25+ awesome LGBTQ Memphis happenings for this late May event guide Bi the Way is our biweekly event list where we share all the best local LGBTQ+ and queer-inclusive happenings in Memphis and the Midsouth in the next two weeks.  Now, jump off your very gay Pride Month with festivals, live music, amazing drag brunches, and more! Ongoing ‘Between Heaven and Earth, We Build Our Home’ | UrbanArt Commission | Opening reception, May 25. Display: Tuesday-Thursday, May 28th – June 20th | Between Heaven and Earth, We Build Our Home explores the themes of ancestry, immigration, and homemaking in an ..read more

Let Mid-South Pride Fest 2024 Take Over Your Music List! This story was featured in our print and digital May/June Pride issue. Queer Up Your Playlist is our series featuring awesome music by LGBTQ artists and allies—many of them local, all of them southern. This round we’ve got an extra special takeover—all four artists will perform at this year’s Mid-South Pride Fest 2024! So, check out our Spotify playlist or catch them live on stage in downtown Memphis this June 1st! Brian Falduto   Nashville, TN/Los Angeles, LA Song: “Same Old Country Love Song” You may recognize Brian Faldut ..read more

Meet Mid-South Pride headliners, Mr. and Miss Gay America, Geo Johnson and Tatiyanna Voche. Pride Month is just around the corner, and Memphis is thrilled to welcome national royalty to our celebrations this year. The Mid-South Pride weekend kicks off on Thursday night with Drag N Drive. On Friday, we’ll celebrate friendship and inclusivity at the Big Gay Dance Party.  Saturday’s festivities include the Festival and Parade, starting at 11 am. Be sure to catch our headliners at the Sunday Drag Brunch for a spectacular closing event. Now, let’s get to know our distinguished title ..read more

Here are 10 great books by queer AAPI authors for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month Happy Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! LGBTQ+ pioneers and changemakers in the AAPI community have been systematically left out of many cultural conversations. So, to reflect on the past and present of the community, there’s no better way than to curl up with a book and lose yourself in a vibrant tapestry of storytelling.  Here’s our round-up of 10 works written by queer Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) authors. Last Night and the Teleg ..read more

Amazing Pride Events in and Around Memphis and the MidSouth This story was featured in our print and virtual May/June PRIDE issue. Here are a few wonderful Pride events in and around the MidSouth, and Tennessee at-large, that show us southern LGBTQ+ folks are truly loved. Franklin Pride: June 1 Harlinsdale Farm – Franklin, TN Franklin Pride 2023, via Franklin Pride Facebook page Franklin Pride takes over historic Harlinsdale Farm to bring LGBTQIA+ people together in a safe and (super fun!) setting. Last year’s fest had nearly 60 entertainers, 103 vendors and 7000 attendees!  Memphis Pride ..read more

How MengCheng 梦城团 Collective builds community around art, friendship, and food A typewritten letter, a familiar pattern on bedsheets, an old photograph, a potluck—to MengCheng 梦城团 Collective, these things are to be considered art.  “Eat together, dream together” is not only their tagline, but a part of their process. The collective believes that artmaking need not be a solitary pursuit, one where a piece is born to an artist to exist, unmoving and unchanging, within a gallery space. For them, art is not merely a product to be observed, but a process to be lived. When our everyday lives, s ..read more

Recent anti-trans laws can affect everything from mental health to housing to employment Phoenix Lemount moved to Memphis from Detroit more than two years ago. He loves it.  “Finally, I have begun making friends as an adult, and I know what the word community truly means,” he says.  He’s found both good friends and a favorable work environment in the Bluff City. Someone who enjoys cooking socially for his friends, he worked as a line cook at a cafe in the University neighborhood until a recent promotion to back-of-the-house manager. Yet despite that support, the engaging 23-year-old ..read more

‘The Hot Wing King’ brings Black queer joy to Memphis’ Circuit Playhouse It’s time to go to the theater! The Hot Wing King, the Pulitzer Prize for Drama of 2021, just made its regional debut at Circuit Playhouse, and it’s showing for select days through June 2nd.  ‘The Hot Wing King’, photos by Sean Moore. Courtesy Playhouse on the Square Set during sweltering August in Memphis, it’s almost time to crown the new ‘Hot Wang King.’ Cordell and his boyfriend, Dwayne, embark on their journey to win the cooking competition.  Backed by his best friends, Cordell feels this is his year. But t ..read more

25+ awesome LGBTQ Memphis happenings for this late May event guide Bi the Way is our biweekly event list where we share all the best local LGBTQ+ and queer-inclusive happenings in Memphis and the Midsouth in the next two weeks.  Get ready for a queer ole’ time with a big gay dance party, LGBT theater, cosplay contests, a special performance by our Pride issue featured artists, MengCheng 梦城团 Collective, and so much more! Ongoing ‘Between Heaven and Earth, We Build Our Home’ | UrbanArt Commission | Opening reception, May 25. Display: Tuesday-Thursday, May 28th – June 20th | Between Heaven a ..read more

Local, queer Gen-Z folks share their experiences moving away from religion Listen to Gen-Z is Losing Their Religion When 24-year-old Eva Hernandez of Memphis, TN, was a little girl, she was very nosy. She sat underneath her mother’s coffee table, listening to the conversations of her aunties and mother. The conversation would be about religion a lot of times. As she listened, she sat confused and terrified. She imagined heaven as this monotonous place where she picked apples with gold sidewalks and had to wear robes and sandals. If she did anything wrong, she thought she would burn in a fie ..read more