GAY TIMES

Pride season is well and truly upon us. Cities, towns and villages across the globe are preparing to celebrate all things LGBTQ+ in the coming months, in what is a much-needed display of unity during these testing times. We’ve seen Pride shift in recent years, with major city events pulling in bigger crowds than ever before, while the emergence and increased prominence of smaller, community-focused marches and events have been a welcome addition to the queer calendar. A few years back, Pride was bombarded by the social-media-ready catchphrase “Pride is a protest - not a party!” The sentiment came from a good place, acting as a wake-up call to the increased festivalisation and commercialisation of Pride events, which often diluted the voices and key messaging of those we most need to…

Festival season is upon us! It’s time to embrace the outdoors and slay the house down boots. Whether you’re basking in the sunshine, dancing under the stars, or embracing the wild elements, we have everything you need to make a statement over the next coming months. From a pair of 60s-inspired sunglasses to a Y2K mini denim skirt, we’ve got you covered for that fashion era moment. You know wellies are uncomfortable, we know wellies are uncomfortable, so why do it? Whilst it probably WILL rain, unless you’re heading abroad, keep it functional and stylish with some all-weather GORE-TEX boots. A cross body bag is a must to carry your essentials. We’ve shared one of our current faves that will last you through the entire summer and into next season.…

“These machines, weedkillers, can be a commentary on the destruction of wild spaces and biodiversity on our planet. But also, it can be me talking to my abuser, you know? It’s weaving together different narratives.” It’s early morning in LA and Ashnikko currently hates her debut album, Weedkiller. A chartered landscape of cyberpunk fantasy, the blue-haired musician has upgraded her tongue-in-cheek Sailor Moon-style persona for an Arcane-inspired (imagine an anti-hero iteration of Jinx) saviour. A creator -and critic- of her newly spawned universe, Ashnikko, real name Ashton Casey, has spent her recent days on vacation from her nightmarish sci-fi counter-reality. It wasn’t until she spent the weekend hiking in a mushroom retreat with her girlfriend, that the rap star was able to reconnect with the very themes that permeate her record.…

With her mesmerising, booby-popping performance of CeCe Peniston’s house track He Luvs Me 2, Jazell Barbie Royale became the pandemic’s fiercest viral sensation. The video - which has amassed almost four million views on YouTube - has since circulated all of the social media’s on various occasions, catapulting one of the LGBTQ+ community's most revered and unsung icons to greater recognition in the process. In the words of one of Jazell’s new fans, “I’m not even gay but I love this performance.” Over the course of her 20-year career, Jazell has conquered over six thousand pageants (we made that up, the real number is close, we think), most notably the prestigious Miss Continental (2016) and Miss Universal Queen (2019), the latter of which saw her make history as the first entertainer…

There’s nothing quite like the buzzing anticipation of a festival lineup. There’s the speculative watercooler chat of who will feature on the roster to the silent, hopeful pleading that one of your favourites will wind up on music's biggest stages. So, when one of this year’s major UK festivals unveiled its headliner stars, we were all left disheartened. Again, we were treated to an all-male merry-go-round of musicians. Now, it’s true, Elton John is closing out an illustrious career and the timing of his slot feels warranted. However, it’s also worth noting that major LGBTQ+ names have been left off the headliner bill for quite some time. David Bowie had his slot in 1971 and headlined, again, in 2000. The Smiths led the bill in 1984, with queer duo The Communards…

Charting the work of Isaac Julien means exploring the vital questions an experimental, inquisitive, and tenacious artist has asked over the last 40 years. ‘What Freedom is To Me’, a new exhibition in Tate Britain, is the UK’s first ever survey exhibition celebrating the British artist and filmmaker and his internationally acclaimed career. The explorative, web-like structure of the exhibition weaves us through Julien’s compelling lyrical films and video art installations, from his most high-profile works, including Looking For Langston (1989), an intimate portrayal of Black gay desire, to his first experimental engagements with film, like Who Killed Colin Roach? (1983), a response to the unrest following the death of a young Black man at the entrance of a police station. “It had always been clear to us at Tate that…