC6387_Mrr_OutAndAbout_Sanctity_Magi.indd 1 OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM 12

DECEMBER 2014

Francesco da Rimini (Master of the Blessed Clare of Rimini). The Adoration of the Magi (detail), (detail), ca. 1340. Tempera on wood, 22 3/4 x 23 3/8 in. Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami, Gift of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, 61.018.000

10/20/14 2:42 PM

2014 Love it or hate it, gay bars and clubs form a significant center for LGBT social life in many cities, and Nashville is no exception. We all have our favorite haunt, or haunts, and our favorite bartenders are a huge factor in that. So, in this category, we salute all our contenders, but in the end there can be only one … O&AN GayFaves Bartender. where I could be comfortable being me.”

Will is now also a full-time law student, and he found his inspiration at Tribe: “I probably would not have pursued my interest in law school had it not been for the help and encouragement of friend and former Tribe bartender Loy Carney.” Anyone who’s bought a drink from Will knows it’s money well spent. Manager Bud East put it best: “Will is Mr. Customer Service.

I think his best attribute would be his wonderful smile served with every drink he makes.”

Favorite

JOEY NEWKIRK (PLAY)

Joey is an eight-year veteran on the front lines of bartending, and he’s been at Play Nashville for the last five-and-a-half years. When asked about his most memorable moment, Joey responded, “Memorable moments are every weekend when I get to take care of my fun and outgoing customers who make me laugh my ass off!!!” You guys love him, and he loves you back!

This doesn’t mean that we’ll get to hold onto him forever, though.

“I’m also a singer, so hopefully that’s my next stop when I’m done with bar tending,” he said. “I’ve performed country and rock, and I’ve done shows in Nashville, Palm Springs, and Vegas. I just started up with a new duo partner, and I’m waiting to hear back from America’s Got Talent’s second round!” We can’t wait to see what Joey’s got in store for us next, but in the meantime, check him out on iTunes and YouTube!

Contender

WILL GRONES (TRIBE)

Will has been at Tribe for eight years now, and is one of its most familiar, smiling faces. He was drawn to Tribe hoping to connect with the LGBT community. “I walked into the bar

Illusions on Donelson Pike. It was only gonna be temporary, but that was fifteen years ago. I guess I am still looking for a real job!”

When asked what makes his bar special, Timmy said, “Stirrup is not pretentious: it’s everything from suit-and-tie to tshit-and-jeans, with a diverse clientele, great food and good drinks, and not too much drama going on!” What more could you ask for?

Contender SEAN VAN ORDER (TRIBE)

as a closeted and terrified young gay man. There was a bartender working that night named Jimmy. His disarming personality and genuine interest in my story played a huge role in my coming-out process. I felt like I finally had a place

Contender

TIMMY HARKUM (STIRRUP)

Timmy is not only one of Stirrup’s favorite bartenders, but for the last three years he has been its sole owner. It’s been a long road though!

“I moved to Nashville for a position in a restaurant chain, and after they went belly up, I found a job at

Sean is a bit shy about even posing for the paper, but he’ll be familiar to Tribe regulars.

According to Bud East, a manager at Tribe, “Sean has been with our company for the last 12 years. He has a huge customer base that cannot wait to see him every weekend. He truly cares what his customer like, and tries very hard to give them the best service possible.”

@O U T A N D A B O U T N A S H

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Nashville is well known for its nightlife, from the neon advertised honky tonks lining Broadway to the hip bars of East Nashville. Nashville’s gay scene is as vibrant and diverse as that of the rest of the city, ‘cause, let’s face it: the Bible Belt isn’t keeping us down! With five very different bars and clubs on Church Street alone, there’s an LGBT hangout in this city for most every sort. And as always, our Nightlife section had some of the most competitive voting, too, because people feel strongly about their chosen spots.

Drag King

JORDAN ALLEN One of Nashville’s most well-known kings, Jordan has been doing drag for ten years, and is the host and emcee of Ladies Night every Thursday. Along the way, he has held titles including the national title of Mister USofA M.I., and now sits on the boards of several drag organizations. He feels blessed by an amazing career, and looks forward to years more.

Place to Dance

PLAY DANCE BAR Whats not to love? The dance floor has enough room for your crew to hold an epic dance battle, or you can get into the groove in your own space. They keep the drinks and the beats flowing in this Nashville institution.

And living up to its best of the best reputation, Play’s December calendar is epic, with events from a Topher DiMaggio meet-andgreet to a New Years Party headlined by BenDeLaCreme. Or maybe the Student Body Finals or the Horns and Halos party is more your speed?

Disk Jockey DJ PHIL

Whether it’s at Tribe or Play, this multiyear champion in our DJ category is a master of mixing who

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can spin no wrong in the eyes of Nashville! But this year, it was a real battle, with DJ Ron hot on his heels!

Happy Hour TRIBE

With deals as generous as $5.00 top shelf drinks from 5–8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, $3.00 Bushwackers from 2–5 p.m. on Sundays, and other great deals through the week, it’s no wonder Nashville loves Tribe’s happy hours. Tribe is the place to be when you need a mini vacay from the rat race.

Overall Bar TRIBE

Drag Queen

NICOLE ELLINGTON DUPREE Ms. Dupree, twenty-year veteran of the drag arts, takes top honors again! And if you’ve met any of her fans, it’s easy to see why. She’s a well-loved entertainer round these parts, and we couldn’t be happier to see her win again.

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DECEMBER 2014

It’s not just happy hour: Tribe is the whole package and again takes top honors. It’s no surprise. Tribe is where you can catch The Nashville Grizzlies 3rd half, catch your favorite show’s viewing party in the middle lounge, grab a happy hour special, and then pop over to Suzy Wong’s, all

without ever seeing the sunlight!

From Post Office fundraisers to Showtunes to Trivia, there’s something for everyone, and all in a relaxed yet upscale atmosphere.

For a second year in a row, though, Lipstick Lounge was just a few votes behind, and we agree that it’s one of the best places in Nashville to pick up a karaoke mic, hands down.

Non-Gay Bar 3 CROW

With its eclectic and eccentric atmosphere, as well as its convenient East Nashville location, there’s no wonder that 3 Crow is as popular with our readers as it is with the hip straight crowds in East Nashville.

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DECEMBER 2014

Nashville’s star is on the rise as its reputation as the “it-city” of the hour spreads far and wide. One category where Nashville is most definitely building its reputation is in its culinary scene. Sometimes it seems as if a new celebrity chef, concept restaurant, or chic chain opens a location in Nashville every week. But we love our locals who’ve worked their way onto our palates!

Best Overall Restaurant ROSEPEPPER

Suzy Wong’s may not have garnered the top nod (Best Overall Restaurant) again this year, but with its great food and its proximity to Nashville’s favorite gay bars and clubs, it’s no wonder Suzy Wong’s remains just the right place to bring a first date. And hey, if romance doesn’t blossom, by the end of dinner, Church Street has lots of charms!

hot Frothy Monkey around Nashville and even in Franklin! They’ve got a drink menu that will make any warm beverage enthusiast happy, with coffees on tap and rotating seasonal

Local Chef / Fine Dining MARGOT MCCORMICK

To eat at Rosepepper is to love it! If you’ve had a meal at there, you know what a life-changing experience it can be, from its award-winning margaritas by the pitcher to the amazing chips and queso. Even before you’ve gotten to the entrées, you’re going to have reason to love this place. Rosepepper also boasts probably one of the best stocked tequila bars north of the border, with a staff able to help you choose from over eighty varieties of tequila they serve.

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year in a row, Five Points Pizza is serving it up the way Nashville likes it (New York, not Chicago!).

This hole-in-the-wall’s ambience is second-to-none, if you’re looking for an old-school casual dining experience!

Brunch MAD DONNA’S

Once again, Margot McCormack has the distinction of winning BOTH Best Local Chef AND Best Fine Dining. Margot has graced the cover of O&AN, so she is well known to our readers. You might think Nashville might tire of Margot, but with a daily menu reflecting the best of continental cuisines, how could we? Seriously, with things like “Pan Roasted Wreckfish” and “Mushroom and Caramelized Onion Paella” on the menu, there is literally never a boring moment in this mainstay of fine dining in Nashville.

Pizza

FIVE POINTS PIZZA

Americans love their pizza (though they may duel over exactly the ‘right’ way of making it), and Nashvillians are no exception. And for a second

beverages. Its chill vibe makes it a great place to start your day, recharge, or catch up with friends.

Patio 3 CROW

Winner of this year’s GayFave Best Non-Gay Bar is clearly more than just a drinking hole. Our readers come for the liquor and stay for the porch! It’s a prime Sunday stop for the Nashville Grizzlies, and pretty much everyone else. The vibe is so laid back and fun, it’s the perfect place for nice weather casual drinks with friends.

Mad Donna’s is way more than the hottest brunch in town, with their Drag Bingo and their live music, but sometimes we forget. After all, they had us with “a Bloody Mary Bar.” There’s no surprise that our readers picked it again this year. It’s the place to grab brunch and be seen… at a bloody mary bar!

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Nashville’s LGBT community is diverse and active. This creates an atmosphere of constant activity and regular events. Honestly, if you tried to do it all, you’d be exhausted. So we have to prioritize, selecting the organizations (TEP, HRC, CARES, Music City Sisters, etc.) and activities (Grizzlies, HotMess, Nashville in Harmony, etc.) we deem most worthy of our efforts and energies. This year, our readers have selected a diverse and powerful slate of community representatives that remind us how much we have to be proud of.

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In a category of extremely strong contenders, Nashville CARES is truly a standout organization. The organization has, for nearly three decades, pursued an audacious mission, “to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Middle Tennessee.

We work to achieve this through education, advocacy and support for those at risk for or living with HIV.” In the last year alone, CARES has served countless people in Middle Tennessee, including testing “13,000 individuals for HIV and linked the 99 people who tested positive to care and support.” That’s what we call community service!

HotMess Kickball League graced the cover of O&AN in the June 2014, and our readers clearly can’t get enough of them! But how could they not garner the vote, with well over 200 members playing last season?

Plus, this isn’t rugby: you don’t have to be willing to get plowed down, full contact style, to enjoy this elementary playground staple. So if you miss the good old days of juice boxes and mud pies, reconnect with childhood through Hotmess.

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Local Politician

MAYOR KARL DEAN

THANKFULLY Nashville and Davidson County are bright blue beacons in a sea of red, and so is our mayor, who, in August, was one of the first Tennessee mayors to support gay marriage. He was also a leading proponent of the city ordinance to provide metro employees with domestic partnership benefits, which passed in June.

Fingers crossed he’ll be our next governor!

Community Event PRIDE

Nashville Pride changed venues yet again this year, and for the most part it was a hit with the crowd. The location was perfect to minimize interference and to allow the festival to spread out, creating more “family friendly” sectors, while allowing the grownups to still enjoy the day. Plus the symbolic power of having pride in Public Square Park cannot be missed. We look forward to bigger and better things in the future!

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DECEMBER 2014

LGBT Musician

NASHVILLE IN HARMONY

This year, our favorite musician is a choir—namely Tennessee’s “first and only musical arts organization specifically created for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people – and their straight allies.” To the casual observer, Nashville in Harmony might just appear to be one more expert choir performing technically challenging vocal music.

But the mission of the organization is to build understanding within a community and promote social change, by bringing diverse people together to sing and by putting them before appreciative audiences. And Nashville says, “Bravo!”

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Who doesn’t want to look and feel their best? Everyone, of course, but some segments of the LGBT community are known to raise this pursuit to an art form. Whether it’s the hottest outfit just off the runways of Milan, or a carefully constructed outfit obtained via Herculean thrift store adventures, we’ve shown we have the will to construct our look carefully. And just check our gym membership records! Here’s where Nashville’s LGBT community goes to shape, alter, and cover their bodies, and to find a little furry happiness.

Place to Shop for New Clothes OPRY MILLS

Now, you may be wondering, how did a tourist-filled outlet mall beat out a luxury department store in an LGBT reader survey? Well, for the true clothes-hound, you can’t beat the price on new, name-brand clothing. From the reasonably priced H&M to the $125-afterthe-sale sweater you picked up off the clearance rack at Saks, there’s something for every style in most every price range. And, of course, for that outdoorsy LGBT person, where else in Nashville can you pick up a (nice) pair of shoes and a bass boat at the same place?

Place to Shop for Used Clothes GOODWILL

Finding the right outfit is a little harder at Goodwill than at Opry Mills, but the greater the effort, the greater the reward. Imagine finding that Calvin Klein shirt you’ve always needed bearing a $4.99 red tag after being abandoned at the dry cleaners (we recommend washing, anyway). Then imagine it’s “red tag items 50% off day”. Sounds good to us, too. Plus, you know that you’re

funding training and employment opportunities for people who have trouble finding work.

Gay Faves Hairstylist

DANE YOUNG, LUCY POP SALON

designing for years. Heck, even our stuffed-shirt print editor, James Grady, got tattoo work done there. Twice.

Gym – Tie! Dane Young is well known around Nashville’s LGBT community, particularly among Play regulars and drag fans, who may also know him as Kameron Michaels. But our readers also appreciate his work as a skillful stylist and makeup artist at the hip Lucy Pop Salon on Broadway! So, you might want to book your appointments well in advance.

PLANET FITNESS AND YMCA

This year was the battle of the gyms, and when all the dust settled, there was no clear winner. In fact, Planet Fitness and the YMCA ended with a perfect tie!

Pet Services

NASHVILLE HUMAN SOCIETY Well, OF COURSE, the Humane Association won with that Kenneth

companionship, before you head down to the mall and feed the puppy mill, remember that there are hundreds of dogs in Metro Nashville alone that need good homes. Some will die without homes. You…don’t want that, do you? No dog will ever love you like the dog you rescue, and Nashville Humane Society is our first stop on the path to pet adoption.

Tattoo Shop LONE WOLF

Lone Wolf is just a stone’s throw from the Vanderbilt campus, and on any given day a coed or two will wander in looking to get those Greek letters permanently embossed. But for the tattoo connoisseurs among us, Lone Wolf is THE place to go for that elaborate chest piece you’ve been

Tallier, always on TV pimping out those adorable kitty and puppy children. So, if you have the hankering for some animal @O U T A N D A B O U T N A S H

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Photos courtesy of Michael Herman and Julius Greene

Our community lives and works in Nashville: where are our favorite places to go relax, see a show, catch a movie, or find a good book?

Well, we wanted to know and you told us! Last year our readers were very specific in choosing the fabulous Jenni’s Ice Cream as the Place to Take Visitors. This year we were far more ambitious….

Live Music Venue

RYMAN AUDITORIUM

The Ryman Auditorium—revamped as a premier performance hall after reopening in 1994, and subsequently declared a National Historic Landmark in 2001—may be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” but it has become so much more. In the coming year, acts as diverse as Hozier, The Beach Boys, and Garrison Keillor are set to perform there for local audiences, and LGBT acts are now common there.

Hotel OMNI

Located in the heart of downtown Nashville, the Omni Hotel offers

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deals and packages that would make the heart of any country music enthusiast sing a happier tune, such as a Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum Package. Add to its location its many onsite amenities, such as its fourth floor Mokara Salon & Spa and Bob’s Steak and Chop House, and you have a GayFaves hotel!

Place to Take Visitors

DOWNTOWN/BROADWAY

From the live music and ambience of the clubs and bars in the eclectic Printers Alley to the neon-lit honky tonks of Broadway, downtown Nashville is a music lover’s paradise, especially for those who like local acts. After all, we live in a city full of waiters more than qualified to be in the house band compared with any other metropolis.

Add to that tour the historical and cultural venues, from the Country Music Hall of Fame to the Frist, and downtown via Broadway is enough to entertain even the choosiest of visitors.

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DECEMBER 2014

lived without it! From its bargain basement prices on everything from CDs and DVDs to comic books and great literature, it is a paradise of personal entertainment shopping.

Movie Theatre Spiritual Place

HOLY TRINITY COMMUNITY CHURCH

Holy Trinity is one of the most LGBT affirming churches in Middle Tennessee. Holy Trinity describes its mission as “creating a spiritual culture of loving acceptance for all God’s children,” and their work in the community, with organizations from Nashville CARES to the Tennessee Equality Project is evidence to that commitment.

Bookstore

MCKAY USED BOOKS

Tennessee’s first McKay’s location opened in Knoxville in 1985, and then arrived in Nashville in 2007.

Now it’s hard to imagine how we ever

BELCOURT

In the age of the Mega Theater, showing 20 movies and boasting IMAX screens, the Belcourt is a throwback to another era. Heck, it can even accommodate stage productions. This Nashville institution brings the best independent films to Nashville while serving up classic movies in various genres and hosting cultural events, such as Nashville’s Jewish Film Festival. And where else can you enjoy your show while sipping a martini you ordered at the concession stand?

As LGBT visibility continues to rise, our voices are heard in more and more realms. But we live in a world where the idea of a “turn away the gays” bill is alive and well. So, this year we celebrate both our corporate favorites as well as our local leaders of business and professional services. It’s great to know that our community has people and institutions it can turn to when necessary.

run in town, and when Nashville CARES needed a partner for a weekend of free HIV testing in Nashville, local Walgreens locations stepped up. Hey Walgreens—next year, Pride?

Lawyer

ABBY RUBENFELD

Really, need we explain why our readers chose Abby Rubenfeld as their favorite lawyer for a second year in a row? Well, most recently Rubenfeld has become one of the attorneys in the case seeking to overturn Tennessee’s noxious ban on gay marriage. But this is just the latest in a string of cases where this prominent civil rights attorney has led the charge to protect the rights of LGBT Tennesseans. So, our readers rightfully salute her efforts!

Bank

BANK OF AMERICA Hospital City, and of the many fine choices available, Vanderbilt is certainly one of the best known and most respected.

Vet

VALUE VET

We all know that many LGBT pet owners are notoriously attached to their animal companions, and so when it comes to pet care, we are a choosy lot. This year, Value Vet again takes the top spot among our readers as the place that maximizes care while minimizing costs. Thanks, Value Vet!

Dentist

EAST SIDE SMILES

You know, they say image is everything, and one of the first things people notice about a person is her smile. And for the second year in a row, East Side smiles has been chosen by our readers as the place they trust the most with their smiles.

Health Services

VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER If Nashville weren’t Music City, chances are good it would be

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Pharmacy

WALGREENS

Walgreens may be a big national chain, but they get big points for community engagement: you see Walgreens at almost every walk and

Bank of America is an industry goliath with locations nearly everywhere. With satellite ATMs in parking lots, those nifty ATM deposits, and a great app, you can do most everything on the go. And we do value convenience.

LGBT-Owned Business LIPSTICK LOUNGE

The Lipstick Lounge is the epitome of an LGBT-owned business that truly engages that sometimesforgotten community spirit of openness and welcome for all people, LGBT or otherwise. As they say on their website, “Come as you are, no matter what you are. You’re part of the human family, and this is your home.”

Real Estate Agent BRIAN COPELAND

Brian heads up Villiage Real Estate, which is truly a gay family affair (his husband, Greg Bullard, oversees accounting).

If you’ve seen their ads in O&AN, you also know that Brian and Greg are proud fathers; their @O U T A N D A B O U T N A S H

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MAKING HISTORY Inaugural Poet Richard Blanco Releases Coming-of-Age Memoir

Richard Blanco spoke at Nashville’s Southern Festival of Books on October 11, in support of his new memoir, The Prince of Los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood, which was released on September 30. I spoke with him by phone about a week after his visit to Nashville.

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Inaugural poet Richard Blanco made history in 2013, when he read his poem “One Today” at President Obama’s second inauguration, as the first immigrant, first Latino, and first openly gay poet to hold the laudable post. Although he made the history books on January 21, 2013 as the fifth inaugural poet of the United States, Blanco was in the midst of drafting what would become The Prince of Los Cocuyos, a book detailing his own history, which he wrote over the course of five years.

Having authored three collections of poetry, as well as a number of powerful commissioned pieces—including “Until We Could” and “Boston Strong”—that, much like “One Today,” made their way into the mainstream of society, Blanco’s poetic work has been critically acclaimed for over a decade. But The Prince would need more than stanzas in order to grow from seed to sapling.

“I just always felt that there’s so much in the poetry [that I’ve written in the past] that I couldn’t unpack,” he explains. “And, you know, every genre has…strengths and weaknesses and there’s so much background story and so many other sort of things that I wanted to develop that I knew that poetry wasn’t gonna be the piece for it.”

While chapters provided more “elbow room” for Blanco’s storytelling, writing about being a gay child—unaware, yet aware of one’s disposition—is no easy task.

“You could say I’ve been living a closeted gay life since I was three

Richard Blanco

Photo Credit: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders

years old, in a way,” he says with a chuckle, although he did not have his first sexual experience with a man until 21 years later. “We always know…you’re just too terrified to even attach language to it and, in the memoir, that was one of the hardest things to do subtly, to sort of weave in there. It’s that conversation that you have with yourself without talking. That knowing without knowing ‘cause you’re so terrified to even speak words that would mean you’re being honest with yourself, in a way.”

Although The Prince is not a coming-out memoir, it is a comingof-age story. While the book’s end leaves Blanco at age 17, he did not come out until he was 25. A civil engineer by trade—a profession “manly” enough to garner his father’s and grandmother’s approval—Blanco notes that it was actually poetry that emboldened

The Prince of Los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood Author: Richard Blanco Publisher: Ecco Language: English Press, 2014. 272 pages.

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him to be a man of his word. It was during his coming-out process that he began to write.

“I had some success in my poetry. Being well received, I was able to envision my life as an artist, as a poet, and that gave me the courage, in turn, to then come out,” he remembers. “It was sort of [in] the culture I got to being more honest with myself. And the more I could envision my life as a writer, the more I could envision my life as a gay man, then living my life as a gay man.”

Both humorous and heartbreaking, The Prince is an account beautifully layered with longing, belonging, and language as colorful as its characters, as Blanco struggles to find his place in his Cuban-exile family, in American society, and in his own skin. “You can’t separate my story as a Cuban man from my story as a gay child from my story as an engineer, or poet. They’re all different hats but it’s really one big sombrero.”

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CANNON COUNTY BOASTS THRIVING ARTS CENTER “Quilted Hall” and “Gourd-Lamped Gallery” CODY TRACEY

The Arts Center of Cannon County was founded in 1979 as a community theater, with productions taking place in the basement of the old high school gymnasium—a building that survived the fire that had destroyed the high school itself.

Ten years later, a joint project of local craft artists, the historical society, and the theater group resulted in 7,400 square-foot building located on John Bragg Highway in Woodbury that abuts the East Fork of the Stones River. Three expansions later, the facility is 18,000 square feet with ample parking and a 225 seat thrust-stage theater, a 2,600 square-foot exhibition hall, a craft shop, a gallery, the county farmers’ market, a kayak launch, a sizeable private investor solar installation, and a full service restaurant.

The current Executive Director, Neal Appelbaum, and his husband of twenty-one years, Garth Hawkins, moved to Cannon County some fourteen years ago.

Appelbaum had served on the Board of the facility prior to his being hired to oversee its daily operations.

“It is a very active, big red barn. Folks of all ages use the building for educational, professional, social, and cultural purposes,” said Appelbaum.

The textile art of John Harris will be on exhibit at the Arts Center through December 20. Harris began making quilts only a few years ago. Upon retirement, he decided to learn about sewing machines. Twentythree quilts comprise his body of work, and his neighbors appreciate the effort. Each quilt is made for a specific close friend, with colors, patterns, or complexity chosen to reflect its owner’s personality.

Thirteen quilts, never before exhibited as a group or individually, have been borrowed off their recipients’ beds for display in Cannon Hall at the Arts Center.

Also currently on display in Cannon Hall is a modern-art textile by Arlyn Ende. This carpettapestry—six feet by fifty-four feet long—is hung in three sections above Harris’ quilts. There is obvious interplay between Ende’s work representing historic quilt patterns but in grandly scaled presentation and Harris’ new, human-sized quilts.

The Berger Gallery at the Arts Center is just a few feet away from Cannon Hall. This space is dedicated to presenting five or more joint or solo shows of art for sale each year. The current show is another attempt to play one artist’s work off of another’s. In this case 20 framed mirrors—from modest to “sofa sized”—reflect the colored light and forms of 23 stained glass gourd lamps.

The framed mirrors are the artistic carpentry of Jerry Gabriel. Depicting natural forms, from tree trunk to topography, the wood is laminated into thick layers and then carved down to the desired contour. The gourd lamps by Jai Sheronda are an unexpected sight.

If you’ve met Sheronda, then you already know he has a gourd fetish. He has been growing and making art with gourds for more than a decade. This show and

26

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John Harris, quilter

Jai Sheronda, gourd lamps

DECEMBER 2014

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sale brings together his last 24 months’ creations.

“There are giggly, wide-eyed moments of delight in the Berger Gallery right now,” says Chamber of Commerce Coordinator Carolyn Motley. Some of the gourd works are humorous, some striking, but all radiate joy. In need of good change of atmosphere?

Spend a few minutes in the middle of a room surrounded by stained glass being reflected from mirrors on all 4 walls. It is an experience of walking into not so much a funhouse as a Fellini-esque interior.

Sheronda and Harris, both LGBT artisans, are long term neighbors around Short Mountain in Cannon County. Says Appelbaum, “Having their shows coincide has brought a bit of sparkly, whimsical magic into the Arts Center. That brightness is wonderful during our dark winters.”

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SHE’S HOT

Featuring Christin Baker, Tello Films JANE DUPREE | @janedupree

AUTHOR BIO

Hello and welcome to She’s Hot, a new column all about the ladies. Each month I will interview “out” women and shed light on their hotness.

“She’s Hot” can be a description for any strong, out, independent, progressive, artistic, or inspirational woman, hence the column’s title.

Our first She’s Hot feature lady, Christin Baker, is a filmmaker, producer, and co-founder of Tello Films. Tello Films is a web-based distribution company that produces all-lesbian original content. The website provides access to its content via a monthly subscription: you might say it’s the lesbian Netflix.

Baker is originally from a small town in Indiana, but her family moved many times in her younger years, including stints in Orlando and Chattanooga. However, her family spent the most time in Nashville after moving here in 1988, and they’ve called it home ever since.

Baker was heavily influenced by attending shows at TPAC and doing local theater. As a kid, she would make home music videos and SNL parodies. She continued her passion for video and film by attending MTSU and studying in their Mass Communications program.

Baker had a brief run in broadcast journalism and held an internship at a local station. After her internship, she realized working in the news wasn’t a good fit for her. That same summer she was on a movie set as an extra, and

28

there she realized that film-based storytelling was her destiny. Baker was subsequently fortunate enough to have access to MTSU’s new digital editing equipment and thereafter learned to edit video.

Shortly after graduating, Baker moved to Los Angeles where she spent three years in the Hollywood industry. This, however, didn’t suit her, so she got a job at the YMCA and made videos. Baker subsequently made her way to Chicago, where she met her creative partners, Jessica King and Julie Keck via Twitter.

All three lived in Chicago, all were film makers, and a mutual friend introduced the three over coffee. The result was a personal partnership among the three, and their professional collaboration has become Tello Films. Christin has now produced ten original projects with many others in pre-production.

Dupree: What inspired you to create Tello Films?

Baker: Lack of quality lesbian content. We have come far with The Fosters and Orange is the New Black but are still lacking, with lesbian regulars dying on network shows.

Dupree: Have you completed any projects in Nashville?

Baker: Not yet. We’ve done most of our productions in Chicago, but I’m looking to move some here. Before I moved to LA, when I was still in Nashville, I did work on a few music videos and an indie movie called

Christin Baker Exhisto. That was my first real foray into production.

Dupree: If you could cast any actress in your films, whom would you cast and in what type of film?

Baker: I get asked this all the time, and it is always changing. For example, Emma Stone comes to mind, but that’s because I was watching her Jimmy Fallon lip sync contest video the other day. Let me first say I have been very lucky to work with some amazing actresses.

I’m very proud of the quality of acting on our site. I usually also say Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. I think they are both amazing and super talented. So that’s my answer. I’d allow them to be funny. That’s the film I would make.

Dupree: What’s on your current iPod/Pandora playlist?

Baker: One of my favorites is a local musician named Jen Foster, she is on my rotation. I’ve been listening to some Nickel Creek recently; I love them. The musical Once came to Nashville and I saw it, so I’ve been listening to that soundtrack, and I’ve discovered a local band called Boom Forest. I’ve been listening to that in my car.

Baker: I have to give you a few answers on this one. The Good Wife, Drunk History, The Daily Show, New Girl, and Castle. I could keep going, but those are my favorites.

The last movie that really moved me was Saving Mr. Banks. I also want to mention the documentary 20 feet from Stardom. I don’t usually watch documentaries, but I was on a flight recently, and it was on, and I loved it.

Dupree: What is your next project?

Baker: We are currently in postproduction on two projects. One is #Hashtag Season 2 and a romantic comedy called Plus One. We are also working with local Nashville filmmaker Jennifer Sheridan on developing and distributing a documentary she is working on called I kissed a Girl.

To watch Christin Baker’s projects or to learn more about Tello Films, visit http://www. onemorelesbian.com/tello/.

Dupree: What are your current favorite TV show and movie?

Jane Dupree Before is from Alamo, TN, a small, rural town located in West Tennessee. She grew up playing music in her hometown church. After high school, she attended Middle Tennessee State University to study in the Recording Industry Management program. While in college, she hosted a weekly radio show on WMTS, Housenation, for five years. After college, she dove head-first into the world, playing various venues and events across the country, as well as DJing for some of the biggest names in dance music, competing with the Nashville Rollergirls and appearing in a few television shows. If you would like to nominate a lady to be featured in She’s Hot, drop Jane a line at djjanedupree@gmail.com.

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

DECEMBER 2014

MAS CABARET UNDER THE ENSEMBLE MASTLETOE JAZ DORSEY

Actors spend their time going to auditions and performing in shows— a lifestyle that constantly creates connections with other actors in the community. This leads to some powerful artistic bonding, and one consequence of this can be a burning desire to get onstage together. This desire can often go frustrated and unfulfilled.

But some actors simply will not accept the status quo, possibly never being cast in a show together, so they take the “bull” by the horns. Such is the case with five of Nashville’s finest actresses: Erin Parker, Megan Murphy Chambers, Laura Matala, Cori Anne Laemmel and Melodie Madden Adams.

Several years ago, these ladies lamented that they were more likely to

compete for roles than they were to end up together onstage in the conventional theatre world, so they determined to create a group that would showcase their collective talents in a genre that was made for just such a purpose: cabaret.

What emerged is a group called MAS. There’s a double meaning here.

The letters represent what these ladies are, at their core: a Mutual Admiration Society. But, as most of us know, “mas” also means “more” in Spanish, and the mission of this ensemble is to give these artists and their audience “mas” of what they do.

The greatest challenge of bringing this mission to fruition is trying to create something around the schedules of a very busy group of women who are also raising children and holding down regular jobs. So, three years of work have led to only one show and a soonto-be-released CD. But now the gals are headed back to the stage with their 2014 holiday show, which will be staged at 8 p.m. on Monday, December 8 at The Belcourt Theatre.

The show, called Under the Mastletoe, is best described as “a concert where Celtic Women meets Sex and the City and class meets hilarity.”

It’s a blend of holiday standards, winter songs, and melodious mash-up, as well as just plain festive, non-holiday tunes. This promises to be an evening of fantastic harmonies, holiday cheer, glitter, high heels, and humor.

You can, of course, find out much more about what MAS is all about on their website, www.masnashville.com.

For tickets to Under the Mastletoe, visit www.belcourt.org.

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29

SNARKOLOGY: SPIKING THE PUNCH AMY SULAM | @Amysulam

We’ve all seen it: vaguebooking, Twitter fights, or ex-friends calling each other out on social media. We’ve been there when someone makes a sideways comment. People pop off at the mouth a lot. It’s too much for my taste, and it’s typically not in a super confrontational way…usually.

My ex-mother-in-law is a spoiled elitist and she has NO verbal filter; she just says awful stuff to people, like they should just know their place. For example, she’s said, “Don’t be overtly gay, people don’t like it. You don’t have to tell them.” For another, she told her adopted 10-year-old grandchild that she wasn’t in the will because she’s “not of blood relation.”

I used to get coffee on Thursday nights with a group of moms, and they would sit around and criticize the parenting of moms who weren’t there.

I kid you not, they’d say things like, “I don’t wanna say she doesn’t care about her kids but…” Excuse me, what?!?

If you don’t wanna say it, then don’t.

Obviously, you DO wanna say it, ‘cuz you did.

Now, in the culture I grew up in, if you had an issue with someone, you took it up with them directly, in private and with no one else. If you threw shade at someone in front of others, that was your way of saying, “I’m sure I could handle them punching me and I’m willing to hedge a bet.” Needless to say, arguments and gossip were rare.

In my old neighborhood, if I did half the stuff I see people do on Facebook, I’d be breathing through

my toes by now. Some of you may be saying, “Amy, that’s incredibly violent and in poor taste!” And you’d be right!

But I’ll tell you this: for what it’s worth, I mind my own business. I don’t fill in what I don’t know about another person with hearsay, and gossip. I don’t spread stories I didn’t see with my own eyes, and I don’t give my opinion unless asked.

Having to think, “Am I willing to get punched over this?” before throwing shade really did teach me about accountability and makes me stop and think before I do it. You can’t recall a verbal dagger once it’s been formed and made to fly. So, anything that causes pause before reckless speech, yes, I think is a good thing.

Imagine if these mouth poppers had ever actually been popped in the mouth, just once, for reckless gum flapping? Campfield would’ve gone mute from PTSD just thinking about saying something ignorant. Or how about that homophobic cousin on her fourth marriage sitting there at Christmas dinner talking about how YOUR lifestyle is sinful, but she and her inflated sense of self-importance never met a shmuck they couldn’t turn into a child-support check? And it would be beautiful! Clearly, they’re selfish because they don’t care whom their words hurt, but if their words could possibly get their face hurt, who knows? Maybe they’d consider consequences a bit more.

I wonder if anyone has seriously considered how beneficial face

punching could be for peace and tolerance. Now, I know what you’re thinking: “Amy, isn’t punching people in the face illegal?” Well, yes, misdemeanor assault in Davidson County carries a $250 fine, and it’s an entire year before it’s off your record. Ain’t nobody got time for that!

However, boxing in a gym? It’s totally legal! If you really can’t stand someone, buy them a boxing gym membership as a holiday gift. Then, schedule a time to legally punch them in the face for fitness!

Think of all the good a day at the

gym could do for humanity, causing verbal pause for at least one ass-hat in the future. Together, we could start a trend that would clear up bitchy social media posts in our feeds. And everybody gets cardio! Win/win!

Happy Holidays! *Disclaimer: O&AN Magazine does not endorse physical violence or any other completely insane idea presented

by Amy Sulam. Her column is for entertainment only. Seriously, look at this woman: she is a hot damn mess.

No one should listen to her! Ever! Not even her own children.

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30

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

DECEMBER 2014

MEETING MR. FROST MICHAEL PRICE | @MichaelPrice_1

In August 2013, Lavergne-based Left Brain Digital Productions (LBD) premiered Johnny Dynamo, and the simple web series of twelve minute episodes quickly turned into big business for CEO & founder of LBD, Joe Thomas. With over 5 million viewers—and rave reviews and awards nominations—Johnny Dynamo is one of the most successful web series today.

Recently, LBD has been hard at work on a new series, Mr. Frost. Lazlo Frost is a gay talk radio star who falls from grace after his colorful antics land him a three year FCC ban. Following his forced sabbatical, Lazlo Frost moves to Nashville and mounts a comeback as part of a fledgling station’s final efforts to stay afloat. Frost’s ratings soar, but not everyone in the town is laughing: many locals would be glad to form a mob and chase Frost right back to Detroit!

The new 30-minute comedy stars Greg Standifer. Standifer previously won accolades for his role as Terry Lowell in Johnny Dynamo. He also played Andy Katz in The Accidental President, and

Left Brain Digital Rolls Out Web Comedy Series Based in Nashville

recently wrapped production on The Body Sculptor (2015).

Until two years ago, Standifer wasn’t actively involved in acting. Then Standifer met Thomas, who had already written the pilot for what would become Mr. Frost but had yet to find the right person for the role. Thomas believed that if Greg was as big of a character on screen as he was off, then he might be just the man for the job. Thomas wrote Standifer a small part in Johnny Dynamo, which allowed the actor to prove he could carry the studio’s next vehicle.

While gay characters on television have become almost common in recent years, most gay characters still tend to be stuck in supporting roles, centered around ‘fad’ themes like coming out or battling depression. Gay characters also tend to be younger and either twinky types or very GQ. Standifer is excited to star in a show as an older gay actor, whose image doesn’t exactly fit the molds projected by mainstream media.

Frost’s flamboyancy definitely prompts his classification as a queen.

Standifer laughs off concerns that this would alienate, rather than endear him to, the gay community, claiming he would never take on a role portraying the community in a bad light. “Anyone that can’t laugh at or with Mr. Frost

needs to lighten up! I have always found humor to be the best medicine. Funny is funny!”

Check out www.MrFrost.tv to see Greg Standifer as Lazlo Frost – premiering December 15th.

Join us for the holidays!

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31

GLENN STEWART IS “BREAKING BOUNDARIES” Musician Collaborates with Drag Race Stars, Covers RuPaul JAMES A. GRADY | @jamesallengrady

Glenn Stewart’s story isn’t like what one normally hears among those able to make a living off their music in Nashville. He didn’t come to Music City to break into the industry by plying labels for backing, hoping to make his chops later. And he didn’t wait until comfortably late in his career to come out of the closet.

Strictly speaking, Glenn never was in the closet as a musician. But Glenn also didn’t get his start in Nashville, and that explains a lot about his success. “I’ve been out there since the 1980s. I didn’t broadcast it but I don’t hide it, and up north it’s even less of an issue.” Stewart built his career on a performance circuit in New England, where country is less of a musical staple but where the fans are just as rabid.

So, how did this gay boy from outside of Boston get into country music? “My dad was a country fan,” Stewart said. “Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash…. I loved that stuff but I also grew up loving Kiss and hair metal— the big theatrics. I picked up the drums and started in a band freshman year.”

He performed with Roxxi for a few years in the late-1980s and early-1990s, but soon Nirvana and grunge rock changed the music scene.

Stewart then spent years in cover bands, where he was encouraged to take up lead vocals, which led to a complete shift for him. Stewart started

recorded my own CD. Friends helped with what I couldn’t do on my own.”

While Stewart’s career has been independently driven, support from friends and fans has been essential. A couple of years ago, Stewart met Becky Szymcik: “I had posted on Facebook hoping to find an angel investor, and she contacted me. We sat down a couple of weeks later, talked about my contacts, and she became a backer for the first part of the album.”

With Szymcik’s support, a Kickstarter campaign was able to fund the rest of what would become Stewart’s new album, “Breaking Boundaries.”

There’s a lot to be excited about in “Breaking Boundaries,” and it has gained some notable and vocal fans.

Last year, Stewart met Jocelyn Foxx at Worcester Pride, and when she was cast on Season 6 of Drag Race, “I sent her a text from the plane,” Stewart said, explaining, “I’m a huge fan of the show. And she said, ‘I wanna be your video ho!’ And I knew I had the perfect thing.” The two began collaborating on the video for “Little Miss John Wayne,”

draws all the men’s eyes, but that’s what the song is about. The people who know drag know what’s going on, but what’s really funny is that those who don’t [know drag] just see a beautiful woman. And that ought to tell them something.”

Jocelyn’s status on RuPaul led to the video going viral almost overnight.

But that’s not RuPaul’s only connection to “Breaking Boundaries.”

Stewart is an unabashed fan, and his album features his cover of RuPaul’s “Around Again.” In the months since the video and album were released, RuPaul lent Stewart support, tweeting about his music and calling his cover “beautifully done.” This inspired Stewart and Foxx

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Hookups to perform his own music, with acoustic guitar, during the band breaks. “The 80’s formula for writing music isn’t that different from modern country,” he said. His performances grew so popular that it upset the band, and Stewart set out on his own. “I put myself in the studio in 2006,” he reported, “and

32

which would feature Fox and Stewart at Louisville’s Dark Star Tavern.

In the video, a very fishy Jocelyn heads out to a country bar, where she makes herself the life of the party and makes all the flannel-clad boys swoon.

The video plays with a country music classic: “A seductive, beautiful woman

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

DECEMBER 2014

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to organize a video, to be produced in 2015, for his version of “Around Again,” featuring over a dozen queens from Drag Race.

In the Nashville country scene, even coming out is risky, unless you’re established. So, one can hardly help but smile at the idea of independent country music on the ascent, powered even in part by the star power of drag queens. Maybe a little bit of the North is just what it will take to make a New Nashville?

For an extended version of this interview, see OutAndAboutNashville. com, and to find Stewart’s music, visit his website, glennstewart.net.

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December 5 – 7 13th Annual Christmas Open House Weekend Our gift to you to thank you for a great year! Drop in cocktail supper and open bar on Saturday evening at The Tavern. 30% discount on all rooms for the weekend. Annual Santa Bear and Sexy Elves Party at the Tavern.

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December 24 – 28 Christmas Holiday Gathering Join our family for a memorable celebration. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

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33

THE TRANSGENDER ELEPHANT: Our Sexuality BOBBI WILLIAMS

I’m sitting in my favorite bar answering questions from a man I just met. And I suppose I have brought it on myself by telling him that he can ask me anything and that I won’t be offended or embarrassed.

“I’ll be as honest as I can,” I say, “and I’ll try to answer as factually as possible.”

The questions invariably come around to sexuality. “Are transpeople sexual?” he asks and I have to chuckle. “Does a bear…”

I start to reply. “Of course. But it’s a bit more complicated. For starters, throw out the traditional labels. You can’t assume we’re attracted to gay men, or to straight men, or women, or lesbians. The answer is ‘all of the above’ and ‘none of the above.’”

Among my friends there is a post-operative transwoman who identifies as lesbian, another who identifies as a straight female, and a third who is asexual. I knew two post-operative transwomen who were in a committed relationship that they defined as lesbian. “But you know,” I tell my new friend, “one study found that transgender men and women have more heterosexual than homosexual experiences. Another found an almost equal distribution between homosexual, asexual, and heterosexual sexuality. A third found transsexual women as 38% bisexual, 35% attracted to women, and 27% attracted to men. And a fourth showed the majority of transmen are attracted primarily or exclusively to women. But none of those were based on very solid research.” These ‘balanced’ numbers don’t line up with the ‘norms’ of heterosexual society. But then again, just how hetero is it?

He takes a moment to absorb the concept, then nods. “Of course,” he says.

“Sure.” But I know what’s really going on, because I’ve been in that room with the elephant while everyone pretended it wasn’t there. What they’re really interested in is what goes on in the bedroom. It’s the same impulse that attracts them to porn,

34

that makes them slow down to check out the auto accident and look for a bloody body, that has them tuning in to watch CSI and Bones.

“Gay, lesbian, transgender—it doesn’t matter,” I tell him. “The details are private and personal. When two people are intimate, they explore and discover what pleases them, and that’s what they do. They make love. And what you have to ask yourself is why you, or anyone, for that matter, should care. Transgender relationships only serve to underscore the ludicrous nature of marriage equality as an issue. What matters is that two people

“What matters is that two people have feelings for each other that are strong enough that they want to share their lives.”

have feelings for each other that are strong enough that they want to share their lives.

What’s heartless and cruel is that anyone would not want that for them.”

He nods, but I can tell there’s still a niggling curiosity and I can tell it’s really about me. I pull back for a second, realizing what he’s really after. Masters and Johnson’s research didn’t stop at my house and the general public can’t be trusted.

“You do know there’s an ‘other’ category.

Some men who do not identify as gay are attracted to transwomen. And for some transwomen, having sex with straight men validates their identity as straight women.

It’s really not complicated. But again…why should it matter?”

He nods and smiles. “It shouldn’t,” he says, and buys me a drink.

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

DECEMBER 2014

Devor H (1997). FTM: Female-to-Male Transsexuals in Society.Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Read stories of transgender in Bobbi’s Book Me & Bobbi & the Gyrls available at http://bookstore.xlibris.com Find out more on the web at: http://www.webcitation.org/ query?url=http://www.geocities.com/harperjeantobin/ Thesis1.htm&date=2009-10-25+23:42:58

Dr. Bobbi Williams is an author, teacher, lecturer, and consultant.

Comments may be sent to her at bobbi@bobbiw.net

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