Posted on Mar 21, 2023
Tennessee musicians grapple with potential impact of new anti-drag legislation
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https://www.npr.org/2023/03/21/ [login to see] /tennessee-anti-drag-law-trans-nonbinary-musicians
Lawmakers' agendas would ordinarily be too stodgy a subject to interest drag performers. So it was an ominous sign last December when Eureka O'Hara opened her "Big Mawma" music video with what was meant to sound like a news report about Republicans from her home state of Tennessee fixating on "deceptive claims about young transgender children having gender-affirming surgeries."
"Well, it's the truth," O'Hara reasons over Zoom about her decision to use that current event reference as a 13-second intro. The rest of the clip depicts transgender coming-out narratives — partially inspired by her public acknowledgement of her own trans womanhood the same day as the video drop — and the allyship of plus-sized, cis women over her track's militantly anthemic electro-pop.
Lawmakers' agendas would ordinarily be too stodgy a subject to interest drag performers. So it was an ominous sign last December when Eureka O'Hara opened her "Big Mawma" music video with what was meant to sound like a news report about Republicans from her home state of Tennessee fixating on "deceptive claims about young transgender children having gender-affirming surgeries."
"Well, it's the truth," O'Hara reasons over Zoom about her decision to use that current event reference as a 13-second intro. The rest of the clip depicts transgender coming-out narratives — partially inspired by her public acknowledgement of her own trans womanhood the same day as the video drop — and the allyship of plus-sized, cis women over her track's militantly anthemic electro-pop.
Tennessee musicians grapple with potential impact of new anti-drag legislation
Posted from npr.org
LGBTQ+
Music
Video
Republicans
Posted 1 y ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Her professional opportunities multiplied after her memorable runs on seasons 9 and 10 of RuPaul's Drag Race and season 6 of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars. But none excited her more than the prospect of joining two other queens, Shangela and Bob the Drag Queen, on another series, We're Here. Each episode begins with a self-aware conceit where the three arrive like glamorous aliens landing in potentially hostile landscapes (i.e. culturally conservative towns). From there, they proceed to meet the locals, make LQGBTIA+ folks in their midst feel seen, heard and less alone and stage zealously uplifting drag shows for everyone. Says O'Hara, "I wanted a job where I could give back to communities like mine that need it."
It's not lost on her that this showcase of drag's therapeutic and communal sides is the absolute opposite of the picture Tennessee Republicans are painting: "I wish that some of those people would just watch an episode of We're Here, you know, watch RuPaul's Drag Race, watch anything that humanizes queer people, so they can realize that we're just like them."
O'Hara's career has taken her far from the South, but she feels it's more important than ever to return to her home club in Johnson City, New Beginnings, and be there "with bells on, looking fabulous, to show them my appreciation for keeping me alive."
..."Her professional opportunities multiplied after her memorable runs on seasons 9 and 10 of RuPaul's Drag Race and season 6 of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars. But none excited her more than the prospect of joining two other queens, Shangela and Bob the Drag Queen, on another series, We're Here. Each episode begins with a self-aware conceit where the three arrive like glamorous aliens landing in potentially hostile landscapes (i.e. culturally conservative towns). From there, they proceed to meet the locals, make LQGBTIA+ folks in their midst feel seen, heard and less alone and stage zealously uplifting drag shows for everyone. Says O'Hara, "I wanted a job where I could give back to communities like mine that need it."
It's not lost on her that this showcase of drag's therapeutic and communal sides is the absolute opposite of the picture Tennessee Republicans are painting: "I wish that some of those people would just watch an episode of We're Here, you know, watch RuPaul's Drag Race, watch anything that humanizes queer people, so they can realize that we're just like them."
O'Hara's career has taken her far from the South, but she feels it's more important than ever to return to her home club in Johnson City, New Beginnings, and be there "with bells on, looking fabulous, to show them my appreciation for keeping me alive."
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