Find more of Mark’s blogs here: https://marksking.com
People are Resisting. I Am Doing Nothing.
The phrase sat there on my Facebook feed, staring back at me like an accusation.
“If you aren’t resisting, you are assisting,” the post read.
I felt flush with self-conscious guilt. It wasn’t a familiar feeling, not after nearly forty years of speaking up and staking my ground as a long-term HIV survivor. And yet somehow, in this new surreal era of governmental upheaval, the slate of our past contributions has been wiped clean and replaced with a new query.
What have you done lately?
The answer is not much. I have no excuses. But I do have reasons. Enumerating them feels like a copout but I will do it anyway, in case you’re in a similar boat and need a lifeline about now.
The trauma – there’s no other word for it, really – of the last few months continues to weigh heavily on my psyche and my energy level. Just as this administration clearly planned, the events are happening faster than I can process them. I have been thrown back on my heels.
I am also the husband of a federal employee, and that has completely hijacked my time and emotions. The shocking headlines about the gutting of our institutions hardly do justice to the daily fear, intimidation, and cruel insults hurled at our civil servants.
“We want the bureaucrats to be traumatically affected,” Russell Vought, the new director of the Office of Management and Budget, said in a video revealed by the research group Documented in October. “When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work, because they are increasingly viewed as the villains. We want their funding to be shut down… We want to put them in trauma.” Mission accomplished. My husband has devoted his entire professional career in the public sector to improving the lives and health of the people of this great nation. He seriously considered the Musk buy-out deal before deciding to stick it out and continue his work as best he can. His workplace is demoralized and key employees have been fired without warning or cause. How they will manage to continue to deliver services for the American people is beyond me. It is, in a word, awful.
Supporting him as best I can has been my priority.
Through all of this, aside from attending a few organizational meetings on Zoom as an observer, I have done nothing. I have not protested in the streets, written letters, called my elected officials or even watched much cable television news. I am stunned into paralysis.
The contrast between my own current reaction to events and the response of others is striking. In Tim Murphy’s recent piece for Positively Aware, in which he gathers tips and responses from various HIV community leaders, I alone appear to be up to, well, not much. From the article: “I’m feeling every day of my nearly 65 years right now,” says King. “I’ve been here before. I made it out of the 1980s alive. But I was
also in my twenties then and perhaps now I am older and sadder and more protective of what limited resources I have.”
In the 1980s, I was young enough not to give a shit about how my social justice work or shouting in the streets might affect my job prospects or community standing or financial security.
Well, plus we were dying and didn’t expect to live to see the age of thirty. This time around, I know how much my privilege allows me to tend to the garden, watch horror movies and make dinner with my husband in an effort to shut out the brutality of the current administration. It has been a safeguard for my mental health, even if I might anxiously peek at the news occasionally through my fingers, taking in my modest fill of it before I reach for chocolate or switch to the latest episode of The White Lotus.
Thankfully, there is a dizzying array of responses coming from our community. My inbox is filled with announcements about protests and how to respond to the latest outrage and invitations to Zoom events. I delete most of them, or might attend with my camera off. It’s as if I can’t look my own community in the face right now. I’m ashamed of my own inaction.
I have noticed that criticism of our organizing efforts has begun, because blowback is part of the game, I suppose. HIV icon Cleve Jones recently posted that he’s frustrated by the “scattered protests called by anonymous individuals, incoherent messaging and little media coverage. ”
Umm, okay. I might not be in a position to remark on the quality of our current response, but I remember plenty of scattered responses back in the day, and it produced, eventually, a coherent and effective shared strategy. People coalesce, given time to absorb our common priorities and choices.
Maybe that’s what I am waiting for. Someone to point heroically in a promising direction and say, “That way!” Or maybe my paralysis will withstand even that. We’ll see.
Mark
Leading with the wisdom of Joseph Jean-Gilles, POZ TO Award recipient 2024
It was my great pleasure to see my nomination of a Montréal role model and veteran community work for the POZ-TO Awards 2024, met with the open arms of my fellow Tourangeau Award co-winner, my sister, auntie and mentor Jade Elektra. In his editorial daytime persona of Alphonso King, Jr., POZPLANET enjoyed a scintillating conference call with 2024 recipient Joseph Jean-Gilles of Montréal new-arrivalfocused non-profit GAP-VIES, where I played the familiar role of translator. The following is an adaptation of my nomination speech about Joseph and includes some summary translations of a conversation that will stay with me forever.
There is nobody like Joseph-Jean Gilles. Since he couldn't be in Toronto for the ceremony, I sent a video in his honour, much of which is transcribed herewith. Joseph is somebody who will always show up for his community. He's been running the Haitian-forward non-profit GAP-VIES, an organization for the Haitian community (accompanying new arrivals and locals in Créole, French, and in multiple other languages) that has been serving people living with HIV in Montréal for almost 30 years, officially, and likely longer, within networks described by researchers like Viviane Namaste, whose Savoirs créoles. Leçons du sida pour l’histoire de Montréal (2019) credits GAP-VIES as an essential collaborator under Joseph’s helm.
Joseph has been the director general at GAP-VIES practically since its founding, and is also one of the founding members of the Table des organismes montréalais de lutte contre le sida, which is the association of HIV charities that the author of this arti cle currently works for (full disclosure). When I went looking for who the original founding signatories of my current employer were, Joseph Jean-Gilles's name is there, too, and that is no surprise.
This year’s Montréal rep at the POZ Awards is what you would call one of the ancients’ combatants – or veterans – of the scene. At a symposium recently, he talked about both the pathos and the bathos of advocating for care and funding for Haitian people in Montréal living with HIV, doing prevention work, all the while fighting the dreaded “4 H’s” of stigmatization. “Haemophiliacs, Hatians, Homosexuals, and…” he began, then paused, and I could see the metaphoric tabs open in his head as he wrestled with the appropriate way to say the 4th H. To say the old term for “sex worker” would be to reiterate a stir, but to not say it would rhetorically lose the point of mentioning the four H’s. And so, he just laughed, and thankfully, his fellow panelist Guillaume Tremblay-Gallant (from the provincial online outreach charity, PVSQ) interjected sex workers. This shorthand for communities that were most exposed to HIV was simultaneously obsolete and historically acute; in describing it to an audience of mostly nurses, mostly my age, I felt the tension of restating a word so out-dated. It felt relatable at that moment, to walk the line between the crisis and
ongoing pandemic, and seeing how sometimes, when language fails us, we’re allowed to laugh. To boot, his reaction was humble and a welcome moment of extemporaneous panel tag-teaming.
That wasn't the first time that I saw Joseph Jean-Gilles able to hold both the pain of the past and wit about the present simultaneously.
In January, when asked what our respective inspirations were in our activism and community work, I was expecting perhaps to hear Alphonso mention the people who were around him when he was living through the AIDS crisis, and for Joseph, who is often sought out by researchers for his imprimatur, I figured he would name some authors or activists as well. But no, his answer sent me into tear -inducing laughter, because of its humility:
“My inspiration is the next person who walks through the doors of GAP -VIES asking for,” and he paused. “Rather, the next person… who tells me what they are lacking in their steps to self-affirmation as a person living with HIV.”
He is particularly mindful of people for whom religious faith is a part of their adjustment to the diagnosis, that he is non-judgmental and even delighted when one woman told him, “God might have wanted me to be HIV positive.”
“If that works for you, I can work with that,” Joseph explains. “One of my clients recently told a group of us:
I am not living with the virus. The virus is living with me. HIV lives with me. And I’m me before, during and after, no matter what.
This metaphor, of the human immunodeficiency virus as a couch-surfing roommate or lazy ex-boyfriend or best friend or older family member or lover who just happens to living with us, and not we who must live with the virus, caused a few brain explosions for me, that afternoon. It remains inspiring every time I think about the language of HIV and how vital it is to have new arrivals, always already including generational arrivals like the Créole-speaking community, around the table and in the conversation.
The last thing that I would like to say that I admire about Joseph Jean-Gilles and that makes him the perfect person to receive the POZ TO Award 2024 is that like me, he believes that there's a place for both research and community engagement to come together in HIV.
For decades, these two ways of showing care and finding progress for people living with HIV (or with whom HIV happens to live!) have actually not been at odds and
they don't have to be. Because there are scientists and medical researchers who listen to people like Joseph, and maybe even someday people like me, we stick around and listen and learn and advocate and collaborate and converse, and repeat. To gain clout in the world of nonprofits and medical research and all that, it definitely helps to be as elegant and witty and committed as Joseph Jean-Gilles.
So here's to you, Joseph. Bravo and thank you everyone at the POZ-TO Awards and POZPLANET!
Written by our 2023 POZ-TO Honoree, Jordan Arsenault
(aka Peaches LePoz, founder of SéroSyndicat and current Research Analyst and Mobilizer at the TOMS-mtl.org)
POZ-TO & POZPLANET Magazine have started a monthly movie night called PINK CINEMA! If you live in Toronto, we would love to have you join our facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/195374003920591 and vote on what movies we watch. This month in honour of International Women’s Day we have three lesbian films, “Bound”, “Heavenly Creatures” & “The Watermelon Woman”. Each month we give you three choices of LGBT films and you get to vote. The one with the most votes will be our feature on the third Tuesday of each month at the PWA Building (163 Queen Street East). Seating and Pre-Show starts at 6 PM and our feature starts at 7 PM. This is a great way to build community and preserve our LGBT History through cinema. There’s a suggested $2 or more donation that goes to the Toronto People With AIDS Foundation. See ya there!
A Vaccine For Pancreatic Cancer Continues To Show Promise
Original link: https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/pancreatic- cancer-vaccine
Dr. Vinod Balachandran at the Human Oncology & Pathogenesis Program (HOPP) lab. Credit: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Pancreatic cancer is notoriously difficult to treat, and about 90% of diagnosed patients die from the disease. A team at Memorial Sloan Kettering has been working to improve those outcomes by developing a new mRNA vaccine for pancreatic cancer.
A few years ago, the team embarked on a small trial to test the vaccine’s safety. Sixteen patients with pancreatic cancer received it, and even though it was a small study, the results were promising: Half the participants had an
immune response, and in those patients the cancer hadn’t relapsed after 18 months.
This week, the team released a new study in Nature following those same patients, and found six out of eight who responded to the vaccine in the first study did not have their cancer return more than three years later.
Joining host Flora Lichtman to talk about these results, and what they could mean for the future of cancer treatment, is study author and surgeon Dr. Vinod Balachandran, director of The Olayan Center for Cancer Vaccines at Memorial Sloan Kettering, based in New York City.
2025 is already moving quickly and we are in March. It is our job to introduce you to as many HIV activists from around the world as possible. And this month we are sitting down with Writer, Producer, Commentator, Social Media Consultant and Activist, Jason Reid.
JE: Good afternoon, Jason. It is a pleasure to chat with you today. Thank you for taking the time to do this. How are you?
JR: Hello Jade. You’re more than welcome. It’s an honour to be featured in POZPLANET. Thank you for asking me. I’m very well - happy that spring has finally spring!
JE: So, I have to admit that since I left Twitter, I have discovered a world of new people and communities. Your name came up on a few friend lists. I decided to reach out and find out more about you. And thank goodness you were polite enough to reply. Was it weird to have some drag queen just write you out of the blue? I mean...did you even know anything about me before I messaged you? Even though our POZPLANET facebook group has over 12,000 members I often forget that we are still a small online publication.
JR: It was a wonderful surprise when you reached out. I’m always happy to share my experiences of being an AIDS survivor who is now living with HIV. I'm a great believer in learning from one another, and I know that over the years I’ve become more empathic and understanding by absorbing the personal accounts of people from all walks of life who have faced great adversity. The human condition is fascinating to me! I do recall hearing of your brilliant song “Undetectable”. How soul-enriching it must be to combine your artistic talents with your passionate HIV advocacy. Plus, it’s a great, accessible way to reach people and get the vital U=U message out there! Pozplanet is a fantastic publication which has been on my radar for years, as is the Facebook group which gives HIV+ people a space to connect and share.
JE: Okay...would you mind telling our readers a little about yourself? Where are you from? Where are you now? What's your background?
JR: I am the archetypal smalltown boy who ran away to the big city as soon as I could. My parents moved from Ireland to the UK in 1968. It was either here or America and mum had an auntie in the UK, so this seemed like the best choice. My upbringing was conservative; I attended a Roman Catholic school, and I practically counted down the days till I could leave and be unshackled from conformity and dogmatism. The only lessons at school I truly liked (and paid attention to) were English and Drama. When I left school, I went on to study media but dropped out because my heart wasn’t in it. I wanted to rebel and travel and explore my sexuality, which I did. In the pre-internet world; I met my first serious boyfriend on a gay chat line (remember those!!). We were in love.
On the day I left the family home, my dad said, “you’ll be back in a week!” Fast-forward to twenty years later still being in London.
When I first moved to London, my boyfriend and I slept on a bare floor because we were dirt poor, sleeping on a blow-up mattress which we had to re-inflate every morning manually because we’d been shagging on it during the night. A year or so later, I began working in and managing gay bars and got to know many people in the LGBTQ+ community, especially drag artists who have been a constant source of inspiration and support over the years.
During the 2010’s I was luckily enough to be asked to judge drag and cabaret competitions when they were at their peak. I then got back into writing, which I’ve always been passionate about.
Despite being born in the UK, I’m deeply passionate about my Irish heritage which my late father instilled in me with his teachings.
I’m very fortunate that my parents were always accepting of both my sexuality and HIV.
JR: This year, 2025, marks 20 years of being HIV+ and being hospitalized with AIDS. I am an AIDS survivor. Proudly and gratefully so, I might add! For many years I wasn’t out and proud. But it's so liberating. I got a second chance at life after being on death’s door. Too many before me perished
because of a lack of access to lifesaving medication, and I’ll always honour them one way or another.
On September 1st 2005, I was hospitalized with what I thought was a really bad flu, but it was pneumonia. My CD4 count was 9 and I weighed 7 stone upon admission. From there I was treated for a number of AIDS-defining illnesses such as cryptococal meningitis, anaemia, malnutrition, and hyponatreamia.
When I was stabilised and on medication I could tolerate, after having an extremely adverse reaction to efavirenz which was the first HIV drug i was put on that caused me to experience almost round-the-clock hallucinations and psychosis, I was moved to a specialist AIDS hospice called Mildmay. Princess Diana visited Mildmay during the height of the AIDS crisis and I recall through my haze of sickness, always seeing the photos of her visits on the main corridor wall.
It was in Mildmay that I was rehabilitated and learned to read and write again because of neurological impairment and AIDS dementia. After several months in hospitals and Mildmay, I was able to leave and begin my new life. The mental scars lay heavy for many years. It took a while to comprehend and make peace with what had happened. I won’t ever be fully over it, and that’s fine because I own my HIV and AIDS, it doesn’t own me as it once did. I’m now happy and healthy, taking one pill a day, and want to make a positive impact on the world.
JE: It took me a long time to come out publicly about my status. How did you and what made you decide to come out?
JR: Family and friends who were around at the time of my AIDS chapter obviously knew, plus a few very close confidants. But for the most part, I didn’t intend to be overtly public about my status. Coming out in 2014 on the front of a gay magazine with a fabulous drag artist called Vanilla Lush was one of the best things I’ve ever done because it’s enabled me to educate and empower so many people. Someone threatened to out me, so taking that power back and the outcome being on the whole incredibly supportive, felt bloody good! That wasn’t the sole reason for coming out so publicly. I worked for QX Magazine at the time and the editor, Cliff, and I had a great relationship and we’d spoken about it for some time. I trusted him implicitly. That was the beginning of my HIV/AIDS activism.
JE: I was a journalism and art major in college back in Tampa, Florida. I didn't finish because I took a job at the local newspaper after my first year. How did you become a writer?
JR: In 2011, when social media was still in its heyday, I would write Facebook updates always with a sardonic lilt and often based around current affairs and the LGBTQ+ scene. This caught the eye of an editor, and he suggested I come onboard QX Magazine, so I wrote a sample review and the rest is history, as they say.
JE: I didn't become a real HIV activist until I moved to Canada. My husband and I officially came out in a local publication in 2010, and a major weight was lifted from my shoulders. I immediately started looking at what I could do to improve visibility and awareness for our community. What got you to become an out-about-your-status activist?
JR: For me, the catalyst was appearing on the front cover of QX Magazine and speaking publicly for the first time about my AIDS journey. I was terrified of what the outcome would be. Vanilla (who is sadly no longer alive) and I experienced something very profound together. It had not been approached to that extent before; scene magazines were more about tits and teeth not deeply personal interest stories. When the magazine was finally published and we both braced for impact, as it were, the response was overwhelmingly positive which was a HUGE relief and affirming. I knew at that point I wanted to continue sharing and helping others. Since then I’ve received countless messages and emails from all kinds of people who want to talk privately about HIV concerns. Personally, my HIV advocacy has helped with my confidence and given me purpose. I hope when I’m long gone, I’m remembered as someone who sought to make a difference.
JE: As a Social Media Consultant...does that mean that companies and others come to you for advice on how to approach subjects on their platforms?
JR: In a sense, yes. I work mostly with LGBTQ+ venues, managing their social media platforms and offering expert advice along the way, which comes from my two decades experience of working on the LGBTQ+ scene and being completely hooked on social media (not as bad as I used to be though). Currently I’m with the legendary Royal Vauxhall Tavern, and a gorgeous new venue in Margate called La! Give them a follow! And whenever you’re in the UK, Electra, I’ll gladly take you on a night out to one or both of them!
JE: And before I let you get back to your day, what advice would you give to your younger self after being diagnosed?
JR: My advice to my younger self after being diagnosed would be: Be kind to yourself and know your worth.
JE: Well, we covered a lot of subjects from your life. Did we miss anything? Is there anything else that you'd like to share?
JR: It’s been so good to chat! Thanks again, Elektra. If your readers want to follow me on social media I’m at JasonReidUK across most platforms. Keep sharing the vital U=U message, because there’s still a lot of ignorance out there, and never forget those AIDS comrades who died before us.
JE: I can't tell you how grateful I am that you spoke with us today. If you ever have anything you would like to promote or write about we here at POZPLANET Magazine would love to hear about it. Please keep in touch and keep on inspiring others to live their best lives.
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I don't where you are in the world but here in Toronto the weather has been bitterly cold with tons of snow. We have been given a bit of a break this week but I have been forced to do my steps inside. Fortunately, I have plenty of tunes to motivate me. Hopefully these twenty-four songs will keep ya goin'. I truly believe that I have a little something for everyone this month….a mix old some new tunes and a few flashbacks revisited.
Before we get started, I just have to congratulate Beyoncé, Doechii and Kendrick Lamar on a fantastic celebration of BLACK HISTORY MONTH. Yes, the news of what’s going on in the world has been horrible but as usual Black People are resilient and made history again. Country Album of the Year and Album of the Year for Ms. Carter, Best New Artist for Doechii and Record of the Year plus the most watched Super
Bowl Halftime Show ever for Kendrick! Y’all bettah do it! Learn it and learn it well…cuz I predicted these accomplishments.
And to start oM our mix this month, the Afro Beat invasion continues to creep into the U.S. pop charts. This time I believe Rema has a hit on his hands with “Baby (Is It A Crime)”. Armed with a hook from one of my favourite Sade songs and a smooth deliver…how can he miss with this one?
Now while Rema is finessing his charms on the lady in question, Our next selection might represent what a dog he might be with “Left Eye” by Honey Bxby. From listening to the lyrics I think this is a reference to when the late Left Eye of TLC burned down her boyfriend’s house. Don’t quote me on that…but sure sounds like a woman scorned.
And directly out of the Bad Bitch Academy comes the TMU Remix of “Roc Steady” by Megan Thee Stallion featuring Flo Milli. Great mix but I am disappointed that no one has taken the rhythm track from Aretha Franklin’s “Rock Steady” and made a mashup.
I have to say that Bruno Mars is pimpin’ the game hard right about now. He’s at the top of the charts with his Lady GaGa duet with “Die With A Smile” and his Rose duet for “APT”. And now he’s going after the Hip Hop charts with his new duet with Sexyy Red called “Fat Juicy & Wet”. And he’s really smart. He got GaGa & Rose to make a cameo
in the music video. This ain’t like whoring yourself out like Nicki Minaj back in the 2010s or still doin’ it like Pitbull. Bruno has the talent and the Grammys to back it up.
So, I needed a transition track and dug up this one of Montell Jordan’s “This Is How We Do It” into Katy Perry’s “Last Friday Night”. If you ever need a way to switch from a Hip Hop vibe to a Pop Dance song this is a good one! Definitely a couple of classics.
Which leads us right into Lady GaGa’s latest called “Abracadabra”. I listened to several of the remixes and the only one that caught my ear was Kue’s NuDisco Remix. All the others were too Circuit or just were horrible. I’m sure there’s gonna be a few thousand more remixes before it’s over but Kue’s mix will do me just fine.
Now don’t tell my husband but my Baby-Daddy, Bad Bunny just dropped a new banga called “El Club”. And the Dozarm Remix was my choice for the seventh track in our mix. He’s still wrapped up in that Kardashian / Jenner mess but as long as he comes home, I’ll forgive him.
“Coraçao” by Jerry Ropero, Denis The Menace & Sabor is our eighth
selection. Love the track but can’t help but notice it sounds a lot like “Get Get Down” by Paul Johnson.
I promised that I would throw in some revisited classics and I believe the Danny Morris Remix of “The Beat Goes On” by Sonny & Cher is a great reinvention of this 60s gem. I haven’t done a new edition of my “Decades” video mixshow in a while. This will be the perfect mix to program. Thanks, Danny.
Another classic revisited is the Charlie Lane Afro House Mix of “Music Sounds Better With You 2025” by Stardust. There’s been plenty of remixes of this 90s House track, but I really believe that this is my favourite version.
Our eleventh selection is “Kant” by Miriana Conte. Now…my first question was “Who da hell is Miriana Conte?” Well, it turns out that she is going to be the representative for Maltese in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. And this track will be her submission. Now, even though it is not spelled like it is pronounce on the track I could see this one being adopted by the Ballroom scene.
Up next is a track I chose because it is how I feel about this administration in the White House right now. So many people are regretting their vote for this idiot. And if they haven’t regretted it they will. The song in question is “F.U.” by Jamie XX
featuring Erykah Badu. Jamie is known for his Club tracks which features samples and Badu o#ers a handful of expletives which originate from an ad-libbed performance during a Primavera Sound afterparty in 2019.
I’m sure by now you have heard “Messy” by British Pop star Lola Young. If not, you will. And this Bren F. Mashup with track by Sonny Fodera & Lewis Thompson works so well.
Now to be honest…these days I’m a little bored with The Weeknd. Between his obsession with death and drugs in his lyrics and the tone of his voice…yawn. But the Sefu Remix of “Cry For You” caught my ear and I would play this.
Our fifteenth selection is “Always Knew” by Journey Montana featuring Maleigh Zan. Weirdly enough when I Googled this track it was listed as a R&B/Soul track. This is a House track. It doesn’t have a heavy percussion but it’s a smooth production with two female vocalists. It’s okay but I’d like to
hear a remix. It’s a solid vocal.
Back in 1990 there was the Ben Liebrand Remix of the Luther Vandross classic, “Never Too Much” and in the 90s there were a couple of bootlegs but there was never an o#icial remix…until now. I was pleasantly surprised when my friend Phillip Oliver sent me the Lost Frequencies Remix. I liked it so much that I edited a video version for this mix.
Hopefully I am about to introduce you to an unpolished gem. This would be “Closer To Mine” by La Coco. I looked her up and she has a very small following but I think once a few more DJ’s discover her that she will grow into a popular House artist. And from the music video she is an LGBT ally as well.
And our eighteenth selection is a new LGBT artist by the name of EyeOfPsi. Not sure how I found this track, but the original is way too fast to be absorbed into Pop Gay Culture. I think it was produced that way for maybe TikTok. So, I
took it and slowed down to 128 BPMs and added the drums from the Thunderpuss Remix of “Sexual” by Amber. The video is probably a little explicit for some programmers, but I love it. And his partner in it is SO HOT!!!
So, I believe about a year ago I wrote about the Pop artist Tate McRae. I said with the right material and marketing that she could be the next big thing out of Canada. And despite all of the sexy teenager videos, she hasn’t blown up like Justin Bieber or Drake. Perhaps the timing isn’t right. All the K-Pop female groups are dominating the Pop charts.
Tate’s latest single, “Sports Car” got the perfect makeover in the form of the DASHONE & Felixx Remix. I think she can still crossover and make it but she’s gonna have to expand her image and content.
Now anyone who has been keeping up with my articles knows that I am not a fan of Glorilla…mainly because of her name. But the other reason is that I just feel like we don’t need any more Ghetto Princesses on the mic. It’s exhausting. But Sexyy Redd makes her second appearance in our mix for March as a feature on Glo’s “Whatchu Know About Me”. The original version is something that I would never play. But the Los Padres Remix takes this
70 something BPM track and transforms it into something workable for a Club floor. So, if I had to play Miss Rilla I would grab this one.
After watching the halftime show for this year ’s Super Bowl, I felt compelled to find a House mix of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us”. I think I found the perfect one with the JMEX Remix. So, I immediately did a video edit for it. Why did I do it? ‘Cuz after hearing that Drake had filed a lawsuit against his label for inflating sales of “Not Like Us” I just felt like that was a punk ass move. You have been defeated. Go sit down and think about where you wanna go from here. What type of artist do you wanna be? But for God’s sakes stop whining about your loss. It’s just embarrassing . You’re not a thug. You didn’t grow up in da hood. And that’s okay. Own your whiteness and take your lumps. And speaking of taking lumps…our twenty second selection is by an artist who took some bad lumps from a bad contract when she signed with the Pussycat Dolls. They owned her for a while and even stole her solo album to make it into a Dolls’ album. I am obviously speaking of the very talented Nicole Scherzinger.
Well, I am so happy for her that she is finally free, and she is on Broadway now
in the reboot of Sunset Boulevard! She made an appearance on Stephen Colbert and sang one of my favourites from the show, “As If We Never Said Goodbye” and brought the house down! I always knew she was a great vocalist and now it is so wonderful that she has the wings to soar. So, when I heard about the Eliad Cohen Remix of “With One Look” from the show, I couldn’t wait to hear it. It’s a little too Circuit for my floor but what can you expect from Mr. Cohen who is promoter of Circuit parties and a gay-friendly vacation rental ser vice in Tel Aviv.
And to close out our mix we jump up in BPMs to talk about drag recording artist and comedian Lady Bunny. I’ve known Bunny for years and I have to say that her humor is not for everyone. And please…if you are a liberal and Democrat do not go to her social media. I try very hard not to discuss any politics with her. But her latest single is parody of Chappel Roan’s “Hot To Go” and is called “Hot To Blow ”. Like many of us, Bunny has a little crush on Luigi Mangione and decided to write a song about it. Always in bad taste but will make you giggle. And right about now we could all use a laugh.
Don’t forget to use the links at the beginning of this article to stream the mix and get a FREE DOWNLOAD of the video version of this mix!
