REPRESENTATION IN ROTATION: QUEERNESS IN ENTERTAINMENT
10.9.2026
In honor of ATL Pride this weekend, we talked to some of our upcoming performers about what it means to be queer in the entertainment space. From the power of representation to the importance of building inclusive spaces, these conversations highlight why queer stories deserve to be celebrated year-round.
Read their full responses below, explore their work, and help us celebrate and support queer artists!
Why is representation in entertainment so important?
Outside of the importance of representation to the individual– feeling seen, validating your lived experience, and accurately reflecting the real world– representation is good for everyone. Your life becomes SO much richer when you let in some variety, and why deny yourself an amazing listening experience? Representation is important because it’s the truth! In a world full of so many people, from so many places, that have lived so many different lives, there’s so many stories and songs to discover! Especially in the United States!
What a great first question. I think representation in music is so important because from my own experience growing up, there weren’t a lot of queer musicians accessible to me. I only ever knew about bands who were all dudes, and have only seen tour packages of all dudes, shows, etc. It made me feel like there was no real place for aspiring afab/queer musicians like me in bands. It never felt possible, even though I knew it was ALL I ever wanted to do. Then when you think about the trans experience, a lot of people (myself included), did not grow up around other trans people. My only real exposure to them was online whether it was in porn (because that’s where people seek it to see it) or on Tumblr or something. If I was able to go to shows, or see movies at a young age that had trans people in them, I feel like I wouldn’t feel so alone. If a trans artist is performing at a particular venue, it sort of signals to me, “Okay this venue is safe for people like me to come to.” It’s extremely important. We need to show our faces in these red states/counties to let the few fellow queer people know that if they want to come out tonight and enjoy themselves, they may do so with us and feel safe because we keep us safe. I can go on about this forever truly.
Representation is important because being seen and feeling heard is an important human experience. It could be representation for your identity or just someone who has gone through something similar to your own story and they represent specific emotions you align with,,, seeing yourself in media can inspire you to accept yourself and normalize your self perception
Unfortunately mainstream comedy in 2026 leans very right wing, but there is so much comedy out there that people aren’t seeing or experiencing! It’s important to let fans of comedy know that we are here too, as it’s equally important to let other queer folks that have a desire to do comedy know that existing and thriving in this space is possible!
Who are some queer entertainers who have inspired you?
I’ll be honest, I wasn’t exposed to a lot of queer artists growing up, or at least, them being queer was never discussed, besides Elton John I think, haha! But I was definitely influenced by artists like Queen and songwriters like Tracy Chapman and Elton. But from the aspect of being inspired knowing they’re queer, or because they were queer, the three that come to mind are Rufus Wainwright, Hayley Kiyoko, and especially Janelle Monáe! I remember my cousin showing me “Q.U.E.E.N.” when I was like, 13, and her excitedly telling me that Janelle liked girls AND guys! And seeing someone so pretty, and confident, and just, I LOVE the music video for it, I remember rewatching the outro SO many times cause I thought they looked really good in a suit! I was. Very clueless as a middle schooler xD. But speaking on representation, I’m sure so many queer women have seen Hayley Kiyoko’s “Girls like Girls”, and seeing something like that so normalized, and seeing artists like Janelle Monáe thrive while being queer, inspired me and gave me the confidence to come out to said cousin a year or two later. And even if I was in the closet for a long time after that, those two songs/music videos were a MASSIVE first step in me feeling comfortable in who I am!
Some lesser known queer artists who’ve inspired me are Pinkshift, and the HIRS Collective. These bands come to mind for their radical bravery and resilience time and time again. These are bands who’ve been touring relentlessly for YEARS and have always used their platforms to speak up about important political issues and are never afraid to be their truest selves. On a bigger scale, it’s easy to say Laura Jane Grace because being someone who’s in a much bigger band/spotlight showing that bravery to be their truest selves, have to undergo so much public attention after coming out, and probably still do even years afterwards. That strength is not lost on me, and is something I absolutely admire.
Kimya dawson! Ever since i was a kid their stuff has been special to me! And all my friends like Annamae, sinnynove, Jadadoll and aexo continue to inspire me to work hard and have fun.
Mae Martin is the first name that comes to mind! This is why representation is important! Seeing them have a comedy special and a tv show on Netflix let me know that not only do non binary comedians exist, but they can be successful!
Some local ATL queer comedians who inspire me are Matthew English, Shelley Gruenberg, Ian Aber, and Lona the Great, and PJ Audenzia
How do you see queer influence showing up in entertainment today?
Oh, it’s everywhere! Literally everywhere. I don’t think the whole idea of the male pop star would be as popular as it is without all the queer people before them who made being flamboyant in a rock band “cool”. Given, many influential artists used being gay or flamboyant as a form of publicity stunt, or to be edgy or “out there”, but it still pushed different ideas of fashion, musical performance, etc. And hell, plenty of gay artists that came after were able to hide behind that same flamboyance to freely express themselves! Drag is also popular, even in our top artists– whether or not they admit or realize that is a WHOLE other story. Musically, I don’t know if I see queer influence overall, but more influence from queer artists, if that makes sense. So many people I listen to, or love, inspired by Gaga, Freddy Mercury, Elton John, the Indigo Girls!
I mean just look around. More queer artists have been speaking up for years now about how little we are booked, or offered careers in music, etc. Yes, I do think that even today there are STILL plenty of tours/shows being announced with bills full of dude-bands, but I do think that the percentage of queer artists being considered for support opportunities have significantly increased over the last 10 years because we keep speaking up about it. Change doesn’t happen magically on its own. If you want things to be better, you’ve got to use the power of your voice to influence change and push things to be better. I believe this is equally as important when speaking about Black people, and People of Color. I think marginalized folks in general are often overlooked for opportunities, and we need to keep shouting about equity and diversity in music.
How can queer entertainers be better supported by fans, venues, talent agencies, media, etc…
OO that’s a good one, especially in the age of social media. I can’t say I’m knowledgeable enough to offer advice on all of those fronts, but if I had to think… To venues, agencies, I say de-center social media numbers. They’re not a good judgement on what sells. There’s so many artists out there with amazing local fanbases that would sell out shows WAY faster than someone with say, my social media numbers! Also, I’ve already seen venues do this, but staying aware of and keeping an eye out for troublemakers of a bigoted kind. To fans: if you want to support your favorite artists, it’s never been easier to help them for free! Comment on their posts if you see them, click share or whatever they say to do. Especially on places like YouTube: if you have an internet connection, you can help pay queer artists for free by just listening! But most importantly: talk about your favorite music with other people! Introduce others to music you like! Music is made up of so many communities, and outside of word of mouth being a tried and true way to spread music around, it’s also a great way to connect with others!
Oh man.. hahah. Well I think the fans are doing great. The economy has never been as shitty as it is today. Life has never been harder than it is today. Things have never been more expensive compared to our very low wages. Justice at the legal system levels have never been this corrupt. Law enforcement is more corrupt today then it ever has been. With ALL of this in mind, I think fans who show up to the shows, buy merch, stay and watch the bands, share the music with their friends, offer bands to let them crash on their floors, etc are the real heroes here. I’ve noticed a huge decline in ticket sales in the entertainment industry over the past few years, and I’m not the only one. I think fans genuinely are having a hard time affording concert tickets these days, so I sincerely appreciate it whenever people do make the effort to leave their house, lose that prime parking spot, and spend $15 or whatever that they earned from a job, to come watch my emo band play live for thirty minutes.
To the venues, the talent agencies, and the bigger bands deciding on support bands to join your shows/tours: Please do better. It is easy to notice the promotion companies who book the same 4 local bands over and over again, the bigger bands who tour with their friends’ bands over and over again, the venues who host the same “popular” bands over and over again, the talent agencies who always say, “this is cool, but I am currently not taking on new clients at the moment,” over and over. I think you’re all full of shit. You’re lazy, and don’t want to put in the extra 5% effort to try to be inclusive when building your lineups. Be different. Break the status quo. Don’t focus on monthly listeners, streams, past door sales, etc. All of that is extremely irrelevant in my eyes. If a small band has a loyal following and can draw 20 people to each show on a tour who all buy a ticket, spend money at your bar, tip your bartenders, buy merch, etc, that income is just as valuable in my opinion than a bigger band who draws 100 people, half of which all want to be guestlisted, don’t spend money at the bar, don’t buy merch, etc. Take the risk.
COME TO LIVE SHOWS! Support live comedy! Support your local comedy clubs! Befriend queer comics and find out where their local independent shows are! Most people’s interaction with comedy is on the internet, but we can’t do what we do without a live audience!
Is there a song of yours that feels especially connected to your identity?
Hm… I don’t know if there’s just one song, ha! There’s a lot that are easy to point to, but are more painful in nature, like Wine and Wheat, My Love is Sick, etc. But I think Love After You is a fun one to name! I fall into the category of lesbian that had a VERY hard time acknowledging that I had little to no interest in men. I’ve only been in one relationship outside of my current one, and it was very short, long distance, and the end of an… ok friendship, to be kind. I remember once scolding him after he humiliated one of his new friends after she had made a move on him– he’d never told her he was dating me until right then! I was so mad at him for embarrassing her!! I was telling him “you made her feel comfortable about being flirty, and I’m sure it took a lot of courage to do that!! Go apologize to her if you wanna stay friends!!” xD Clueless much??
Love After You is a very frustrated, whiney celebration of ‘figuring it out’. “Oh, it HURTS to think of someone rejecting you!” It felt like I was smacked in the face when I truly felt a crush for the first time. I had spent so much of my life chasing something I didn’t even want, and putting up with so much shit just to be miserable after, haha! That song marks a very important part of my life and journey, and it’s always gonna be special to me.
“No More Dysphoria” is a song I wrote when I was in my 20s about my experience being a trans masc nonbinary person. I don’t relate to it as much anymore since I am further along in my gender affirming journey than I was back then, but I think it still is serving young people who aren’t as far along as I am now. A lot of my songs are about my struggling with mental health and my avoidant attachment style, and abandonments. I think these experiences are not exclusive to queer people, but the way they affect queer people I think is unique. A lot of queer/trans people have the hardest time accessing healthcare and a lot of our mental health is truly suffering due to lack of the proper care. I think that’s connected to my identity as they are all connected.
My song ‘Begin’ which is now a relic has always felt like a manifestation of my self, it embodies the feeling I had pre blow up but knowing it was about to take off.
How does being a queer artist influence the way you approach your music?
A repeat answer, but everything! It’s not something I actively think of, but of course it’s there! It affects me and influences me in the same way that being raised a woman does. I’m grateful to be working with people that are allies and themselves, so I’m fully comfortable writing and presenting my ideas unaltered. Queer characters, the specific pronouns used, etc. My life and who I am informs my music, thus, my queer identity also has a hand in my music! However, being a queer artist today, especially with the conservative backsliding we’re experiencing, I do have to think about my music or content reaching the “wrong audience”. I can’t even count the amount of homophobic comments and other horrible messages I’ve received, even those sent to other people who are just fans! While it doesn’t really affect my initial stages of writing and creating, it’s weird to have to… prepare myself for what might happen if it goes south. Luckily, not something that happens every time! I think it just comes with the territory. Maybe one day, it won’t.
I think it’s just all about the experience. A lot of artists draw onto their personal lives’ for inspiration when writing music, and it’s a night and day difference between a straight person’s life experiences versus a queer person’s. Namely the privileges available to both persons is the biggest difference. I did not have access to A LOT of things in life, and I think this influences my approach to music because it’s hard for me to write about anything that sounds “happy.” Queer people struggle so much in life, like I mentioned earlier, and the need to express that is always so loud, and often what I want to write about.