O&AN I April 2014

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APRIL 2014

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Tennessee Victory Timeline

MARCH 20

Judge Aleta Trauger denies the stay.

Her decision includes:

OCTOBER 21

Four Tennessee same-sex couples, legally married in other states, file a lawsuit in federal district court challenging the Tennessee laws that prevent the state from recognizing their marriages and treating them the same as all other legally married couples in Tennessee.

The couples were Dr. Valeria Tanco and Dr. Sophy Jesty of Knoxville; Army Reserve Sergeant First Class Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura of Memphis ; Kellie Miller and Vanessa DeVillez of Greenbrier; and Matthew Mansell and Johno Espejo of Franklin. Miller and DeVillez eventually dropped out of the lawsuit.

One of the couples, Dr. Valeria Tanco and Dr. Sophy Jesty, are expecting their first child.

MARCH 14

U.S. district court judge Aleta Trauger issues a preliminary injunction, barring the state of Tennessee from denying recognition of marriage licenses obtained by three same-sex couples in other states. The order applies only to the three couples in the lawsuit.

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MARCH 18

Tennessee Attorney General Robert Cooper Jr. and Governor Bill Haslam file notice of an appeal and ask for a 21-day stay on the preliminary injunction that would recognize the same-sex marriages of three Tennessee couples.

In its argument, the state’s AG offices references stays granted in similar cases. The state also argues that “a stay is necessary to restore the balance pending appeal, particularly where the Court’s order is one that frustrates the will of the people of Tennessee, reflected in the State’s democratically established public policy.”

State of Tennessee also argues that Tanco and Jesty’s “concerns regarding healthcare decisions arising from the birth of their child can be (or could have been) addressed through legal methods such as powers of attorney and advanced directives.”

Read the full stories on outandaboutnashville.com

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

“The defendants point out that, in other cases involving samesex marriage, courts have stayed the issuance of preliminary or permanent injunctions having statewide effect.

However, the defendants are comparing apples and oranges. Those cases all involved bans having statewide effect, which inherently created the possibility that implementation of the injunctions would motivate numerous third parties to seek and receive marriage licenses and/or to seek recognition of their outof-state marriages.”

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“Furthermore, although it is conceivable that Dr. Tanco and Dr. Jesty OPPORTUNITIES possess or could secure Out & About Nashville welcomes volunteer writers, photographers and videographers throughout certain rights relative the year. If you’re interested in contributing to the child they are to our publication, send an email to editor@ expecting tomorrow, outandaboutnashville.com with a resume, contact they are entitled to the information and samples of your work if available. Our full panoply of rights volunteer staff is unpaid, but contributors do receive associated with marriage credit for their work in our print publication and online.

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Out & About Nashville strives to be a credible community news organization by engaging and educating our readers.

All content of Out & About Nashville is copyrighted 2013 by Out & About Nashville, Inc. and is protected by federal copyright law and shall not be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. All photography is licensed stock imagery or has been supplied unless otherwise credited to a photographer and may not be reproduced without permission. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representations does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of the person or persons.

Out & About Nashville accepts unsolicited material but cannot take responsibility for its return. The editor reserves the right to accept, reject or edit and submission. All rights revert to authors upon publication. The editorial positions of Out & About Nashville are expressed in editorials and in the editor’s notes as determined by the editor. Other opinions are those of writers and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Out & About Nashville or its staff. Letters to the editor are encouraged but may be edited for clarity and length. All letters sent may not be published.

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o s sa ter

s i D he

R A U Y O J O G AR

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3 1 0 –2

3 0 0 2

’s W

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Goya: The Disasters of War is a collaboration of the Pomona College Museum of Art and the University Museums of the University of Delaware. It is curated

DOWNTOWN NASHV I L L E 919 BROADWAY FRISTCENTER.ORG

THE FRIST CENTER FOR THE VISUAL ARTS IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY:

by Janis Tomlinson, Director, University Museums, and circulated by the Pomona College Museum of Art. Steve Mumford’s War Journals is organized

THROUGH JUNE 8

Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission

by the Frist Center for the Visual Arts.

Francisco Goya. No se convienen [They do not agree] (detail) from Los Desastres de la Guerra, 1st edition, plate 17, 1863. Etching and dr ypoint on paper, 5 11/16 x 8 7/16 in. Pomona College Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. Norton Simon, P74.99 | Steve Mumford. Far from relaxed, these Lima Co, 3/6 Marines on a patrol out of Camp Coutu, Marja, are watching for insurgent activity while an Explosives and Ordinance Demolition team defuses a large improvised explosive device meant for our patrol (detail), 2010. Pencil and watercolor on paper. Courtesy of the artist and Postmasters Gallery, New York. © Steve Mumford

FC5230_Mab_NshArts_GoyaMumford_FP.indd 1

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3/12/14 1:58 PM

OF THE MUSIC CITY SISTERS

JAMES A. GRADY

In 1979, a group of three gay men took to the streets of San Francisco in nun’s habits to challenge the conformity they saw within their LGBT community.

This group would gel and grow into the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. The Sisters quickly broadened their mission from challenging LGBT conformism to adopting a radical, positive mission “to promulgate universal joy and expiate stigmatic guilt,” as well as to do good in the wider world. But the Sisters have never abandoned that original impulse to challenge people to be who they are, to question social norms. Just as those first Sisters wanted to challenge the plastic image of beauty that dominated the “Castro mentality” current Music City Sister Abbess, Sister Ann Wenita Morelove, wants people to know that “not every queer is comfortable with not being gorgeous, with not having abs, or even being queer. But if they see me doing this, maybe it will help them free themselves of those concerns and just be.”

As one of Nashville’s founding Sisters, Sister Right Sarong, reflects, “While the early group was more about shock value than about fundraising, when they did raise money it was often very political, but also very community oriented.” The Sisters, for example, held some of the earliest fundraising for an AIDS organization. The early Sisters were also quite political, participating in social action, such as a famous protest

6

against nuclear power. This example, in particular, establishes a very important reality about the Sisters: their attire and their actions may “mock” those of traditional religious orders, but they take seriously their version of the mission.

One of the Founders of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Sister Soami, writes about the nuclear protest, “we alternated cheerful pompon routines with a Rosary in Time of Nuclear Peril....

On that first outing we established the range of our ministry, from silly satire to thoughtful spirituality.”

As the Sisters have grown and established themselves, they have shifted their focus to emphasize community engagement over political action, and “fundraising is a big part of supporting our community,” Sister Right Sarong explained, discussing the evolution of the Sisters. And fundraising is a special gift of many Sisters. “If a six-and-a-half foot tall nun in clown face and boa asks you for a dollar, you’re usually gonna say yes.” But the fundamentals of the Sisters’ public ministry have remained true to their essential mission, which Sister Soami describes so eloquently: “We combine social activism with glamour drag for public edification and personal enlightenment. We produce public parties. We lampoon political and clerical party lines. We celebrate queer diversity and community. We visit the sick. We shelter the homeless.We scatter the ashes of our dead.”

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APRIL 2014

‘‘

ONE SISTER IS A FREAK, THREE SISTERS ARE A FORCE!

PURSEFONEE OPHELIA BITZ

EUNICE BEA KIDDEN

FAEGALA TINA PFISCHZOOT

‘‘

INTO THE PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

In their very early days the Sisters spread worldwide, but penetrating the heartland of the US would prove to be a slower task. Nevertheless the Sisters’ presence in Middle Tennessee dates much earlier than the founding of the Music City Sisters and their elevation to full House in 2010. One of the Sisters’ Founders, Sister Missionary Position, or Mish, spends part of each year at Tennessee’s Short Mountain Sanctuary.

In 2003, one of Nashville’s founding Sisters, Right Sarong, became active in the Order after attending a retreat at Short Mountain. With no House in Nashville, Sister Right Sarong became part of the Missionary Order and met Sisters all over the country.

Sister Mish and Sister Right Sarong also visited Nashville on occasion and represented the Sisters. Sister Right Sarong, lacking sisters to manifest with, brought ‘altar boys’ - men dressed in graduation gowns and halos - to events in Nashville. They’d support events, run the door, or even work behind the scenes, enacting the Sisters’ commitment to supporting the community through action. Sister Enya arrived in Nashville around 2007, though she was here part time, and while they discussed starting a house, interest wasn’t yet high enough and the time wasn’t right. That would change in 2009.

Like another famous revolution, the Music City Sisters’ time came on Bastille Day: this time it was a Bastille Day Party in 2009. As these things so often happen, the topic of the Sisters came up, and people were intrigued.

Someone expressed interest. Someone else knew someone that would want to be involved. Suddenly there were seven interested Sisters and prospective Sisters.

In August, they held their first formal meeting and manifested for the first time as a group. While Sisters Mish, Right Sarong, Enya and others had appeared individually, this marked the first time a substantial group of Sisters descended on Nashville. And as Sister Right Sarong quotes a Sisters’ saying, “One sister is a freak, three sisters are a force!”

EVITA ZANE

MORELOVE

CELIA LIPPS

ATHENA PUDYTAT

SAYVAH PRAYER

PHOTOS BY JESSI COGGINS

is not the expression - my total focus is to be love. It’s not just a sister thing any more - as a Sister I’m just being love, and I’m being a better Christian than I was before.”

Ministry is a word that many Sisters use to describe their individual missions, but that shouldn’t be a turn-off. The Sisters simply offers an outlet for the expression of love that is essential to each member, and some find the word ministry accurate. Sister Pursefonee Ophelia Bitz explains, “Our house is made up of a whole spectrum of beliefs, from atheist, to pagan, Wiccan, Christian, Jewish, and faerie: we just take all of that energy, whatever it is, and bring it together to ‘minister’ together to the whole community.” Sister Pursefonee recalls a friend from church asking if he didn’t miss the worship experiences, when his attendance dropped off. She explained, “As sisters, we are there solely to spread joy and make sure people know they’re loved. When we connect, I experience all the love I may or may not get in worship.” And the levity and revelry with which the Sisters surround themselves allow them to touch those who have no interest in, or negative experiences of, traditional religions or spirituality. Sister Ann recalled January’s Confessions on the Dancefloor event as a distinctly meaningful event: “People could write their secrets down, or converse with a sister - and you can talk about things with a 7 foot tall nun in white face in a bar that you might not talk to other people about!

We put those papers through the shredder used a fan to blow them away.” This nonthreatening and lighthearted environment allowed people to really connect. Sister Pursefonee describes listening to someone who was in a bad place, giving her free and non-judgmental ear: “For me was a sacred experience. I was able to touch someone, who will look at sisters and see us as places of comfort and sanctuary.”

For other Sisters, their gifts lend themselves to big events like H8’s a Drag, which funds important causes and brings attention to an issue facing not only LGBT people, but also anyone different or outside the norm. Sister Faegala, one of Nashville’s biologically female sisters, describes the genesis of the event, her novice project: “I wanted to do something about anti-bullying, and my big sister thought a big family thing in an outdoor park would be good, but I’m not a flying kites in the park kinda gal!” Inspired by the NOH8 campaign and her long exposure to the world of drag, Sister Faegala set about organizing a celebrity drag fundraiser in Nashville.

APRIL 2014

‘‘

OUR HOUSE IS MADE UP OF A WHOLE SPECTRUM OF BELIEFS, FROM ATHEIST, TO PAGAN, WICCAN, CHRISTIAN, JEWISH, AND FAERIE: WE JUST TAKE ALL OF THAT ENERGY, WHATEVER IT IS, AND BRING IT TOGETHER TO ‘MINISTER’ TOGETHER TO THE WHOLE COMMUNITY.

‘‘

ANN WENITA

Since those early months, the Music City Sisters have become a force within the Nashville LGBT community. In a little over a year, the house earned the right to use the name, Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence: requirements for elevation include registering as a non-profit, supporting community events, and appearing as Sisters, or “manifesting,” regularly. Through events such as Alphabet Art and H8’s a Drag, the Music City Sisters elevated not only their house, but also LGBT life and community in Middle Tennessee.

The Sisters haven’t always been met with open arms, however. Ironically, as Sister Right Sarong recalls, “It was the gay community that overlapped with ‘straight’ communities that was worried about the image of the gay community we were projecting.” Concern was often palpable about how the “straight” community and allies in business and churches would react, and it took a while for the LGBT community to understand that “we weren’t provoking or poking fun at anyone.... [Event organizers] were worried, while people from the churches and the community were excited!” But with persistence and through sustained and unwavering support for LGBT Nashville, the Sisters have gradually broken down walls of resistance. “In the last four years, we’ve worked with virtually every LGBT organization in town,” Sister Right Sarong reflects. “It took time and giving back - besides the costs of business, all the money we raise goes back into the community.”

In their first four years, the Music City Sisters have met with a great deal of success. At present, there are around 20 Sisters at various levels, from aspirants to fully professed sisters.

Among the newer Sisters is Sister Ann Wenita Morelove, current Abbess. Sister Ann and many of the sisters I spoke to epitomize the duality of the Sisters: they are “holy clowns,” men dressed as nuns and painted who often speak freely and sincerely of their ministry. Indeed Sister Ann was, in a previous life, an ordained United Methodist Minister.

“There came a point,” Sister Ann explains, “where my frustration with the United Methodists became overwhelming. The Book of Discipline says that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teachings.” This is a hard message for a man with a long term partner, with whom he had raised children. Finding the Sisters was a revelation. “I had been told that God is love, but that wasn’t for me. The Sisters allow me to have a ministry where that

Raja, from RuPaul’s Drag Race, and The Princess, as well as numerous other wellknown queens insured that the event would take on a life of its own.

Now in its third year, H8’s a Drag 2014, “Love TRANSforms Fear,” places focus on transphobia, bullying, suicide and related hate crimes in the transgender community.

The weekend long event will kick off on Friday, April 11 at PLAY Dance Bar at 8 p.m.. The event will feature RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 5 Puerto Rican knockout Lineysha Sparx along with the return of The Princess, a season 3 alumna.

VIP admission, which includes a special pre-reception and meet & greet, can be purchased for $25. General admission tickets are $10.

Again coinciding with GLSEN’s Day of Silence, last year’s Stomp H8 Prom, well attended by youth from the GLSEN Jump Start program, will return.

The prom’s location highlights the inroads the Sisters have made in the community.

“Belmont United Methodist’s Reconciling Ministries,” Sister Faegala proudly explained, “a connection of Sister Ann’s, provided space and completely sponsored the event last year and will continue to do so.”

As the Music City Sisters move forward, we can no doubt look for exciting new opportunities. Sister Ann explains, “Our recent growth has brought a lot of potential for change, and new ideas popping up all over the place.

Focusing this new energy is a major work.” The Music City Sisters’ arsenal of successful, recurring major events like Alphabet Art and H8’s a Drag, as well as lighter fare like the Pink Panty Pulldown and Freak and Fetish, will not only continue but grow. cont. on page 30

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

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Federal judge strikes down Michigan same-sex marriage ban LISA KEEN / KEEN NEWS SERVICE

A federal judge in Detroit ruled Friday that Michigan’s ban against same-sex couples marrying violates the couples’ constitutional rights to equal protection.

The Michigan decision, from U.S. District Court Judge Bernard Friedman (a Reagan appointee) falls squarely in line rulings from federal district court judges in eight other states in the past year since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) with U.S. v. Windsor. The other eight are all on appeal to their various courts of appeal. Some suggest the Michigan case, DeBoer v. Michigan, may have a better chance at reaching U.S. Supreme Court appeal because, unlike the others, it involved a two-week-long trial.

Friedman issued the DeBoer ruling two weeks after hearing closing arguments in the trial that gave the state of Michigan a chance to establish a rationale for banning same-sex couples from marrying.

8

Judge Friedman said he found the testimony from the state’s star witness, California sociologist Mark Regnerus, to be “entirely unbelievable and not worth of serious consideration.” He said he was unable to accord the testimony of three other state witnesses with “any significant weight,” because it was “largely unbelievable” and represents “a fringe viewpoint that is rejected by the vast majority of their colleagues across a variety of social science fields.”

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette filed an emergency request for a stay of Friedman’s decision and an appeal of the decision to the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said the Michigan decision shows that the “momentum for marriage equality is undeniable.”

DeBoer v. Michigan started out as a lawsuit to challenge a state law barring unmarried couples from adopting.

April DeBoer and longtime partner Jayne Rowse were seeking to adopt

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

APRIL 2014

three children they had been raising together. But while hearing arguments in that case last year, Judge Friedman suggested the plaintiffs amend their lawsuit to challenge the law barring same-sex couples from marrying.

The Tenth Circuit will hear oral arguments in a case from Utah, Utah v.

Kitchen, on April 10.

Earlier this month, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals removed the Nevada and Hawaii consolidated cases from the court’s calendar for April 9 in San Francisco.

Yesterday, the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals scheduled oral arguments in two lawsuits challenging Virginia’s ban on same-sex couples marrying. The American Foundation for Equal Rights case, Bostic v. Virginia, and the ACLU-Lambda case, Harris v.

Virginia, will be heard May 13.

Like Michigan, the other four cases –from Kentucky, Oklahoma ,Tennessee, Texas—are just arriving at their respective circuit courts.

INTERESTING FACTOID FROM 1996 TO 1999, ONE OF JUDGE FRIEDMAN’S LAW CLERKS WAS JUDITH LEVY, THE LESBIAN RECENTLY CONFIRMED BY THE U.S. SENATE TO SERVE ON THE DETROIT FEDERAL COURT. LEVY WAS SWORN INTO OFFICE AT THE DETROIT COURTHOUSE ON THE SAME DAY FRIEDMAN ISSUED HIS DECISION IN THE DEBOER CASE.

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Marriage Equality Impact Map

PERCENT OF LGBT POPULATION LIVES

IN STATES WITH MARRIAGE EQUALITY FOR SAME-SEX COUPLES

of LGBT population lives in states with comprehensive civil union or domestic partnership laws.

STATES WITH CIVIL UNIONS / DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIPS

MARRIAGE BANS (PARTIAL OR FULL) RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL / APPEAL RULINGS PENDING

STATES WITH MARRIAGE EQUALITY

STATES WITH SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BANS

STATES CURRENTLY INVOLVED IN LITIGATION INVOLVING SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BANS: 4/10 ORAL ARGUMENTS IN KITCHEN V. HERBERT

PERCENT OF LGBT POPULATION LIVES IN STATES WHERE OUT-OF-STATE MARRIAGES ARE RECOGNIZED, BUT SAME-SEX COUPLES MAY NOT MARRY IN-STATE.

(UTAH)

of LGBT population lives in states with no legal recognition for same-sex couples.

4/17 ORAL ARGUMENTS IN BISHOP V. SMITH (OKLAHOMA)

4/23 ORAL ARGUMENTS IN GEIGER V. KITZHABER (OREGON)

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Sneak Peek: Nashville Pride announces 2014 Entertainment REPORTS

The 26th annual Nashville Pride Festival is proud to announce its largest entertainment line up including NONONO, Betty Who, Lisa Loeb, Mary Lambert, JD Samson, and local favorites Ponychase, Steff Mahan, and the Harmaleighs.

For the first time in Nashville Pride history the event will last two days including a Pride Concert on Friday, June 13 and the annual Festival on Saturday, June 14, both at Public Square Park.

MARY LAMBERT

// this Grammy nominated singer teamed up with Macklemore and Ryan Lewis in the hit “Same Love” which has been on the US Single Charts for over 30 weeks. Lambert recently performed on stage with Madonna and Macklemore in one of the most memorable moments in Grammy’s history.

JD SAMSON

// the self-defined gender outlaw, will bring their feminist electro punk to the Pride crowd.

NONONO’S

// this Swedish pop group’s NONONO’s infectious hit single “Pumpin Blood” took the US by storm in 2013. They are currently on tour across the US with many sold out dates. NONONO’s new album is dropping later this year.

LISA LOEB

// has been in the spotlight for two decades now with hits such as “I Do” and her Number One hit song “Stay (I Missed You)”. She is still the only artist to ever have a number one single while not being signed to a recording contract.

BETTY WHO

// the Australian singer will bring her #1 chart topping dance song “Somebody Loves You” to the stage. Betty Who was made famous in 2013 by a viral YouTube video with more than 11.5 million hits featuring a gay marriage proposal at a hardware store. // Pride is also featuring hot local Nashville bands Ponychase, Steff Mahan and The Harmaleighs. QDP & DJ Ron will be spinning as well.

12

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APRIL 2014

The Nashville Pride Festival will take place at Public Square Park on Friday and Saturday June 13 and 14. Nashville Pride Weekend passes are $25.00 and go on sale Friday, April 4 at 10 a.m. and includes entry into the Friday night concert and Saturday Pride Festival.

Entrance into the Festival only on Saturday, June 14 is still $5 cash at the gate without a weekend pass.

For a full list of performance dates and times, watch nashvillepride.org.

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MARK LEE TAYLOR Nashville LGBT Chamber announces Excellence in Business Award Nominees JOSEPH BROWNELL

in Business Awards

2014

MARISA RICHMOND Past President, Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition

ABBY RUBENFELD JD, Attorney, Owner, Rubenfeld Law Office JOSEPH WOODSON President, Nashville Pride

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ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR JOEY AMATO Publisher, UNITE Magazine & UNITE Business

THIS YEAR’S ALLY NOMINEES ARE...

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DOLLAR GENERAL EQUAL Employee Resource Group

PAM SHEFFER Director, Just Us @ Oasis

The Nashville LGBT Chamber, headed by Executive Director Lisa Howe, announced the nominees for their 2014 Excellence in Business Awards, presented by Curb Records.

The nominees were announced at the chamber’s March networking function, Brewing Up Business, held at The Label.

The 2014 Excellence in Business Awards will be held Friday, April 25 at the Sheraton Nashville Downtown.

Tickets for April’s event can be purchased at http://nashvilleglbtchamber. org/excellence-inbusiness-awards-2014

Dr. Linda Brunton, Professor of Psychology, Lead Faculty for the Psychology Dept., Columbia State Community College “I donʼt make a big splash with my activism. Rather, I seem to affect lives on a smaller scale and in a more personal way.”

In an optional assignment Dr. Brunton asks students to wear a rainbow ribbon for a day and write a one-page reaction paper to the experience. It’s an assignment she has used in her classes for many years and it comes from a 2004 American Psychological Association Publication. Last year, a studentʼs father contacted conservative legislators and a conservative Christian organization claiming that Dr. Brunton discriminated against the students based on religion, forced her students to participate and told them they were ignorant and uneducated.

The claims were reported by local and national media and eventually an HR investigation cleared her of all accusations. As a result of the negative media attention, a former student started Columbia Stateʼs first Gay-Straight Alliance, which the administration approved. Dr. Brunton continues to use the ribbon assignment and educate students about LGBT issues.

COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD

Chris Robinette, Financial Planner Capital Financial Group “I think we should all support and show support for the things and people we believe in.”

Chris uses his financial planning expertise to educate LGBT individuals and couples how to prepare for their future with, and now, without DOMA. Protecting families and loved ones is achieved through not only Chris’ education of the LGBT community but also sharing best practices with other planners and advisors at his firm.

Chris has laid the groundwork for his firm to be a trusted source for the greater Nashville LGBT market. Chris defines his contribution to the LGBT community as support, education, and financial planning. Actively recruiting people and businesses to join the LGBT Chamber, Chris personally sponsored Tastefully Unpredictable last year.

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Frank Weightman, Partner Radian Partners “I canʼt help but smile at the irony of being honored for doing what is right.

The evil of LGBT discrimination is being AWARD confronted and will fall. The LGBT community is part of my family.”

DR. LINDA BRUNTON Through Frankʼs financial education Professor of Psychology, Columbia State Community College initiative, Radian Partners has developed strategic relationships with leading CARLA FENSWICK financial service providers, CPAʼs, and Attorney, Partner, Waller Landsen Dortch & Davis, LLP diversity managers of leading Nashville area employers to promote a broader CHRISTOPHER ROBINETTE awareness and deeper understanding of the Financial Planner, Capital Financial Group unique financial issues facing members of the LGBT community. Over the course JENNIFER SCHWARTZENBERG of his financial experience, Frank has Director, Community Initiatives, The Community Foundation discovered that there are low levels of of Middle Tennessee financial understanding among LGBT couples and others about building wealth FRANK WEIGHTMAN, PHD Partner, Radian Partners, LLC wisely, property rights, adoptions, Social Security, wills and estates, health care representatives, financial and retirement planning. Frank has collaborated with LGBT Chamber members to provide the support and actionable information LGBT BUSINESS LEADER OF THE YEAR couples need to protect themselves and DAVID BRZOZOWSKI their families.

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Jennifer Schwartzenberg, Director, Community Initiatives, The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee “As our city continues to grow, I encourage those around me to talk to each other, collaborate, and actively participate so that Nashville can become a more informed and tolerant city.”

Jennifer works on two CFMT initiatives that enable her to help co-workers and peers become more knowledgeable about Nashvilleʼs LGBT community— GivingMatters. com and NowPlayingNashville. com. Jennifer has strategically set up NowPlayingNashville.comto include LGBT events and make them easily accessible to the community.

Through her role overseeing NowPlayingNashville.com and GivingMatters.com for CFMT, Jennifer ensures that the LGBT community is represented positively through these websites and social media platforms.

Jennifer and her husband contribute annually to The Brooks Fund, which has granted over $200,000 to local LGBT nonprofit organizations.

Serving as a Judge Advocate General in the United States Navy

Carla Fenswick, Attorney; Partner, Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis, LLP “These courageous people deserve the support of groups and individuals from outside of the LGBT community. I donʼt want to look back and remember that I was silent when I could have raised my voice.”

Carla works with Vanderbilt Law Schoolʼs OUTLaw students as a mentor and provides insight specific to the challenges that LGBTQ attorneys could face in a relatively conservative market like Nashville.

Initiated Wallerʼs sponsorship of Stonewall Bar, corporate membership in the LGBT Chamber, and participation in Ally Week. Carla was successful in getting 63 attorneys, paralegals, and staff members to declare their support for LGBTQ youth with Facebook photos. Carla provides pro bono legal clinics and educational programs with VU Law School and with Lambda Legal. Carla and her husband are also members of the HRC Federal Club.

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15

Saying Goodbye to insideOut Nashville Dear Nashville Community,

In a way, the loss of insideOut Nashville can be marked up to it becoming the victim of its own success. Without the trails being so thoroughly blazed by people like Linda Welch for so many years, many of the pleasures Nashville’s queer community now enjoy may not have come along so easily, if they came about at all. It was the presence of things like iOut, which made other people look at Nashville and see the potential the city had for the queer community. iOut was more than just a trailblazer in queer journalism and community building in Nashville. It was also a signal to those outside Nashville of how solid our community is and a signal to queers within and around Nashville there was a place for them here. And for myself, a young queer entertainment writer from lower Alabama, it became home.

It was the summer of 1999 when I wrote my first column for what was then still called Xenogeny. My music reviews had already appeared in a handful of regional “mainstream” publications in Alabama, Louisiana and Florida. But, I had relocated to Nashville shortly after being dragged kicking and screaming out of the closet. There was simply no going back either to the closet or to Alabama. Nashville was my home now. It wasn’t long after moving here I was introduced to Xenogeny’s publisher Linda Welch and my first ever Nashville work - not to mention my first ever work for a queer publication saw print.

While I would go on to publish work in queer and mainstream publications around the nation, it was through working with Xenogeny (which would soon change its name it insideOut Nashville) how I came to know so many people in Nashville’s queer community and became so deeply involved in its workings. I wasn’t just in the community any longer. I was a part of a greater whole working toward a shared goal of advancing Nashville’s queer community into the coming millennium.

Even as other publications like Out & About Nashville came to the fore, iOut never faltered, never failed to stand proud and strong for the people to whom it meant so much. Like most cities, Nashville’s queer community has people of all walks of life, all races, all ages, all income brackets. However, in Nashville - unlike so many other places I have spent time - there is a real sense of family within our often disparate community and much of that can be attributed to the solid foundation laid over the years by people like Linda Welch and my other colleagues who contributed to iOut’s pages. We may not always agree but we are always there for each other and that is what community is all about.

It’s not easy to see what I have come to regard as my home publication close its doors for good. I have been blessed beyond measure to have the privilege of serving my community through its pages. Linda and iOut have opened more doors for me and made more opportunities available over the years than I can even begin to count. It boggles my mind to think how things may have progressed had DJ Phil not introduced us so many years ago.

Nashville still has a long way to go and there is still much to be done. It is in no small part due to the hard work of publications such as iOut we have been able to come as far as we have. Though we must continue on the journey ahead without one of our strongest and most visible sails, we would never have made it this far without it.

Thank you, iOut for giving me, and so many more, a sense of home and community from within your pages and for leading the way in such a crazy time. I miss you already.

Isaac Newton once said, “If I am able to see farther, it is because I stand on the shoulders of giants.” Never were truer words spoken.

F. Daniel Kent

16

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17

Nashville CARES extends Dining Out for Life fundraising efforts

‘‘

JOSEPH BROWNELL & ALEXANDER QUINONES

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NASHVILLE HAS A REALLY VIBRANT FOOD CULTURE AND BRUNCH HAS DEVELOPED INTO A SORT OF HAPPENING IN NASHVILLE,

PLANNING THE PERFECT LGBT MENU

Several other LGBT-owned and ally restaurants support Nashville CARES and Dining Out for Life. Mix or match, O&AN helps plan the perfect Dining Out for LIfe menu.

TUESDAY - APRIL 22 Breakfast: Marche

PERCENTAGE OF PROCEEDS BEING DONATED 50%

Lunch: PM blvd Castrillo’s Pizza

75% 75% 100%

Dinner: Castrillo’s Pizza Suzy Wong’s PM blvd Nashville Margot’s Café Mad Platter Silo

100% 75% 75% 75% 50% 30% 30%

SATURDAY - APRIL 26 The Lipstick Lounge

50% (brunch sales)

SUNDAY - APRIL 27

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

3 Crow Bar BLVD Nashville Suzy Wong’s The Lipstick Lounge Five Points Pizza

APRIL 2014

SAID SUZY WONG’S MANAGER MICAH BENNET. WE SEE WHERE WE OFFER AN EXPERIENCE THAT IS UNIQUE AND ENTERTAINING, AND BRUNCH IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO FEATURE THAT EXPERIENCE.

‘‘

Get hungry Nashville! What may be an ordinary Tuesday to you is actually an extraordinary day for Nashville CARES when the 2014 Dining Out for Life (DOFL) celebration takes place on April 22.

In 2013, Nashville restaurants and diners banded together to help Nashville CARES raise a record-breaking $150,000 for DOFL. Last year, Arnold Myint’s restaurants combined raised over $16,000.

Collectively, they were the top fundraising restaurants for the 2103 DOFL. This year’s event is aimed at surpassing that total. Spurred by a move last year to incorporate blvd nashville’s brunch sales into DOFL, many participating restaurants are opting in for an additional extended weekend component, making this year’s DOFL celebration the talk of the town all weekend long.

“Sometimes you just can’t make it out to dinner in the beginning of your week,” said local HIV/AIDS activist Josh Robbins. “The move to extend DOFL into the weekend— a Sunday Funday edition of DOFL— reaches an entirely new diner demographic, ultimately raises more money and spreads the message that Nashville does care about the HIV/AIDS work to be done in Middle Tennessee.”

This year’s ‘Sunday Funday’ edition of DOFL sees Myint’s blvd Nashville reprising its role as trendsetter, donating 75% of their breakfast, lunch and dinner sales to Nashville CARES. Suzy Wong’s will also donate 75% of its new Drag N’ Brunch.

The Lipstick Lounge takes DOFL to another level with their weekend-long brunch participation. The ladies over at Lipstick will donate 50% of all brunch sales on Saturday and Sunday.

Also participating are East Nashville faves, 3 Crow Bar and Five Points Pizza.

Join your favorite PLAY Mates for the new Drag N’ Brunch every Sunday at Suzy Wong’s from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.. 2-for-1 mimosas and Suzy faves such as Katsu Chicken and Waffles and Suzy’s Steak Benedict make this a must for brunch.

100% 75% 75% 50% 30%

Gay-owned Castrillo’s Pizza is one of two restaurants donating 100 percent of proceeds during this year’s DOFL on Tuesday, April 22. The Italian restaurant has two locations— one in the Inglewood neighborhood, the other in Sylvan Park.

Owner Mark Giradin said participating in the event wasn’t a hard decision for him to make.

He said his restaurants would be nothing without his customers.

“I think it’s important to give back to the community,” he said.

“The community supports me.

It’s supporting my business. Both locations are very neighborhoodbased. The community supports us.”

He said people find out about his restaurant mostly from word of mouth, making it more important for him to show his appreciation.

APRIL 2014

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

19

MTSU Hosts LGBT+ College Conference JOSEPH BROWNELL

OUT & ABOUT NASHVILLE: Can you share the genesis of the MTSU LGBT+ College Conference?

JOSHUA RIGSBY: Members of MT Lambda felt that many other organizations around the state were eager for a statewide conference event, but no college or university student group is as able and well positioned as we are at MTSU. We have full support from our administration for the event, the conference is being cosponsored by the MTSU College of Behavioral & Health Sciences, and MTSU’s geographical location made it a prime location for such a conference.

O&AN: Is MTSU the first Tennessee public institution to hold such a conference?

JR: MTSU is the first TN institution, both public and private, to host a conference specifically geared towards LGBT+ students in TN. Our goal is to unify LGBT+ students across the state in what will become an annual event. Preexisting conferences hosted around the state aim to impact more than just Tennessee students. MT Lambda is also the first student organization in MTSU’s 102yr history to organize

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and launch an annual conference— past conferences, which were founded at MTSU, have been planned by centers or University departments, but never a student organization.

O&AN: It seems current legislation being announced (SB 2493) is aimed at stopping LGBT groups from having speakers on campus.

While it’s not law, in the future what will MTSU do for its LGBT+ Conference in lieu of using institutional funds?

JR:The conference is sponsored by corporations and not by MTSU. If this bill were to become law, this conference would not be affected.

O&AN: Can you share a bit of information about some of the conference’s sponsors?

JR: The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee awarded a discretionary grant to support the effort and the College of Behavioral & Health sciences is the academic cosponsor for the event. Other conference sponsors and supporters include Nissan, Deloitte Services LLP, McDonalds, the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, & TEP.

‘‘

...OUR LIFE OF BI SESSION HAS NOT BEEN DESIGNED FOR BISEXUAL PERSONS TO ATTEND,

INSTEAD WE WILL BE ENCOURAGING CONFERENCE ATTENDANTS WHO ARE NOT BISEXUAL TO ATTEND.

WE WANT TO HAVE AN OPEN AND HONEST DISCUSSION CONCERNING THE MISCONCEPTIONS AND DISCRIMINATORY ATTITUDES OTHERS IN THE COMMUNITY HAVE AGAINST BISEXUAL PERSONS.

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

‘‘

MTSU’s Lambda organization continues to celebrate milestones.

Last fall the student-led organization celebrated its 25th anniversary, and this month launch their inaugural LGBT+ College Conference.

The conference will span three days from April 10-12. Sessions will cover a diverse variety LGBT+ issues including: community engagement, political activism, transgender issues and more.

The conference is free and open to all currently enrolled students, faculty, & staff at higher education institutions in the state of Tennessee. The general public, or those not a currently enrolled as student, faculty or staff in Tennessee, can attend with a $100 tax-deductible patron sponsorship.

Out & About Nashville chatted with MT Lambda President Joshua Rigsby about the upcoming conference, its intentions and future plans.

APRIL 2014

O&AN: MT Lambda celebrated 25 years last year. How has the climate of MTSU changed over the past 25 years and would this have been possible say 5 years ago?

JR: Over all, the main change that we’ve seen over the past 25 years has been in relation to the student body. 25 years ago, many students were very much against the existence of MT Lambda on campus. Now, we not only have the full support of our student body but we function as a quasi arm of the University whenever there is LGBT+ programming or resources being organized.

O&AN: What do you hope to accomplish with this conference?

JR: Our vision is for this conference to become an annual academic event for students across the state and to build a statewide network of LGBT+ students.

O&AN: The LGBT community is often criticized for omitting the ‘B’ and ‘T’ in their initiatives. Is there any programming specifically for these groups scheduled?

JR: We have programming focusing on a variety of LGBT+ community issues. These will be unlike similar conference sessions at other conferences in Tennessee. Our breakout sessions are designed to educate members in our community on issues other members in our community face. For instance, our Life of Bi session has not been designed for Bisexual persons to attend, instead we will be encouraging conference attendants who are not bisexual to attend. We want to have an open and honest discussion concerning the misconceptions and discriminatory attitudes others in the community have against Bisexual persons. Our primary goal is to break down the barriers of discrimination in our community, which have prevented and continue to prevent us from moving forward towards equality. Our other breakout sessions have the same underlying goal.

ALAN GENDREAU MTSU Alumnus

We also have MTSU Alum Alan Gendreau, the first openly gay division one football player and source of great pride for the University. He will discuss his experience and provide personal insight into the stereotypical barriers that are most often associated with the world of sports in a session entitled Breaking the Barriers of Athletics.

O&AN: Finally, any more details you would like to share about programming or speaks for the conference?

JR: We have several highlights planned including actress Jennifer Lanier in a stage performance of None of the Above. Jennifer’s multicultural background (American Indian & African American) is the start of this comic stew. Throw in the pangs of first love, dysfunctional family dynamics, and coming out with Diana Ross. Her performance will leave folks laughing, cajoled into thinking about diversity, acceptance, & letting go of judgment. This funny, emotional, thought-provoking performance has mesmerized audiences across the spectrum---students, faculty, professional providers, human rights organizations, and general audiences across the country.

Register for the conference online here: http://goo.gl/9cMHlV

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Nick Adams goes from drag to a ‘wickedly’ good road trip Wicked plays at TPAC through April 20 ELLEN ANGELICO

For Nick Adams, success is watching his childhood dreams become reality.

“There’s a guy from my hometown and now he works on Broadway,” Adams says. “He was my inspiration. I wanted to mold my career like his. Then we ended up working together on two shows. It’s crazy to see how life works out like that.”

Adams has certainly made a name for himself in the Broadway scene and beyond. He originated the role of Adam/Felicia in Bette Midler’s Priscilla Queen of the Desert and has also appeared on Broadway in A Chorus Line, Chicago, Guys and Dolls, La Cage, and Pirate Queen. He’s appeared in film, television, and has performed in concert with the New York, Boston, and Cincinnati Pops, as well as the Naples Philharmonic and the Baltimore and Indianapolis Symphonies.

Prior to his impressive accomplishments, Adams was a student at the Boston Conservatory. “I wouldn’t be here without [music education],” he says. “I also think it teaches a great discipline. Even if you don’t do it professionally, it instills a work ethic in kids they can carry into any field.”

Today, Adams often speaks at colleges for students of the performing arts. “It’s just not long ago that I was in their shoes,” Adams explains. “It’s really flattering and humbling to have someone look up to your work and listen to you on the cast recording of your musical. It’s stuff I did as a kid. It’s such an incredible feeling; it puts everything in perspective.”

That perspective came in handy for Adams in 2011 when he was pictured on a billboard in Times Square for Priscilla Queen of the Desert. “It was absolutely unreal,” Adams gushes. “I remember the first time I saw it.”

Typically, the advertisements feature illustrations symbolizing the theme of the show. “To see my actual face, recognizably, blown up on a billboard in Times Square in New York City…”

Adams’ voice trails off thoughtfully.

“I don’t know even know if I could articulate the feeling. Every day I walked to work I would see it. It was a really special thing. I’ve never lost sight of the dream of all this.”

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Adams is starring as Fiyero in the touring production of Wicked, at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center now through April 20. “I haven’t toured since 2005, so this is my first time leaving New York in a long time,” says Adams. “I’m really happy to have a change of pace. In New York, you go about your life. You go home and have a life outside of the show. On the road, this is your family and social circle and everything. It’s like a little bubble that travels around.”

Within that bubble, Adams’ sexuality isn’t exactly a hot-button topic.

“I feel like it never was a thing for me. I was me and I lived my life. As my career progressed it became something to talk about,” he explains. “The film industry is much different. I know a lot of people who’ve experienced being limited in what they’re cast in based on their sexuality. In theater it’s a lot easier to be open. I played a drag queen in my last show and now I’m playing a prince,” he says with a laugh.

“Not that it doesn’t have weight,” says Adams. “I can use talking about it for good.”

A lot of the fun on tour for Adams comes from getting outside the theater bubble and experiencing a new city. “It keeps you energized,” he says. “You get a rush from a whole new town and new crowd. It keeps it fresh for everybody.”

Adams is particularly excited to experience Nashville, saying “I’m renting a house, which is going to be fun.

I want to not be in a hotel and feel like I’m living in Nashville for a month.”

Along for the ride is Adams’ dog, Lady. “She’s a rescue; she’s twelve years old. She’s the best dog ever,” he says.

She must be pretty great, because Adams bought an SUV so she could travel with him on this tour. “She’s too old to fly; I wouldn’t want to put her through that. She’s a very expensive pet,” he laughs.

Adams will be on the road with Wicked until October. After that? “I don’t even know,” Adams sighs. “It’s hard for an actor to plan that far in advance. I’ve been toying with the idea of moving to the West Coast for a little bit, which could work now that I have a car. I’m not going to need it in Manhattan!”

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MOVIES LGBT highlights for the Nashville Film Festival JOSEPH BROWNELL

Established in 1969, the Nashville Stepping into new territory Film Festivals (NaFF) rolls out the red for 2014, NaFF also announced an carpet for its 45th year on April 17. inaugural Screenwriting Competition.

This year’s festival will run through The competition drew more than 1,500 April 26, expanding its typical 7-day over three divisions. “We are proud stretch to 10 days. The move in part no that so many screenwriters entered – doubt bolstered by the record-breaking but even more proud of the quality of number of entries submitted to this scripts we received,” said Ted Crockett, year’s festival.

Executive Director, in an email.

“In five years we’ve doubled the NaFF is known for its line-up of call,” said Brian Owens, artistic director films as diverse as Nashville filmgoers in an email. “We can attribute it to and this year’s festival selections NaFF’s reputation among filmmakers continue the tradition of presenting a as one of the best festivals to get into in wide variety of LGBT-themed films— the world, and Nashville’s reputation as including Opening Night documentary one of the world’s best cities to visit.”

The Case Against 8.

Here is a summary of this year’s LGBT-themed films:

KIDNAPPED FOR CHRIST

BOULEVARD Director: Dito Montiel. USA. 100 min.

Nolan Mack (Robin Williams) is a soft-spoken guy who undoubtedly loves his wife. But he finds himself drifting from his familiar life after meeting a troubled young man named Leo. What begins as an aimless drive down an unfamiliar street turns into a series of life-altering events. This is the Southeastern US premiere and was filmed in Nashville, TN.

BEAUTIFUL JIM Director: Rex Jones. USA. 53 min.

The story of an HIV-positive singersongwriter’s triumph over AIDS. Jimbeau Hinson (‘Fancy Free’, ‘Party Crowd’) is a Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter living in Nashville, Tennessee who has been HIV-positive for over thirty years.

He was also the first openly bisexual singer/songwriter in country music.

THE CASE AGAINST 8

Director: Kate S. Logan. USA / Dominican Republic. 85 min

Film student Kate Logan heard about Escuela Caribe and thought she would make a documentary about its inspiring work. Instead, she discovered good kids being subjected to questionable therapies, hard labor and degrading humiliations.

Directors: Ben Cotner, Ryan White. USA. 112 min

Shot over five years, this behind-the-scenes look at the case against California’s Proposition 8, follows the unlikely team that took the first federal marriage equality lawsuit to the U.S. Supreme Court. The film won the Audience Award in the Festival Favorites category at this year’s SXSW.

VIC + FLO SAW A BEAR Director: Denis Côté. Canada.

TEST

95 min

Winner 2013 Silver Bear (Alfred Bauer Prize) Berlin International Film Festival. Vic + Flow Saw a Bear is a darkly mysterious tale of lesbian two ex-cons, Victoria and Florence, trying to make a new life in the backwoods of Quebec.

Seeking peace and quiet, the couple slowly begins to feel under siege as Vic’s parole officer keeps unexpectedly popping up and a strange neighborhood woman turns out to be a menacing presence from Flo’s past.

Tickets for the 45th Nashville Film Festival are scheduled to go on sale Monday April 7. For more information, including a ‘How to Fest’ FAQ, visit nashvillefilmfestival.org

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OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

APRIL 2014

Director: Chris Mason Johnson. USA. 89 min

San Francisco, 1985. Two opposites attract at a modern dance company.

Together, their courage and resilience are tested as they navigate a world full of risks and promise, against the backdrop of a disease no one seems to know anything about.

This is Melissa Etheridge JOSEPH BROWNELL

It’s been just over 25 years since Melissa Etheridge released her selftitled debut album. In that time, the rocker has come out of the closet, weathered some very public relationship scrutiny and battled cancer.

Etheridge’s Nashville concert at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center on April 15 is the first in a string of dates for the This is ME Solo Tour—where fans will get their first taste of a newly independent Melissa Etheridge.

Out & About Nashville chatted with the veteran star about activism throughout her career, collaborations with producers and writers who’ve worked with Eminem, Kesha, Demi Lovato and more for her forthcoming record and when she’s tying the knot with partner Linda Wallem.

OUT & ABOUT NASHVILLE: You have ties to Nashville—what does Music City mean to you?

MELISSA ETHERIDGE: Nashville is such a beautiful place to play. It’s always so full of music with an audience that really listens. Of course, one of the songs from my earliest albums, from _Brave and Crazy_, is “You Can Sleep While I Drive” where I talk about my friend Barbara, who is still there in Nashville. Nashville is just a special place in America and has a special place in my heart.

O&AN: Earlier this month at SXSW, you played a cover of Tom Petty’s “Refugee” with Nashville punk-rock faves Diarrhea Planet—how did that happen?

ME: (laughs) Yes, I did. It came about because of Twitter. When it was announced that I was going to be at SXSW, a band out of Austin The Midgetmen, tweeted something on my twitter feed saying oh I hope Melissa gets signed, the unknown act Melissa kind of taunting me because SXSW is for unknown, independent artists.

He taunted me a couple of times that I hadn’t gotten back on the invitation to their party so I finally tweeted him back and said hey dude, I’ll come to your party and bring a guitar. He said it was his friends Diarrhea Planet and I said we’ll do it, we’ll jam. It was like an eight guitar jam to Tom Petty’s “Refugee.”

O&AN: Overall, how was your SXSW experience?

ME: It was . . . crazy. If you look at me, I’m actually making my first record not with a major record label this time. We thought SXSW would be the way to get into that sort of thing. People think of it as this music festival where everyone gets together in one place but it’s really just Austin being its cool Austin self.

O&AN: Can you share any details about the album that you are working on independently?

ME: This is my first album where I haven’t been on Island Records and it’s an album I am going to own and is going to be distributed through another company.

I am very excited because I also changed management and that management set me up with a whole lot of other artists, producers and writers. I collaborated and it’s so exciting because it brings out all the different parts in me.

I collaborated with some great rock-pop writers-producers like Matt Squire (Panic!

At the Disco, Kesha, Demi Lovato) and Jon Levine (Serena Ryder) all the way to Mark Batson (Eminem) and Jerry Wonda, who are soul/ r&b/urban artists.

I have an overabundance of songs now that I’ll be going through next month and we should have a single by the beginning of summer and by the end of summer, the album should be coming.

O&AN: The record sounds like a completely new baby for you— ME: Experimenting and bringing out all these different types of music in me has been amazing. It’s a completely different baby and I am so thrilled to play these songs live, too. I’m just so happy about my music right now.

O&AN: Several successful 80s and 90s singer-songwriters have been striking out independently, are you finding a new freedom in independence?

ME: You know a lot of people talk about the music industry and the trouble—it’s only trouble for the record companies.

People are still listening to music, people still love music, music is important. It’s a good day for artists, I think. We can step up and say I can directly get to my audience now and I don’t have to go through this middle guy or that middle guy. I can just get there directly and it’s very exciting.

O&AN: The organization’s title track was given a wicked club remix. Was that the first time you’ve had a track remixed?

ME: Yes, and oh my god, I just got another remix of it that ‘s just amazing. I love this sort of art now where people take a piece of music and recreate stuff around it and remix it up. And of course, it’s making me look very cool with my kids, which is very, very important.

O&AN: Was there just a lack of innovation on the part of middle guys?

ME: Oh yeah, well they went for the where the money is and it narrowed and narrowed the work until they were all making the same album.

O&AN: In your interview with Dan Rather, you said you were grateful for your cancer diagnosis because you got to this point where you got to know yourself and came out excited about life, your art and only doing what you love. Nearly a decade after your diagnosis, is that still the case or are there moments where you’ve had to remind yourself of that?

ME: Oh, no. It’s something I live every single day and moment. I understood it as a life or death choice and I have to do what I love. If I step into a place where I am actively supporting something that I do not love, that feels negative to me, it will weigh me down. It is my number one priority.

APRIL 2014

O&AN: Some of your recent projects include the organization Uprising of Love—an organization that highlights the LGBT injustices in Russia. From boycotting shows in Colorado in the early 90s, there has always been an activist component to your art. Why is activism important to you?

ME: I wouldn’t say it’s important to me.

It’s become a part of my life because of the choices I’ve made. I didn’t really set out to be a gay right’s advocate and activist; just by standing up and saying, ‘Yeah, I’m gay and this is who I am and this is my life’— just by speaking truthfully, I became an activist. I hope that I helped the movement but then, I found myself speaking truthfully about my cannabis use and I became a cannabis activist, and then cancer finds me and I go through the whole hell thing, so I’m a cancer advocate now. It’s these things that kind of happen to me, I don’t go looking for them. cont. on page 26

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MELISSA ETHERIDGE CONT. O&AN: What music is currently moving Melissa Etheridge?

ME: Oh god, I love Beyoncé’s new album. (laughs) I’m crazy about it. At the end of the day, I love putting that on and it really takes me away.

O&AN: You’ve dabbled a bit over the last couple years with Broadway. What is the status on the rumored musical you and Linda are working on?

ME: It is still in line; it’s just that other projects keep cutting in line. We are so close to having it done so hopefully after my album and her TV show. It’s right there though and I would say give me another two years to get it up on its feet.

O&AN: Speaking of Linda, last summer after the Supreme Court decision, you announced you and Linda would be married. Did you tie the knot?

ME: No, it’s going to be—I’ll tell you, it’s in the next four months we’re going to get married.

O&AN: Well, a pre-congratulations to you both.

ME: Thank-you. And I’m looking forward to getting down there to Nashville, thank-you so much.

FAN QUESTIONS In a special Q&A fan session, Out & About Nashville went straight to Melissa Etheridge’s fans and the rocker answered two selected fan questions: In an interview you did with iTunes, you said that musically, Breakdown was the best album you did. Do you ever find difficulty in performing songs that were conceived out of such despair?

I don’t find it difficult. I might not be drawn to perform them because I’m not quite there right now or when I do, it’s like acting I think I can put myself back into that place that I remember. It did happen. It was an emotional situation I was in. The Breakdown songs are not the ones I choose to do every night because they are very personal and very deep. But they’re not difficult to do, no.

This question came from a Twitter follower, who is flying to the Nashville show: @sevenuvseven do you read all your fans tweets? Or just some of them?

I try to read my Twitter feed every day. I love the technology and the opportunity to actually interact and hear my fans one-on-one, so yeah, I’m on the there! All the stuff you see, all the mistakes I make, that’s me.

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Hannah Thomas rock and rolls through Nashville JOSEPH BROWNELL

Born in Georgia, Hannah Thomas is no stranger to the Nashville music scene. Constantly touring, the out singersongwriter has played at many venues across Music City and is coming back to Nashville as the special guest of Antigone Rising when they descend upon Douglas Corners on Saturday, April 5.

Out & About Nashville spoke with Hannah Thomas about coming out and whether or not it does get better, how she would describe her touring life and what other Georgia-born solo artist inspired her to play Eddie’s Attic.

Out & About Nashville: When did you know that music was your passion and going to be your career?

Hannah Thomas: When I was little kid I wanted to be Garth Brooks. As I got older and I expanded my musical horizons, I realized that I wanted to write my songs. I started performing at sixteen and it’s really been the only job I’ve ever had.

O&AN: You Kicktstarted your last album and are currently running another kickstarter to help get to the studio versions of songs you’ve been playing live for a while now. How has Kickstarter helped you as an artist deliver music to fans?

HT: Without label support it’s very expensive to put out a record. Kickstarter has taken grassroots and moved it in to the twenty-first century. This has allowed me to put out the record I want, which is ultimately what the fans want to hear.

O&AN: Since you are kickstarting a new album, is getting the album made and into the hands of fans your focus for 2014?

HT: It’s certainly a priority but I also spend a lot of time touring, which is the best way to meet new fans.

O&AN: You tour extensively, if you had to sum up your touring life in one tweet, what would it be? Remember, 140 characters or less!

HT: 4000 miles in 3 weeks and still truckin’ ... #tired

28

HANNAH

O&AN: Has the influence of other successful out artists had any bearing on your goals with music?

HT: My goals have never changed, but seeing other out artists, like Brandy Clark, be successful, lets me know I can reach them.

O&AN: The music industry is constantly changing. Where do you see yourself in the music industry?

Independent versus major label?

HT: There are many different ways to make it in the music industry now and that’s encouraging. 15-20 years ago the only way to be successful was to sign a deal, but now artists like Macklemore and Ryan Lewis are achieving success on their own. I’m not sure what the future holds, but I like the idea of having so many options.

THOMAS O&AN: Your bio has a quote from Amy Ray that says about you. She describes you as having “the soul of old country, and that will always be there, but also a diehard rocker with some punk thrown in the mix.” Can you share your inspirations from each of those genres?

HT: I love all kinds of music. Some of my influences are Terri Clark, Led Zeppelin, Tori Amos, Johnny Cash and Indigo Girls. I guess it’s easy to see why it’s hard to classify my music.

O&AN: Pacifier, a song from Goodbye on Wasted Time features Amy Ray and I know you just came out in 2012.

Was this your coming out song or did the emotions just coincidentally mirror what was happening in your life?

HT: It was more the emotions that lead up to coming out. That point in your life where you realize you have to live for you and not to make others happy.

It was very freeing to get to that point.

OUTANDABOUTNASHVILLE.COM

APRIL 2014

O&AN: In the beginning of 2013, you talked to GA Voice about the struggles you were having about coming out—has it gotten better?

HT: I think what they say is true, it does get better. There is a sense of freedom that happens when you take control of your life.

O&AN: In terms of your professional life, do you think the music industry cares in 2014?

HT: We have definitely come a long way.

People are always going to find a reason not to like you, if they want to. LGBT artists write some of people’s favorite country songs and they don’t even know.

I think a good song stands for itself.

O&AN: How has your songwriting changed, if at all, since coming out?

HT: There is less of a filter. Now I just write what comes out instead of trying to fit into a mold. My music now comes from an honest place and I think people can relate to that.

O&AN: And how do you define your success in your music?

HT: It varies. Some nights it’s having someone request one of my songs, some nights it’s reaching the 7-year-old that came with her parents, other nights it’s sold out venues. As long as people are listening, I’ll keep playing.

O&AN: Do you ever write songs in the hopes that another artist may get their hands on them and cut them? I ask because I when I hear songs like “(God Help My Mama) I Turned Out Like My Dad” I get a total Miranda Lambert record vibe?!

HT: It’s not why I write them, but if Miranda is looking for a song . . . I would be honored to have any artist I respect cut one of my songs.

O&AN: On “Let it Rain” I completely hear some old school Jennifer Nettles influence a la “Tried Hard Enough.”

Were you a Soul Miner’s Daughter and Jennifer Nettles Band fan?

HT: Yes! I love Jennifer, she was one of the reasons I have pursued this as a career instead of as a hobby. I feel like she was another artist that blurred the lines of genre, especially in JNB days.

The very first time I played in public was at Open Mic at Eddie’s Attic, and I wanted to be there because Jennifer and so many other iconic Georgia acts have gotten a jump start to their careers in that building.

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MUSIC CITY SISTER CONT. Experience, however, teaches Nashville to expect the unexpected from these creative drag nuns!

One focus, Sister Ann promises, will be expanding on their central mission, “spreading joy, ending guilt, promoting safer sex, and engaging in community service, offering financial and spiritual support wherever it’s needed.” The Sisters want to carry this beyond Church Street, and are trying to make sure they venture beyond the bars. “We’re trying to do something different,” Sister Ann explained. “We want to reach out and get exposure with people who might not have encountered us.”

The time may also have come to “have a bar crawl that takes us out of the safety of Church street, maybe visit some of the honky tonks on Broadway!”

The Sisters aren’t just pushing others’ boundaries either - they push their own.

EGG STRAVAGANZA!

The Sisters are even kicking around the idea of hosting a family event. While this may seem far outside the wheelhouse of the Sisters, bringing their message of tolerance and rejection of guilt to families is a logical extension of their current activities. “My partner and I raised kids and weren’t really out to the community until after the kids were grown” Sister Ann explains. “For us this would be a way to minister to people who might never encounter us otherwise.”

The Music City Sisters are also reaching out beyond Nashville. A group is currently working to form a House in Louisville, and local Sisters,

Microchip Clinic Saturday, April 5th 11am – 1pm Cost: $25.00 (which includes registration)

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VISIT US 213 Oceola Avenue Nashville TN 37209 nashvillehumane.org 615.352.1010 Monday 10am – 5pm Tuesday 10am – 5pm Wednesday CLOSED Thursday 10am – 5pm Friday 10am – 5pm Saturday 10am – 5pm Sunday 12pm – 5pm

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APRIL 2014

including Sister Faegala, have been supporting this effort. Indeed, it was Sister Faegala and a companion who, by manifesting on a Drag Stars at Sea cruise, introduced a core group from Louisville to the Sisters and their mission. The Derby City Sisters, and Abess Velveeta von Tease, are enthusiastic and energetic. “I expect they’ll be mission status by summer,” Sister Faegala reports. “The core membership is quite well connected in the city.” The Music City Sisters’ relationship with Play Nashville has simplified establishing a relationship between the Derby City Sisters and Play Louisville. “Four of our Sisters went up to support their inaugural event, it was covered in the paper. And Play reached out to the Louisville Sisters right away.”

The impact of the Music City Sisters in Nashville and the mid-south is hard to quantify, as so much of their work supporting other organizations’ efforts. As Sister Pursefonee explains, “There are going to be times you manifest and get ready, only to get down on your knees and clean, set up and tear down, and put an event together.” So look around at an LGBT event. Chances are, even if you don’t see the clown white makeup, there’s a force of Sisters at work.

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Photos by Katy Parson

MISTER USOFA MIclassic and diva pageants 32

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APRIL 2014

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April 11 – 13 6th Annual Spring Clean Up Weekend Residents of the RV Parks get your sites ready for a busy and festive season! This will be a great opportunity to get some work done and meet your neighbors. On Saturday there will be a Spaghetti Supper and Steve’s secret recipe Sangria at the Lodge (our treat). Saturday evening we will have a mixer at The Tavern.

Day Passers and weekend guests are always welcome! Spring RV Show by TRIAM RV Sales of Tennessee on site with several RVs on display to tour and get information on upgrades by their salesmen!

April 25 – 27 Tiki Tiki Pool Opening/ Sarong or So Right Weekend It’s time to kick off the summer season POOLSIDE! You had such a good time with this last year we decided to bring it back for you! Tie on your sarongs boys and party! Saturday Night Party at The Tavern and After Hours Volcano Eruption and After Hours Party!

Come visit us in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains.

2240 Van Hill Road Greeneville, TN 37745

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APRIL 2014

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33

APRIL LIRPA

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

MIDTOWN MEN

Schermerhorn Symphony Center

They took Broadway by storm as the stars of the smash musical Jersey Boys, and now these four brilliant performers are together again!

April 3/ 7 p.m. | April 4-5/ 8 p.m

03 THU

MUSIC CITY SISTERS NIGHT April 3/ 7:00 p.m.

NASHVILLE PRIDE TURNABOUT Play Dance Bar

Join a cast of drag queens—err some of Nashville’s LGBT leaders dressed in drag to raise money for Nashville Pride.

FRI

HOTMESS SPORTS KICKBALL T-SHIRT MIXER Tribe Nashville April 4/ 7:00 p.m.

THEATRE: NEXT FALL Actor’s Bridge Ensemble

Final weekend for the Nashville premiere of this must-see play.

April 4-5/ 7:30 p.m. | April 6/ 4:00 p.m.

Suzy Wong’s

WICKED

Tennessee Performing Arts Center

The smash musical sell-out is back!

Playing Tuesdays-Sundays through April 20

TRANSGENDER DROP-IN

Playhouse Nashville presents the world premiere staging of local playwright Garret Schneider’s Ultrasound. When Maddy announces to her partner Jolene that she’s pregnant, the anticipation of the baby’s arrival causes Jolene to have serious doubts about her ability to be a parent. Tickets $20.

Join Vickie Davis for an informal discussion all things transgender.

Street Theatre

April 5-13/ Various Showtimes

05

WED

CONCERT: ANTIGONE RISING Douglas Corners

Lesbian-loved band stops through Nashville on their current tour.

See our interview with support act Hannah Thomas on page 28.

Tickets $8 April 5/ 9 p.m.

April 4/ 8:00 p.m.

04

DINING: DRAG N’ BRUNCH

THEATRE: ULTRASOUND

Canvas Lounge

Music City Sisters conduct their H8’s a Drag performer auditions.

SPECIAL EVENT

EDITOR’S CHOICE

WICKED AFTER DARK: A BROADWAY BENEFIT FOR NASHVILLE CARES Play Dance Bar

Join members of the national touring company of Wicked as they perform some of their favorite Broadway tracks. Plus a wickedly awesome live auction with oncein-a-lifetime Wicked experiences.

Tickets $15.

April 7/ 7 p.m.

April 10/ 6 p.m.

NASHVILLE GRIZZLIES BACHELOR AUCTION

CONCERT: BRANDI CARLILE Schermerhorn Symphony Center

Tribe

Join the Nashville Grizzlies as they raise money to make it to the Bingham Cup.

11

April 11/ 9 p.m.

FRI

MUSIC CITY SISTERS H8’S A DRAG WEEKEND Various Locations

Join the Music City Sisters for their Weekend-long H8’s a Drag Love TRANSforms fear. For more details, read our story on pages 6 and 7.

April 11-13/ Various Times

CONCERT: MELISSA ETHERIDGE

Brandi’s 2nd year running with a sold-out show with the Nashville Symphony. Keep your eyes open on 3rd party ticketing sites; she’s worth it.

April 22/ 7:30 p.m.

22 TUE

DINING OUT FOR LIFE Various Locations

Join dozens of Nashville area restaurants as they donate a percentage of their proceeds to Nashville CARES. See page 18 for more details.

April 22

Schermerhorn Symphony Center

At press time, there were only a few tickets left for this solo show.

April 15/ 7:30 p.m.

Every Sunday / 11-3

COMEDY PUGS HUGS Mad Donna’s

Join comics Paulina Combow and Mary Jay Berger and their variety show, Comedy Pug Hugs.

Ticket information can be found at comedypughugs.net April 24/ 7:30 p.m.

LGBT CHAMBER EXCELLENCE IN BUSINESS AWARDS Sheraton Nashville Downtown

LGBT Chamber hosts their annual awards.

See page 14 for more details.

April 25/ 11:30 a.m.

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Join your favorite PLAY Mates for the new Drag N’ Brunch every Sunday at Suzy Wong’s from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.. 2-for-1 mimosas and Suzy faves such as Katsu Chicken and Waffles and Suzy’s Steak Benedict make this a must for brunch. Dine April 27 when Suzy donates 75% of proceeds to Nashville CARES.

Find Something You Want Now posting great McKay finds on Facebook & Twitter!

APRIL 2014

COMING SOON TO

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May 23 BUY TICKETS: 615.687.6400 NashvilleSymphony.org

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