4 Country Queers of Texas

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FROM BEING THE BIRTHPLACE OF CONJUNTO AND TEJANO, TO

INSPIRING THE GREAT COUNTRY MUSIC OUTLAWS OF REGALED

HISTORY, ITS COAST BEING HOST TO THE CHITLIN CIRCUIT, THIS PART OF THE AMERICAN SOUTHWEST ALSO IS HOME TO A MÉLANGE OF QUEER MUSICIANS THAT PLAY

EVERYTHING FROM GOSPEL TO INDIE FOLK. This short list cannot even begin to cover the grand expanse of musicians and communities that Queer Texans call home, but we encourage you give ‘em a listen.

Country Queers of Texas

By Eryn Brothers

Melissa Carper

The wander daddy of Queer country music, Melissa Carper, knows how to make you dance and cry at the same time. Her latest release, Daddy’s Country Gold is a sweet homage to the old being new without being derivative or cute.

Austin has been heart and home for Carper (with stints of Arkansas in between) as she has been an integral part of the Texas country scene for quite some time.

Willmer Broadnax

If you don’t know the story of Willmer Broadnax, buckle up. Broadnax was born in Houston, Texas on December 28th, 1916, and is one of the first recorded Black transgender men in American history. Known as “Little Ax”, due to his short stature and powerful voice, Willmer got his start singing gospel with his brothers and The St. Paul Gospel Singers.

He would eventually move to Los Angeles with one of his brothers to join another gospel group the Southern Soul Stirrers. Broadnax would eventually leave to start Little Axe and the Golden Echoes. Willmer recorded groundbreaking gospel albums, and became a beloved figure in this genre.

His distinctive tenor voice was regaled and admired by colleagues and family alike. Only after his murder (at the hands of his girlfriend in 1992) was it revealed that Broadnax was trans.

Eric Holm

New kid on the Texas scene and one to watch, self-proclaimed radical queer country music artist Eric Holm is straight from eastern South Dakota, Brooklyn, & New Orleans. When the crew at Culture Clash started talking Queer Country, Eric’s name was quick to pop up. His soulful omage to Queer Kids in Red States hits home with so many Galveston and Texas youth.

Gina Chavez

This Austin-native Latinx songstress knows what’s up. Gina Chavez works with a blend of folk and pop, tethering the world to her heart either by love or the social justice she demands.

Award winning-from the Austin Music Awards to being the Grand Prize Winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, Chavez’ album, La Que Manda effuses poignant and tactile emotion with every track.