Tracks of Our Queers

Christy DeGallerie is a writer and interdisciplinary artist from New York. Her contribution to the Modern Love column in the New York Times took my breath away a year ago, in which she wrote about her decision to come out to her mother on the day of her deportation. It's a moving, funny, sharp dissertation on migration, queerness, and gardening, and I insist you give it a read.Christy is also an enormous music fan, and made this interview exceptionally easy by showing up with some fabulous se...

Benjamin Law is a writer, broadcaster, television creator and producer, and refined homosexual about town in Sydney. He's also a former competitor on Australian Survivor – important.If you haven't already, I implore you to read some of Ben's sharp, warm, illuminating writing. There's Gaysia, an exploration of LGBTQ+ cultures across South East Asia; The Family Law, a memoir of his childhood that he adapted into three seasons of television; Growing Up Queer, a collection of stories from LGBTQ A...

Bright Light Bright Light, aka Rod Thomas, is an entirely independent pop superstar based in New York City.Hailing from Wales, Rod has rewritten the rulebook for being a singer songwriter without major label backing, mostly through tremendously hard work, and an ever-growing back catalogue of bangers. He's been backed, endorsed, and collaborated with legends like Sir Elton John, Erasure, Scissor Sisters and Ultra Naté over the years, but the latest Bright Light Bright Light album, Enjoy Youth...

Geraldine Hickey is one of Australia's most beloved comedians, and multiple award-winning at that. She's a regular face on TV, a veteran of the Melbourne International Comedy and Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, and... a bird watcher. More on that in the episode.We discuss music by Diana Ross, RVG, and Cash Savage.Further reading:Follow Geraldine on InstagramBuy tickets to her upcoming Oct/Nov 24 shows hereCheck out the Switchboard charity hereThe other bits:Tracks of Our Queers is recorded and ed...

Carlton Wilborn is an actor, life coach, and former dancer with Madonna.At 25, Carlton was hand-picked to join the Blond Ambition World Tour, documented in the ground-breaking concert film Truth or Dare (or, In Bed with Madonna). He would go on to join her second tour, The Girlie Show, before embarking on a career in acting, and life coaching.Apologies in advance for slightly iffy audio – I hope the conversation is worth it.Further reading:Follow Carlton on InstagramLearn more about his life ...

Fenton Bailey is a co-founder of production studio World of Wonder, the home of RuPaul's Drag Race. Together with Randy Barbato, Fenton has creatively collaborated with RuPaul since the mid-80s, helping birth his albums, imagery, VH1 chat show, even directing the iconic "Supermodel" music video, before launching the queer cultural juggernaut that is Drag Race in 2009. Over 25 international variations are currently airing around the world.Fenton joins me for the first episode of Season 4 to di...

Sarah Keyworth is an award-winning comedian from Nottingham, England, who you may know from Live at the Apollo, Mock the Week, 8 Out of 10 Cats, or their own BBC Sounds show, Am I a Boy or a Girl? Sarah just won the top prize at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, and sat down with me to muse on some of the music that has soundtracked their queer journey, including (but not limited to) Katy Perry, MUNA, and Taylor Swift.This is the final episode of Season 3. I'm taking a few mon...

Brontez Purnell is a writer, musician, critic, model, zinemaker, dancer, choreographer, and quite literally, more. An Oakland punk by way of Alabama, Brontez has just published his fifth book, 10 Bridges I've Burnt. I'm an enormous admirer of Brontez's writing, and am thrilled to chat about his queer tracks. In this conversation, we discuss music by Carol Hahn, Emily's Sassy Lime, and his own musical collaboration with a special friend from his past.Links to Brontez online:"I’ve Listened to T...

Carl Austin-Behan served in the British Royal Air Force from 1991 until 1997, when he was discharged for being openly gay. Lauded with honours for services to his country, including a medal for bravery, nonetheless he was ejected from the RAF – simply for choosing not to hide who he was.Carl went on to win Mr Gay UK pageants, elections in local government, and the title of Lord Mayor of Manchester (the first to be openly gay).We discuss music by Gloria Gaynor, Erasure, and Bronski Beat.Carl c...

Jenna Suffern is a Sydney-based comedian, producer and writer. One half of comedy due Two Queers Walk Into a Bar, a writer and producer for Pedestrian.TV and VICE AU, and the star of her own one-woman show, It's Not Funny, It's Private, Jenna has helped curate a flourishing queer comedy safe space in Sydney and beyond.We recorded this conversation live in the studio, on Gadigal land, and had a lot of fun – apologies in advance for the hijinks. We managed to discuss music by Leagues, Janelle M...

Josh Rivers is a cultural worker, broadcaster, and the presenter of the conversation series Busy Being Black, a podcast exploring how queer Black folks live "in the fullness of their lives". Josh conducts his interviews in a way that allows people to unfold into their vulnerability, leading to inspiring conversations with fascinating guests from across the queer Black spectrum, including HIV activists from 80s London, Anglican priests, and Moud Goba – a guest on one of my favourite Tracks of ...

Tommy Murphy is an award-winning screenwriter and playwright based in Sydney. Tommy adapted the Australian queer classic memoir Holding the Man for both stage and screen, while his limited series Significant Others was broadcast on the ABC last year. Most recently, he adapted Nevil Shute's On the Beach for the Sydney Theatre Company.We discuss music by Whitney Houston, Olivier Messiaen, and Rufus Wainwright.This conversation was recorded at Forbes Street Studios in Sydney. A huge thank you to...

Stuart Linden Rhodes is the photographer behind the @linden_archives, a fascinating record of queer nightlife in the UK's north. During the pandemic, I start finding photos in my Instagram feed showing legends like Lily Savage, Su Pollard, and a pre-Spice Mel B, alongside a host of gay clubbers and allies dancing on sticky floors and tearing up the night. Like many others, it felt like I had a window into an era I completely understood, but hadn't directly taken part in myself.Stu...

Bamby Salcedo is the CEO and President of the TransLatin@ Coalition, the largest trans-lead organisation in the United States, with a mission to improve and enrich the lives of trans Latin@ women. Her activism over 25 years has seen her champion issues across undocumented migrants, HIV-AIDS, youth incarceration, and of course, the LGBTQ community. Her leadership is powerful to behold, and I hope you enjoy this conversation.We discuss music by Mercedes Sosa, GIT, and Madonna.You can follow Bam...

Michael Cragg is a prolific music journalist for The Guardian, The Observer, Vogue and more, and as of last year, the published author of Reach for the Stars, an oral history of the mind-boggling period of British pop music that flourished between 1996 and 2006. We discuss the heady confluence of factors that lead to an era bookended by the Spice Girls and the X Factor, Michael's own complicated relationship with music and his queerness, and Xenomania's contributions to the UK pop canon.We al...