AUGUST 2025 by OutSmart Magazine

STILL FIGHTING

SOUNDTRACK OF A CITY

Ari, Chad Guidry, AJ Hernandez, and MLE Pg.48

Redeﬁning hip-hop with an empowering new EP Pg.44

BIG-LEAGUE ENERGY

MSLA brings the Gay Softball World Series back to Houston Pg.32

Queer women speak about the struggle for gender equality Pg.28 PATRICK SIMS GETS PERSONAL ON HIS

Health, Your Choice

Raed Gonzalez made history by winning the first same-sex marriage-based visa case in Texas. Today, he continues to represent LGBTQ+ individuals from across the globe in asylum, humanitarian, and family-based immigration claims—fighting for justice, safety, and dignity for all. For representation that the LGBTQ+ community can trust, contact Gonzalez Olivieri LLC today.

Dr. Rubbiya Charania

Dr. Robert Hines

Dr. Tyler Henthorn

Dr. Adrian Reyes

Dr. Marcus de Guzman

FEATURES:

Three

The

OutSmart

Kris

Deborah

24 COMMUNITY

Friends of Bubba McNeely honored the beloved performer’s legacy at his July 28 funeral;

The schedule of Houston-area drag shows is now available on the website DragSpace.com ( pg. 54 )

18 MONEY SMART

The sweeping new federal tax law could impact your tax breaks and retirement planning

56 FILM

The People’s Joker, Vera Drew’s Batman parody, has become an unlikely crowd favorite

DoxyPEP

Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Greg Jeu

Creative Director Alex Rosa

Copy Editor Howard Maple, Janice Stensrude

Copy Editors Howard Maple, Janice Stensrude

Contributing Writers

Olivia Flores Alvarez, Rich Arenschieldt, Bill Arning, Susan Bankston, Connor Behrens, Jenny Block, Sam Byrd, David Clarke, Dick Dace, Blase DiStefano, Andrew Edmonson, Ste7en Foster, Alys Garcia Carrera, Martin Giron, Lillian Hoang, DL Groover, Marene Gustin, Kim Hogstrom, James Hurst, Lisa Keen, Ryan M. Leach, Zachary McKenzie, David Odyssey, Joanna O’Leary, Lilly Roddy, Terri Schlichenmeyer, Gregg Shapiro, Janice Stensrude, Sheryl Taylor, Terrance Turner, Grace S. Yung

Photographers/Illustrators

Edgardo Aguilar, John-Paul Arreaga, Victor Contreras, Dalton DeHart, Yvonne Feece, Frank Hernandez, Ashkan Roayaee, Alex Rosa

Operations Manager Michael Gurnas

and Marketing Dept.

Sales and Marketing Dept.

Local Advertising Reps 713.520.7237

Tom Fricke, Chris Lew, Gene Mikulenka

National Advertising Representative Rivendell Media - 212.242.6863

E-mail: editor@outsmartmagazine.com Website: OutSmartMagazine.com

Our August issue begins with a tribute to Bubba McNeely, a beloved entertainer who passed away on July 11 at age 67. McNeely’s career took flight alongside female impersonator Jimmy James in the 1980s, and friends remember him as “a human carnival ride”—larger than life, generous, and always joyful.

To observe Women’s Equality Day on August 26, we spoke to local leaders Alice McCarthy, Faith Northern, and Avery Belyeu, who share their thoughts on the continuing fight for equality.

We also spoke with three community allies ahead of International Allyship Day on August 8. MaryJane Mudd, Obes Nwabara, and Marian Luntz all emphasize their lived experiences that deepened their empathy for LGBTQ family and friends.

Next month, the Montrose Softball League Association will host more than 200 sports teams for the 2025 Gay Softball World Series. The Houston league’s mission is to foster connection and support for its LGBTQ members. OutSmart spoke with five local team members who describe how the league has enriched their lives.

In other community news, queer artist Kris

Owens, owner of The Feisty Collective, takes us inside their Heights shop that showcases handmade queer-centric goods from local and international makers. The shop’s events schedule has created a family-friendly haven where queer folks of all ages can gather.

For nearly five decades, Houston media trailblazer Deborah Moncrief Bell has been a co-host of the long-running Queer Voices radio show and has interviewed hundreds of local and national personalities. “We’re not only reporting the news,” Bell says. “We’re telling the stories of our lives.”

Patrick Sims, our cover star for this annual Music Issue, discusses his introspective new EP Love Notes and his evolution as a bisexual Black artist. He uses his songwriting to explore the emotional complexities of coming out and finding love.

Houston-born recording artist Paul Luna is shaking up the city’s music scene with a sound that’s unapologetically queer and deeply personal. His latest project, PHASES, features lyrics that he hopes will uplift those who feel unseen.

Then we visit with Gamma Vega, whose hypnotic electronic dance-pop EP Gamma mixes personal storytelling with fearless self-expression. Born to Mexican immigrant parents who taught her to hide her queerness,

OutSmart Foundation for LGBTQ News and Media

Why are we asking you to donate to the OutSmar t Foundation?

Your suppor t empowers the LGBTQ communit y through essential journalism, helping OutSmar t Media thrive in a rapidly evolving media landscape. Your tax- deductible contribution expands our newsroom, compensates dedicated journalists , and invests in the latest media technology. It also funds internships for future writers commit ted to social justice.

she now channels those experiences into music that empowers and uplifts.

Finally, queer Houston DJs Chad Guidry, AJ Hernandez, Emily “MLE” Areta, and Ari are redefining local nightlife, and their inspiring stories remind us that it’s about more than just mixing tracks—it’s about shaping culture.

Our entertainment coverage continues with Vera Drew’s film The People’s Joker, a wildly satirical take on the Batman universe. Shot in five days on a shoestring budget, this cult favorite returns for a Houston screening on August 8.

Composer and playwright Aaron Alon’s musical The Chosen Ones premieres this month. Inspired by real stories, it follows six queer teens navigating the trauma of gay conversion therapy at a summer camp. Alon spoke with OutSmart about his use of music as a metaphor for authenticity and self-expression.

By suppor ting the OutSmar t Foundation, you invest in a plat form that amplifies underrepresented voices and promotes equalit y through stor y telling . You help produce journalism that confronts prejudice and embraces diversit y.

Thank you for suppor ting independent LGBTQ media in Houston. Your contribution helps our plat form thrive, amplif ying diverse voices and stories .

Greg Jeu Publisher

PROTECTING YOUR RIGHTS

At the Law Office of Sam M. (Trey) Yates, III, P.C., we are dedicated to ensuring same-sex couples receive the legal protection they deserve. Whether you’re navigating estate planning, child custody, or divorce, we stand by your side.

LEGAL CHALLENGES YOU MAY FACE

Partnerships & Divorce:

LEGAL CHALLENGES YOU MAY FACE

Partnerships & Divorce:

Unequal laws can complicate separations, affecting assets, custody, and spousal support. We fight to secure what’s fair and rightfully yours.

Partnerships & Divorce:

Unequal laws can complicate separations, affecting assets, custody, and spousal support. We fight to secure what’s fair and rightfully yours.

Surviving Spousal Rights:

Unequal laws can complicate separations, affecting assets, custody, and spousal support. We fight to secure what’s fair and rightfully yours.

Surviving Spousal Rights:

Same-sex spouses may face hurdles in inheritance and legal recognition. We help you protect what matters most.

Surviving Spousal Rights:

Same-sex spouses may face hurdles in inheritance and legal recognition. We help you protect what matters most.

Parental & Custody Rights:

Protecting your family and securing parental rights post-separation. Your family’s future is worth protecting.

For

years,

For over 40 years, Trey

has been a dedicated

professional and community advocate

For over 40 years, Trey Yates has been a dedicated legal professional and community advocate in

played a key role in building many successful nonprofits that continue to serve the

community

played a key role in building many successful nonprofits that continue to serve the LGBTQ community today. Committed to justice and service, Trey’s impact is felt both in the courtroom and beyond. QUESTIONS? Education, and Support LEARN MORE Saturday, April 5, 2025 8:30 am to 2 pm St. Regis Hotel 1919 Briar Oaks Lane • Houston, Texas 77027 QUESTIONS? Education, and Support LEARN MORE Saturday, April 5, 2025 8:30 am to 2 pm St. Regis Hotel 1919 Briar Oaks Lane • Houston, Texas 77027 Saturday, June 14, 2025 QUESTIONS?

Protecting your family and securing parental rights post-separation. Your family’s future is worth protecting.

Committed to justice and service, Trey’s impact is felt both in the courtroom and beyond.

a key role in building many successful nonprofits that continue to serve the LGBTQ community today. Committed to justice and service, Trey’s impact is felt both in the courtroom and beyond.

QUESTIONS?

Protecting your family and securing parental rights post-separation. Your family’s future is worth protecting. QUESTIONS?

Education, and Support for Your Journey

QUESTIONS? Empowerment, Education, for Your LEARN QUESTIONS? Empowerment, Education, for

Saturday, September 13, 2025

April 5, 2025

QUESTIONS?

April 5, 2025 8:30 am to 2 pm

Saturday, April 5, 2025 8:30 am to 2 pm

St. Regis Hotel 1919 Briar Oaks Lane • Houston, Texas 77027 Saturday, June 14, 2025

LEARN MORE

MORE Saturday, April 5, 2025 8:30 am to 2 pm

LEARN MORE Saturday, April 5, 2025 8:30 am to 2 pm

St. Regis Hotel 1919 Briar Oaks Lane • Houston, Texas 77027

QUESTIONS?

LEARN MORE

over 40 years, Trey Yates has been a dedicated legal professional and community advocate in Houston. Trey played a key role

over 40

Trey Yates has been a dedicated legal professional and community advocate in Houston. Trey played a key role in building many successful nonprofits that continue to serve the LGBTQ community today. Committed to justice and service, Trey’s impact is felt both in the courtroom

For over 40 years, Trey Yates has been a dedicated legal professional and community advocate in Houston. Trey played

Yates

legal

in Houston. Trey

LGBTQ

today.

Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis and County Judge Lina Hidalgo recognized the county LGBTQ+ Commission on June 30, 2025. Pictured are Thomas Lopez, Commissioner Rodney Ellis, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, Judge Steven Duble, and Kylie McNaught

The LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce held its 3rd Thursday Breakfast Community and Connections at Cadillac Bar & Grill on July 25, 2025. Pictured are Tammi Wallace and Harris County Clerk

EPAH held the July 2025 dinner meeting at The Kennedy on July 15, 2025. Pictured are Randall Hendrick, Joe Wiese, and Robert Hines

Teneshia Hudspeth

On July 19, 2025, OUT at the Rodeo presented a pool party at The Montrose Country Club. Pictured are Jacquey Creath, Stephen Moneyhan, Eric Hulsey, Anthony Ferrell, Michael Grant, Christian Miranda, and Ashley Creath

Bunnies on the Bayou presented Bunny Bucks at Rich’s Houston on July 25, 2025. Pictured are Bunnies on the Bayou 46 beneficiaries.

The Greater Houston LGBTQ+ Chamber presented an LGBTQ+ B/ERG leadership roundtable at Regions Bank on July 30, 2025. Pictured are participants.

On July 13, 2025, Christmas in July was held at South Beach. Pictured are the Christmas in July hosts.

On July 27, 2025, Equality Texas Barbara Jordan Garden Party was held at the home of Angela Blanchard. Pictured is Joelle Espeut and Brad Pritchett

Photos by DALTON DEHART AND CREW

The Greater Houston LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce an event at Meow Wolf Houston, Radio Tave, on July 30, 2025. Pictured are Chandrayee Soneja, Gangeyee Soneja, Maureen Maiuri, and Amber Godbold

On July 27, 2025, a grand finale Bubba McNeely celebration of love, laughter and remembrance was held at Champions Community Church. Pictured are Dena Davidson, Shelley Kennedy, and Debra Denny

A B-Dance celebration for Bubba McNeely, where “the dance floor will punish” with the best of disco and R&B, was held at Numbers on July 27, 2025. Pictured are Ryan Petrie, Jimmy James, and Shelley Kennedy

On July 27, 2025, Equality Texas Barbara Jordan Garden Party was held at the home of Angela Blanchard. Pictured are Miriam Laeky and State Representative Senfronia Thompson

By GRACE YUNG, CFP

New Strategies for a New Tax Law

A sweeping new federal law known as the One Big Beauti ful Bill (OBBB) was recently passed, bringing major changes to taxes, government spending, and retirement planning. Whether you’re still working, investing for the future, or already retired, this bill could affect your financial strategy in several ways. Here’s a plain-lan guage breakdown of what this bill means and how it may impact you.

Lower Taxes—for Now

One of the bill’s biggest changes is that it makes the 2017 tax cuts permanent. That means most people will continue to benefit from lower income tax rates, including retirees who are drawing from retirement accounts. What this means for you:

The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ could impact your tax breaks and retirement planning.

• You may pay less in federal income tax, which leaves more money in your pocket.

• Roth IRA conversions and other retirement strategies may become more appealing while federal income tax rates remain low.

Retirees Get a Bigger Tax Break

The bill adds a new senior deduction of $6,000 per person age 65 and older—or $12,000 for married couples. This could make a big difference when it comes to how much of your Social Security income is taxable. What this means for retirees:

• Many retirees may no longer owe federal taxes on their Social Security benefits.

• With a larger standard deduction, you may not need to itemize any more, simplifying your tax filing.

A Temporary Boost for Property Owners

The bill also temporarily raises the limit on

how much state and local tax you can deduct— up to $40,000. This is especially helpful for homeowners in high-tax states like New York, California, or New Jersey.

What this means for homeowners:

• You may be able to deduct more in property and local income taxes, reducing your overall tax bill.

• However, this higher deduction limit will only last a few years before reverting to the old limit.

The Bill’s Long-Term Impact

To pay for these tax cuts and other provisions, the government may have to borrow more money—possibly increasing the national debt. Over time, this could lead to higher interest rates or inflation.

What this means for investors:

• Stocks may benefit in the short term from lower taxes and business-friendly policies.

• But rising government debt could put pressure on bond markets and increase borrowing costs in the long run.

Cuts to Medicaid and Renewable Energy

The bill also makes cuts to federal programs like Medicaid and reduces some clean-energy incentives. This could have an indirect impact on both healthcare planning and the energy sector.

What this means for retirees and investors:

• If you or a loved one might rely on Medicaid for long-term care, it’s important to review your planning.

• Investors in renewable energy companies may want to reassess their portfolios as support shifts away from green initiatives.

Changes to Estate Planning

The estate-tax exemption has been increased to $15 million per person, which means most families won’t owe federal estate taxes. What this means for wealth transfer:

• You may not need complex estate tax strategies if your estate is under $15 million.

• Life insurance and trusts can still play an important role for managing ➝

HouseMargarita

nheritance, charitable giving, or equalizing assets among heirs.

Takeaways for Investors and Retirees

Here are a few steps to consider in light of this new bill:

• Review your tax strategy: Take advantage of low tax rates while they’re available. It may be a good time to consider Roth IRA conversions or adjust your retirement withdrawal strategy.

• Update your estate plan: If your estate is nearing or over the new exemption limit, talk to a legal or financial professional about ways to reduce estate taxes.

• Reassess your investments: With shifts in energy policy and tax rules, you may want to review where your money is invested—especially if you hold municipal bonds, green-energy stocks, or interest-sensitive assets.

• Look at healthcare planning: Medicaid cuts may mean fewer benefits down the road, especially for long-term care. Make sure you have a strategy in place to cover future medical needs.

The One Big Beautiful Bill makes sweeping changes that will affect millions of Americans—especially retirees and investors. Lower taxes, a higher standard deduction for seniors, and a larger estate-tax exemption offer some financial relief. But with cuts to federal programs and growing debt, it’s more important than ever to have a flexible and well-informed financial plan.

The content provided herein is based on our interpretation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and is not intended to be legal advice or provide a tax opinion. This is a summary only and not meant to represent all provisions within the Act.

The opinions voiced are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. Grace S. Yung, CFP®, is a Certified Financial Planner™ practitioner and the CEO & Founder of Midtown Financial Group, LLC, in Houston. Since 1994, she has helped LGBTQ individuals, domestic partners, and families plan and manage their finances with care and expertise. She is a Wealth Advisor offering securities and advisory services through LPL Financial, a Registered Investment Advisor. Member FINRA/SIPC. Grace can be reached at grace.yung@lpl.com.For more information, visit www.midtownfg.com or www.midtownfg. com/lgbtqplus.10.htm.

ARTS

Saturday, August 2

Origami & Art Festival

Celebrate the beauty of culture, creativity, and community at the 2nd Annual Southwest Houston Origami and Arts Festival, featuring origami demonstrations and workshops, cultural performances, and a maker’s market. tinyurl.com/3mftpn9d

QUEER THINGS to DO

COMMUNITY

August 29–31

Pride Galveston 2025

Pride Galveston presents a full weekend of activities including drag shows, a pool party, and a beach bash. pridegalveston.com/2024-events

COMMUNITY

Saturday, August 2

Off The Street – White Linen Night Art Event

Join First Saturday Arts Market for a night of local art, food, and community under the stars. tinyurl.com/yxprh66t

COMMUNITY

Saturday, August 2

Tony’s Place Back-to-School Event

Tony’s Place hosts its second annual Back to School with Pride Festival, a vibrant and affirming celebration supporting LGBTQ youth heading into the new school year. tinyurl.com/y3j7eb5h

STAGE

Monday, August 25

Ethel Cain – Willoughby Tucker Tour

Trans singer-songwriter Ethel Cain brings her Willoughby Tucker Forever tour to Houston. tinyurl.com/yxs39vrp

COMMUNITY

Sunday, August 10

Fort Bend Pride Festival

Fort Bend County Pride presents Super Heroes of Pride, a comic-book-inspired festival that’s all about celebrating the strength, courage, and empowerment of the LGBTQ community. tinyurl.com/3ppfj8dr

ARTS

Friday, August 8

Big Queer Picture Show –ThePeople’sJoker

Join the Big Queer Picture Show for one of the most talked-about (and queerest) superhero films in years: The People’s Joker, an unofficial parody of the Batman comics. tinyurl.com/up2wzzxv

Thursday, August 28

TheChosenOnes Opening Night

Thunderclap Productions presents the world premiere of The Chosen Ones, a riveting musical following LGBTQ teens in a conversion therapy summer camp led by an “ex-gay” minister. tinyurl.com/jpkwkddv

COMMUNITY

Saturday, August 16

UH LGBTQ Alumni Network’s Red Dinner

The UH LGBTQ Alumni Network hosts the Red Dinner, an annual gala that funds scholarships and emergency crisis aid to help empower UH LGBTQ students. This year’s keynote speaker is Judge Phyllis Frye, the nation’s first out transgender judge. tinyurl.com/j8yvuy2m

STAGE

Remembering Bubba McNeely, Houston’s LGBTQ One-Man Show

Friends

honor the beloved performer’s legacy with laughter, music, and faith.

“He was an amusement park wrapped up in one person,” says Dena Davidson of her longtime friend Bubba McNeely, who passed away on July 11, 2025, at the age of 67. A beloved figure in Houston’s LGBTQ community and beyond, McNeely leaves behind not just countless broken hearts, but also a decades-long legacy of friendships and accomplishments.

Preacher’s Kid

Born in 1958 into a devout Christian household, McNeely’s father was a Pentecostal preacher. His family’s early years were spent in the Dallas area until they moved to Seabrook.

Longtime friend Shelley Kennedy first met McNeely at a Christian summer youth camp. She remembers that preachers’ kids stuck together and were somewhat of a wild bunch. Her father was just a deacon, but she managed to become a part of the group, and they remained friends for life.

Kennedy says McNeely was a popular kid and showed an early interest in music by recording a gospel album with his sister when he was about 12.

Working with Jimmy James

In early adulthood, McNeely dabbled in sales, primarily real estate and newspaper advertising. Then in 1986, his life changed dramatically when he was introduced to female impersonator Jimmy James by his friend Larry Edwards, who had appeared for years in Houston as Hot Chocolate and later moved to Las Vegas where he performed his impersonations of Tina Turner and Patti LaBelle.

James—who performed a flawless Marilyn Monroe, as well as voice impressions of Bette Davis, Barbra Streisand, Stevie Nicks, Liza Minnelli, Diana Ross, Cher, Eartha Kitt, and more—had secured a performance job in Provincetown, and he needed an emcee/performer for his act. When Edwards introduced him to McNeely, there was an instant chemistry.

by BRANDON WOLF

McNeely took on the role of James’ manager, as well as a performer in his shows. As emcee, he introduced James in the Marilyn part of his act, then would entertain the audience while James was changing for the part of his act where he would appear in an androgynous outfit.

“Together, we were a force and we played all the gay clubs around the country,” James remembers. “We were just two kids not knowing what we’re gonna do, but it worked out to be a wonderful symbiotic relationship.” The relationship lasted for nearly 14 years.

Provincetown proved to be an enormous opportunity for the two. “People came in droves. We were the new kids on the block,”

James says. “Originally people came for James’ Marilyn act, but word got around that he and McNeely offered a full show. “We were like gangbusters—always sold-out shows.”

In 1987, McNeely got James booked on the Phil Donahue Show. “After that, the sky cracked open,” James says.

James also remembers how much McNeely loved drag pageants. “If there was a hole in our schedule, he would hop a flight to do a pageant for practically no money.”

Bubba’s Uniqueness

Kennedy says that if a person knew McNeely for more than a day, they realized his favorite word was punish. He used the word to denote

success in different ways, but most often when an audience had been entertained well: “You’ve been punished!”

She says that everyone loved to be “read” by McNeely. What might have sounded like an insult to some was actually a tribute filled with love for a friend, and people waited for his one-liners.

McNeely was often asked to be a part of the Houston choirs that were organized to perform at large public funerals and other events.

Kennedy says that McNeely didn’t let his sexual orientation affect his relationship with his church. “He skipped through life,” she says. “I don’t think he got hung up on anything. He was just himself.”

Friends Remember Good Times

Brian Teichman first met McNeely in 1999. “He was the first person I met when I moved to Houston, and like he did with so many others, he took a liking to me, took me under his wing, and it was just a great friendship until the end,” Teichman says. “He was a frequent dinner guest and a frequent entertainer for my whole family. Friends from California and Colorado to New York met him and absolutely adored him. He was bigger than life and brought joy and happiness everywhere he went. He never met a stranger.”

Teichman also remembers spending a

summer with McNeely in Provincetown, taking in different theaters and piano bars, and performers would give him a shout-out and tell audiences how he had helped them break into the entertainment world. “And he sang ‘Happy Birthday’ at my 50th birthday party,” Teichman recalls.

Rob Rutherford first met McNeely in 2000 at the Guava Lamp bar. “He was introduced to me by a friend,” says Rutherford, “and I thought this guy is just too much. Between the voice and his antics, I thought he must just be wasted, and I’m just seeing a wasted version of this character. And then I met him after, and I’m like, ‘God, he is always like this!’ We always reference him as a human carnival ride. You get on the ride and you just go with it. It will take you to somewhere fun.”

“HE WAS AN AMUSEMENT PARK WRAPPED UP IN ONE PERSON.”

— Dena Davidson, on her longtime friend Bubba McNeely

Rutherford remembers going to Vegas with McNeely and other friends to see Elton John. Larry Edwards was doing the bookings for Caesar’s, and because he knew McNeely he got them front row seats. Edwards told them that Elton wanted a group of gay guys to get up on stage while he performed “The Bitch Is Back.” But once on stage, they all got stage fright and McNeely was the only one who seemed to know what to do.

Local singer Tye Blue first met McNeely when Blue was working at JR’s and Meteor, hosting shows and karaoke. They got to know each other better when Blue worked with programming at F Bar. “I have this fond memory that he was always there, and he was so supportive and would always come to my shows and bring people to them and pitch people to me that I should be aware of to book, and of course he was always spot on. I felt sort of a collaborative kinship between me and him. And he would say to me that I reminded him of his days when he used to do that. So we had a mentor-friend relationship.”

Blue also remembers an emotional memory of a time after McNeely nearly died in 2024. “We coined the term Miracle Man. He invited me to sing at a Christmas party—so many people were there and so much a celebration of him and his comeback. It was the first time that I was nervous singing at a Bubba event. I always looked up to him and thought that he had an uncanny ability to light up a room and make everybody feel special.”

“We orbited each other a lot,” says Blue. “I would go to his shows at the restaurants where he would sing in River Oaks, and then he would come to drag shows and my events.”

Larry Edwards first met McNeely in Atlanta when he won Miss Gay America 1979–1980 as Hot Chocolate. McNeely had become a popular pageant host. “Especially on the final night,” says Edwards, “they always had Bubba because he had such a great personality on the microphone and all the contestants felt comfortable with him, you know, giving the description of the gown or the talent or whatever. Bubba always made the room feel comfortable,” Edwards says.

McNeely recently made plans with Edwards to come to Las Vegas and see The Kelly Clarkson Show. He had his own special room at Edwards’ home. Unfortunately, McNeely passed away before the scheduled visit.

But in happier times, Edwards remembers an event that McNeely organized to honor him with a lifetime-achievement tribute at Rich’s. Performers were brought in from across the country, and Edwards still remembers that night with great fondness.

The last time McNeely visited Edwards, he was taken to the Mayfair Club at Bellagio for the evening. They had perfect seats for dinner and could see the fountains pulsing during

McNeely with Larry Edwards, aka Hot Chocolate

McNeely (second from right) with Jimmy James (l) and friends

Brian Teichman (l) celebrates his 50th birthday with McNeely

McNeely (l) with Jimmy James and Shelley Kennedy ➝

FOUNTAINS & STATUARY

Jon Ingle, aka Lady Bunny, with McNeely at the Aspen Gay Ski Week

the color water shows. Edwards then took him to the Flamingo to see the RuPaul Drag Race Live.

Jon Ingle, who performs as Lady Bunny, was producing an annual event called Wigstock, an outdoor drag festival and it was always difficult to raise the money. McNeely suggested charging an entrance fee of $10. Ingle felt that people would feel weird being charged. But McNeely said, “Why don’t you tell them to get out of the way because there’s another community member right behind them with $10 in their hand ready to see an eighthour show.” And he basically saved the festival.

Ingle laughs that back in earlier days, nearly everything and everyone was called “Miss Thing.” If a mic didn’t work, someone would say, “What’s wrong with Miss Thing?”

He also remembers that the entertainment scene he and McNeely came from was full of trans people and people of color, long before diversity became politically popular.

Whenever Ingle visited Houston, McNeely took him to the iconic Cleburne Cafeteria, famous for its huge food portions and oversized desserts.

A Huge Personality

Kennedy says, “He was a part of all different worlds and leaves behind a massive legacy. He was popular from Montrose to River Oaks. He was a Southern gentleman, respectful of women, a super-kind person, and also one of the funniest people in the world.”

“BUBBA WAS LIFE. IT’S SO HARD TO ACCEPT THAT HE’S GONE.”

— Shelley Kennedy, on coping with McNeely’s passing

Teichman says, “He had a beautiful singing voice—a raspy raconteur. He never did a show that he didn’t include a spiritual song. He always remembered that God was the most important thing in his life. He liked to finish his performances with “That’s What Friends Are For.”

Kennedy continues, “The most unique thing about Bubba is that he was a very religious person. People were drawn to him because his songs would touch them so much and they wanted more of it. Friends from all over the world would call him if they were in trouble, if they needed something, if they needed prayer. They would ask him to add them to his prayer line.”

Health Crisis

Kennedy says that McNeely had a genetic heart condition. In 2024, he was put on a ventilator, after being life-flighted to a local hospital. Friends took turns sitting with him,

in shifts. During a shift that Kennedy and Dina Jacobs were doing together, the medical staff said McNeely would have to come off the machine. But he needed to be awake. The two called numerous friends of his and put them on speaker, but McNeely did not respond. It was Houston’s mayoral election day, and Kennedy called candidate John Whitmire and asked if he would talk briefly to McNeely. He came on the speaker and said, “Bubba, this is John Whitmire. You need to wake up now—I need your vote!” To everyone’s astonishment, McNeely came around.

When doctors said last December that McNeely probably had six more months to live, his friends drew close and did all they could to make his remaining time the best that it could be.

McNeely had recently been approved to move into the LGBTQ Law Harrington Senior Living Center, but his health issues returned and he was hospitalized again. Kennedy and Davidson were among those at his side when he passed.

“We have a video of Bubba in his hospital bed planning his funeral, and we may play it at his funeral. He was very upbeat about it. He told us who he wanted to sing what songs,” Kennedy says. He told Kennedy that he wanted to sing himself out and be the last singer at the funeral.

“We’re all devastated. He was such a force.” Kennedy says that McNeely’s friends are sticking together in their grief, meeting up as often as they can for meals. “Bubba was life. It’s so hard to accept that he’s gone.”

James says, “Losing Bubba—it’s been like losing a family member, only worse. The magical ringleader is gone.”

Remembering Bubba

McNeely was scheduled to play at Brennan’s restaurant on July 23, and had sold the place out. The management opened up a large event room that night for a memorial party for him, and they encouraged people to make a reservation.

On Sunday, July 27, a memorial party and tea dance called “The B-Dance.” was held in McNeely’s honor at Numbers disco.

His funeral service on July 28, titled “A Grand Finale,” was held at Champions Community Church in North Houston.

Rutherford smiles when he says that McNeely’s friends call the back-to-back events “The Garden of Good and Evil.” “We will let people figure out which one is which,” he says.

McNeely with Rob Rutherford

STILL FIGHTING

For Women’s Equality Day, three queer women speak truth to power.

by BRANDON WOLF

Women’s Equality Day is celebrated in the United States on August 26 to commemorate the 1920 adoption of the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex. Not all women were able to exercise this right immediately, and many faced ongoing barriers and discrimination based on race, class, and other factors.

To learn more about the status of women’s rights—and the status of rights for lesbian, bisexual, and transgender women— OutSmart spoke with three local women who share their thoughts on full equality for all women.

BELIEVE WOMEN

Avery Belyeu

Avery Belyeu identifies as a queer and trans woman. She has been the CEO of the Montrose Center for more than a year.

Belyeu sees the top three feminist issues as social equity, legal equity, and safety and autonomy. “Misogyny by a patriarchy is very much real,” she emphasizes. “Until we deal with deeply embedded cultural challenges related to women being devalued and understood as lesser than, we’re not going to achieve full equality. “It wasn’t that long ago that women could not have a credit card or take out a loan in their own name. The Equal Rights Amendment has still not been ratified in this country. And we see the ways that women’s rights are currently being eroded.”

“Any woman will tell you that if they’re walking in a parking lot late at night by themselves,” she continues, “they still very much check over their shoulder and hold their keys in their hands in a certain way to protect themselves in case they’re attacked. Women do not have bodily autonomy, and decision makers about women’s bodies are oftentimes not women, but men.”

For queer women, Belyeu sees the top issues as full inclusion in women’s spaces, equity and equality in employment, and physical safety.

“We have a long history of there being a challenge to fully include lesbian, bisexual, and now particularly transgender women in the conversation around women’s rights. People would be surprised how many women are still

comfortable with excluding some women from women’s spaces,” she asserts.

“I think particularly for our community, there continues to be workplace discrimination. And that’s true for everybody in our community, whatever part of the alphabet you are. There are unspoken rules of the game of how people progress in their careers. And oftentimes, lesbian and bisexual women and trans women are not granted equal access to the social components of workplaces that allow progression, or they’re purposefully excluded.

“As leader of the Montrose Center,” she continues, “I hear this a lot from transgender people here in Houston—that they will show up to job interviews and be immediately rejected when the employer realizes that they are trans. I hear that from a lot of our youth. They’re really trying to get on their feet.”

“The women in our community have a very

particular and unique concern as it relates to safety,” says Belyeu. “We are in an era when our young LBTQ people are particularly under attack in their schools. They have a lack of safety and a removal of things that would keep them safe, such as the ability to gather in gaystraight alliances. For trans women, physical safety continues to be such a concern as they age.“

“We have so much work to do in hearts and minds to create full equality,” Belyeu asserts. “Something everyone can do is lift up the voices of women. Let women have the mic, shine a light, listen to them when women speak—and believe women.”

“Being a transgender woman, and having been raised as a young boy, I got to see the differences between how a young boy is raised and a young girl is raised. I’ve seen both sides now,” she reflects.

LIFTING UP EVERY VOICE

Faith Northern

Faith Northern identifies as a lesbian, and for the last two years has been a member of the Women’s Group that meets at Houston’s First Unitarian Church. During the group’s recent 50th anniversary celebration, Northern enjoyed being the emcee.

Northern views the top feminist issues as a sense of collective liberation by recognizing intersectionality; uplifting more Black, brown, and indigenous voices; and advocating for health equality. “We should not focus on only one group’s oppression or only one group’s lack of equality, but be able to give voice to every group’s issues and not see it as competitive,” she says.

“Black women and women of color can lead movements, and it’s for the betterment of everyone. Women of color have been on the front lines for everyone. So uplifting those voices should influence how we continue our movement toward equality. Previous waves

EQUALITY HURTS NO ONE

Alice McCarthy

Alice McCarthy, the mother of a lesbian daughter, identifies as a bisexual woman. Long active in the Houston area women’s equality movement, she has been involved in PFLAGHouston for decades and is a member of LOAF (Lesbians Over Age Fifty). She feels that the most important feminist issues that need resolution are freedom of bodily choice, equal treatment in voting, and healthcare equity.

In 2022, a conservative Supreme Court reversed the Roe v. Wade decision after 49 years, with deep implications for women’s rights and public health.

McCarthy is frustrated with the games now being played when women vote. Women change their names due to marriage, divorce, or other reasons. Now voters may be required to provide documentation to prove their identity if their current name doesn’t match the name on their ID or voter registration. This can disproportionately affect women, who are more likely to change their names than men.

McCarthy points out that most health research is done with a focus on men, presumably assuming that results are equally appli-

of feminism haven’t included Black women or women of color. That has been a big blind spot. Whether it was a passive choice or an active choice, it definitely happened.”

“We need to be aware of the things that impact different communities disproportionately,” she adds, “like how HIV disproportionately impacts Black women, or when additional

cable to women.

Many grooming and cosmetic products are packaged in pink and given a pretty name to appeal to women, McCarthy notes. “But they charge more for the same thing,” she says, suggesting that people can see for themselves just by checking out the difference in the prices of disposable razors for men and for women.

The top issues that McCarthy sees for

issues of disability and ableism and fat phobia—all of those things—play on top of each other when it comes to health equality.”

Northern sees the top issues for LBTQ women as recognition that intersectionality plays a major role. “When you add other intersectional issues on top of an already oppressed, marginalized identity, it affects how we embody our queerness,” she says.

“We don’t need to change ourselves to be more palatable. There is so much beauty in our being different and in our being against the norm. We should really appreciate those things. Transphobia is not just a problem for trans people and for the trans community, but it’s something for all of us to fight against,” she adds.

Northern is a strong advocate of recognizing and supporting feminine experience. “One of the biggest, yet simplest things that supporters of women’s equality can do,” she says, “is believing women’s lived experiences—not thinking that you know better or best what to say or do or advocate for, but really listening to women. Allowing women to be at the forefront of conversations.”

LBTQ women are equal treatment in all civilrights issues, equality in military service, and fair treatment of transgender people.

“There should be equality in marriage and divorce, in renting a house, in choosing a name, and adoption access for LBTQ couples—or any single LBTQ woman, for that matter,” McCarthy believes. “They should all be judged equally based on the kind of home they would provide for a child. If someone wants to serve in the military, they should be treated with equality.”

“Trans people are discriminated against so brutally,” she adds. “We need to allow people to use their restroom of choice. Some people who say they are super-Christian use that as a shield for their own uncertainties and hatreds.”

McCarthy emphasizes that the most important thing that supporters of the women’s communities can do is to vote—and have a good idea of who and what they are voting for. “The whole feminist movement benefits everyone. Equality hurts no one,” she says. “There is a sense of entitlement that really needs to be done away with.”

She feels that the current administration wants to train people to be good workers, good cogs in a wheel, but not to think critically, and not to be involved with the arts in any way, so they won’t be disruptive. “The best I could wish for,” says McCarthy, “is that people are open to at least listen to others.”

Three

‘ALLY’ IS A VERB

Houstonians

share what allyship means to them.

by BRANDON WOLF

International Allyship Day is celebrated annually on August 8. This day is dedicated to recognizing and promoting the importance of allyship, which involves actively supporting and advocating for marginalized groups, even if you don’t share their specific identity. It’s a day to foster inclusivity, build bridges of support, and stand up for one another.

In the spirit of this day, OutSmart talked with three local heterosexual allies of the LGBTQ community to learn how they became our allies, and the wide variety of actions they take to help advance LGBTQ issues.

SPOTLIGHTING STORIES

Marian Luntz

When Marian Luntz was in high school, one of her closest friends came out to her—a surprising event that she took in stride because, she says, she had the good fortune to be raised by very progressive parents. “They were supportive of progressive individuals, candidates, and causes.” she explains.

Luntz has been able to focus her allyship with the LGBTQ community through her more than 35 years of working with films, and primarly independent films. She has worked for the past three decades as the curator of film for the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH). Prior to that, she had worked with the Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP), a project dedicated to supporting independent films in Texas. In 1989, the groundbreaking documentary Tongues Untied, a deeply personal film by Marlon Riggs about black queer identity and AIDS was broadcast on PBS stations.

When Houston’s PBS station refused to air it, Luntz’s boss approachedMFAH, who agreed to screen it. They even got Riggs to phone in for a question-and-answer session after the screening. It’s an allyship moment that Luntz remembers with fondness.

“It’s important for all of us who are involved in the arts to be inclusive, to give representation to all different voices and perspectives. That’s how I think of our responsibility with the films that we choose to show at the museum,” Luntz says. “We are dedicated to creating these platforms and allowing people to come together and experience films collectively. I continue to support the voices and the visions and the perspectives of all different types of filmmakers.”

In the late 1990s, together with Diverse

Works, Rice Media Center, River Oaks Theatre, and other venues, Luntz created the first Houston Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.

“There were many gay and lesbian film festivals all around the world,” says Luntz, “but not in Houston. We knew we had an audience of people interested in seeing the films, and there were people who were making the films.” The festival grew larger and became QFest Houston, but sadly closed down after its 25th year. However, a new “nomadic” screening effort has emerged, known as The Big Queer Picture Show.

Luntz says she came to realize that her allyship in offering LGBTQ films was important during the years of QFest. “Because what we could do was to provide the venue, the theater, and the team,” she says. “We could also include the festival and the films into our regular programming for the museum members. Thus museum members and the public saw that these films were being shown and perhaps it piqued their interest and they came to see something they might not otherwise have been aware of.

“It’s gut-wrenching what is going on in politics today,” she continues, “and I think all we can do is find strength in being united with what we are committed to. For us, that means continuing to show programming—whether it’s reflecting the gay community or any other communities that are at risk—that is strong cinematically and worthy of a spot in our programming.”

Luntz regularly attends the Cannes Film Festival on the Côte d’Azur in Cannes, France. She was there in May of this year for the 78th edition.

She notes that MFAH now has two wonderful theaters: the original Brown Auditorium, and the newer Lynn Wyatt Theater.

COURTESY

STANDING TALL

Obes Nwabara

FAITH IN MOTION

MaryJane Mudd

Obes Nwabara is a supply-chain category manager and a candidate for Houston City Council At Large Position 4. He says he came to realize at age 12 that the LGBTQ community needs allies. “I was at a sleep-away basketball camp. Even though I was pretty tall for my age, I hadn’t gone through puberty yet and had a child-sounding voice. I had gone to get pizza and was walking back to my cabin. I walked past a group of older boys who talked loud enough for me to hear them refer to me with a gay slur. That hurt so bad. And I thought, if this is how I feel, how do people who are actually gay feel?”

Nwabara echoes the words of Mahatma Gandhi: “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” And he believes in leading by example. “I don’t let anybody make disparaging comments about members of the LGBTQ

community when they are around me.” Seven years ago, his youngest brother came out. “He identifies as queer and has a boyfriend,” Nwabara notes.

This past June, Nwabara was asked to walk in the Houston Pride parade with his good friend Jon Rosenthal, who was the 2025 Ally Pride Marshal. “He asked me if I would help hold the banner in front of his float,” he says. “It was exhilarating!”

Nwabara hates the efforts by the current administration to roll back LGBTQ rights. “They are trying to make marriage equality illegal again. They’re trying to push everybody back into the closet, back into the shadows. But frankly, the cat’s out of the bag. None of us are going backwards,” he says. “The LGBTQ community is here. They’re going to continue to stay strong, and allies like myself are going to stand by them.”

MaryJane Mudd is married, has three daughters, and leads a trade association of corporations. She says that 35 years ago, she was more conservative and didn’t know things that she knows now. Then, through her professional life, she met Tony Shelton, a gay man, and he talked about volunteering with AIDS patients at Bering Omega Community Services (now Avenue 360). “I thought, What kind of lonely situation is that— to have AIDS and not have support?” she says.

Mudd later made the acquaintance of another gay man, Trevor Eade, who invited her to attend a Human Rights Campaign Houston Gala. “The more people I met and the more stories I heard, the more I realized there has to be support,” she confides.

Mudd asked questions about LGBTQ issues in her adult Sunday School class at a conservative church and got the traditional viewpoints. As her thoughts became more and more open, she admits she lost friends—ghosted, unfriended on Facebook, and relationships that drifted away.

But Mudd also realized that people who know her heart were willing to listen to what she had to say and have a respectful discussion. She remembers talking to one woman who is the mother of a trans daughter, who broke down and cried because of the newly restrictive state laws on gender-affirming medical care. Mudd went looking for more information and talked to friends supportive of the trans community. “At times, I have to stop and think

and understand,” she says, “but I don’t resist.”

Mudd attended her first Pride parade— when it was still in Montrose—at the invitation of her 16-year-old daughter. “We went and it was great!” she says.

She soon began to ask herself what she would do if she had a child who wanted to transition. “If they didn’t transition, they weren’t going to be happy. Nobody wants an unhappy child,” says Mudd. “We all want happiness for our kids. I just apply empathy.”

Mudd is particularly concerned about the actions of the current political administration. “It’s something about this administration,” she says, “they are targeting the trans community like never before. Ending marriage equality is now bubbling up, and that is where I will get on a plane to DC, in memory of my friend Trevor.”

Mudd remembers she and her daughters wearing bow ties—representing ‘tying the knot’—and posting pictures on Facebook ten years ago. “And now this right might be taken away,” she emphasizes.

Mudd recently shopped online for clothing she sent to Tracy’s Closet at Montrose Grace Place. Although she already has a busy and full schedule, she hopes to volunteer at some point in the future, helping serve meals that Montrose Grace Place provides for LGBTQ homeless kids.

“I do think that opening my heart has given me a richer life,” says Mudd. “I like looking at things from different perspectives. And I do think this is faith in motion—upholding my faith and honoring the friends who helped me get to this place.”

Montrose Softball League Steps Up

Meet five members of the Montrose Softball League as they gear up to host the Gay Softball World Series, leading a citywide effort to welcome hundreds of LGBTQ athletes.

by DAVID CLARKE

THE MONTROSE SOFTBALL LEAGUE ASSOCIATION (MSLA) WILL BRING THE NATION’S LARGEST LGBTQ SPORTING EVENT TO HOUSTON THIS FALL AS THE CITY HOSTS THE 2025 GAY SOFTBALL WORLD SERIES NEXT MONTH. MSLA HAS BEEN SERVING QUEER ATHLETES SINCE 1980, AND IN 1984 HOSTED THEIR FIRST WORLD SERIES EVENT.

“This is a really exciting thing that we can bring this event back to the city of Houston,” says Paula Metz, the first female MSLA commissioner. “You’d think Houston, being a large city, would be able to accommo date this, right? But it takes a lot. Very few cities can handle over 200 teams in one week.” She adds that the bid itself was a victory. “For our team to be able to put together a winning bid is an accomplishment itself.”

Founded as part of the original Montrose Sports Association, MSLA quickly grew into its own standalone league and joined what was then the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance. “The goal of the League is to provide a sports outlet for individuals as a way to meet and interact with like-minded people in the spirit of friendly competition,” Metz explains. “We also encourage non-playing members to get involved. They’re considered members in good standing.”

Today, MSLA is made up of nearly 30 teams and hundreds of members representing Houston’s broad diversity. “Our league alone is a huge melting pot,” says board member Matthew Smith. “We’ve got people from the Gulf Coast, Montrose, and East Texas, all playing together every Sunday.” Beyond the diamond, MSLA supports the greater LGBTQ community with annual fundraising efforts. “All of our donations, every event we have, goes into our community,” Smith

says, noting that this year’s beneficiary is Tony’s Place, a resource center for LGBTQ youth.

For longtime player and former international commissioner Bill Sansom, the return of the World Series to Houston is especially meaningful. “In 1984, we hosted the World Series. There were only 18 teams then,” he recalls. “Now there are 200-plus. It’s phenomenal to realize how far we’ve come.”

For those looking to support or get involved, MSLA is encouraging Houstonians to join the effort by volunteering or donating through Club Be Someone, a local fundraising initiative tied to the GSWS. As Metz puts it, “We want to make sure everybody has a resource, just like they’re part of the whole week’s events.”

The 2025 Gay Softball World Series takes place September 21–27, 2025.

Pitch In On and Off the Field

Join the Montrose Softball League Association, a fun and inclusive league for all skill levels with multiple divisions and a vibrant LGBTQ community. Learn more at houstonmsla.org and follow @houstonmsla on Instagram. Want to support the 2025 Gay Softball World Series this September? Volunteer opportunities are available. Sign up at gaysoftballworldseries. com or email kara.houstongsws@houstonmsla.org.

Bill Sansom First Base

With 44 seasons under his belt, Bill Sansom is a living legend of gay softball. “I was looking for something more social,” he recalls. “I went from having what I call ‘bar friends’ to a real community.” Playing first base, he’s seen the sport grow from eight teams to over 200 at the national level. “The softball league changed my life,” he says. “It gave me visibility, purpose, and connection, and I’ve gotten back way more than I’ve given.” He proudly adds, “This is a way we show people: you can be who you are and do what you love.”

Paula Metz Pitcher

During her 16 seasons with the league, Paula Metz has pitched her way into the heart of Houston’s queer softball scene. “It allowed me to be uniquely me, and I enjoyed that from the get-go,” she says of joining the league in 2003. As MSLA’s first female commissioner, she’s made visibility and inclusion her mission. “It’s given me that place that I really want to put a lot of effort towards and just give back whatever I can. The effort of giving back into an organization does pay off.” Her dedication continues to inspire teammates, fans, and future leaders.

Make a Difference as a Donor

Support queer athletes and unforgettable tournament experiences by joining Club Be Someone, with perks that include Savannah Bananas tickets and custom belt buckles. Learn more and donate at gaysoftballworldseries.com/club-be-someone.

Jessie Meng Outfield

Jessie Meng joined the league in 2020, right after beating breast cancer and right before COVID hit. “2020 was going to be my year,” she laughs. When her team made it to the World Series without her, she hopped in her car and drove to Dallas on a whim. “I watched them win the World Series. It was just such a bizarre, fun, random experience.” Now, Jessie brings the confidence softball granted her to other passions as well. “Softball made me decide to be on the board of the Houston Pride Band.” And she’s still all in for this community.

Matthew Smith Catcher / Utility Player

What started as cheering from the stands turned into a full-blown passion for Matthew Smith. Encouraged by his brother, he joined Houston MSLA and instantly felt at home. From shortstop to third base to catcher, Matthew thrives anywhere on the field, but says catching has his heart. “I get to watch the game and mess with my friends at bat,” he laughs. Off the field, MSLA sparked something deeper. “It gave me a community, and now I want to help make that experience happen for others.” For Matthew, softball is about showing up, lifting others up, and having a blast.

Corey Stork Outfield

New to the league but already deeply connected, Corey Stork joined the Fireballs this season after years of cheering from the sidelines. “Being able to see familiar faces when I’m out and about makes it feel like I belong,” he says. “I’m not just stepping into a space where I don’t know anybody.” Whether he’s belting show tunes at home or catching fly balls in left center, Corey brings joy to every play. “Getting to have that many queer people in one space, it’s comforting.” His first season has been full of new friendships, exciting memories, and unforgettable tournament moments.

More Than a Store

Kris Owens brings queer joy to the Heights with The Feisty Collective.

by ZACHARY M C KENZIE

Art as a means of joyful resistance is a hallmark within the LGBTQ community. Kris Owens owns The Feisty Collective, a shop located in the Heights that showcases queer artists and makers who truly understand the power that art has. The shop sells queer-centric crafts and goods while platforming a mission of bringing people together in community and solidarity. The Feisty Collective is a labor of love and collaborative effort years in the making.

“Before Feisty Collective, I owned Feisty Design Company,” the Kingwood native explains. Owens transferred their one-of-a-kind LGBTQ, mental health, and feminist-inspired designs to tumblers, coasters, keychains, bags, and more. “I would go to different markets in Houston and sell my goods,” they add.

Soon, Owens started hearing a familiar

plea from loyal customers. “They would ask when I was going to open a store. They wanted to be able to shop with me more than once a month.” Owens recalls. “They’re the ones that gave me the confidence to open The Feisty Collective.”

Owning a shop was familiar territory for Owens, who co-owned a boutique years before. Still, the artist admits that opening The Feisty Collective came with some apprehension. “In March 2020, the pandemic hit and sank us really fast. The store closure left Owens feeling depressed, having always dreamed of owning their own brick-and-mortar. “My customers came to me and said, ‘We will come support you. Just believe in yourself.’ That was my motivation to open this shop.”

The rainbow-painted exterior facing Lawrence Street makes Feisty hard to miss. The colorful outside is indicative of the queer

joy awaiting inside. Keychains hanging along the walls amidst a variety of colorful stickers, T-shirts with humorous catchphrases resting among enamel pins, candles lined delicately alongside artist prints, and so much more all fill the space.

“I knew I didn’t want to just feature my products. I had met so many amazing queer artists and makers around town while I was selling at markets over the past four years, and I knew this needed to be a collective,” Owens says. “I wanted to be able to showcase and spotlight them, as well.”

Owens has opened the door for makers outside of their network, even drawing interest from overseas to sell in their shop. “Primarily we feature local queer artists, but we have some from as far as France,” they explain. “Artists will reach out to us and say, ‘Hey, we love what you’re doing and we would love to be a part of it.’ Every three to four months, we will rotate people out and bring in new makers. That way everybody has an opportunity to be in here, one way or another.”

The shop’s location was a no-brainer for Owens, whose decision to open outside of Houston’s “gayborhood” was intentional. “Queer people exist outside of Montrose. I love Montrose, but we deserve to be seen everywhere,” they say. “Everyone’s so friendly, and I think the Heights is starting to become the new Montrose. There are so many queer people in this neighborhood.”

“WHEN THE WORLD AND EVERYTHING AROUND US FEELS CHAOTIC, THERE’S A LITTLE SLICE OF QUEER JOY THEY CAN FIND HERE.”

— Kris Owens

In addition to selling unique queer creations, Owens hosts a number of events throughout the year. “I love connecting people and creating community,” they say. Events include book clubs, group coloring nights, friend speed dating, and more. “These events allow community building to naturally happen with safe and like-minded people. Queer events around town are largely focused in bars, or there’s usually a drinking element involved. I love a margarita, but I wanted a space where people could go and still find community without the drinking or club element, because it can be hard to make genuine connections that way.

“A lot of the queer events are not family- or kid-friendly, so I wanted to host events for our younger generation of queer kiddos,” the artist explains. Such events include trivia nights, karaoke parties, drag queen story hours, and drag shows that Owens often performs in as LoteRina. “My drag community has really supported me and the shop by doing free shows, helping behind the register, and spreading the word.” Events are primarily hosted by Owens, but vendors and people in the community are also welcome to host events.

The shop’s success is representative of years of hard work and perseverance. The

fruits of Owens’s labor shine as bright as the shop’s exterior rainbow wall, which serves as a beacon of queer joy in the Heights. “I hope when people visit they leave feeling stronger than when they first walked in. Stronger in the sense of community, who they are, and just knowing they’re not alone. They always have a friend here,” Owens says. “When the world and everything around us feels chaotic, there’s a little slice of queer joy they can find here. My hope is that customers feel loved, seen, heard, and feisty!”

For more info, visit thefeistycollective.com.

Inside the shop, a hand-painted mural by a queer artist sets the tone for community, creativity, and playful rebellion.

A Life in Queer Media

Journalist Deborah Moncrief Bell has spent her career building platforms for LGBTQ voices in Houston.

by BRANDON WOLF

It’s been nearly 50 years since Houston LGBTQ media personality Deborah Moncrief Bell began what has been a labor of love for decades. Bell, who identifies as a bisexual lesbian, has evolved with the times, working with such media as printed newsletters, radio, newspapers, an Internet listserv, and podcasts. She is currently a producer and co-host of the long-running Queer Voices radio show and podcast.

Newsletters

Bell attended the 1977 National Women’s Conference, held in Houston, and was so impressed that she volunteered to work with the newsletter for the local chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW). She contributed by writing, drawing, and doing pasteups.

Around 1982, Bell volunteered to be the editor of The Wand, the publication of WomynSpace, a local nonprofit organization for and by women. The monthly publication listed WomynSpace activities and served as a networking directory. She remained the editor until the organization shuttered ten years later.

Learning Radio on the Job

After Bell’s guest appearance on Wilde ‘N Stein, KPFT’s regularly scheduled gay and lesbian show, Jack Valinski, who worked with the show, asked Bell to consider becoming a member of the show’s volunteer crew. “It’s Wilde ’N Stein,” he told her, “but we don’t have a Stein.” Bell accepted and began learning about radio work on the job.

“We were kind of rarefied, in the sense

that we talked about what we wanted to talk about. KPFT gave us a forum to be voices for the community and talk about what was going on in the community,” says Bell. “And I laugh because sometimes Jack and I would sit there and look at each other wondering what we were going to talk about. Somehow, we found a way. We used to be the only game in town, and now with podcasts, there is so much more out there—and more people that are out and being visible.”

Wild ’N Stein changed broadcast schedules over the years, and the length of the show changed. When Bell started, it was two hours on Friday nights. “It was great,” she says. “We would do the radio show and then go out to eat. It was a lot of good energy, and many different people were involved over the years.”

In the 1990s, the show was taken off the air, but a large protest resulted in the program

being renewed, but with a new name: Lesbian & Gay Voices. Later, the name morphed into Queer Voices

“The COVID pandemic caused us to make changes in order to produce a show, and also because KPFT didn’t have a physical location for a while. We figured out how to do it on Zoom. After COVID, we pretty much liked the way we were doing it. It made it a lot more convenient for us, and a lot easier to be having guests that were maybe elsewhere in the country or even in another country,” Bell notes.

“We have become more diverse in ages, ethnicities, and gender identity,” she continues, “but there is still a group of people that just are so unknowledgeable about transgender people. I feel so lucky to be working in the gay media, because you know this stuff is like, What’s the issue here? It’s not a big, complicated issue—they’re just people who want to live their lives. But disinformation has been put out there with all this talk about people letting kids mutilate their bodies.”

One of the regular Queer Voices hosts, Bryan Hlavinka, says, “Deborah Moncrief Bell is the reason I got involved with radio. The year was around 2008, and I did an interview on Queer Voices about the Bayou City Boys Club and their annual Jungle Party. The interview went well, and Deborah asked me if I would like to do radio on a regular basis. That was 17 years ago. Since that time, I have gotten to know Deborah and the passion she pours into each and every episode of the show.”

FEMNet

As the Internet began to grow in the late 1990s, Bell started a listserv called FEMNet,

a local feminist online network. “It was a way to connect with the community and have a wider forum to let folks know about things that were going on in the women’s community— because we didn’t have Facebook then,” Bell remembers.

Another member of the community wanted to start a listserv for the Houston LGBTQ community to speed up communication among activists. He sought out Bell, and they initially met at House of Pies to discuss how to make the dream a reality. With Bell’s help, HANNet emerged and provided a central point of contact for the Houston community for the next five years, until Facebook became a more popular option.

Because of her far-ranging involvement in communications, Bell was chosen to be the editor of the Montrose Voice. She also served as editor of the Montrose Gem. Additionally, her writing has appeared in This Week in Texas, OutSmart, and the Texas Triangle.

Special Moments

As Bell looks back over her years with Queer Voices, she remembers special guests like actor Leslie Jordan and singer Joan Jett. More recently, she had a great interview with longtime transgender activist Phyllis Frye, and authors Michael G. Long and Shea Tuttle who have written the new book Phyllis Frye and the Fight for Transgender Rights

She also remembers interviewing Charles Busch about his 2023 memoir Leading Lady: A Memoir of a Most Unusual Boy, and actress Alexandria Billings, a trans woman in the cast of the Transparent series.

Bell always invites the new Houston Pride grand marshals to the show. “They talk about the work they do in the community, and to me, I

think they are a community of heroes—people who rise to the occasion,” says Bell. “I love to put the spotlight on them to hear what all is going on, and the courage that’s out there.” Bell is herself a former marshal, winning the Female-Identifying Marshal honor in 1997.

“What has meant the most to me over the years is meeting someone who tells me that they used to listen to me when they were a teenager,” says Bell. “They said they would be listening in their bedroom, and they felt great hearing people saying positive things about being queer.”

Dark Times

“We are living in traumatic times, and that’s even more reason for us to bring out our queer joy,” says Bell. The way we get through this is being in community and being joyful—doing what brings us joy.”

“Now we have different forms of LGBTQ media,” she continues, “and we are not only reporting the news, but we’re telling the stories of our lives. It’s not just current events, it’s the reality of our experience. There is that adage about singing to the choir, but sometimes the choir has to know that it’s in the right key.”

Bell is enthusiastic about the queer youth who are now becoming active in the media. “It’s important for us to spread our message, which ultimately is a message of love. We have such a rich and vibrant community. I’m excited about these other people coming in, especially the younger folks, some of whom have professional media experience. These younger people give me hope because they’re just so on it. They’re not going to put up with the bullshit. They are a new generation of folks who are going to amplify queer voices.”

Bell’s Pronoun

Bell smiles as she says her pronoun is “thegranddiva,” and she is sticking with it. She has a grandchild who identifies as nonbinary. “They did an interview with me for a school project about what it is like to be queer in a red state.”

For her snail-mail correspondence, Bell has stockpiled a supply of the US postage stamp that commemorates the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution that was passed in 1920, giving women the right to vote. “My father was born that year,” says Bell, “and my mother was born in 1923, the year that the Equal Rights Amendment was first introduced.”

Queer Voices provides information and entertainment for Houston’s LGBTQ community. It airs Wednesdays at 8 pm on 90.1FM KPFT and streams at kpft.org. At 9 pm it is available as a podcast on all audio platforms.

Organizers of the April 25, 1993 March on Washington proudly model the official event T-shirt commemorating their work in support of LGBTQ rights.

Deborah Moncrief Bell on air for Queer Voices, the LGBTQ radio show she co-hosts and produces.

A MUSICAL COLLABORATION THAT SPARKED SELF-LOVE

Patrick Sims blends sultry R&B with poetry through his latest EP, Love Notes.

by IAN L. HADDOCK | photo by ALEX ROSA | style by DANIELLE B. CUTLER |

From his first solo at the age of five at Jones Memorial United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas, Patrick Sims knew he wanted to be a vocalist. Through his deep involvement in the arts and the church, Patrick has found power in being himself and embracing vulnerability.

Often involved at the intersection of both as he was growing up, it is one of the developmental factors of his work ethic as a creative. The church has also been a place where Patrick has built a sense of community and learned many of the skills needed to create an artistic perspective. “We were at church Monday through Sunday with choir rehearsal, drill team, and praise dance rehearsals,” he says. “It taught me not just spirituality and religion, but gave me a sense of belonging and community.”

Recognizing she had a prodigy on her hands, his mother lost no time getting him enrolled in all types of art, dance, and music classes, and at the age of 12 he made his first studio recording. Outside of church, he expanded his creative gifts, revealing a natural ability for collaboration as he joined with his group of friends in planning fashion shows, galas, and a variety of other events.

Patrick’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to create a brand that had lasting impact. With a winning combination of talent, drive and ambition, he secured work as a developing artist and then as an intern with Suckafree Records, the company that signed legendary Houston rapper Lil Flip. It was clear that this was the beginning of a burgeoning career for the Houston native.

Even with talent, experience, and connec-

tions, forging a path forward in the music industry takes guts, grit, and self-empowerment. It requires one to be vulnerable and to know oneself deeply. Patrick’s music is a reflection of that work.

Most emerging men in the music industry tend to shy away from writing and recording their deepest thoughts, but every word poured into each of Patrick’s songs is unapologetically connected to his experience. As a bisexual man, his love for all genders was a journey not often openly explored by Black men, yet beautifully approached in his latest EP, Love Notes

“IT IS NOT A ‘COMING OUT’ AS MUCH AS IT IS A ‘COMING IN TO MYSELF.’”

— Patrick Sims

“Love Notes is less confessional and more conversational,” he reveals. “It is not a ‘coming out’ as much as it is a ‘coming in to myself.’ I often found myself in the same situations: I was enjoying these relationships and situations, but wanted more—yet not knowing what a commitment would mean for me. So, I said let’s dig through this and understand what’s really going on with me and how I can be more confident and more bold.”

This bold journey is also poetic. According to his website, each song is “written like a

series of letters, and each track explores the complexities of love, longing, and emotional accountability.”

Patrick’s creativity is exquisitely matched with the masterful collaboration of his producer, Christopher Rockaway, Shaka “Gldn Eye” Girvan, who mastered the EP, and a guest feature by Houston artist Fat Tony. This collaboration produces a sultry mixture of beautiful sounds, introspective thoughts, and elevated feelings. For Patrick, as an independent artist, collaborations and community continue to be a necessary strategy for his success.

“I had this idea about how things would happen because of having contacts and connections,” Patrick shares. “Humility has shown me that it is not just about the artist or the art; it is about me as a person. Who do I want to be? What do I really want? What am I willing to risk to get it?”

Answering these questions is no doubt what separates good music from great artistry. This intensely personal journey of creating art—not by what will trend on social media but what will illuminate dark spaces through introspection—is about being inquisitive about self-preservation and exploring all that love can be.

As Patrick prepares to bring Love Notes to the live stage, we look forward to experiencing a moment in the mind and heart of a star we can see already shining brightly. With all that led up to the moments Patrick began writing for this project, we are glad that he took note of how to show up in love.

Listen to Love Notes on all streaming platforms. Follow Patrick Sims on Instagram at @p_sims.

clothing by MAVERICK REVIVAL

THE S OUND

OF BECOMING

With PHASES, Paul Luna transforms life’s transitions into music.

by DAVID CLARKE | photos by VICTOR CONTRERAS

When it comes to Houston’s vibrant hip-hop scene, Paul Luna is adding a necessary beat—one that’s queer, poetic, and unapologetically authentic.

“My music is mainly for people who are afraid to be who they are and are capable of having the confidence through me to be able to be themselves,” Luna shares. “It makes you want to get up, dance, and forget about your life, the world, and just elevate in the moment.”

Luna’s latest project, PHASES, is a reflection of his ever-evolving artistry and identity. “The album is called PHASES because I feel like everyone in the world goes through some phases in their life—the ups, downs, and the highs and lows,” he explains. “It really represents the moon.” Regarding the message of the album, Luna says, “I feel like people can take away just getting to know yourself every day and loving yourself every day.”

The versatile album blends elements of

pop, R&B, hip hop, and soul, creating a sonic collage that mirrors Luna’s personal growth and artistic experimentation. “Taking chances and risks and doing more songs vocally was the biggest thing I took from this album,” he says.

Born and raised in Houston, Luna draws inspiration from the city’s legendary music scene. “Houston definitely inspires me to go big or go home,” he admits. “Just being in the Houston category is beautiful. I want to make my city proud, especially for the LGBTQ+ community and for people who just are afraid to be themselves.”

Though LGBTQ representation in hip hop continues to grow, Luna remains intentional about carving his own path. “I’ve always just wanted to stay true to myself,” he says. “Knowing who I am and just representing exactly what I am is proving that people can be themselves from the start to the finish.”

Luna also acknowledges the challenges that remain. “There’s still a lot of holdback from people, and there’s not a lot of opportunity because of being queer,” he explains. “But once

you get into their space and they see your talent, there’s more respect at that point.”

As a performer and lyricist, Luna draws from deeply personal experiences, often weaving his poetry into his writing process. “If I feel an emotion or if I’m going through something at that moment, I always write. I’m a big writer. I even write daily journals,” he says. “We all go through the same things. Some way, somehow, we all feel the same way when we’re going through it.”

Luna is keeping busy this summer with new music videos and a slate of high-profile performances. While he’s staying tight-lipped about the details for now, there’s plenty in the works to keep fans excited.

But don’t let the rapper energy fool you. “I have a heart, and I’m very passionate about everything I do,” Luna reveals. “People think I have a hard exterior—which I do—but I’m also soft, kind, sweet, and vulnerable.”

Keep up with Paul Luna on Instagram @iampaulluna.

“MY MUSIC IS MAINLY FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE AFRAID TO BE WHO THEY ARE. IT MAKES YOU WANT TO GET UP, DANCE, AND FORGET ABOUT YOUR LIFE, THE WORLD, AND JUST ELEVATE IN THE MOMENT.”

— Paul Luna

DANCING IN THE DARK

Stepping into the spotlight as Gamma Vega, this Houston native is a rising voice in the city’s queer music scene, and she’s doing it her way. “My pronouns are she/ her, and I’m 26,” she shares confidently. From there, her story unfolds like the tracks on her moody, confident EP, Gamma, each beat pulsing with lived experience and self-discovery.

Gamma’s signature sound is a hypnotic blend of “electronic dark dance pop” that draws from the late 2010s, as well as the club sounds of today. “It’s definitely very clubby music,” she explains. “So if you want to turn it up, you definitely want to listen to my music.”

But Gamma is more than just a soundtrack for the dance floor. It’s rooted in Houston’s queer nightlife, which offered the young Gamma a place to feel safe, seen, and free. “When I turned 21, I got introduced to so many queer people expressing themselves in such a

unique way,” she recalls. “That’s what drove my confidence.” As for her style of music, “it’s very dark, it’s very clubby,” says Gamma. “I just love that type of dancing music.”

Her love for Houston’s club scene is matched by her desire to build community in a city and state where queer safety and expression can be fraught. “We struggle a lot to just be out there during the day,” she says. “I wanted to make something that keeps your mind at ease. Like something personal for you to have fun with in such horrible times.”

Born to Mexican immigrant parents, Gamma grew up hiding her queerness and her talent. “We have to get a job, make money, and stuff like that. And that always taught me to kind of hide my feelings,” she says. “I also hid my singing, but I broke that cycle in my family. These hobbies aren’t just hobbies, they’re passions.”

She hopes her queer audiences take away a

Gamma Vega brings dark dance-pop and queer power to Houston’s music scene.

by DAVID CLARKE

by @JACOBHUTTOMUSIC and @LEV.HTX

sense of power and freedom from the Gamma EP. “Honestly, I hope that you feel so empowered. You better look at yourself in that mirror and say, ‘Oh, I’m that bitch,” she says with a laugh. “We live in such dark times currently. It’s okay to take a deep breath and use my music for fun.”

Looking ahead, Gamma is working on new singles and a larger project set to drop in the fall. “There’s definitely a lot of excitement for the future of Gamma Vega and music,” she teases. For updates, she encourages fans to follow her on Instagram at @ur.unica .

“I love music so much that it will drive me to go forward in any type of way,” she says. And in Houston, Gamma Vega is blazing her own bright queer path, one dark and danceable beat at a time.

Keep up with Gamma Vega on Instagram @ur.unica

Photo

“HONESTLY, I HOPE THAT YOU FEEL SO EMPOWERED. YOU BETTER LOOK AT YOURSELF IN THAT MIRROR AND SAY, ‘OH, I’M THAT BITCH.’”

— Gamma Vega

MEET THE SOUNDMAKERS

Four

queer DJs reshaping Houston’s nightlife talk with OutSmart.

by CONNOR BEHRENS

The Crowd Reader

DJ Ari

She/Her @Ari_TheDJ

In a sea of playlists, pre-planned drops, and mapped-out transitions, DJ Ari does things differently. She doesn’t rehearse her sets. She doesn’t even necessarily know what song she’s going to start with until she feels the energy in the room. Her style? Call it “The Crowd Reader.” “I rarely ever plan my sets in advance,” she says. “I like to get to the club or event and see what type of energy the crowd and I can create together.”

That ability to read and respond has earned her a name in Houston’s vibrant music scene over the past decade, particularly in queer nightlife spaces where she doesn’t just spin tracks, she makes space. But DJing wasn’t always the plan. In fact, it almost didn’t happen at all.

DJ Ari’s entry into the world of music was less about ambition and more about surviving. A broke college student looking for a hustle, she tapped into something that had always been second nature: curating vibes for her friends. As the “iPod DJ” for many functions, Ari took a leap, purchasing DJ equipment and dreaming of turning weekend parties into a paycheck.

But starting out wasn’t easy. “I realized it wasn’t easy to get booked as a DJ who’s just started,” she said. “So, I threw my own free parties just so people would come and listen to me DJ.”

What began as a workaround became a calling, and a decade later, Ari is not only headlining major venues, she’s also building platforms for others to do the same.

While some DJs cite global icons as their guiding stars, Ari finds inspiration much closer to home. “My DJ friends around me have influenced me the most,” she says. “From my college days up until now, I’ve been blessed to have such great DJ homies who are amazing at what they do. I learn so much from them, and they inspire me daily.”

Ari’s presence in the Houston scene goes beyond the beats. As a masculine-presenting queer woman, she’s used her platform to challenge assumptions, shift the spotlight, and crack open spaces that haven’t always been welcoming. “I don’t see many masculine women like myself in the big clubs or huge festivals I’ve been a part of,” she notes. “It’s already hard for women to occupy these spaces, but being masc is even more difficult.”

Rather than conform or retreat, Ari leaned in. She began to notice something powerful: the more visible she became, the more queer people began showing up—finding their own space through her presence. That visibility has taken on even greater impact through her company, Lesbian In Houston, a platform and party series dedicated to creating opportunities and safe spaces for queer women. From DJs and MCs to event staffing and collaborations, Ari centers her community at every level. “I’m trying to show up as someone I wish I was when I first stepped into DJing and into Houston,” she says.

At the end of the day, Ari’s goals are as simple as they are profound. “I just want people to feel something from my sets—whether it made you feel sexy and boosted your confidence, whether it made you let out emotions you’ve been holding in, or whether it just made you want to nod your head to some good tunes.”

InHOUSTON, BENEATH THE CITY’S SHIMMERING SKYLINE, LIES A MUSIC SCENE AS RICH AND DIVERSE AS ITS PEOPLE. BUT FOR THE DJS WHO ENERGIZE THIS CITY, IT’S MORE THAN JUST SPINNING TRACKS—THESE INDIVIDUALS ARE CREATING SAFE SPACES. THROUGH SOUND, THEY’RE CULTIVATING JOY, BUILDING COMMUNITY, AND FOSTERING RESILIENCE IN A CHALLENGING WORLD. HOUSTON’S QUEER NIGHTLIFE HAS LONG SERVED AS A SYMBOL OF RESISTANCE, AND TODAY’S DJS CARRY THAT FORWARD WITH BOLD EXPERIMENTATION AND FIERCE AUTHENTICITY. WHAT MAKES THE SCENE HERE TRULY SPECIAL IS ITS BLEND OF SOUTHERN GRIT, MULTICULTURAL RHYTHM, AND UNAPOLOGETIC QUEERNESS. THESE ARE JUST SOME OF THE QUEER DJS IN HOUSTON WHO ARE AMPLIFYING MARGINALIZED VOICES AND REDEFINING WHAT NIGHTLIFE CAN BE.

Spinning Joy on the Dance Floor

DJ Chad Guidry

He/Him/His @dj.chad.guidry

For Chad Guidry, DJing isn’t just about music—it’s about creating joy.

“The best description of my sound is ‘upbeat to high-energy house/dance music composed of melodies, vocals, instrumentals, and beats to encourage the audience to dance, feel good, sing, or smile,’” says Guidry.

But DJing didn’t happen overnight. Guidry’s relationship with music began back in grade school as a percussionist, a role that eventually earned him a college scholarship, even though he majored in mathematics. After graduation, he moved to Houston to dive into his first love: competitive dancing. It was through that world—and a boyfriend in 1999— that he was introduced to dance music.

It didn’t take long for Guidry to begin burning mix CDs for friends, which led to purchasing gear and eventually landing his first live DJ gig in 2002. At the time, his style was rooted in the circuit music found in gay clubs. Today, he spins everything from EDM, tech house, and electro to chill, trance, tropical, and Latin house.

This musical versatility is one of Guidry’s calling cards. Whether he’s playing a highoctane Saturday night set or a mellow Sunday brunch, he tailors his selections while still maintaining his signature uplifting style.

“Knowing how to choreograph a dance routine with peaks and valleys is key to keeping an audience interested,” he says. “The same is true with building a DJ set.”

Although Guidry identifies as a queer man,

he doesn’t see his queerness as the defining force in his musical identity.

“Music is not gay or straight,” he says. “There is a ‘togetherness’ that music brings to crowds that have gathered for the purpose of experiencing the music.”

Still, he recognizes the significance of queer representation in nightlife spaces and appreciates how genredefying performances can help close cultural gaps.

Houston’s nightlife scene, according to Guidry, is evolving. While many bars have begun to blend into a homogenous experience—with mixed crowds and familiar playlists—he sees hope in venues like Montrose Country Club and the newly reimagined Rich’s, both of which are embracing diverse musical lineups and more lively programming. Special events, too, offer DJs like Guidry the freedom to take risks and showcase lesser-known tracks without alienating audiences.

When asked what he hopes people take away from his sets, Guidry says his goal is simple: he wants to make people smile.

“There’s no greater feeling than looking out at a dancefloor and seeing smiling faces or people singing,” he says. “I want my music and my stage presence to reflect my positive outlook on life.”

Despite juggling a full-time IT job, Chad continues to spin at special events across the city. Some of his recurring gigs include Pride Brunch (supporting the Montrose Center), the Halloween Fantasy Ball, and Disco Turkey, his very own event held every November.

ary tone. The cover was designed by Egyptian artist Ganzeer, who Kern met at a local festival and recognized him as the activist and street artist who gained notoriety during the Egyptian revolution in 2011 before being forced into exile. Now based in Houston, Ganzeer was able to produce a cover design—including a dust jacket that unfolds into a protest poster—recalling the street art he produced during the Egyptian revolution.

dealing with the difficulty sheltering with neighbors hurricane, someone from Wyoming contacted Kern inspired to rewrite their policies to be more transthat Kern’s voice is making a

inspire further activism The Free People’s Village. a red background with suggesting war propaganreaders with its revolution-

Looking ahead, Kern is already working on their next book, and it’s a departure from previous climate-fiction novels. This new story takes place in Eastern Europe in 1647 and is a historical-fiction plot that follows a group of traveling queer Jews as they navigate religion, racism, and capitalism. But Kern’s signature style—including elements of climate change and social justice—will still be evident throughout the book.

WHAT: Sim Kern book launch event and discussion WHEN: September 12 at 6:30 pm WHERE: Brazos Bookstore, 2421 Bissonnet INFO: www.brazosbookstore.com

Keep up with Kim Kern on Instagram @sim_bookstagrams_badly

Circuit Royalty

DJ AJ Hernandez

He/Him/His @ djaracelymanterola

In Houston’s DJ community, few figures shine quite like AJ Hernandez. Also known in the community as Aracely Manterola, a drag DJ of 26 years, Hernandez is far more than a party starter— he’s the creator of safe spaces across the city.

“The roles of queer DJs are huge,” he says. “We bring the sense of a safe space. Musically, we are unapologetic and not afraid to play what we want. That’s the key to a great night.”

Hernandez’s journey into DJing wasn’t planned. Years ago at Club Inergy, he found himself transfixed by remix videos playing on the screen. A friend nudged him to try playing a few songs. Minutes later, the dance floor was packed from Hernandez’s music selection.

“I turned around, and the floor was full,” he says. “I freaked out! What I didn’t know was that the owners were watching from the back. That night, I got a spotlight taste.”

Hernandez was offered a weekly residency, taught himself how to DJ, and never looked back. Since that fateful night, Hernandez has DJed from coast to coast: Pride festivals, online radio stations, college events, and private parties.

Ask Hernandez to describe his sound and he’ll rattle off a variety of music genres. “I’m a circuit queen at heart,” he says. “My sound is circuit/house tribal, but with a twist. Being a DJ is not just playing music. It’s about telling stories from the songs you choose—songs that carry emotions and memories for everyone.”

And for many fans, his DJ sets are unforgettable. “I’ve had people come up to the DJ booth after the night is over, or when I’m out in the Montrose bars, telling me that they never had a night like that ever,” he says. “That’s when I know my job was done and they will forever remember you.”

Hernandez brings that same heart to every gig—whether performing in full drag behind the decks or spinning at a glamorous gala. “If I play 50 songs, that’s 50 performances,” he says. “And I don’t stop.”

His drag-DJ identity has broken barriers and created unforgettable nights across Texas. “When I’m in the zone and a crowd is screaming my name, it’s an overwhelming joy,” he says.

Clairvoyant Tarot READINGS by

Here is what one client has to say: “As a professional forecaster myself, I can attest to L.A. Brown’s remarkable ability to “see” the future. She’s as insightful as she is delightful, whether she’s amazing my party guests or giving me a personal reading, L.A. is spot-on with her predictions...and she goes out a lot farther than my 10-day forecast!”

—FrankBillingsley

Reshaping Houston’s Queer Nightlife

DJ MLE

She/Her @lajungla.htx

For Emily Areta—better known as DJ MLE—the dance floor is more than a party. It’s a place for transformation.

Blending Afro-Caribbean rhythms with her Afro-Panamanian roots, Areta doesn’t just play music. She creates musical experiences that recharge the spirit of those in the crowd. “Ultimately, my goal is to get people out of their minds and fully into their bodies, to the point where they’re releasing the stresses they carry and connecting with others through movement,” she says.

Areta’s path to the booth began long before she ever touched a turntable. Raised in Houston by a single mother who led the Panamanian folkloric dance group Ritmos de Panamá, Areta was immersed in culture from day one—singing in church choirs, performing in musical theater, and even beat-boxing for her college a cappella group. But it wasn’t until a transformative year living in rural Panamá on a Fulbright grant that she began to see music through a different lens. “There, I was blown away by how Caribbean and diasporic the music scene was,” she says. “Salsa, soca, reggae, Afrobeats, reggaeton—it all blended seamlessly. It felt so different from what I’d known in Houston.”

When she returned home, she was determined to inject Houston’s Latin music spaces

with more Afro-diasporic presence. In 2017, amid the torrential rains of Hurricane Harvey, a friend’s unused DJ controller and a handful of YouTube tutorials became the seeds of a now-prospering career. By 2019, she’d launched Tumbao, her first weekly residency at The Flat, carving out space for Afro-Latin music and artists in a scene that lacked representation. She soon decided to build on that achievement.

With a grant from the Houston Arts Alliance, Areta co-founded Juicebox, which is a collective uplifting Black and brown queer DJs and creatives. During the pandemic, the group organized a 14-hour virtual music festival to raise funds for artists and foster connection during a time of isolation. That same energy continued offline with residencies, collaborations, and safe spaces like Play Date, which became a hub for queer DJs to gain experience on club-standard equipment.

In 2023, a powerful partnership emerged when Areta met Caribbean-American DJ Yanna. Together, they formed La Jungla, a femme and queer-forward event series that fuses Afro-diasporic sounds with Houston nightlife. Their third event drew over 200 attendees— and was just a preview of things to come.

In 2024, with support from another Houston Arts Alliance grant, they launched La Jungla Fest, an expansive cultural celebra-

tion featuring artists from the Dominican Republic, Chicago, and Houston. Backed by Bacardi and curated with local femme vendors and visionary artists, the festival showcased Areta’s mission: to center joy and queerness.

Areta’s approach to DJing is deeply political. Every beat she plays is an act of cultural reclamation, one rooted in her own family’s legacy. Her grandfather, Emilio Sempris, was a renowned big band director in 1950s Panamá, and his passion for music is fully evident in her sets.

“Anyone who sees music as a tool for community building and political resistance—especially for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ folks—influences me,” she says.

And that shows in the events she’s built through her new production platform Diablo Rojo Sound. From the spicy Calentura Day Party to collaborations with brands like Ilegal Mezcal and Ice House Radio, she’s expanding the blueprint for what inclusive nightlife can look like.

Still, challenges remain: venue access, business development support, and funding are constant hurdles for queer creatives, particularly those of color. But Areta remains hopeful and committed.

“I just want people to be safe and seen in the spaces I create,” she says. “If it doesn’t exist, create it. That’s always been my motto.”

Houston Drag, Digitized

Colt V. Ables ’ DragSpace website transforms how the area’s drag performers connect with their audiences.

For drag fans, there is a new way to get the latest news about Houston-area’s performers. DragSpace, which launched this summer, is the brainchild of Colt V. Ables, and it serves as a one-stop shop for everything related to Houston drag. “It is a way of a mini-advertising what people can expect at a show,” Ables says.

The idea for DragSpace first occurred to Ables when he noticed the inconsistent promotion of drag shows on social media. “I saw that so many drag performers that I’m friends with were attending shows that had lackluster

by SAM BYRD

audience appearances and were very inconsistent, and I just wanted to attribute that to the fact that many performers only posted their shows on their Instagram profile,” he says.

“So if a performer posted on Tuesday about a show on Thursday and does not post it again, then the fans aren’t going to know for sure unless they check the story within that 24-hour period. There was just no area where you could find out the performers’ schedule for the week or the a month.”

And just like that, the idea for DragSpace was born.

However, getting the site created came with its challenges. “Technology is, in and of

itself, a blessing and a curse. So is having too much information, and I think that’s been part of what I’ve had to struggle with,” he says. “We had to learn what information is relevant in order for a venue to book an entertainer. We had to learn what information an entertainer needs to know about a venue before they accept a booking. Some of those things I don’t really know since I’m not an entertainer, and so the people I consulted with helped a lot in that regard. It’s learning the right questions to ask, so it’s not so much profile information on the form that performers don’t want to fill out the form and submit their profile.”

But with the help of a few programmers

Colt V. Ables sitting center stage in the throne at Pride Center Galveston, surrounded by the island’s vibrant community of local drag performers.

The Battaglia Building

701 14th St. | $695,000 | MLS# 26013974

Classic two story corner store with store below and quarters above built in 1932.Downstairs has large storefront windows along Winnie and 14th. Historically well-preserved upstairs apartment accessed from Winnie, has living room, formal dining, kitchen, 3 bedrooms, full bath.Accessed from 2nd floor apartment is a balcony overlooking 14th Street, roof garden with hot tub & views of downtown. Large garage, 41x23, adjoins downstairs space and has high bay area, storage mezzanine. Located in the heart of the East End Historical District along 14th Street, high visibility and well trafficked. 6 parking spots 14th and Winnie.

The DragSpace website allows users to browse performer profiles, show times, and booking details—all in one vibrant, easy-to-use platform.

and some feedback from local performers, the website was created and has proven to be a treasure trove of information, including such details as what the performers’ special talents are—perhaps performing ballads or being lively dancers. It also indicates if they perform illusions, what some of their favorite songs are to perform, and the dates and times for their shows.

After performers submitted all the information for their profiles, they were doublechecked by a member of the DragSpace team. The next step was to promote the website to a captive audience. To build buzz about the website, Ables worked with Sinema LaRue and Rachel B*itchface to recruit 48 local performers. He then captured enough B-roll video of those performers to create a flashy 10-minute video.

Ables envisions taking DragSpace to other large Texas cities before eventually expanding all across the nation.

Ables’ passion for drag and creating the ambitious website stems from his own experience watching drag performers. “My first experience at a drag show was in August 2021 when I first came to visit Houston before I moved here for a job in finance. I wanted to come visit and see the drag scene. For me, I look at drag as entertainment and as an escape,” he says.

“It’s amazing that these talented performers are able to put on a face onstage that represents their true self. Drag is all about people being able to express who they really are.”

For more information, visit DragSpace.com.

Life Lessons from ‘The People’s Joker’

Vera Drew ’s autobiographical parody of life in Gotham City has become an unlikely crowd favorite.

by OLIVIA FLORES ALVAREZ | photos by ALTERED INNOCENCE

If you’re looking for a life lesson by watching The People’s Joker, here’s one: Never date a guy who dated Batman. It’s hard to measure up. Or down, depending on your point of view.

Here’s another one: When you make a parody of a major studio’s cash cow—like, say, their Batman franchise—talk to your lawyers starting on day one. Actor/writer/director Vera Drew did just that. “I worked with lawyers the entire time,” Drew tells us. “I was working with lawyers every step of the way.” That was 2022.

Drew, a trans woman, chose to tell her life story through the Batman lens. On-screen Vera is a comedian who’s taken on the Joker’s persona. She cannot get onstage in Gotham City, so Vera partners with her friend the Penguin (superbly played by Nathan Faustyn), and the duo start their own outlaw comedy club. Vera starts dating another comic who is, ironically, another Joker. More familiar characters show up, including the B-man himself. Also in the mix is Vera’s somewhat shrill mom and, seen in flashbacks, a young Vera pre-transition (played to perfection by Griffin Kramer).

There’s no doubt about it—this is Batman’s world, but it’s Drew’s very twisted and obviously satirized version. Think “bizarroBatman.”

So when Drew got a strongly worded email from a corporate giant that said, “Uh, we don’t consider The People’s Joker to be a parody, so stop screening it,” she was surprised. (To be clear, the corporate giant was never publicly identified, and it wasn’t an actual cease-anddesist letter.)

“Everything in it is true for me and my life. I came up in comedy. The relationship of the mother in it, the boyfriend—all of that actually happened to me. That’s why it should fall under fair use. And it’s obviously a very different version of those characters than you would ever see in any of those studio movies,” she says.

Vera Drew transforms into her chaotic, clownish alter ego in this DIY parody of Gotham’s most iconic villain.

Vera Drew stars as ‘Joker the Harlequin’ in her semi-autobiographical parody, The People’s Joker.

Unfortunately, the legal skirmish overshadowed the film’s release. At the time, Drew pulled the film from festival screenings, and since then she’s had a few more screenings that were untroubled by the parody police. Now the film is set for screening at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston this month.

The film was shot over a tight, five-day schedule on a shoestring budget. “We didn’t censor ourselves with what can we afford because we knew we couldn’t afford anything,” laughs Drew.

Eventually she financed the film with her own money. Another life lesson. “That’s one of the things they tell you not to do, of course. But throughout the project, I was doing lots of things I wasn’t supposed to do.”

Like making a movie without thinking it might be seen by an audience one day? Yes, Drew and company did that. “Some of the magic of the movie was that we were all of the mindset that the movie was not going to be that big of a deal,” Drew notes. “We didn’t put a lot of pressure on ourselves. We were able to take it to places because we were acting like nobody was watching. There’s a real freedom to that.

“I probably would have made a different film if I had been thinking that anybody was

ever going to see the film. I never fathomed that I’d be getting interviewed about it or do screenings. We just screened it in Nashville, and there was a line out the door of people waiting to meet me. I never imagined that. I thought I was making a movie just for myself and my friends.”

LGBTQ audiences have loved the film. Comic book and Batman fans have loved the film. Even critics have loved the film. “Most of the people that I’ve met through the movie screenings are really young. In Nashville, most of the people were under 21. And meeting young trans people, while I don’t think of myself as a role model of any sort, I want to be some kind of good role model for these young people.

“Young people ask me how can they get into movies, and I certainly can’t tell them to take out a huge loan. What I do tell them is to not wait for somebody to give you a green light. Give it to yourself. You’ll never get permission to do the thing you want to do. Just do it.”

WHAT: The People’s Joker WHEN: August 8, 7 p.m.

WHERE: Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Brown Auditorium, 1001 Bissonnet INFO: mfah.org

The People’s Joker theatrical poster captures the film’s campy, rebellious spirit and its queer reinterpretation of the Batman universe.

Rocky Hollub

Victor Lopez

‘The

Chosen Ones’ Gets an Outing

Thunderclap Productions presents the world premiere of Aaron Alon ’s newest musical.

by OLIVIA FLORES ALVAREZ

Composer Aaron Alon is a happy man. And he has reason to be. His latest musical, The Chosen Ones, is set to make its world premiere during a two-week run in late August. This is the first time one of his musicals is receiving a full production and run.

“I’m over the moon about it!” the Rice University grad tells us. “We have such an amazing group of people who are working on it. The director, the music director, and the whole cast are just wonderful. So it’s a dream.”

The Chosen Ones follows six LGBTQ teens at summer camp—or rather, summer conversion therapy camp. Led by an “ex-gay pastor” (yep, that’s in quotation marks), camp activities include group therapy, rants, confessions, and secret make-up sessions in the boys’ dorm. Alon is careful to say that the show is not autobiographical. But while it’s not based on his

“THE IDEA OF MUSIC AS FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND AUTHENTICITY BECOMES A DEVICE IN THE SHOW.”

— Aaron Alon

life, it is based on real life.

Alon tends to write issue-driven musicals and plays, completing a couple of years of research before beginning to write lyrics or dialog. It was slightly different for The Chosen Ones. “I was a volunteer with HATCH for nine years and heard lots of stories about conversion therapy. This is something that’s devastating the lives of young people,” he says. “The show depicts conversion therapy as it stands in the US right now, widely practiced. It’s a drama, but there are some funny moments.”

The cast includes a butch lesbian, a trans character, some gay guys, and a nonbinary

person. Oh, and that “ex-gay pastor” and his prayer partner, a groundskeeper at the camp. Each comes complete with their own bit of anger, hope, fear, and joy. There are a total of 12 songs.

Alon finds he identifies with some aspect of each character, except for Caleb. “Caleb is the only one of the six teens who has chosen to be at the conversion camp. The other five had to be forced to be there. Caleb pushed his parents to let him go. He desperately wants not to be gay and is all in on this conversion therapy, but it’s not working. He has a sad story.”

It would be easy to label the pastor as the story’s villain, but Alon’s writing is much more three-dimensional than that. “He really cares about these kids and wants what’s best for them. He thinks he’s doing good in the world,” says Alon. “There are some conversion therapy programs that are really scary and do a lot of harm, but I think more of them are like this, where people really think they are helping. They want to do good in the world, but they aren’t.”

One of the more fascinating aspects of the show is that, while it’s a musical, some of the characters can’t sing. That is, they can’t connect with that part of themselves that’s the music. There’s a saying in musical theater: “When words aren’t enough, you’re moved to sing.”

“All of the teens sing,” Alon tells us. “The pastor and his prayer partner never sing. In a way, the pastor has silenced himself, so he can’t sing. The idea of music as freedom of expression and authenticity becomes a device in the show.

“The styles of music vary from character to character because they are each very different. One is trans, one is a butch lesbian, and one is gay. Each one uses different words to identify themselves, so it seemed natural that the kind of song they would sing would be in a different

style. What brings them all together is that they still have the ability to access the music.”

Alon, an openly gay man, is the show’s composer, lyricist, playwright, and orchestrator. (Not listed on his credits is “Boss.”) His approach to The Chosen Ones, as with his other projects, has been collaborative. The show is directed and choreographed by Aisha Ussery, with music directed by Phillip D. Hall. Alon gives them plenty of space to bring their own vision to the project.

It was about two years ago, in July 2023, that Alon completed the first draft of The Chosen Ones. After that, he oversaw the recording of a cast album. Several cast members from the album will also participate in the current stage production.

“I am over the moon about the people. It’s been a dream scenario where everyone likes each other and everyone is crazy-talented,” says Alon.

This world premiere production of The Chosen Ones is part of the John Steven Kellett Memorial Series of works relating to LGBTQ equity.

WHAT: The Chosen Ones world premiere WHEN: August 28–September 6, 2025 WHERE: MATCH, 3400 Main Street INFO: visit matchouston.org

The Chosen Ones debuts August 28 at MATCH as part of the John Steven Kellett Memorial Series that spotlights LGBTQ equity.

Voted Best Male Eye Doctor Voted Best Female Eye Doctor

IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH

Kaldec “Kal” Frenzel’s (l) and Aubrey “Bree” Register

Pamela Brantley and Malissa Dunnings turned a health crisis into a powerful wedding memory.

Pamela Brantley Dunnings and Malissa Dunnings may not have had the wedding they envisioned, but what they did share was an unforgettable testament to love, commitment, and resilience. And one that honored every word of the vow “in sickness and in health.”

The couple, who now reside in Houston’s Spring Branch area, accidentally met through Bumble in the least romantic way imaginable. “I accidentally super-liked her,” Pamela recalls. “It was an accident.”

But Malissa took the swipe seriously. “Being that she super liked me, I decided, ‘Oh, I’ll inquire further,’” she adds. It turned out to be the only date Malissa ever went on from the app.

Their first date was as simple as it was telling, featuring a walk-and-talk following a

by DAVID CLARKE photos by LA PETITE PHOTO and ANDY RODRIGUEZ

hectic morning at a farmers market. “We just walked around the Heights—like in a circle around the same block for hours,” says Pamela. “She was just very easy to talk to.”

Malissa remembers exactly what Pamela wore. “She had on this beautiful pink dress. It was just a captivating pink dress,” she says. “The conversation never stopped. I think we both felt comfortable enough to ask anything and tell anything.”

Though the timeline might seem fast to some, they were engaged in under three months and married just shy of a year after meeting. Both women were sure early on that they had found something extraordinary. “We started talking about pretty intense things on date number three,” says Malissa.

Pamela, a mother of three, says the turning point wasn’t just the spark. It was Malissa’s wholehearted embrace of her children. “She

was genuinely excited about being a stepmom,” Pamela says. “She coaches their basketball team. My kids don’t even like to call her ‘stepmom.’”

Their connection was so strong that Malissa bought an engagement ring just two weeks after their first date. “I did not give it to her right away,” she laughs. “But she started sending me pictures of rings, unsolicited, and I just bought one of the rings.”

Pamela, for her part, proposed the day after Malissa’s proposal. “She didn’t know I had her ring yet,” Pamela says. “She was going to my daughter’s birthday party and was nervous, and I turned around with the ring and said, ‘Will this make you feel even more confident going into it?’”

The couple planned a picturesque California elopement through Intimate Beach Wedding in Laguna Beach’s Heisler Park. “We had

Pamela Brantley Dunnings (l) and Malissa Dunnings

everything arranged,” says Pamela. “It was just going to be us, immediate family, and a very few friends. Very simple, very us.”

They started the big day with a scenic wedding brunch overlooking the beach and yachts in Newport Beach. “It was beautiful,” Malissa says. “Just gorgeous scenery, right on the water.” They had also planned a four-hour photo shoot across different beaches they had scouted on an earlier trip.

But just before the ceremony was to begin, something unexpected happened.

“I was just walking around reviewing my vows, and I walked back down to her at the gazebo and said, ‘My heart is doing something funny,’” Malissa recalls. Within moments, her implanted defibrillator activated. Not once, but five times. “It’s like an invisible horse kicking you in the chest,” she describes.

Pamela immediately called 911. “It’s a small beach town,” she explains. “Everybody came. The fire department, lifeguards, paramedics. Probably ten first-responders, maybe more.”

With her wife-to-be sitting on a bench beside her children, Pamela made a snap decision. “I asked our pastor, Carolyn Alexander, ‘How quickly can you marry us?’ She said, ‘Less than 30 seconds.’”

And just like that, the couple said “I do” amid a sea of first responders and curious

onlookers. “We had no vows, no pictures of the ceremony. The kids had practiced their parts and were excited to walk us down the aisle, but we were sitting. We just did it right there,” says Pamela.

Malissa was loaded onto a gurney moments later as the violinist hired for the occasion struck up U2’s “A Beautiful Day.” “She was very sweet,” Pamela adds, “but she did not read the room. She just kept playing, even as Malissa was being wheeled into the ambulance.”

They spent their wedding night in the emergency room of a Newport Beach hospital. “We officially exchanged vows in the ER,” Malissa says. “Curled up in a hospital bed together. It was sad, but romantic. All of it.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever told you this,” Malissa says, turning to Pamela, “but the fact that you didn’t even think about it and just said ‘Let’s do this now,’ it meant a lot.”

Despite the chaos, the day wasn’t without beauty. Their photographer, Margot (a member of the LGBTQ community herself), stayed behind and captured candid moments with their families. “She went above and beyond,” Pamela says. “We were so surprised and grateful.”

Their officiant, Rev. Carolyn Alexander, was equally invaluable. “She rolled with the punches, made sure we were legally married,” Malissa says. “She was a pro.” They also offer a warm shout-out to Astoria Stubbs for doing their hair and styling.

Despite the wild turn of events, Pamela and Malissa both still cherish parts of their wedding day. For Malissa, it was the “first look” photos. “When she put her hand on my shoulder, I was shaking. Like it was our first date all over again.”

For Pamela, it was the brunch: “It was relaxing. Peaceful. Beautiful. Until it wasn’t.”

Pamela and Malissa’s wedding may not have gone as planned, but it perfectly reflected their bond. One that is rooted in openness, strength, and unwavering love. And while their story may be one-of-a-kind, their message is timeless: sometimes the most imperfect moments are the ones you’ll cherish the most.

SCAN THE CODE TO VIEW OUR PHOTO GALLERIES ONLINE!

‘OUT AT THE RODEO’ POOL PARTY AT THE MONTROSE COUNTRY CLUB JULY 19, 2025

Houston’s queer rodeo fans made a splash on July 19 at the first-ever Wild, Wild Wet pool party, hosted by Out at the Rodeo at The Montrose Country Club. Over 300 guests enjoyed cocktails by Crown Royal, bites by Chef Diego Chiarello, and a country-disco set by DJ Stephen Jusko while many attendees cooled off in the 65-foot pool.

“This wasn’t just a party—it was a statement,” said OATR President Eric Hulsey. Vice President Anthony Ferrell added, “See you at next year’s Wine Garden on March 14, 2026!” With support from Pure for Men, Relate Search, and OutSmart magazine, the sold-out event celebrated Pride, community, and the bright future ahead for queer rodeo culture.

Photos by DALTON DE HART and CREW

OutSmart’s Bar Guide is now on your phone!

now on your phone! directory

Whether

Huntsville, Whether you’re a covered with this

OutSmart’s Bar Guide is now on your phone! Scan here to check out our directory of LGBTQ bars and clubs in and around Houston, including your favorites in Galveston, Huntsville, Spring, and College Station. Whether you’re a local or a visitor, we’ve got you covered with this updated guide to the best LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

OutSmart’s Bar Guide is now on your phone!

is now on your phone! our directory

Galveston, Huntsville, Whether you’re a you covered with this

on your phone! directory of around Houston, Galveston, Huntsville, Whether you’re a covered with this LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

now on your phone! directory of around Houston, Galveston, Huntsville, Whether you’re a covered with this LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

Guide is now on your phone! out our directory of and around Houston, Galveston, Huntsville, Station. Whether you’re a you covered with this LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

is now on your phone! our directory of and around Houston, Galveston, Huntsville, Whether you’re a you covered with this LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

on your phone! directory of around Houston, Galveston, Huntsville, Whether you’re a covered with this LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

Scan here to check out our directory of LGBTQ bars and clubs in and around Houston, including your favorites in Galveston, Huntsville, Spring, and College Station. Whether you’re a local or a visitor, we’ve got you covered with this updated guide to the best LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

Charles Garibay

spaces.

LGBTQ bars and clubs in and around Houston, including your favorites in Galveston, Huntsville, Spring, and College Station. Whether you’re a local or a visitor, we’ve got you covered with this updated guide to the best LGBTQ-friendly spaces.

Shifts: Monday & Wednesday 4–9 pm, Thursday–Saturday 9 pm–2 am, and Sunday Funday 12 Noon–9 pm

What is your favorite shot to make? To drink?

I like to make Lemondrops and Starf--kers—a tasty Crown Royal and Red Bull shot!

Where is your favorite place to drink when not on duty?

I’m a non-drinker, so you can usually find me out riding my bike. What is a current bar drink trend you’d like to see end?

Please end the Mexican Candy Shots (tequila, watermelon liqueur, and hot sauce). What are you best known for?

I’ve been with Mark DeLange, the owner of the Eagle, for 10 years since he opened. Most people know me for my Blue Balls Shot, which is a blueberry vodka mix. What is the best and worst holiday to work?

Best holiday: I’m going to count Pride as a holiday, so Pride and Halloween are the best because people are in great spirits. Worst holiday: New Year’s Eve and St. Patrick’s Day, when all of the amateurs are out!

Biggest tip from one customer?

$500 during a big party when a major

to a wide variety of events including weekly drag-king shows, nationally known LGBTQ DJs, and a queer farmers market on the patio.

4216

This full-service venue offers distinctive food with Southern flair, a popular patio, multiple bars, VIP bottle-service areas, a large dance floor, and some of Houston’s most acclaimed resident DJs.

202 Tuam St, Houston TX 77006

RIPCORD

Since 1982, this leather bar has been a fixture in Houston’s LGBTQ community. It’s where the wild, the weird, and the kinky gather on a nightly basis and

ReBar

TONY’S CORNER POCKET!

Cold Beverages & Hot Guys! Male Amateur Strip Contest

POCKET

TONY’S CORNER POCKET!

Nightly Specials – Call for Details Cold Beverages & Hot Guys!

Houston’s Hottest Male Amateur Strip Contest

ReBar evolved into Rich’s Houston, a vibe restaurant, Male Amateur

By LILLY RODDY

Celestial Reset

With Mercury direct and Leo rising, August offers a fresh start.

Our month starts with Mercury retrograde, so postpone starting new projects and moving forward with your innovative ideas until August 15, when it is fully direct. Summertime is the most introspective time as most of the outer planets go retrograde, and we work harder on projects that we are invested in. Positive days this month are the 10th, 11th, 12th, 14th, 18th, 25th, 26th, and the 28th. Days to keep your head down are the 1st, 2nd, 8th, 9th, 23rd, and 24th. A lot of tension is in the air and continues throughout this month. It may lighten up some in September, but

ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19)

This continues to be a busy month for you rams and ewes with many of you trying to decide what is your best plan of action. While one part of you wants to approach things head on, another part only wants to escape and get out of here! This continues to be a time of decision-making affecting your future. It’s best to wait until mid-month before you act on your plans. You are in a more playful time as the month begins and more creative as well! Family activity is picking up. You could be considering moving or some home remodeling. Routines and health become more important in the later part of the month. This is a very good time for organizing and making your job more efficient. Mars activates your partnership house for the next two months. Difficult issues must be addressed so you can move forward in your partnership.

TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20)

Activity this month is focused on home and connecting with friends and family from your past. This can be a great month for a family reunion, exploring possibilities of moving, and possible expansion of your existing family. Your daily life is getting busier as you are adding more activity to your life. This can be a great time to expand your education, start a podcast, or spend more time outside of the city. In the later part of the month, you are looking to find more fun and pleasure in your life. This can be a good time to explore hobbies, connect with your children, or date someone new! Exercise and health become more important in the second week of the month. Connections with co-workers can be more intense and you may be more impatient. The overall intensity continues as you decide what you want to keep and what you want to throw away.

GEMINI (May 21–June 21)

Uranus has entered your sign for a brief visit and will return later in January 2026. Uranus is the planet of

it continues and strengthens at the end of the year through all of 2026.

The Sun moves from Leo into Virgo on the 22nd. Mercury, our communicator, is direct in Leo all month after the 15th. Venus starts in Cancer, the sign of family, and enters Leo, the sign of playfulness, on the 25th. Mars has been working hard in Virgo, the fixer, but enters Libra on the 6th, and fireworks are going off in our relationships. Jupiter remains in Cancer, Saturn and Neptune in Aries, and Pluto in Aquarius. Finding our own inner truth will be an important process for all of us this year!

freedom of choice, wide open spaces, and “don’t fence me in”! Initially, it is impacting those of you born in the first few days of the sign. You may be more nervous, feeling bored and trapped with your old conditions, and looking for something that touches your sense of passion. You are likely to be more open to suggestions but may hold back on making any decisions. Mercury, your ruler, goes direct on the 15th, making you feel more grounded. You are reviewing your associations with your friends and social groups. You are wanting them to be more responsive and actually get things done. Family tensions decrease into the second week of the month. Take a breath!

CANCER (June 22–July 22)

As the month begins, you Moon Kids are paying attention to your personal talents, your spending habits, and ways to bring in more money. This should be a positive time for all Cancers, with Jupiter—planet of growth, expanding, travel, and education—traveling through your sign until July 2026. You may want to travel more, have a greater impact with your community and friends, and take on a leadership role that you feel called to. There is a lot of activity taking place with your career. You may want to do something on your own, you may want to take on a leadership position where you are, and if you are older, you may be cutting back and doing things that give your life more meaning. This can also be a time of downsizing and determining what you really need and what you really don’t. You are back on track at the end of the month.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22)

Happy Birthday to the Leos. This is your personal yearly cycle of ending and renewal. You are more introspective prior to your birthday and with Mercury retrograding through your sign, you have been thinking about the past and the decisions you have made. After the 15th, it will be time to put your new ideas into action. This is your time to focus on you and what is

best for you. In all your partnerships, you are being more real and direct. A time for renewal for some and an ending for others. You are also rethinking your work path and where you are living. You are ready to make real changes in your life. Toward the end of the month, your focus shifts to money, resources, ways to increase your income, and ways to spend it!

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept.22)

As the month begins, this is a time of rest and retreat for you. You are more sensitive to your environment and difficult people. This is a much better time for yoga, meditation, Tai Chi, or just getting away to the beach. Your psychic energies are much stronger, and you are more open to exploring the deeper meanings of life. You are also beginning to rethink your current career path. This is a time when you will want something that is more interesting and mentally stimulating. You may want to do something on your own or if you are older, you may want to cut back and do something you really enjoy. Relationships will also need to be renewed as you set a new course for yourself. Toward the end of the month, you will feel more ready to act on the things you have been thinking about. It’s easier to spend money after the 6th!

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 23)

This should be a great month for career activities. After Mercury is direct on the 15th, this is a super time to be looking for a promotion, a new place to work, expanding your education to make you more qualified, and possibly starting something on your own. And this month is an especially great time to make positive impressions on others. Relationships can be both good and bad. On one level, you are clarifying your boundaries, so you don’t have to guess. While on the other hand, your patience is at an all time low with people who can’t get it! You are expecting them to be more self-responsible. In the later part of the month, social groups, business organizations and friends become

more important. You could take on a management role here to make the group more effective. Mars enters your sign for a 2-month visit. You are more active, more impatience, and more ready to stand up for yourself.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24–Nov. 21)

With Mercury retrograding through your career sector, you have been really rethinking your current career path and work choices. You have already been rethinking major portions of your life around family, moving, different career path, retirement, relationship stability, and being more real with those around you. After the 15th, you are ready to move forward on your plans and ideas. This continues to be a good time for travel, podcasting, and developing your presence on social media. Friends can be very helpful and supportive this month, but you will have to reach out and let them know you need help. Career and work energies improve toward the end of the month!

SAGITTARIUS (Nov.22–Dec.21)

This month there are big changes in your partnerships. You are looking for renewal, getting rid of those who are too demanding, and looking for people that are more open minded and living in the current century. Old partnerships are most impacted; however, it can be a great time of revival. And you are looking for real friendship in all of your partnerships. You are in a more relaxed mode as the month begins. This is a better time for visiting places in your past and connecting with friends from you past. Career activity continues

to be stronger toward the end of the month. Now that Mercury is direct on the 15th, this is the time to get your ideas and proposals out there. Your confidence level is strong. You are looking for something that you really connect with and isn’t just a function of life.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22–Jan. 19)

Home, family, where you are living, and working are all being impacted this month. With family, this is a time of change within the family hierarchy. Older folks could be retiring or passion on. You may the opportunity to take on the main role, but you are hoping that someone else does it! This can also be impacting where you life and where you work. You may want to do something on your own or if you are older, cut back and enjoy some neglected parts of your life. You can be cutting back, downsizing, and making your life more livable. Relationships are improving this month. You are attentive to your finances and debt. This is a good time for refinancing and consolidating debt. Toward the end of the month, you take some time to relax and enjoy where you are.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20–Feb. 18)

Partnerships are under review this month. You are being more outspoken and trying to eliminate unconscious habits that generate unnecessary drama in your affiliations. For favorable partnerships, this is a time of rejuvenation and stepping out of old habits. For difficult collaborations, you have to resolve the complications before you can move forward. You are

improving your work environment and relationships with your co-workers. You may be needing more space or an upgrade in your electronic equipment. After the 15th, this is a much better time to look for other employment or a part time gig. By the end of the month, you are looking at your finances, how to improve them, and get rid of your debt. For all Aquarians, this is a time when you are reviewing your interest and passions to make sure they still fit. Some will and some won’t, even if you aren’t ready to let go yet! Clear your path!

PISCES

(Feb. 19–Mar. 20)

There are big shifts in home and work for the mermaids and mermen. For some, this can be a time of retirement, starting something on your own, or even moving off the grid. You are ready to have more freedom and more freedom of choice in your life. Difficult partnerships or bosses can force you to take a new path. Your tolerance and your patience is lower with people that expect you to change to meet their needs. This can impact selfish partners as you push back! This is also a time to set new directions to bring some novel energy back into your union. You should be paying more attention to your health, especially around work. Tensions there could be taking their toll. And be sure to put some time for fun and play in your schedule. If you have children, this may be easier to be reminded of what fun and play is!!!

For more info, visit lillyroddyshow.com.

The Y2K Pop Star

Artemis Hunter is rocking a 2000s vibe.

By SAM BYRD

Artemis doesn’t just accept her status as Gen Z, she fully embraces it. And it’s also influenced her stage name. “I love early 2000s nostalgia. The Disney Channel has a movie, Twitches, that I have always been obsessed with. One of the characters in the movie is Alex/Artemis. She was the powerful night owl/moon character. Seeing how strong and powerful she was, I knew that name meant the world to me, and I later changed my drag name to become Artemis Hunter! Hunter refers to Artemis being the goddess of hunting.” Read on for more about one of Houston’s breakout stars.

Pronouns? She/Her

Hometown? San Antonio

Describe your outfit.

I chose this outfit because it mixes my Y2K aesthetic with political trans activism. It references Alexander McQueen, Olivia Rodrigo, and the transgender trans flag to reveal who I am and what I do when I’m onstage.

What got you interested in drag?

Honestly, since I was a teen I have had a dream of doing drag. A San Antonio performer named Miami Andrews inspired me to get into the art of drag. I’ve been following her for years, and she got me into becoming a bedroom queen in high school.

Describe your performing persona. I give you a little bit of everything. I’m sweet, sexy, and dancy with a little theater-girl twist! I’m super-confident in my moves, the way I carry myself on stage, and will definitely give you a show! I’d say the realm that I’m most comfortable in is early 2000s music.

Any titles or pageants under your belt? Season 2 winner of Persephone’s Game of Drag

What’s on your bucket list?

To go to Korea, to be on TV, and to live in Seattle.

Any plans for your hot-girl summer? Work, work, work! And continue my craft in drag and work at my day job at Stages as their production mentor.

Most memorable moment as a performer? My two most memorable moments so far would

have to be performing at the Kennedy Center in drag and producing my show at the MixMATCH festival at the MATCH in Midtown.

What’s your ultimate goal as a performer?

I have two overall goals: to create a safe environment for people to come and experience queer art/joy, and to have an avenue, as a trans woman of color, to have a space for me to feel my inner superstar while feeling safe in the space.

Describe your drag family.

I’m a part of the House of LaRue. Ever since I became a part of that house, I have experienced nothing but joy. I came into this city with absolutely no friends or connections, so to find my mother Persephone and the people around me, that mean so much to me. Getting to call them family as well has been amazing. They have helped me grow, and have given me so many opportunities while also still being there for me as a family would.

What would people be surprised to know about you?

That I am Mexican and Korean!

Any advice for up-and-coming performers?

Put in the work! It’s 100% okay if you don’t feel like you’re at your best. It’s all about growth. Make sure to put time and money into your craft and know that you will get back all of the effort you put into your art. Also, join a local competition. It helps you get visibility and will push you to work on your craft.

Who is your favorite drag character from the media? And why?

My favorite drag character from the media would have to be Mirage Amuro. She is an amazing performer, and I love her style.

What’s your must-have clothing accessory or prop?

Must-have accessory for me is definitely a headband. I wear toppers a lot, so 90% of the time I am wearing a headband. And I also can’t leave the house without my glitter spray.

Do you have any pets?

I have a cat named Emo! She is my child and, just like her name, she seems like she’s always mad but very sweet!

Follow Artemis Hunter @Artemis.the.doll on Instagram.

NOMINATIONS ROUND

FINALIST VOTING

Aug