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Fort Lauderdale Pride Fest kicks into high gear by Patrick Berkeley
EDGE ContributorMonday Mar 2, 2009 As the nation’s economy quickly dwindles, usual gay celebrations can come into question and Pride Fests around the country start falling to the wayside.
Not in Fort Lauderdale, though, where this year’s Pride Fest 2009 is set to be as big and grand as ever before. It seems that despite such a harsh recession, nothing is getting in the way of one of Fort Lauderdale’s best gay events.
Mike Cruz, the director oft his year’s Pride Fest, explained how surprising it is that everything is going along as planned.
"Here we are celebrating out thirty second year and we’re all very proud of the way it’s coming along. Even though the economy sucks, the vendors and sponsors are responding as usual," he explained.
This year’s event is taking place on March 21st and 22nd from 12 pm -7pm at the usual venue, Holiday Park. The theme for this year’s event is Destination Pride.
There will be a bunch of different entertainers on the main stage including Lori Michaels & The Girls, Shelina, Howard Tonkin, Nelson Polanco, TP Lords, and Richard Cortez.
Cortez performed last year and looks forward to reprising his musical act, although this year a little bit differently.
I’m working with percussionist major Christopher Hand. We’ve been working two months together and it’s been really great. We plan on playing all the last year’s best gay hits, like "Disturbia" and "Single Ladies" (Put a Ring on It) but with a Richard Cortez twist," he explained.
"I figure the usually intoxicated audience members just want to hear familiar songs."
Cortez understands the importance of Pride Fest and has enjoyed working at different Pride Fests across the country.
"It’s a great promotion for an artist like myself. It’s like buying a billboard. Not only that, but I’ve been working for the good of the community since I was sixteen years old. I’m more than a performer, I’m also an activist," he explained.
Pride Fest seems to be two things at once: both a PR event for many gay businesses and also a celebration of gay culture.
"Twenty years ago Pride Fest was a protest," explained Mike Cruz. "Now it’s more like a celebration and we use all of the different corporations to cover the expensive costs."
Pride Fest is a 100% volunteer event with 100% of the profits raised going back to grants to local organizations like the AIDS quilt and the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus.
Derek Hartley, co-host of the GLAAD award-winning radio show Derek and Romaine available to more than 19 million subscribers on SIRIUS XM Radio is set to emcee the event.
This year has been an important year for Hartley, having just won a GLAAD award for his show’s broadcast documentary The Laramie Project Ten Years Later: The Lasting Legacy Of Matthew Shepard, narrated by Emmy-winner Stockard Channing with an introduction by legendary journalist Barbara Walters.
"It is a tremendous honor for our show to be recognized in this way by GLAAD. This project was a real labor of love...and this award from GLAAD is really just the icing on the cake. It is hard to believe that it has been more than ten years since the brutal death of Matthew Shepard and this special is a reminder of both the progress that has been made since then and the work that still needs to be done," Hartley explained.
One of the headlining acts is Lori Michaels and the Girls on Saturday March 21st on the main stage.
Having been named one of CURVE Magazine’s 2008 seven ENTERTAINERS OF THE YEAR was just the icing on the cake for Lori Michaels, whose career really took off in 2006, following her official "Coming Out" party at the House of Blues’ Club Worship in Atlantic City.
It was a House of Blues first, and a turning point for Michaels in her evolution to in-demand solo artist and nationwide headliner with her head-turning "Me & The Girls" shows.
Headlining on Sunday on the main stage is Howard Tonkin, a recording artist currently working on an album of electronic pop, with the working title of Personal Apocalypse.
Tonkin has created a unique sound, blending catchy pop hooks with futuristic loop based electronic music that defies categorization. Tonkin’s powerful male vocals are reminiscent of the new wave/new romantic British invasion of the 1980’s.
One of the issues the planners always face is that of so much commercialism at this year’s Pride Fest. Some people have argued in recent years that it turns into just one long advertisement.
"We (gay men) spend money and people know that," explained Richard Cortez. "It will continue to be a marketing tool but I do hope that the sense of togetherness and community is still upstanding over that...It should be about being with our gay brothers."
Mike Cruz explained that above everything else, the event is rather costly. "It’s not cheap. The tents alone are $10,000 and $9,000 for fencing. The sponsors and vendors help pay for all of these things."
Entry into Pride Fest is $8 per person and $5 per student (with valid ID). All proceeds go back to the community in various grants.
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