Get Hotter (Than July), Go to Ann Arbor Pride, See Flamy Grant, Reserve Equality Michigan Gala Tix
There are weeks for catching up on laundry, and there are weeks for catching up with your community. The next 14 days seem like the second kind. We've got Pride festivals still going strong, including the always-memorable Hotter Than July, a drag artist reclaiming gospel music and a chance to get all dressed up with somewhere to go. If your social media has FOMO on steroids, overrun with celebrities summering on their own private island or your friends getting together for a budget rental up north, here's plenty of local fun to break you out of the vacation-envy scroll habit.
1. Turn Up the Heat at Hotter Than July
LGBT Detroit's Hotter Than July is a full week of celebration marking the 31st anniversary of one of the country's longest-running Black LGBTQ+ Pride events, second only to D.C. "Visibility matters, community matters and creating spaces where people can show up as their authentic selves matters," says Joseph "Joe Black" Hunter, chair of the event's Annual Gathering Committee.
The event begins with a candlelight vigil, candidate forum and Avenue of Fashion bar crawl, and continues with an art and film festival and the beloved Palmer Park Picnic on Saturday, where thousands gather for food, music, community resources, family activities and one enormous afternoon of Black queer joy. The weekend includes the Hot Like Fire 2 dance party, a brunch and the annual worship service. Details at link. (Be sure to revisit Damon "Magic" Percy's article from Hotter Than July's 30th anniversary at this link!)
July 23-26, various locations. Palmer Park Picnic: July 25, noon, Palmer Park (600 Merrill Plaisance St., Detroit). lgbtdetroit.org/hotterthanjuly.
2. Make a Day (and Night) of Ann Arbor Pride
How is it that every year Ann Arbor Pride keeps getting bigger (attendance topped out at 20,000 participants last year) and somehow still manages to feel like a down-home hometown event? Whatever magic they've sprinkled over Liberty and Main Streets, you can have an amazing Saturday with three stages of entertainment hosted by long-time Ann Arbor Pride Entertainment Director Jadein Black, more than 200 vendors, a Kids Zone, food trucks and drag headliners Latrice Royale ("RuPaul's Drag Race") and Dominique Jackson ("Pose").
Aug. 1, noon-9 p.m., downtown Ann Arbor. annarborpride.com.
3. Testify with Flamy Grant
If you've ever wished church had featured more sequins and significantly better eyeliner, Flamy Grant may be just the gift you've been searching for. The Billboard-charting drag artist blends gospel, folk, country and roots music into concerts that feel equal parts revival, healing circle and really good night out. With a joyful wink to Christian music superstar Amy Grant and beloved by queer folks navigating complicated relationships with faith, Flamy creates joyful spaces where authenticity gets the final word. Michigan is lucky enough to get a five-show run of appearances during Grant's Try Drag In A Small Town Tour: Marquette, Traverse City, Sawyer, Kalamazoo, Ann Arbor and Oakland Township.
Aug. 4-9, various Michigan venues. flamygrant.com.
4. Glam Up For Good
That outfit you've been saving for just the right occasion? We're pretty sure this is it, and now is the time to snag that ticket. Equality Michigan's Wear Your Truth gala promises dancing, DJs, signature cocktails and mocktails, raffle prizes, late-night snacks and plenty of opportunities to celebrate and look amazing. Better yet, every ticket helps fund Equality Michigan's advocacy work protecting LGBTQ+ Michiganders across the state. Looking fantastic while helping build a better future is a pretty efficient use of a Saturday night.
Sept. 12, 8 p.m., 215 West (215 W. Nine Mile Road, Ferndale). equalitymi.org/events/wearyourtruth.
5. Become Somebody's First Welcome
Think back to the first LGBTQ+ event you ever attended in person. Odds are, you were wondering whether you'd know anyone, where to stand and whether everyone else had secretly been on a WhatsApp chain you somehow missed. The next time you attend a community event, look for someone standing alone and introduce yourself. That's it. One conversation. One "Hi, I'm..." Communities don't grow because organizations exist. They grow because people decide to make room for one another, even (or perhaps especially) when it's awkward.
The next queer event, anytime.
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