a&e features
Former Avalon singer on coming out, getting ousted and where he is today
Michael Passons was founding member of CCM supergroup known for ‘Testify to Love’
Fans of the Christian pop group Avalon always wondered why founding member Michael Passons resigned abruptly in 2003 and then seemed to drop off the face of the earth.
There was talk of a solo album but none materialized. The official word was that he was “moving on to other things.”
The group had had a wildly successful run. Founded in the mid-’90s, Avalon released its self-titled debut album in 1996 on Sparrow and four more (“A Maze of Grace” in 1997, “In a Different Light” in 1999, “Joy: a Christmas Collection” in 2000 and “Oxygen” in 2001) as well as a hits collection with new material (“Testify to Love: the Very Best of Avalon”) in 2003 racking up 19 No. 1 singles on the Billboard gospel charts, two RIAA-certified gold albums, six Dove Awards, an American Music Award and three Grammy nominations.
Initially there was a blond male and female singer and a brunette male and female singer to round out the foursome in ways that were both visually and sonically appealing. There was regular turnover in one of the “female” slots but Passons, Janna (nee Potter) Long and Jody McBrayer formed the group’s backbone all through its early and most successful years.
After years of silence, in September, Passons came out as gay on Josh Skinner’s “Jonah and the Whale” podcast and said he was fired from the group for declining to continue with “reparative” therapy. The podcast generated significant media buzz and was aggregated in mainstream outlets like Billboard and People.
Though candid and forthcoming in the podcast, there was more to the story. Passons, a 54-year-old Yazoo City, Miss., native, was chatty and candid in a 45-minute phone interview from his Nashville home on working in the CCM (contemporary Christian music) bubble, hiding his sexuality for so many years, why he opted to come out now and about the Dove Award he nabbed from Whitney Houston at the 1998 ceremony. His comments have been slightly edited for length.
WASHINGTON BLADE: It was great to hear the podcast. It felt like you’d just kinda vanished.
MICHAEL PASSONS: I understand that people would see it that way because you’re just kind of out of the public eye when you’re not making music, not putting music out and doing interviews, and I had not done any of that pretty much in 17 years. And I didn’t really expect this podcast to get the attention that it did get. It was a bit of a surprise to me that there was so much of an interest in a 17-year-old story.
BLADE: Why did it feel like now was the right time? How did it come about?
PASSONS: It wasn’t some calculated move, I was approached by a friend who introduced me to Josh Skinner who has a podcast Jonah and the Whale and said would you like to be a guest? This particular podcast deals with an underwater moment in your life and I had previously had conversations with my family just a couple months earlier, just about my life and the truth of my life so I thought, “Well now is the perfect time,” so it really wasn’t planned out far in advance. An opportunity landed in my lap and I decided to tell the story.
BLADE: Had you been approached before?
PASSONS: Well, I’ve been pretty under the radar. I’ve been traveling the last 15 years with another Christian group, but only in the band. I play keys for Point of Grace. I wanted to keep my foot in the water … but I didn’t want to be the front guy … so I really hadn’t been approached by journalists at all until now.
BLADE: You tell in the podcast about how they came to your house for a meeting in 2003 and this all came to a head. How had they known you were gay in the first place? What led up to that meeting?
PASSONS: Well at that point I was 38 years old, I wasn’t married, I wasn’t dating, (so) rumors begin to swirl when you have that type of scenario and we had discussions about it several years before. So that’s when … they said to me I needed to go to therapy. It really was in 2002 that they wanted me to go to reparative therapy or at least go see a counselor or some guy who said his credentials were counseling gay people. So I did that to appease them but I knew it was a fruitless effort, and as I say in the podcast, that didn’t last very long. I told them I wasn’t going back to that. It had been a conversation for about a year or so before 2003.
BLADE: Did you have a pretty good relationship with them otherwise?
PASSONS: Well over the course of the eight years we were traveling together, I saw those people more than anyone else. Our schedule was so demanding and we toured almost nonstop. … So we did at the time have this family-type relationship but … groups often have a shorter shelf life than solo artists because there are multiple people with multiple goals and aspirations and so unless all four of us aligned, there were always going to be these times where one wants to do a solo deal or they think we should do this or go in this direction and so we kind of started growing apart in our vision. Jody and Janna wanted to do solo records and I thought that was something that was going to fracture the group and our brand and that did cause some tensions because the other two members really wanted to focus our efforts on the Avalon brand because that’s what was familiar to everyone. So over the years we became not as close and then of course you add something like this which kind of draws a line and you have to choose what side of the line you’re going to be on.
BLADE: Bear with me a sec, but I’m going to read you Jody’s quote to CCM Magazine in April, 2004 when he said: “We had a meeting at Michael’s house one day and he told us he was going to move on to other things. We sat and cried and felt like the rug had been pulled out from under us. Things had felt great with the new group and Michael seemed to get along and blend vocally with (then-new member) Melissa (Greene) really well. But Michael had been with us from the beginning and just felt it was time for him to do something else. It’s weird but since his departure, it seems everyone is looking for some scandalous thing to have happened there. It makes me just want to say, ‘Look, I’m sorry to disappoint you that we don’t have some juicy gossip or ‘Dynasty’ episode happening here.” Based on what you shared in the podcast, that was a gross mischaracterization of how it went down. Did you read that at the time? How did it make you feel?
PASSONS: At the time the record label and management held really right reins on us because they created the group, it was their idea. They wanted to find a group that was already in existence that was two guys, two girls. They couldn’t do it so they said, “Let’s just put one together,” so we never felt like we had ownership of much. … So when management and label say, “This is what you are to say,” it became kind of like a bullshit fest at that point. You just gotta stick with the story and that’s what Jody was doing, he was sticking with the story he was told to say. … That was just the way they chose to handle it at the time. … Interestingly enough, Jody reached out to me after the podcast aired and we had not really talked in 17 years other than bumping into each other in a restaurant and saying a quick hello. We met for about an hour we met at a park here in Nashville and just walked around and he apologized profusely and said his heart was broken when he was listening to that podcast. He was very sincere and I accepted what he had to say and I feel like our relationship has actually — there was some definite closure there as far as what I’d been feeling all of these years and so that was a good thing that came out of this and I’m glad he reached out to me.
The Blade invited McBrayer to comment. In response to the question, “Did you feel muzzled by the label?” he sent this response: “Absolutely muzzled. However I would have never ever said anything to hurt Michael’s reputation. We were asked for years about what happened and myself and my family refused to say anything that would put Michael in a bad light. We were given a statement and told to go with it. We did everything we were told at the time. … Michael knows I love him and hate how all of it went down and how he was treated by the industry. I’m so thankful he’s happy and grown beyond it all now. I will continue to protect him. He will always be family.”
BLADE: Was there any truth to what they were saying? Had you been considering a solo album?
PASSONS: No. I know my strengths and my strength was not as a solo artist. … I enjoyed the team mentality of a group. … I think fans and people outside the industry took the press release at face value but people inside the industry heard pretty quickly what had really happened. Gossip and rumors spread really quickly around Nashville so I just thought, “OK, I’m gonna just start life No. 3 here.” (chuckles)
BLADE: A few other big CCM artists eventually came out like Jennifer Knapp and Ray Boltz. Did you follow that or ever compare notes with them?
PASSONS: I don’t know either of those artists personally. I’ve never really interacted with them. I think we did a show once with Jennifer years and years ago but it was just mainly, “Hello, nice to meet you.” I applaud them for living their best life and telling their truth but I just never felt like mine was necessarily a story that needed to be told. I wasn’t a solo artist. I would get recognized occasionally. People would say, “Oh, you’re that guy who was in that group,” but I would say 80 percent of fans just knew me as the blond guy. So I didn’t feel like I had tons of name recognition or that my story mattered. But in the last few years, I wanted to be more truthful with my family so that’s really where all this came out of.
BLADE: Did anybody else from your CCM days reach out besides Jody?
PASSONS: I’ve received tons of texts and Instagram messages from friends from home, friends from college, fans, strangers. As far as the industry, some people that I haven’t seen in a while. It was very interesting. Amy Grant texted me and told me she listened and thought my story was beautiful in the way I told it and graceful and I appreciated that. Susan Ashton reached out and I haven’t seen her in years. She was very encouraging. She said, “You are seen and heard and loved.” Everything has been overwhelmingly positive.
BLADE: Did you get to know the other artists very well or have much interaction on the multi-artist tours you did like “Emmanuel” or “My Utmost”?
PASSONS: Yeah, we had a lot of time to just hang out, especially on the bus. You’re traveling late at night and everyone’s wired so you’re staying up and visiting. But we were really new artists at that time and we were thrown into a mix of all of these people that were our mentors, our heroes. We were fans of theirs and now we’re all of a sudden peers, just because of how Avalon came together. Our very first tour before we even sang a note on a record was “Young Messiah” in ’95. We had just come together weeks before and just had enough time to record one Christmas song so that we could sing that song on that tour and there we were next to 4 HIM and Point of Grace and Steven Curtis Chapman and Larnelle Harris and that was mind-blowing to be with all these great artists. But yes, everyone was very welcoming had lots of encouragement for us and advice and I actually really enjoyed those tours.
BLADE: I saw you guys once with Twila Paris. What was she like?
PASSONS: That was our first tour (the “Where I Stand Tour” in 1997). We did Young Messiah that Christmas and then we did our record, then we toured with Twila. We were definitely getting our feet wet just seeing how this industry was going to work … how we were gonna mesh as a group because we were thrown on stage and we had to find our blend. Live, It’s one thing to be in the studio and be mixed and blended but to sing live, the Twila Paris tour was really just where we began to hone our craft as a group and so yeah, that was wonderful. I had many good experiences wth that tour. We dd a spring tour and a fall tour with Twila and it was a long tour but we definitely leaned a lot.
BLADE: Is there anybody in CCM who struck you as markedly different from their public persona?
PASSONS: I feel like everyone would be a little different than what you perceive them to be because you only see a very structured view of them by the PR department of the record label. I really enjoyed getting to know Sandi Patty because when you listen to her music, you just don’t pick up on the edge that she has. She has this great sense of humor that’s a little edgy. I don’t know, my image of Sandi Patty was that she was always walking around in some state of meditation or sitting around in a prayer circle because when you’re growing up you just think of someone in such a reverent way because you respected their music so much and she was just she a cut up, she kidded around, she invited us to her home in Indiana at that point just to hang out with her family and I just I enjoyed seeing a whole different side of her. She’s a very strong personality, a strong woman and listening and singing along with her records, it was just good to see the other side of her.
BLADE: What have you been living on all these years?
PASSONS: I play for Point of Grace and also a friend of mine in town, an attorney and I actually work with her in her law practice and of course being friends with the boss, you can leave anytime and so I’m free to travel whenever I need to and want to so that allows me to hang out with Point of Grace and go where they go. 2020 has been interesting. Since March, we’ve only had two shows and they were very small, so it’s been really interesting year for sure.
BLADE: What denomination did you grow up in?
PASSONS: Southern Baptist. A little country church in Mississippi.
BLADE: Are there still elements of Baptist or evangelical theology you struggle with? Queer or otherwise?
PASSONS: I’m past struggling with it. Of course, it’s something I think about often but I don’t struggle with it any longer. … I’ve definitely got a different view of spiritualism. I don’t consider myself religious but I do believe in God and so I do have a spiritual life but it just doesn’t involve organized religion and that’s just where I’ve landed.
BLADE: But do you still believe the Christianity basics — Jesus died for our sins and rose on the third day and so on or is it a broader thing for you?
PASSONS: It’s a broader spiritual thing and like I said in my previous interview, I’m just in this place of my prayer to God is show me what is true. I’m not gonna close my mind to anything, I’m not going to say, “Oh this is what I was taught and I don’t believe that anymore,” I just want to step back and rebuild all those boxes, rebuild what my spirituality is, kind of like just implode it to ground level and let’s start again. I was taught by very well-intended people. All my Sunday School teachers in that little church, they didn’t have any malice, they were well-intended people teaching what they believed. We were spoon fed, so at some point in your life you have to just decide of all that information you took in, what do you really believe? I had to get to the point where I was OK disagreeing and not believing some of the things I was taught. it wasn’t disrespectful to those people, I just have to find my own way.
BLADE: Do you think the conservative, white evangelical world will ever become openly accepting of LGBT people? Is it a lost cause or could it be a whole different story in another generation?
PASSONS: I think there is hope. I’ve seen so much progress in Christian circles just in my lifetime that I never thought I would see. It’s pockets, it’s not widespread, but … I think there is hope. A lot of things used to be justified with scripture that they eventually came around on. (Author) Peter Gomes calls it “the last prejudice of the church.” … After I left, Avalon recorded a song called “Orphans of God,” which I thought was interesting that they were singing it because I was definitely an outcast to them. But now my friend (out country singer) Ty Herndon and Kristen Chenoweth are going to cover it for a Christmas release as a duet and they asked Melissa Greene and I to sing backing vocals on it so now it will take on a whole new meaning. It was a really nice, full circle moment.
BLADE: Did you keep up with what Avalon was doing much after you were kicked out?
PASSONS: No. It would have put me in a bad headspace.
BLADE: Have you had many boyfriends? Are you in a relationship now?
PASSONS: I am. I’m with a wonderful guy now and it’s going well.
BLADE: Not married though?
PASSONS: No, not married (laughs).
BLADE: How long was it before you were comfortable dating guys?
PASSONS: It took me a while, because when all that went down, I internalized a lot of things and I thought, “Well this is my fault,” type of thing. It really took many years for me to just work through all the junk and work through that cloud in my head and so it wasn’t like some big unleashing. It wasn’t like I left Avalon and just started living my best life, it definitely took awhile to repair the hurt that happened from those several years when Avalon was ending and all the things I went through at that point.
BLADE: Do you know of other LGBT people in CCM who are not out?
PASSONS: Yeah, I do. I feel for them because I know that panicky feeling I used to have, that someone might catch on. … But I think a lot of conservative Christians might be naive as to how many people are gay or bi in their church. You learn from a very early age to be a good actor.
BLADE: Who was your favorite Avalon producer to work with?
PASSONS: Brown Bannister produced most of the records when I was in the group. He’s, you know, such an icon in our industry and I have so much reverence for him and so much respect, so it was an honor to work with him. He actually brought out the best in me. There was something about just his people skills and he was just so kind and thoughtful in how he spoke with you and guided you through the recording process. He just took the time, even just to find the right microphone for me, because the mic in the studio can make a world of difference. I remember going through five or six mics before we found the right one. A lot of producers are just like, “OK let’s get this going, all right that’s great on to the next one.” He just took time to make it right and I appreciated that.
BLADE: How long did it take to make those albums on average?
PASSONS: When it came time to record, we would try to just block off weeks where we would just go in there and do vocals, vocals, vocals vocals and really mainly weekdays because we would go out on the weekends and do one-off, you know, weekend dates here and there. So we wouldn’t obviously do a new record in the midst of a tour because we’d want to tour the new record but during our one-offs we would get in there and try to get in it done and probably over the course of a month and a half, two months, we would have everything done.
BLADE: How involved were you all with the vocal arrangements? I always loved that outro and all those layers on “We Are the Reason,” for instance. How did you come up with all those intricate lines?
PASSONS: We had a great vocal vocal producer named Michael Mellett and he had been a studio singer in Nashville a long time and had toured with Billy Joel as a background singer. He would come in and help arrange our parts and he was amazing at it. And I remember he did work on our Christmas record and I remember that outro those alternate melodies that he helped us come up with, I loved that too. I felt like that really updated the song. It’s interesting because when we did it it was 20 years old and now it’s been 20 years since we did it, so it needs to be done again now. But it was my favorite song growing up. I used to sing it with an accompaniment tape at my little country church when I was a kid.
BLADE: Yeah, I love it too. Did (songwriter) David Meece ever say anything after you guys cut it?
PASSONS: Indirectly. I think he might have said something to Brown but we heard that he liked it.
BLADE: Who’s a celebrity who would exemplify your type?
PASSONS: (laughs) My type, wow. I’m definitely attracted to someone who is confident but not cocky, someone who has sensitivity but is not overly sensitive, someone who’s just confident in themselves, that’s a big attraction to me. If I were to throw out a celebrity I see a lot of those qualities in, and maybe I’m wrong, but someone like Bradley Cooper.
BLADE: Did you guys in Avalon have any say in choosing singles?
PASSONS: We were included in conversations but I feel like ultimately the label got what they wanted. There’s one little battle that we won and in retrospect not just one, but I just remember this instance, where the label disagreed with us about what we should call our second record and had we listened to the label, we probably would have sold a lot more. They wanted us to call it “Testify to Love” and we had no idea when we were naming the record and about to release it that that would be the one song that Avalon would be known for or that it be our biggest song ever. We thought “A Maze of Grace” was such a clever title. They disagreed but they let us do what we wanted. But who knew “Testify to Love” would become such a huge song for us?
BLADE: Was (Sparrow president) Bill Hearn around much?
PASSONS: We would see him periodically and even his father Billy Ray, who started the company, they’re both deceased now, but they were very approachable. They weren’t always in our meetings because we were more with A&R and publicity and stylists but when they were around, they were very approachable, very hands on.
BLADE: When you win a Dove Award, did you each get one or just one for the group?
PASSONS: At the ceremony, just one is given but then they mail three more to you like a month later.
BLADE: Where do you keep yours?
PASSONS: I have a little study/office that I’m sitting in right now. I just have them on a shelf along with some pictures and mementos and things I like to keep out. The interesting story about one our Dove Awards is our first Dove Award for new artist of the year and that was in 1998 I believe, and we got new artist of the year at the 29th Dove Awards and that was the year that Whitney Houston performed with Dottie Rambo … and we were backstage after we won doing a press junket so I missed her performance and I’m a huge Whitney Houston fan, like I would rival anyone else saying they’re a huge Whitney Houston fan. (laughs) She’s pretty much my all-time favorite artist. So after the show some press people wanted to take a photo of Whitney holding a Dove Award. She didn’t have one so Jody was standing close by with his and they said, “Can we have your Dove Award for a picture,” and so Whitney took our Dove Award and had her picture made with it and of course that was the only one we got that night and our manager said, “OK I’m gonna take that to the office and hold it ’til the others come in and you all can come by and pick them up,” and so before he could get to it, I got that particular one and took a Sharpie and made a mark on the bottom of it and the day that our manager said, “OK you can come by and pick up the Dove Awards they’re all in,” I was first one in there and I picked them all up and looked for the one I made the mark on because I wanted the one that Whitney had held. So I’m holding it right now, I’ve got that one in my hand and I always think of Whitney.
BLADE: Who were your favorite CCM acts growing up? Or did you listen to more pop?
PASSONS: I listened to a lot of pop and and country. My family is from a rural Mississippi town so country music was really most of what was on the radio and I love that old ’70s country. I still listen to it just because it has a lot of good memories. But I didn’t really know there was such a thing as CCM other than, you know, like Bill and Gloria Gaither-type stuff until I was in high school and someone handed me a tape of “Age to Age” by Amy Grant and that just lit a fire in me like I had no idea this type of thing existed, this is what I want to do. And of course I’ve just been I was a fan of Amy Grant from that day on and she was definitely a huge influence in the way I would sing music, the way I would write music, I would listen to interviews of her and I would just — she was a great teacher in that respect of just knowing how to respond to questions, how to react to people, just her demeanor, how she handled herself, she was definitely a role model.
BLADE: So that must have been mind-blowing to work with her producer (Brown Bannister) all those years later.
PASSONS: Yeah, definitely. And then her text last week, yeah, that was a nice moment.
BLADE: Why didn’t the more progressive Christian denominations ever have their own version of CCM? There are a few fledgling queer gospel singers out there but nothing like the machine that CCM was. Maybe they didn’t care as much if their kids listened to Metallica or whatever?
PASSONS: I think your theory might hold some weight, just that the conservative Christians were looking for an alternative for them and their families to listen to. One thing I think there probably wouldn’t have been a market in the liberal circles to sustain the industry, they wouldn’t have purchased the CDs and the music. It was the conservatives who made this a business and the Christian music business is a business. You have to be making money to be in CCM, that’s the dichotomy that I’ve always wrestled with. CCM depended on Becky, and I’ll tell you who Becky is. Becky is the pseudonym for their target audience. So any meeting we were in, it was always asked, “What would Becky buy, would Becky like this song?” And Becky is a 20-, 30- or 40-something conservative Christian female and she was the target audience because she was the ones buying the CDs and the tapes and downloading the music and so I think that’s maybe why the conservative church has kind of a market on CCM music.
BLADE: Is she related to Karen?
PASSONS: (laughs) That’s funny. If they’re not related, they’re probably best friends.
BLADE: When your bandmates came to your house that day, did it feel like it was coming from a place of love and concern or did it feel like a power play? Like they were trying to oust you?
PASSONS: It did feel like a power play. There were some very complicated personalities in the group and so it definitely — I did not feel much love that day.
BLADE: To me, it was like when Florence got kicked out of the Supremes. They could go on and do whatever they want, but without Florence, it wasn’t the Supremes. Without you, it wasn’t Avalon. The one female singer didn’t matter so much because she always changed. That was like the new season of “Charlie’s Angels,” you always knew she would change. But when you left, it was never the same.
PASSONS: I appreciate that, I’ve heard several say that and it’s always good to know that my contribution is something that was missed.
a&e features
Discord Addams wants you to say ‘F**k This!’
The ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ alum speaks about her new show and the importance of authenticity.
Discord Addams is a queen of many talents, as any fan who watched her run on RuPaul’s Drag Race season 18 will tell you.
The Florida-based drag queen pumped into this historic program ready to make a mark on the competition. Rocking her trademark ‘high fashion punk rock maximalist’ aesthetic and entertaining viewers with her biting personality (along with a…questionable runway walk), Discord spent each episode turning out not only astounding fashion but hard truths. The performer made it clear early on that she was never scared of sharing her genuine opinions with anyone who would listen. Whether it was judges on the runway or her fellow competitors in the werkroom, Addams always paired her punk rock kindness with a style of harsh sincerity that entertained audiences to no end. When she finished the season in sixth place, there was a whole new slew of fans ready to hear whatever hard truths Discord was ready to spill next.
And, luckily, they didn’t have to wait long. Because WOW Presents Plus recognized that thousands of new fans were still desperate to hear the style of unabashed candor that Discord brought to season 18. And now, with her new series on the platform, F**k This! With Discord Addams, this punk fan-favorite gets to give her audience the one thing they now know to always expect from her: brutal honesty.
“I felt like I was the star of season 18 — you know, whether I won or not,” laughed Addams, as she described what a whirlwind experience of going from a Drag Race contestant to host of her own series. “Getting to have my own show, where I get to talk about literally whatever the fuck I want to talk about, it just…it feels right.” F**k This! takes a relatively simple premise but spices it up with Discord’s ruthless style of candor; each episode sees her sit down in a completely demolished set and rant to the camera about a poignant topic, ranging from fast fashion to the horrific rise of AI. These dialogues are occasionally interrupted by Discord taking calls from her audience about their issues, with the Queen delivering genuinely insightful thoughts on whatever tenuous concept is presented to her.
Discord spoke about how this commitment to complete honesty was passed down to her from her parents, folks who understood the importance of telling their truth. “There was nobody censoring me growing up, so I think it was a natural progression into my standing up for what I feel is right.” It’s this mindset that has led Discord to become one of the most vocal advocates of the entire Drag Race franchise; even before her casting on the show, Addams used her social media to share community resources and speak out against injustices taking place all over the world. This has only increased since her time on season 18, with Addams using the new popularity this show has brought her to speak even more about corrupt politicians, the dangers of ICE, modern-day war criminals, and more.
Addams brings a refreshing willingness to speak about these hard topics that is unfortunately rare in today’s entertainment landscape. In an industry where, sadly, a performer speaking about social issues can hurt their career, Discord makes it clear that her punk nature doesn’t stop at her clothes. She embodies the roots of this subculture, one that began as an affront to modern fascism and has always been meant to challenge the discrimination that too many people take as a given in society. Addams is proud that she’s never silenced herself in order to ‘get ahead’ professionally…and she wishes that more of her fellow queens would do the same.
“I think a lot of the Drag Race girls in the past kind of teetered on a line of what they felt they were or were not allowed to say,” stressed Discord, calling out the many performers who haven’t used their platforms to discuss social issues. “I think there are a lot of drag queens who just censor themselves or like present themselves a certain way that they think is more palatable…people can sense authenticity, and they can also sense when you’re fucking lying to them.”
It’s an issue that has plagued the Drag Race fandom for years, though it isn’t entirely the queens’ fault; online bullying has become so horrific that many contestants are scared that by expressing themselves on the show, they’re inviting torrents of digital hate from so-called ‘fans.’ Yet while this is a valid fear — and something that this fandom desperately needs to work on — Discord reminds everyone through her drag that you don’t succeed by being a fake version of yourself. By refusing to speak about these issues, her fellow queens are hurting the movement and making it so that any success they may seem to have is built on lying to themselves and everyone around them.
It’s a twisted form of ‘winning’ that Discord completely detests, and it’s why she hopes her show, along with being an avenue to express her many feelings, is a lesson on authenticity for everyone watching.
Because while F**k This! Is thoroughly entertaining — it’s hilarious watching how eloquently Addams combines some of the most vile curse words — it is also a genuine lesson on the importance of honesty today. These concepts are ones that Addams struggles with in her own life and that she knows the people watching do as well. Each is selected because she knows they’ll resonate with those watching, and through hilarious rants and some sickening makeup, Discord hopes to use her own voice on these topics to help others do the same.
This is Discord Addams’ true goal with F**k This!: to not only entertain audiences but show them how empowering it is to be completely honest today. And whether you’re a new viewer or one of her longtime fans, Discord has just one lesson she hopes you take away from her new program: “If you’re being your most true, your most authentic self, you’re going to also bring in the most authentic [community]. You’re going to create a circle of people that genuinely want to hear what you have to say — instead of playing a bullshit character.”
F**k This! is now streaming on WOW Presents Plus
a&e features
How JP Karliak brings queer power to ‘X-Men ’97’
The voice actor speaks about voicing the MCU’s first nonbinary superhero.
Rarely have we seen a fierce comic book squad-up of LGBTQ+ icons like the X-Men.
Originating in Marvel comics, for decades now, the team’s millions of fans have watched their stories play out both in print and on the silver screen. Thousands of narratives — with even more astounding characters — that offer thrilling adventures, as well as poignant lessons on what discrimination looks like today. Because despite what some Marvel fans may have you believe, these stories about a class of people being disenfranchised by a bigoted society have always been allegories for the discrimination faced by real-life communities. Combine this with its many queer and queer-coded members, and it’s no wonder that LGBTQ+ fans were ecstatic when it was announced that the team’s original series, X-Men: The Animated Series, was being rebooted for Disney+ in 2025.
These viewers were thrilled to once again watch their favorite team of super-powered mutants fight bad guys with campy flair. But when the reboot, X-Men ’97, was released, LGBTQ+ fans were shocked to learn it would also feature the first nonbinary character in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe! Morph, the shapeshifting, wise-cracking mutant from the original series, would return to not only fight villainy but also provide vital representation for millions of nonbinary audience members. And when creating such a monumental figure for this version of the team, X-Men ’97’s creators knew there was only one voice actor who could do the superhero justice: JP Karliak.
“As a kid, I was a huge fan of animated shows like He-Man and Batman: The Animated Series. I was so enamored with voice acting, I felt it couldn’t be a real job!” Laughed Karliak, as they spoke with the Los Angeles Blade to celebrate X-Men ’97’s recent season two premiere. It’s the latest project in their jaw-dropping career; whether it’s voicing the titular professional in Boss Baby: Back in Business or a saucy trophy in video game Date Everything!, Karliak can be heard in many hit franchises. They’ve become known for the tonal whimsy they bring into every role, a trademark talent that has made JP one of the voice acting industry’s top queer actors.
Karliak emphasized how honored they are for this title — especially because of the many issues this industry still has with its LGBTQ+ performers. “There’s a narrow-mindedness in so much of the voice industry that it’s like, ‘Okay, well, we can only let you play this particular thing,’” they explained. “But also just a [person’s] transness shouldn’t determine that they can only voice trans roles or only voice nonbinary roles! In the same way we’ve seen so many cis straight people play cis-het roles, letting queer people play the majority roles only helps us to build long-lasting careers — because there’s no way to do it if we’re only playing queer roles.”
It’s a unique set of issues further complicated by the many problems all voice actors face today, ranging from the rise of AI to big studios’ harmful underpayment practices. It’s because of this that JP established QueerVox, a nonprofit that provides aspiring queer voice performers with the training they need while connecting them with the roles they deserve. From communal job boards to free classes to networking events that help LGBTQ+ artists connect, Karliak spoke proudly of all they’ve done to help make this industry more accessible for all.
Presented with a performer who excels not only in talent but in making a difference, it’s no wonder that the X-Men ’97 team thought JP Karliak would be the perfect voice for Morph! Although the character definitely had a darker backstory than the actor’s usual roles, X-Men: The Animated Series saw Morph turn from the team’s comic relief into the brainwashed henchman of their most sickening villain. This led to the mutant spending much of their original time on the show in recovery, traumatized from having their autonomy ripped from them in a narrative that resonated so deeply with LGBTQ+ fans. Karliak was thrilled to bring back Morph to hopefully give them the joy they deserved, and they were happy to be doing so with the character — one who literally shifts constantly between gender identities — finally using they/them pronouns.
“Knowing from the get-go that this was going to be a nonbinary character now, and as identifying as gender queer myself…I felt so much kinship with this character,” explained JP, as they spoke about how it felt to embody Morph through their voice. “It felt like as long as I was being true to myself, I was doing the character a service.”
It’s a truth that comes through in every line, with JP’s mischievous yet resounding performance style showing in every moment Morph is onscreen. They recognized that this would be one of the first examples of a nonbinary person that viewers would see in animation and wanted to do them justice, saying, “Giving nonbinary characters [like Morph] the ability to be serious, to experience loss and pain, to experience joy — all aspects of humanity! And to not just be relegated to one narrow band of the human experience…it’s just so important.”
This interview took place on the day that it was announced X-Men ’97 would be returning for seasons three and four, which meant fans can expect more years of Morph shapeshifting across their screens. Karliak was ecstatic at this news, and when asked what they hope to explore in these new installments with the character, they said, “In season one, Morph was a less confident version of me, because Morph was really just trying to find where they belonged and feeling accepted, having just rejoined this team and not really knowing what the dynamic was…I think season two finds them much more confident, much more akin to where I find myself, personality-wise. They don’t feel that they always have to use humor to break the tension.”
“So much of Morph’s journey has been dominated by victimization and trauma and so much hurt. I’d love to see them just experience some joy and find friendships and relationships that are really fun, and fulfilling, and beautiful.”
It’s a future for the character that many of their fans hope to see as well. And, luckily for them all, with a talent like JP Karliak voicing the nonbinary mutant, chances are they’ll be getting just that — and so, so much more.
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Lupercio Media turns influencing into advocacy
Founder Carlo Lupercio speaks about helping marginalized creators today
In a digital landscape where social media reigns supreme, few industries are as profitable — or as risky — as the influencer economy.
Becoming an influencer has transformed from a side hobby into a legitimate profession, one that generates millions every year. And that’s putting it lightly; low estimates of profit derived from influencers in 2025 currently sit at 30 million dollars. Whether it be corporations making online celebrities a major part of their marketing or certain users getting paid thousands of dollars for a single post, it’s undeniable that influencers hold power within our often unstable economy.
Which is why the industry’s bias against marginalized creators is so deeply unfortunate.
The bigoted rhetoric that fills many parts of modern society has always (sadly) infected our digital world. It’s an issue that has only grown in recent years, with a combination of hateful users and predatory algorithms making it insurmountably harder for diverse influencers to find their audience online. It’s a harmful trend that continues to stifle the queer voices so many people need to hear right now, and it’s something that Carlo Lupercio fights against through his agency, Lupercio Management.
“We represent specifically Latin as well as LGBTQIA+ creators — creators that are not traditionally represented to the full capacity,” explained Lupercio when he sat down to speak with the Los Angeles Blade. “I serve as their partner but also as their manager, and really am just amplifying and helping them achieve the goals that they want to achieve as creators.” Carlo brings a personal passion to this work; before founding this agency, he worked in influencer marketing for many well-known brands. And it was through these experiences that he learned the term that companies use to keep our communities out of the spotlight: ‘brand safe.’
“There is this stigma of some brands where what is okay for a White gay creator may not be okay for a Brown or Black creator,” Carlo explained. “As a creator, you want to be authentic. You want to show your [truest] self to the internet, because that’s the way that people will follow you…but oftentimes, a brand does not see that as ‘brand safe.’” He detailed the many times he saw this term used against queer and POC influencers, with executives using it as a method of catering to the potential anger of the hateful parts of their audiences.
Carlo got a firsthand look at this phenomenon and how it left many talented people without the opportunities they needed in this cutthroat industry. It made him passionate about fighting against these discriminations to create a way for influencers of any identity to have an equal shot at success — and so, Lupercio Media was born.
Lupercio Media serves as a comprehensive resource for its clients, with each one belonging to a marginalized community (identities that would make many other agencies ignore them completely). Carlo outlined how he works daily with these creatives to understand their dreams and develop plans on how to attain them, helping them in countless ways, ranging from establishing their image to securing brand deals. But beyond these professional duties, Lupercio stressed that he also serves as a personal cheerleader for each of these diverse clients, saying, “There’s obviously the job component — but I am also their partner. I find out who they are as a person outside of [being an influencer]…when you’re working with talent, they’re still people at the end of the day. So really getting to know them personally is a huge role of mine as a manager.”
“I think it’s important for [influencers] to create content that shows who they are…because it’ll only inspire the next person,” emphasized Carlo. “It’ll open up more opportunities, and it will show brands that this is a large demographic in society that they just cannot ignore — despite everything that is going on in the world. Because LGBTQIA+ people are here. They’re present. And they are not going anywhere.”
And that is at the heart of Lupercio Media: the knowledge that managing these people not only helps their careers but also the LGBTQ+ community as a whole. Because social media is growing every single day! And queer users, especially young ones, are constantly searching for people with their identities who show them that they can succeed as their most authentic selves — even if there are many people today telling them they can’t.
Because of the influencer industry’s discriminatory practices, many of these folks searching for inspiration have been historically left wanting. But through Lupercio Media, Carlo works hard to not only give marginalized creatives a platform but also to make sure that everyone has someone they can look up to online.
It may sound laughable to the many folks who still write off influencers and the power they hold. But Lupercio Media recognizes the strength of these individuals and how they can serve as true models of success for countless underserved communities today. Carlo Lupercio works tirelessly to ensure that any creator, no matter their identity, has what they need to offer their followers the representation they need — and all while securing some pretty sweet brand deals along the way.
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The Queer Film Collective makes your favorite movies possible
This LA-based nonprofit unveils its brand new panel series and talks all things film industry.
If we want queer artists to succeed, then there need to be systems that support them.
Unfortunately, providing free resources to aspiring artists hasn’t always been America’s priority. This is even more blatant for marginalized creators; while the U.S. has rarely offered artistic programs the funding they deserve, recent years have seen countless conservative attacks against most kinds of LGBTQ+ creativity. But despite these institutional and social roadblocks, queer creatives have always persisted! No matter what era of film and television we’re in, it’s heartening to watch so many creators fighting to not only make their own projects but also make it easier for other marginalized artists to do the same.
In a city as vibrant as Los Angeles, there are luckily dozens of groups helping to platform underserved filmmakers today. These organizations fight to create a film industry where truly anyone can thrive, and nowhere is that work more visible than within the Queer Film Collective.
Growing from a small networking group into a thriving nonprofit, the Queer Film Collective (QFC) serves as a resource hub for LGBTQ+ directors, actors, and all film and TV professionals in Los Angeles. The LA Blade spoke with QFC’s founder, Ray Taylor, about how important the group’s work is today, emphasizing how it’s more important than ever that we support the people making inclusive media possible. He spoke about the impact of this representation, the experience of trying to create LGBTQ+ films in our current political environment, and, when discussing QFC’s exciting new Summer Panel Series, how he’s excited to foster an LA film industry that gives queer filmmakers the respect they deserve.
“We’re doing everything we can to make it so filmmakers can make their films,” explained Taylor, as he described the whirlwind process his past year with QFC has been. “The Queer Film Collective is a nonprofit that provides resources, opportunities, and education. We focus on four pillars: connect, collaborate, create, celebrate, and our main focus is making it easier for films to be made.” It’s an important mission for not only queer filmmakers but creators in general! The past few decades have seen big studios grow more reluctant to give new creatives a chance (or offer livable wages to the many workers who make their projects possible). And while recent years have shown that not only original ideas but also small creators are essential to improving the film industry, it’s been extremely disheartening to see that this hasn’t changed today.
Ray, an accomplished film director, spoke about how the QFC was created in opposition to this unfortunate phenomenon. He organized the group’s first official meet-up — a small get-together of only a few dozen people — as a space for folks to share advice about navigating this tenuous profession while queer. “The more I talked to people, the more I realized they wanted resources, they wanted opportunities, they wanted to get on sets,” he reminisced. “So I threw together a pitch deck, and I said, ‘All right, here’s my five-year plan. We’re going to become a nonprofit.’ And in January of this year, we got our official 501c3 status, and that five-year plan is now thrown out the window — because everything that was on it has already happened in the first six months of our being alive.”
The Queer Film Collective couldn’t have arrived at a better time because, as Taylor is quick to remind anyone who will listen, inclusive media has always been key in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights. The man stressed, “It’s really important to focus on telling these stories that allow queer people to just be seen as people — they’re just everyday people! They experience joy; they experience heartbreak…I think that it’s really important to normalize seeing queer people in media, because the more normal that you see queer people in media, the more normal you will see queer people in life.” And while we’ve been lucky to see allies create inclusive media, Taylor emphasized that it’s only by uplifting queer filmmakers that we ensure this industry continues to make media that our communities can find themselves within.
Whether it be community meet-ups, their constantly evolving job board, or the organization’s constant spotlights on queer projects and individuals, every aspect of the QFC helps create the onscreen representation that so many people need to see. And while each of these facets is integral to the group’s work, Ray has never been more excited for the upcoming resource they’ll be providing LGBTQ+ filmmakers: The QFC Summer Panel Series.
“I wanted an event that we get to do every year, and whatever that is, I wanted it to be impactful,” raved Taylor, as he excitedly described how he and other QFC leadership initially thought of the series. He spoke at length about the many industry professionals they’re honored to have join these panels and, in a shocking rarity for educational opportunities in film, how all of the conversations will eventually be uploaded completely free online. “The conversations that we chose this year we felt were really important because we’re starting our panel series with a whole conversation about queer joy and telling stories beyond trauma, and we’re ending our panel series on a on a panel that’s talking about how to create art in today’s political climate…all of these are hot topics right now, and I think that they need to be told. And I think not only do queer filmmakers need to hear this, but everyone needs to hear.”
As the interview came to an end, it was obvious how ecstatic Ray was to talk about the Summer Panel Series and invite everyone reading to attend. Not just because of what an accomplishment it was — though he proudly listed off the many amazing discussions this series had in store — but what it represented for QFC as a whole. This organization was founded to empower LGBTQ+ filmmakers and help create an industry where not only can inclusive media be easily made, but the people who want to make it actually have the chance to. This panel series caps off an astounding first year of doing just that, with Taylor teasing even more to come in the next few months.
And as a final pitch to encourage folks to come, Ray summarized why this panel series — and all of the Queer Film Collective — is so vital: “I think that queer stories are so important to tell…and not just the ones focused on trauma or coming out! In my opinion, the most important queer stories right now are the ones focused on joy and succeeding in life, because we need to show the world — and not just the world, but also young LGBTQ+ people — that queer people are here. We’re going to survive. We’re going to keep pushing, and nothing’s going to bring us down. And so I think that queer filmmakers need to have those opportunities to tell these stories, because I think that they are so important.”
Summer Panel Series: Thu, Jul 9, 202610:59 AM Thu, Aug 27, 2026 1:00 PM
Join the Queer Film Collective for an 8 week panel series bringing together working filmmakers, writers, and creatives for honest, practical conversations about the realities of the industry today.
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Disney Animator Andreas Wessel-Therhorn talks being queer in animation and preserving the hand-drawn technique for the future
From ‘Tarzan’ to ‘Hercules,’ Wessel-Therhorn has worked on dozens of the animated movies we grew up watching
Andreas Wessel-Therhorn has gotten a rare front-row seat to the endless changes in the animation industry.
From breaking onto the scene in the ’90s through films like The Thief and the Cobbler and A Goofy Movie, to working on rare contemporary films with hand-drawn animation like Mary Poppins Returns and Space Jam: A New Legacy, Wessel-Therhorn has seen work dry up for the artists he grew up dreaming of working alongside.
“It’s a real shame that knowledge is getting lost,” he tells The Blade. “We’re all at the point where we’re either close to retirement or are in retirement already, or people move to other fields. I wonder where this knowledge is going to go.”
With Disney continuing to pump out sequels like Toy Story 5, and the uncertain road ahead with the emergence of AI, Wessel-Therhorn spoke with The Blade about his decades working in entertainment, how he has been able to pivot and continue finding work over the years, and his thoughts on Pixar cutting queer storylines in films like Elio. This interview has been edited and condensed.
What drew you to working in animation, and what are some of your most prominent projects?
As a kid, I was always a big fan of the Disney classics – and by that, I mean the really old ones like Bambi and Cinderella! I always wanted to be a part of that. It was sort of a childhood dream that eventually became a reality, and for some years was quite thrilling. Now, I wasn’t a big natural talent at drawing; it was really something I had to learn. I was lucky that when I was ready, there was a big demand for people who wanted to do hand-drawn animation. I started on a movie called The Thief and the Cobbler in London, then A Goofy Movie in Paris. Then there was a general shift to go to America, as most companies were relocating. Eventually, I got an interview with Disney in London and was offered a job. I came over here for Hercules in 1996, and I worked on Tarzan, Fantasia 2000 and The Emperor’s Groove. Then I moved over to Disneytoon Studios, where I supervised animation on Tarzan II and The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning. Apart from Disney, I went outside and worked on Looney Tunes: Back in Action, both Space Jam movies, Tom and Jerry movies, and a bunch of commercials.
I grew up watching many of those, so it’s really cool to hear your credits. You were one of the last ink and paper illustrators and got to see the transition to 3D animation and digital. How did that impact the work you were doing? Were you able to pivot?
This is just my impression — when the studio pivoted to CGI, they did not do a great job of preparing or training us as they did at DreamWorks. It was pretty much learn on your own time, if you have any. I got into this because of hand-drawn animation, and it took me long enough to learn how to draw, so I want to stick with that. That’s my love. For a long time afterward, there was still enough work for me because while there was not as much work around, there was also a smaller pool of people. For quite a few years, I was doing quite well with independent stuff, working on union and non-union stuff, whatever came along. It’s only really in the last two to three years that it has dried up completely. 2D work is usually sent out to either Canada or Europe. Suddenly, a lot of us who were hanging on by our fingernails are suddenly faced with the reality that there’s not enough work around. I pivoted a little bit to book illustrations and did quite a few of those. Thankfully, I’m not at the start of my career but sort of at the tail end. Now I want to concentrate on mentoring and doing my own short films.
It’s a shame because character animation of the kind Disney, DreamWorks and other smaller studios did is the one true American art form. Animation is done all over the world, but that kind of character animation was absolutely unique to the United States. It’s a real shame that knowledge is getting lost. We’re all at the point where we’re either close to retirement or are in retirement already, or people move to other fields. I wonder where this knowledge is going to go.
I saw the director of Hoppers post some of the early hand-drawn footage, and it looked really beautiful. People were commenting online, wondering why the movie wasn’t done in 2D.
Even some of the main supervising animators at Disney who were kept on were basically doing experimental or guide animation for the CG animators — their actual drawings never saw the light of day. For a while, it was good for them because they kept their paycheck. Artistically, it must have been utterly depressing to do stuff that no one is ever going to see.
For 2018’s Mary Poppins Returns, which you worked on, Disney had to bring back many hand-drawn artists for the animated sequence. What was that experience like?
A lot of friends from the industry, we were suddenly back in one room. There’s the sound of people flipping paper all day. The director, Rob Marshall, insisted that the piece of animation would be hand-drawn to match the original. We had a young character designer with an updated, modern version of the characters.
Were you surprised when you got the call and heard they were asking for hand-drawn animation after all these years?
Pleasantly surprised, I would say. I’m sure someone suggested going the CGI route. It has a different kind of charm to CGI. It’s a great sequence in the movie. I was a bit skeptical at first, thinking “how can you follow up Mary Poppins?”
What has your experience been navigating the animation space as a queer person?
I always had a pretty good time, I have to say. I hardly ever ran into problems, certainly not with management, because there were a lot of queer people in management, especially at Disney. I heard it was quite different in the ’80s, but not in the ’90s; [when I started], it was a very open and welcoming situation there. It’s a very odd mix of people who get drawn into animation. Most gay guys I know worked in production, but not in animation itself. We have a few exceptions, of course, but there was this weird mix of very liberal and religious people.
What I’m missing, unfortunately, is a lot more gay-themed animation. You may have seen that piece from the boss [Pete Docter] at Pixar, which was a ridiculous statement, to be honest, because the kid in Elio would have had a few certain traits from which you may infer he’s gay later. To put that out there and say “we cut the storyline” is ridiculous. I did two short films based on a German gay comic artist, and they did quite well in animation festivals. But even then, they often only did well in gay festivals. It still seems to be put into a certain corner. A few years ago, there was this really sweet CGI short by two young people called In a Heartbeat, which I loved! It not only should have had a nomination; in my book, it would have won, and it didn’t get nominated.
What did you think of the Oscar-nominated animated shorts this year and the winner, The Girl Who Cried Pearls?
Well, it wasn’t my winner. All five had merit and, in the end, it comes down to personal taste and what people like the best — of the people who actually watch them. Especially with features, so many people ask their kids what they would vote for, which explains some of the choices.
As we’ve been talking about your career and you look back on films you’ve been part of, what work are you most proud of?
I loved working on Tarzan because I worked on the mom character. Many mother characters in Disney movies are usually dead already! I was able to use personal experience from things my mom used to do. Sometimes the movie doesn’t turn out to be a big hit, but it was great fun working on Looney Tunes: Back in Action. The live-action was so poor, though, that it didn’t do very well.
You mentioned wanting to mentor younger animators. What are you hoping to teach, and why are you focused on mentorship at this point in your career?
There’s knowledge I got from other people that I want to impart so it doesn’t go away. There are people interested! Studying animation, or anything, is so expensive in this country. If I can help someone for free and they get something out of it, it’s [for the] better. I never understood the college system here, as opposed to what was in Germany. When I finished school and went to study design, that’s all I was doing 100% of the time. Apart from art history, that was it; everything was practical. Whereas here, students spend at least 50% of their time redoing the stuff they’re supposed to know already. They’re taking English and geography again, which is ridiculous, and then they hardly have any time to learn what they’re there to learn. Sometimes I look over student portfolios; they’re in their final year, and I have a hard time finding anything that qualifies them for working in the industry.
There’s so much information now available on the internet. It’s just there — tutorials, all kinds of helpful things to reference, all the stuff you used to have to go to the library for. There’s really no need to spend tens of thousands of dollars going to college. You can do it yourself if that’s what you want to do.
I don’t work in animation, but I can vouch for the mentors who have helped shape me as a writer. I’m sure people would be lucky to learn from you and all your experience, so it’s great you want to pass down that knowledge.
When I started out, I had a graphic design mentor who later became a production designer on Mulan and other Disney movies. He was really brutal with his comments on my first portfolio. I mean, I almost gave up the whole thing! But it was so important for me to hear that. From your friends and your parents, “Oh, that looks great! You’re really good,” until a professor tells you, “Start again; none of this is usable.” That’s the crux — when you continue at that point and work through it.
As we wrap up, is there anything else you want to say, or anything on your mind about the current state of animation?
Going back to movies that were actually good, did you see Nimona?
I need to see that!
That was a feature with a very queer storyline that didn’t get much attention, especially from the right-wingers, because it wasn’t Disney. If it’s Disney, they jump on it — the slightest whiff of something queer, and they go crazy. The two main guys in Nimona are a couple, which makes story sense because at one point they become adversaries; since they also share a love, it makes it that much more poignant and makes the stakes higher.
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Yona Speidel and the future of trans television
The ‘Pose’ and ‘The Boroughs’ writer on what she hopes for the future of queer media.
Thousands of queer viewers are huge fans of Yona Speidel — they may just not know it yet.
This is due largely to the fact that, up until a few months ago, Speidel went by a different name professionally: Lady J. It’s Lady J who’s credited as a producer and writer on Transparent, one of the first mainstream TV series to center a transgender woman as its protagonist. And when the series Pose began in 2018, it was Lady J who served as a member of the program’s central creative team, writing and producing nearly every episode to develop the onscreen refuge that thousands of fans still see the show as today.
It can’t be understated how much of an impact Lady J had on modern television. But just recently, fans were shocked to hear that she’d be retiring…her name, that is. The artist assured everyone that she still planned to create programs that completely shift how certain identities are portrayed in the media. She will continue the vital work she’d already been doing for years, only now, she’s ready to do it under her true name: Yona Speidel.
“Lady J is a showgirl name, and I’m not really doing that anymore,” laughed Speidel, as she spoke with the LA Blade about the decision to change her professional moniker. “At one point, I did wear sparkly sequin bras and perform in drag clubs — but I’ve aged out of that a little bit. And as a writer, director, and producer in Hollywood, I thought it was time to retire ‘Lady J’ and just go with my day-to-day name.”
And though she’s only been working for around a year with this ‘new’ name, Yona already has some impressive credits under her belt; she currently works as a writer and executive producer on the acclaimed Netflix series, The Boroughs, which has been applauded for its mixture of sci-fi horror and biting social critique. This is all in addition to the ample work she did as Lady J, with Speidel reminding fans that she is still the ingenious creative they knew and loved before. That dynamic artistry has always been a part of the woman, with Yona saying, “I always had ‘the flair,’ and it stood out from a very young age…I learned to hide it for survival.”
“I grew up in Amish country, Pennsylvania, and my family came from an old order of Mennonites, though they left many generations ago,” Speidel explained. “It was hard in the 1980s growing up with AIDS in the headlines, and all the homophobia that was happening in the world to blame gay people for this disease. [That] manifested in school, so there was a lot of bullying…the ‘flair’ was just something that I learned to temper down, and I had to be careful where I showed it. And then as the world progressed…I let it out.”
She described using music as an escape from her harsh community, avoiding chores on her family’s farm by spending hours each day practicing the piano. It was a talent that took Yona abroad for college and, eventually, to New York City, where she spent years as a professional musician while finally living as the proud trans woman she is today.
It was during her time in New York that Speidel began to write and direct, becoming a part of the city’s vibrant theater scene and helping put on numerous productions. It was just as she had begun to explore what being a producer could look like that she was asked to join the team of Transparent, a new show that promised to ‘completely change how trans people were portrayed on television.’ Excited at this possibility — and ready to ensure the series was actually accurate — Yona joined the program.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Whether it be the plight of queer people of color during the AIDS epidemic in Pose or how society mistreats the elderly in The Boroughs, Yona’s career is defined by amplifying the voices too many overlook today. This is in addition to serving as a trailblazer every day as an out trans woman in the entertainment industry, with the producer emphasizing, “It’s up to us to really test the waters. [We have to ask,] ‘Is it safe for me to be out at work? Is it safe for me to be all of me?’” She explained that at the beginning of her career, it wasn’t, and that’s why so much of her early work is focused more on introducing the general concept of LGBTQ+ identity through straightforward storytelling.
But she reminds everyone reading that it was a long time ago. Through her current work, she hopes to create an entertainment industry where underserved narratives are given center stage, where they’re allowed to challenge what general audiences are taught about their communities. It’s why she continues to create TV shows that center marginalized folks — because she knows that by introducing these voices today, it will be so much easier for them to take the spotlight again tomorrow.
Yona’s is a vital kind of advocacy that, as we see more attacks against all kinds of LGBTQ+ voices (especially trans folks), we need more than ever. She emphasized that she understands how scary it can feel being a queer creative right now, but that is exactly why artists need to continue introducing these stories that nobody else could have ever thought of! As someone who’s spent a majority of her life navigating this tenuous industry, Yona advised her fellow artists, “Shut out the negativity as much as you can. That’s a luxury if you can do that, but if you can take the luxury, do it. Be present with your friends and with your family, and with the people who love you. Feel that love, be embraced by that love. And don’t neglect that love in favor of anxiety and what-ifs.”
It’s advice that Lady J followed, allowing her to create such monumental pieces of television — and it’s what she’ll continue to live by as she does even more for her queer community today as Yona Speidel.
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Television loses a legend and longtime ‘Will & Grace’ director James Burrows
Iconic hitmaker leaves behind a legacy of telling LGBTQ stories
You don’t have to be a pretentious film major to name 10 movie directors. But naming television directors is not that simple. They’re the unsung heroes of your favorite shows, and the late James Burrows was the television director. He passed on June 19, 2026, but his DNA runs through television history.
He directed over 1200 episodes of television and over 50 pilots. He co-created Cheers and directed many episodes of long-running series like Friends, Taxi, Frasier, The Big Bang Theory, and Two and a Half Men. You also may remember him from playing a heightened version of himself on the Lisa Kudrow comedy The Comeback.
He has left an indelible mark on the LGBTQ community. As recently as last year, he directed the series run of Mid-Century Modern starring Nathan Lane, Matt Bomer, and Linda Lavin. He was also a longtime director of Will & Grace and directed every episode of the series revival. He even directed the unaired Absolutely Fabulous pilot with Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Johnston, and Zosia Mamet.
Not to mention he’s worked with queer icons throughout history, including Betty White and Stockard Channing on their single-season series, and Jennifer Coolidge in 2 Broke Girls.
He started his career on shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Rhoda, Laverne & Shirley, and the first four seasons of Taxi.
He continued to work steadily and directed successful pilots that went to series for Roc, 3rd Rock From the Sun, Dharma & Greg, and Wings. He directed multiple episodes of Friends, Caroline in the City, and Frasier.
This magic continued into the 2000s with him directing the pilots for Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, and multiple episodes of Mike & Molly, and the entire return series of Will & Grace.
What was the secret to his success? He’d enact the “fun clause” in his contract. In his words, “Life is too short to deal with obnoxious leads,” He shared. “So as long as the writing is good and the cast is fun, I’m going to enjoy the experience.”
He had the magic touch, having multiple pilots turned into long-running series. He was nominated for an Emmy 24 times in 26 years and worked consistently until a year before his death.
The secret was the way he brought the cast together. He describes, “it was my job to mold them into an ensemble, and they did round into a group of people who loved each other.”
This earned him 11 Emmy Awards and 5 Directors Guild of America Awards, including being awarded the inaugural DGA’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Television Direction.
In a 2003 interview by the Television Academy, he was asked how he wants to be remembered, and he said, “That every night forever you can tune in somewhere, and there’ll be a show I did.”
He’s survived by his wife, Debbie, four daughters, seven grandchildren, and the countless people whose careers he launched and the countless viewers he inspired with his television legacy.
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ChiChi brings drag, history, and advocacy to LA Pride’s main stage
The Los Angeles drag performer, commissioner, and housing advocate honors Pride’s roots while uplifting the community beyond the parade
When ChiChi Charlas steps onto the main stage at the 56th Annual LA Pride Parade on June 14, the moment will carry more weight than a typical hosting role.
For the Los Angeles drag performer, policy advocate and commissioner, moderating the main stage is an opportunity to honor what Pride has always been about: celebration, protest, and community.
“The origin of Pride has its roots in uprisings and protests, oftentimes led by Black and brown trans women,” ChiChi told the Blade. “From Christopher Street to Cooper Do-nuts to the fight against Rule No. 9 here in Los Angeles, trans and gender expansive people have resisted criminalization and have demanded the right to live freely.”
That history, ChiChi explains, is the foundation of how they understand Pride. After hosting LA Pride’s Latine Stage last year, being invited to host the main stage this year feels like a profound accomplishment.
“I am showing up as a first-generation Mexican-American, queer, trans, gender-expansive Angeleno,” ChiChi confidently told the Blade, “But also as a commissioner, a community and policy advocate, and an educator.”
Many view hosting events as simply introducing performers. However, for ChiChi, this opportunity to host is about creating a space where people feel welcome and connected to something larger than a single day of celebration.
“It is about creating a space where our history, our joy, and our collective experiences and power can all be uplifted and celebrated,” ChiChi said. “I want people to leave with an instilled sense of hope, empowerment, and knowledge on how to get involved in the community.”
As a drag performer who accentuates their facial hair, ChiChi said their work does not fit neatly into traditional drag queen or drag king aesthetics. “I feel that this kind of visibility matters now more than ever when drag and trans people are being hyper-targeted for their gender and gender expression,” ChiChi stated. It is evident that ChiChi’s drag challenges gender expectations directly and seeks to make the LGBTQ+ community more open to diverse forms of expression.
That visibility is personally meaningful to ChiChi as a Latine performer. They said they want other Latine community members to feel seen when they are on stage – including families who may still be learning how to support LGBTQ+ loved ones.
“Homophobia, transphobia, and machismo are very much alive within many Latine communities,” ChiChi said. “I know that we will have many parents present who are learning and unlearning. I hope to provide them with a message of kindness and gratitude for all their work.”
Beyond performance, ChiChi’s advocacy has focused heavily on housing policy for trans and gender expansive people. Before shifting fully into LGBTQ+ advocacy, ChiChi spent nearly ten years in the housing nonprofit sector. In that work, they saw how homophobia, transphobia, racism, and structural inequities place LGBTQ+ people – especially Black and brown trans and gender expansive people – at greater risk of housing instability.
ChiChi told the Blade that their policy work is “grounded in the belief that when trans and gender expansive people have stable housing, our entire community becomes safer and stronger.”
For ChiChi, supporting trans people beyond Pride means moving from individual celebrations to sustained action. That includes “supporting trans-led organizations, protecting trans youth, and challenging anti-trans rhetoric in the spaces we move through.”
As thousands gather for LA Pride, ChiChi hopes people remember that Pride was made possible by those who resisted criminalization and state violence – and that the work is not over when the parade ends and the curtain falls.
ChiChi leads the readers with a final and important question:
“If we are not visible, if we are not supported, if our struggles are not taken into account in spaces such as Pride,” ChiChi said, “then how can we expect non-LGBTQ+ people to even look our way?”
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From ‘XO, Kitty’ to Marvel: The multi-talented Regan Aliyah is only getting started
Actor, rapper, and activist Regan Aliyah shares how she balances blockbuster opportunities with a deep commitment to community and authenticity..
We seldom get to see a rising star moving through Hollywood with the same fearlessness and versatility as Regan Aliyah. Whether she’s navigating the heartfelt chaos of a beloved YA dramedy, stepping into the expansive mythology of Marvel, or plunging audiences into the emotional intensity of a psychological thriller, Aliyah approaches every role with curiosity, preparation, and a very real commitment to authenticity. Actor, rapper, dancer, and creative force, Aliyah’s building a career defined not by depth, all while bringing nuance and humanity to every character that she steps into.
Off-screen, Aliyah is equally, if not more, compelling. As a proud queer Black artist, outspoken advocate, and lifelong Angeleno, she speaks with refreshing candor about identity, representation, and the responsibility that comes with visibility. In our conversation, Aliyah opens up about the emotional challenges of her most recent projects, the evolution of queer storytelling in Hollywood, the lessons she’s learned from staying true to herself, and why the younger version of Regan would be proud of exactly who she is today.
From YA dramedy to Marvel to psychological thriller, how do you approach building a character in such different worlds?
I think it’s about feeling comfortable in the words that are written and really understanding who the specific character is, as well as what they’re going through in this piece of media. Understanding how they’re affected by their surroundings, other characters, and even themselves. There’s also the element of research; like for Marvel, I was lucky enough to have so many comics that I could read and see how my character interacted with this mystical world. It was a very different process from Juliana, in XO, Kitty, where I watched the To All The Boys I Loved Before films, and I learned more about the tone of the space she would be a part of. So, it can look very different for each role that you get, but the preparation and research will always get you where you need to be.
You’re currently starring as Juliana in XO, Kitty. What aspects of yourself do you see reflected in her? And on the flip side, what are some Juliana-isms that would never fly with Regan?
I think Juliana and I are a lot alike. We lead with our heart, we’re both very artistic, and if I do say so myself…we’ve got great fashion sense. Oh, and we’re both gay. That’s definitely my favorite thing we share in common. I think Juliana is a lot more muted than me. She’s a lot quieter and a little less confrontational, but she has definitely learned to be more upfront in the later seasons. She’s absolutely someone I would be friends with in real life. I don’t know, I think she’s just such a cool girl.
Your work in Please Don’t Feed the Children explores a much darker, survivalist tone. What challenged you most about that role? What did you find most rewarding?
I think when you’re in a horror or a thriller, it’s just such a different space than anything else. It took a second for me to get used to hearing the word “action“ and knowing it meant my body had to stay in a state of panic and despair. I think by like, page 10, we’re already in this trapped situation, so finding ways to sit with this continued emotion while making it feel layered on screen was really important to me. I also had to cry on camera for the first time, which I thought would be more taxing on my mental because I was getting so much advice about pulling on personal trauma or to think about some terrible situation to produce tears. When I actually got to that scene, I felt so comfortable with this character that it was actually easy for me to find that emotion and those tears through her and not myself. That was a very rewarding moment.
Belated congrats on coming out publicly just a few years ago. How has that moment shaped the way you move through your career and your visibility?
First off, thank you so much! That moment wasn’t because of my career or any type of external pressure; it was genuinely me just wanting to live an honest life with everyone who interacts with me — whether that’s in person or online. I want you to know me for me. That honesty is very freeing. So, I don’t think I pay attention to if it’s negatively affecting my career…if you don’t want to work with me for being my authentic self, then that opportunity was just not meant for me. On the flip side, it has brought me joy, love, community, and business relationships that are all founded on, “you are who you are, and we support who you are.”
How do you think queer representation is evolving in the kinds of projects you’re getting to be part of?
I think we’ve made a lot of progress. I think we’re seeing a lot more queer characters on screen as a whole. I’m interested in going past the representation and diving deeper into the actual stories that are being portrayed. I think a lot of media still needs to get better at nuance and depth for the queer characters they have in their stories. But I always feel really blessed to be a queer actor playing queer roles; it’s the most fulfilling thing to me. So, every opportunity I get to do that, I am beyond happy.
What does it mean to you to be a young, queer Black artist working in mainstream Hollywood right now?
It means learning how to run before ever getting the chance to walk. It means pushing open doors that have multiple signs of no entry. It means making a name for yourself that holds weight for multiple communities. It means joy, nuance, and beauty that deserve airtime. It means so much, but to me, it’s just who I am, and I hope Hollywood can love, respect, and share more from all individuals who have this same intersectional identity.
You’re outspoken about issues like racial justice, food access, and homelessness (as more people should be). How do you decide when and how to use your platform?
I don’t decide, I just do. It’s that simple. There’s no 12-step program or 40-person team that I need to ask. It’s about humanity. We’re all connected, and we’re all meant to fight for one another. Sometimes that’s through my social media, sometimes that’s on Skid Row feeding our houseless community, sometimes that’s mutual aid, or sometimes that’s performing at a benefit show. There are so many ways to show up, and I believe everyone needs to be doing that in their own way.
Growing up in Los Angeles, how did your environment shape your artistry? Your worldview?
I like to call myself a “county kid.” I grew up in schools in the Valley; my family is in Inglewood, Baldwin Hills, Carson, and all the way up to Palmdale. My friends are in South Central and Leimert Park. I love and see LA for what it truly is. We’re dealing with the housing crisis, are being priced out of our own neighborhoods we built, witness the brutalization of the police, and see so much more. But we are also a place where dreams come true, where the sun attracts anyone who dares to think outside the box, and plan block parties with some of the best musicians in the world. Our culture runs deeper than the valleys of the land. The people of this city, the natives, shaped me to be who I am. I love this place so much…I mean, it’s my hometown. Every day, I think of the ways I can contribute to it, protect it, and preserve it for what it truly is.
When you think about the roles you want to take on in the future, what kinds of stories are you hoping to tell or be part of?
I want to be in stories that push the needle, ones that reflect the times, or ones that challenge the brain. I would also love to do something otherworldly. I always say that I want to play a role that would have me in the makeup chair for like 12 hours. Something where I could fully transform. That would be so cool and something I’ve never done yet.
We could all benefit from a bit of grounding and decompression. Can you share with us two things you do to decompress during your downtime?
Oof, I’ll let you know when I figure that out myself. I’ve been in work, work, work mode, but I do love cartoons, animation, and stop motion. So I’ll throw on one of those when times get stressful.
What is one invigorating phrase or mantra that your mind recites when the stress of work, and life in general, is getting a little too loud?
Recently, I’ve been reminding myself of how proud the younger version of me would be of who I am today. I think that will always center me and humble me, but light a fire in me like no other.
If you could go back and give your younger self one piece of advice before entering this industry, what would it be?
Nothing really. Younger me was THAT girl. She had some strong boundaries and one goal on her mind…I love her for that. Now, she would have some advice for older me, but she’s definitely very proud.
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EROS LA is starting a queerotic art movement in KTown
Local artists activate gay-owned Earl Gallery, bridging queer art history
Erotic art in the gay community? Groundbreaking. The Devil Wears Prada references aside, with both the arts and the LGBTQIA community under attack, erotic art has much more of a political sheen these days. After all, if our private lives can be the subject of political action and public outrage, why can’t they also be artistic? Enter: EROS LA.
Beyond the debates of arts, decency, and what is porn vs. erotica? There is a collective need for community and safe spaces for queer men that don’t center on drinking at a bar or doing drugs at a warehouse party. Why not hang out with other creative, curious queer men to look at art, wear fun outfits, pose for photos, and more?
EROS LA is curating the vibe to engage with all of this. The, for lack of a better word, movement celebrated its 7th installment this past Saturday, May 9th, and Sunday, May 10th. What started as an art show to showcase local queer erotic artists has expanded to include drawing classes, speed dating, networking, and even a film collective.
As Casey Kringlen, the mind behind EROS LA, puts it, “There’s a heat that creatives generate when they’re operating beyond fear, connected to their primal sensibilities and willing to follow creative instincts that don’t always fit neatly into polished cultural spaces. ‘Erotic’ is the word that gets closest to that feeling.”
EROS LA, which happens every month, began simply as an art show. It curates a flirty, creative vibe that invites hotties of all ages, shapes, and sizes to converse, consume art, and feel a little frisky. Over its last 7 iterations, it’s expanded into a whole weekend of events.
Kringlen adds, “Each show includes curated programming alongside the exhibition: speed dating activations, live movement and dance performances, and a VIP Drawing Lounge where guests can draw live figure models, mingle, or simply watch. The art is the anchor, but the night has a full arc.”
This past Saturday, a group of artists ranging from painters and photographers to dancers and adult performers gathered to share their wares at the Earl Gallery in Koreatown. Kringlen continues, “The Earl is perfect for EROS: raw energy, a maze-like layout, high ceilings, brick walls, original elements from the early 1900s, room for art, conversation, performance, and mischief. This is not a white cube or a WeHo bar.”
EROS was born through the collaboration between Kringlen and gallery owner Michael Monk. Kringlen explains, “Michael has run The Earl in Koreatown for over 20 years. Michael has deep roots in queer publishing and culture. He co-founded Monk Magazine and wrote Pink Highways, and brings a lived sense of history and perspective that have grounded EROS from the beginning. He didn’t just offer a space; he offered a partnership.”
Kringlen met Monk while exhibiting his own nude photography. Kringlen shares, “I had shown work in a series of group exhibitions there, and during one of them, he asked what other queer erotic art events were happening in LA and whether we could bring that energy into his space.”
The rest is history. In Kringlen’s words, ” EROS has been built by a community that showed up on its own. Artists, regulars, and passionate people who found us and fell in love with what we were doing.” It cannot be understated that Kringlen and Monk have cultivated an environment that invites artistic appreciation, conversation, and community.
As the show’s resident in-house photographer, Alexander Chadryan puts it: “There is a real hunger for human-to-human connection right now. People want to be seen, not just evaluated. They want sensuality, but also warmth. They want desire, but not only the transactional logic of the hookup market.”
Chadryan continues, “A lot of gay nightlife, especially in LA, can be shaped by status, body hierarchy, self-protection, and performance. It can create this notorious ‘fake people’ feeling — everyone looking perfect, everyone acting unavailable, everyone trying not to seem vulnerable. EROS feels different from that.”
EROS is creating an amazing space for emerging artists. Diego De León, who creates art nouveau-inspired watercolors, shares, “EROS creates a space where erotic art can be celebrated openly, while still allowing artists to approach it from very different perspectives and styles. They show a lot of artists that don’t have big followings; it’s really about the art.” He adds, “Art is one of the highest forms of human evolution. To create it and to receive it is something no other creature that has ever existed is able to do. To take what we see in our mind and bring it into the physical world.”
Ricardo Villanueva, who was sharing his art for the first time at EROS, adds, “It’s a great way for artists with a specific focus to come together in one place. I also think it’s a really good opportunity to network and connect with other creatives.” He continues, “EROS creates a space where erotic art can be celebrated openly, while still allowing artists to approach it from very different perspectives and styles.” Villanueva paints sexy shirtless versions of characters like GhostFace, Jason, and other figures from horror and pop culture. He also sells colorfully painted statues of cartoon bears.
Another first-time exhibitor, Walker Paulsen, who was sharing digital portraits he made using a program called Heavy Paint, observed, “The Earl Gallery provides a unique space for everyone’s work, and the community is so uplifting and feels like a tight-knit group of artists.” About his art, Paulsen shares, “My work is directly related to the ethereal emotions that are felt in our experiences battling depression in the gay community and the dating woes.”
Regardless of the type of erotic art, anyone is welcome. Kringlen adds, “We apply the broadest possible definition of ‘erotic.’ If an artist says their work is erotic, that counts. It could be an explicit photograph or a painting of two rain clouds talking about love. We don’t jury. We don’t filter. We trust the artists, and we trust the audience.”
EROS is not just a show; it’s a weekend it is expanding into Sunday programming. Kringlen adds, “We now have a figure drawing workshop with live models, no experience necessary, and we just launched EROS Film Club, a recurring queer film night at The Earl curated in collaboration with Kurt Osenlund and Maksym Varenyk.” In addition to the film screening, there was also a networking event for entertainment professionals to mix and mingle.
Kringlen shares, “Art processes what ordinary language can’t. Queer people frequently move through experiences that lead to self-examination, and creative expression can become a powerful way to process and understand those experiences. Through art, people recognize themselves and each other more honestly, and that recognition can become the foundation for real community.”
The Next EROS weekend is Saturday, June 13, with the art class and film screening on Sunday, June 14. EROS is also entering the female art space with a show called SAPPHO on Saturday, June 27. You can stay up-to-date by following their Instagram and RSVP to events at EROS on Partiful.
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