Pride In Lawrence

 

Have you ever heard of Pride Month here in Lawrence Kansas lately? Well if you do, then check this out. I've been reading something about a celebration here in my hometown during the beginning of the month of June, and I've been dreaming about joining the celebration here in South Park. So get this, according to the Lawrence PRIDE website, it says here that Every June, Lawrence PRIDE organizes a parade and party for the community. This event is free of cost and open to everyone. So if you'd like to know more about Lawrence PRIDE and the celebration happening every June, take the time to follow along for more updates on upcoming events on the website.

https://www.lawrencekspride.com/

Okay now for the good part of this blog entry.

Today we're gonna talk more about Pride Month here in Lawrence and how we can celebrate it. And remember that the celebration will be at 1141 Massachusetts St.

Here's what I need to do before I celebrate it in the beginning of June. Mark my calendar for June 1st and write the time to get here. Say you wanna go to the Lawrence Pride parade and celebration before 11AM sharp, you can get to downtown Lawrence early and watch the Pride Month celebration on parade. That’ll be cool. Now it’s really important that I do not wanna be late or wait too late to celebrate Pride month in Lawrence. I know why, because doing nothing in the beginning of June is just plain boring.

In case you didn’t know, Lawrence PRIDE is an organization dedicated to supporting and advocating for the LGBTQ+ community. Their mission is to create a safe and inclusive space for all individuals to celebrate their identities and empower them to live their truth.

Now here’s some ideas I’ve been thinking of doing when the time comes for Pride Month. I want somebody with my help from a friend I know to help my out on a special float for the Lawrence PRIDE parade. I’m also thinking about joining the Pride parade too. Just think of all the endless possibilities. So I can volunteer for the parade and even volunteer for the party in the park too. How about that!

After the parade comes a block party at South Park. With plenty of fun, food, and music. Plenty more is also included, so for the very first time I’ll be joining the Pride Month party there and having plenty of fun there also. I’ll bring you more updates about it real soon, but first before we get to our special top 10 list, let’s learn about the history of Lawrence PRIDE.

According to the website, PRIDE in its current form began in 2017 when the community started gathering to hold small celebrations at local venues. As the event's popularity grew, PRIDE eventually moved to accommodate more attendees and welcome more of the community. 

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Since then, more PRIDE events have begun appearing around town, including weekly drag events and the annual Miss Gay Kansas United States. Additionally, the City of Lawrence holds a PRIDE proclamation every June to commemorate the historic month. 

And now, looks like it’s time for a special Pride Month top 10.

10. RuPaul

You know him as the drag queen and the host of RuPaul's Drag Race. And let me tell you something that I love watching. When I was watching him host SNL, he was incredible when I finally saw him on TV. It was really cool to check out on late night television on a Saturday. I love his style though. I even got one of his songs on my iPad, which is really cool though.

9. The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert

I absolutely love listening to the soundtrack while I was hanging out a messing around with my friend Jennifer Unruh at her place. We had a lot of fun dancing to disco, new wave, and acapella music too. Pop music is also the thing we loved listening to when we were in the car going on a trip around Kansas City. Anyway, this soundtrack was a legend that I'll never forget as always. My favorites in this album are "I Love The Nightlife", "I Will Survive", "Go West", "A Fine Romance", "I Don't Care If The Sun Don't Shine", "Finally", "My Baby Loves Lovin'", "Billy, Don't Be a Hero", and "Can't Help Lovin' That Man". In fact, I love them all in this album.

In case you didn't know, the film stars Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, and Terrence Stump. Just to be sure

In the meantime, I love listening to that album! Thanks, Jennifer!

8. Big Freedia

I would like to say that this artist is banging ever since I first listened to the song "Club Now Skunk" by Elliphant.

The way I hear her rap makes me wanna get down to a wave of nostalgia. Oh, and another thing that I remember listening to is from Beyonce's song "Break My Soul" which is a house pop track I liked listening to. Anyways like RuPaul, Big Freedia is fabulous! And that's that! End of story.

7. Jojo Siwa

When I first heard her music like "Boomerang", "Kid In a Candy Store", and many others, it made me realize that we can be anything. Like she always said, just be yourself.

Right now when I first heard her new single "Karma", that track was banging. And I gotta tell you folks, I really love her bows ever since. Just like she said, be you!

6. Trixie Mattel

Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, she's known for her drag queen roles in TV and music. I remember that one time I saw her in an episode of Crank Yankers where she does her crank call with someone on Season 6. I remember watching Crank Yankers one time on DVD and it was really funny. I really liked Seasons 1 and 2 though. In case you didn't know, she's also part of RuPaul's Drag Race.

5. Elton John

Ever since the first time I listened to Elton John was the time I was with Chandra in the car listening to Crocodile Rock. Another thing you should know is that he's also known for other hits such as "Rocket Man", "Tiny Dancer", "Daniel", "I'm Still Standing", and "Can You Feel The Love Tonight". Plus, he's also known for music from The Lion King. One time I was watching him host SNL and perform as musical guest with Leon Russell, it was absolutely epic when he was on stage being part of the show.

Now on the past two years, I remember listening to new songs such as "Cold Heart" featuring Dua Lipa, and "Hold Me Closer" featuring Britney Spears. And you wanna know what I think about his music? Colorful and stunningly entertaining!

4. Jodie Harsh

While I was on a cruise trip at the Norwegian Star from Norway to Iceland, I was at the fitness center while I was working out getting some exercise and I first listened to the song "Good Time". I listened to the song and it was a mix combining house music and dance music at the same time. In other words, #SurprisinglyGood!

3. k.d. lang

Fresh from Canada, k.d. lang is known as the LGBTQ icon. And as a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress, she has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical performances. Hits include the songs "Constant Craving" and "Miss Chatelaine". I think I also remember the fact that she's also featured on the 'Home On The Range' soundtrack.

2. Adam Lambert

Following the second spot off the eighth season of American Idol, he released his first debut album 'For Your Entertainment' featuring the singles "If I Had You", and "Whataya Want From Me". Before that, he recorded the single for the disaster movie '2012' called "Time For Miracles" in 2009. That was really interesting when I first heard his hits on TV and on the radio, but to be honest with you, he's talented.

1. Freddie Mercury (Queen)

Freddie was once the member of the rock band Queen. His charismatic stage performances often saw him interact with the audience, as displayed at the 1985 Live Aid concert. He also led a solo career and was a producer and guest musician for other artists. He's known for Queen's singles of music such as "Bohemian Rhapsody", "We Are the Champions", "Don't Stop Me Now", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", "Killer Queen", "Bicycle Race", "The Invisible Man", "I Want To Break Free", "A Kind of Magic" and "Somebody To Love". I remember the first time I listened to Queen and I was rocking out on my iPod. The first two songs I first listened to were "We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions" and "The Invisible Man". As a member of Queen, Mercury was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003, and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004. In 1990, he and the other Queen members received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. One year after his death, Mercury received the same award individually. Queen was the greatest band I've heard in my entire life, and Freddie Mercury was awesome!

And there you have it, my special Pride Month top 10 list. Hope you've enjoyed it.

Here's what the rainbow flag looks like. Six colors.

If you look real closely at the colors, you can examine what they meant.

Hot Pink = Sex

Red = Life

Orange = Healing

Yellow = Sunlight

Green = Nature

Turquoise = Magic

Indigo = Serenity

Violet = Spirit

And that my special Lawrence blog entry about Pride Month in Lawrence Kansas. I will hope that I will someday join in the celebration of Pride Month when I finally come back to Lawrence once again. I'll finally get my friends here to invite me to Lawrence PRIDE here in Downtown Lawrence. If you like to help me out with some ideas on joining the Pride Month parade with me and thinking of an idea for a special Pride Month parade float, please let me know in the comments.

That's all for today, I'll be back next time for another story in The Lawrence Kansas Blog. Peace out and Happy Pride!