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Cheyenne Jackson opens up

Out actor/singer on family life, ‘Horror Story,’ ‘Drag Race’ and more

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Cheyenne Jackson says being on ‘American Horror Story’ and ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ have been career highlights. (Photo courtesy Management 360)

Cheyenne Jackson
 
Sunday, Oct. 15
 
8 p.m.
 
The Barns at Wolf Trap
 
1635 Trap Rd.
 
Vienna, Va.
 
$45-55

Cheyenne Jackson likes to portray himself as a normal guy. He’s sitting in his car outside his dry cleaner in Los Angeles on Monday when we talk.

It’s just mid-morning but one of his 1-year-old twins had him up at 3:30 a.m. “He’s teething and needed a little TLC,” Jackson says.

After feeding the babies, a jaunt to Barry’s Bootcamp and a trip to the cleaners, the 42-year-old Broadway vet and actor/singer has time to chat in advance of his weekend show at the Barns at Wolf Trap. His comments have been slightly edited for length.

WASHINGTON BLADE: How is family life? How are (husband) Jason (Landau) and the twins?

CHEYENNE JACKSON: They’re amazing. Family life is awesome. It’s busy, it’s loud, the days are long but the weeks and months are short. Just two days ago they turned 1. I can’t even believe it’s been a year already but it’s great.

BLADE: Do they usually sleep through the night?

JACKSON: We’ve been really adamant and committed to a sleep schedule and we knew going into this we were going to be the ones doing the care. We don’t have help at night or on weekends. I don’t want a nanny sleeping in my house at night. I think it’s just weird. So we knew we needed a schedule. … I would say about 98 percent of the time they sleep about 11 hours. It’s awesome.

BLADE: Tell us a little about your Wolf Trap engagement.

JACKSON: I’m very excited because I haven’t done a show in quite a while. It’s been a crazy year. Being a dad and just things in my life. Some personal things. I lost my father a few months back. So doing shows and doing concerts hasn’t really been in the forefront of my mind but when this gig came to me, I thought this would be a good opportunity to get back into it and find some of my favorite songs from different shows I’ve done. I’m gonna do a couple new tunes, things I’ve always wanted to do, so it’s really a mix. I’ll take some songs, a couple songs from each of the albums I’ve done, mix it in with some covers and things I’ve been working on, then a couple of originals. It’s going to be a totally special new night.

BLADE: So this isn’t really a show you do here and there, it’s more its own thing?

JACKSON: It’s its own thing for sure. Some of the songs I’ve done here and there in one way or another but … it’s gonna be very intimate, very personal and fun.

BLADE: What kind of instrumental backing will you have?

JACKSON: Just me and my musical director, just me and piano. He’s such a savant. He plays piano like five people are playing the piano. But yeah, it’s just us.

BLADE: What’s the set feel like on “American Horror Story”? Does the creepiness of the show affect the set or is it just like other sets?

JACKSON: It’s definitely its own thing. I’ve never been on a set like “American Horror Story.” I think it’s because of the nature of the show and what the show’s about, it lends itself to be a special kind of unique experience. First and foremost, it’s shrouded in secrecy and everybody really respects that. Not everybody knows exactly what’s happening from episode to episode and some people are just on a need-to-know basis. So it’s exciting and fun as an actor to not know who knows what and just stay in the moment trying to bring everything to life. … Because it’s such heavy subject matter and such dark fantasy, we find ways to keep it light when it needs to be. We don’t just sit in the heaviness of it unless you have a super, super crazy, emotional thing you need to go sit in the corner to prep for, we try to keep it light.

BLADE: How long did it take to film that sex scene with Lady Gaga and how was it for you?

JACKSON: (laughs) Well scenes take way longer than you’d think. That whole sequence, I would say, I don’t know — maybe six hours? It’s a lot. Every different angle and every possible setup. And you know, it’s awkward and it’s funny and it’s silly. I always try to look at things like that instead of trying to take it super seriously like, “Oh my God, I can’t believe I’m sitting here naked with Lady Gaga.” I just kind of flip it on its ear. … She’s so great and a friend and she made it very comfortable. But sometimes you do kind of snap and think, “What’s happening here,” and you look around and there are, you know, 30 people standing around with microphones and booms and filters and lights and it’s nuts. It’s a crazy thing but it’s what we do.

BLADE: “Hotel” had a lot more sex than other season. Do you think it ever got gratuitous?

JACKSON: No. I feel like every season is its own animal and there’s a reason for everything. I never really question what (creator/producer) Ryan (Murphy) wants or envisions. I trust him implicitly. He’s hired me four times so it’s one of those things where … sometimes you wonder if you can do what he’s asking but then you think, “Well, if he thinks I can do it, that means I can probably do it.” Is the show really violent sometimes? Yeah. Is it really super, hyper sexual? Yeah. Is it dark and creepy and confrontational? Yeah, but that’s why it’s called “American Horror Story” and, you know, that’s why my mom has to watch it through her fingers.

BLADE: You also had a pretty intense sex scene with Audra McDonald in “Hello Again.” Who was better screen sex — Audra or Gaga?

JACKSON: (chuckles) Oh, I would never compare. But it’s the same kind of thing. Audra and I have been friends for a long time and we just really had to laugh through that because it was also very graphic and it was kind of the first time either of us had done anything like that to that extent. But the first thing is to get really comfortable with each other first so then you buy it as an audience member. You can’t get too in your head about it, you just have to go for it and trust each other. She was actually pregnant at the time and we had just gotten pregnant so we look at it now and laugh about what we were both going through at the time.

BLADE: Is being on “RuPaul’s Drag Race” as much fun as it looks? It seemed like you were having fun when you were a guest judge last season.

JACKSON: I have zero shame in saying it’s my very favorite show. I’ve seen every episode of every season. It’s so much more than a reality show. I think it’s a very important show right now in this world and I love that it shows young gay men and what they go through. … I think it’s amazing. I love Ru Paul and he’s been so wonderful to me over the years and he’s a friend so yeah, I always tell them anytime they need me, I’m there. I tried to make it work the last couple seasons but just filming-wise, it’s difficult to work out with “Horror Story” or whatever I’m doing but yeah, it’s so much fun.

BLADE: What seems the most different actually being there versus how it seems on TV?

JACKSON: Lots of things. For one thing, I think people don’t always realize all the judges see is what’s on the main stage. They don’t see all the work room stuff the audience sees, all the bickering and fighting and backstory. The judges, all they have to go by is what they see on the main stage and with the challenges. So if it seems like Michelle Visage and Carson and everybody, if they seem especially harsh and honest, it’s because that’s their only time to see it and make it fair. So that’s what I found interesting.

BLADE: Are the acoustics at Carnegie Hall as legendary as everybody says they are or is it pretty much like other good halls?

JACKSON: I don’t really remember if I noticed such a vast difference because I think I was just having such an out-of-body experience and trying to wrap my brain around the fact that I was performing at Carnegie hall. I just remember that it feels really warm, really good, you don’t have to push. You feel supported. It’s a combination of the acoustics and also the sound system. Everything is perfectly integrated. It’s really special. It definitely spoils you because then you’ll sing in some other shitty little performance arts center in the middle of somewhere and you’re like, “Ugh.” It definitely makes a huge difference.

BLADE: Does “A Case of You” have any subtext for you being a former drinker or is it just a good Joni Mitchell song? Is it on the set list for this weekend?

JACKSON: I will be singing that song and it’s funny, I don’t think of it in terms of wine or alcohol at all. It’s about relationships and connection. I have my own personal things I pull from it, but booze isn’t one of them for sure.

BLADE: “American Horror Story: Cult” is all about phobias. Do you have any?

JACKSON: Not really. I don’t like flying but I wouldn’t say it’s a phobia.

BLADE: You’ve talked before about what a pivotal wake-up call 9-11 was for you. Do you think it’s more than coincidence that you did the “United 93” movie years later?

JACKSON: I have thought of that before and I definitely think it was meant to be my first feature film. It was definitely kismet because the subject matter had been the impetus for me to really move to New York and … start to make things happen at age 27.

BLADE: I don’t mean to sound obsequious but you must get hit on constantly, even if people don’t know who you are. That has to get old, right?

JACKSON: Uhhh, I don’t know that it happens all the time. I’m not trying to be fake modest. … I mean, I definitely know when someone is hitting on me and it feels great. Who doesn’t like to be thought of as attractive or appealing? … More now, I’m out with the kiddos and people want to see them, but does it get old? No. I hope it happens for a long time.

BLADE: Are you allowed to say if you’ll be on more “Horror Story” or do you know yet? Or are you focusing on (2018 series) “American Woman” now? 

JACKSON: I’m just kind of focusing on what is right now. I’ve had three great seasons on the show. “American Woman” will be in January I think.

BLADE: What can you tell us about it? Are you filming it now? 

JACKSON: No, it’s all done. I was doing it while I was doing “Horror Story” so that was tricky going back and forth, but it was great. It’s set in 1975 and it’s basically a show about feminists with Alicia Silverstone, Mena Suvari and Jennifer Bartels. … I just saw the first four episodes and I’m happy to say it’s very good and very sweet. … I play Mena Suvari’s boyfriend and I got some great cool stuff to work with. I got some secrets in my life and, you know, it’s a fun departure for me. It was fun to look like my dad in the ‘70s.

BLADE: What was it like filming “Cult” since it’s been based so closely on recent events?

JACKSON: I think it was fascinating how Ryan harnessed that into the show. I think it’s really savvy and cool.

BLADE: Which season has been your favorite to film? “Hotel,” “Roanoke” or “Cult”?

JACKSON: “Cult’s” my favorite. I really loved my character last year but I only had a couple really great scenes to do and “Hotel” has such a soft place in my heart because it was my first one and, you know, I loved who I worked with. But this season is my favorite as far as the work I’ve been able to do.

Cheyenne Jackson, gay news, washington blade

Cheyenne Jackson says it felt right that ‘United 93’ was his first feature film role. (Photo courtesy Management 360)

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‘Tiger’ burning bright: an interview with Mary Timony

Today’s female-driven music scene wouldn’t be the same without her

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Mary Timony is back with a new album. (Photo by Chris Grady)

It’s hard to imagine what the current female-driven music scene would be like without Mary Timony. From Sleater-Kinney to Haim, from Angel Olsen to Mitski, the influence of Mary Timony is in every note being played, every word being sung. On her new solo album, “Untame The Tiger” (Merge), with its sly nod to Joni Mitchell, Timony has brought her many years of musical experience to the fore, resulting in what is easily her most accessible release. Beginning with the incredible six-plus minute opener “No Thirds” and continuing through the first single, “Dominoes,” and gorgeous numbers including “The Guest,” “The Dream,” and “Not The Only One,” Timony is assured to keep listeners purring along. Timony made time for an interview shortly before the album was released.

BLADE: Mary, I’d like to begin by talking to you about your musical lives in D.C. and Boston. I went to college in Boston in the early 1980s and was constantly amazed by the bands of the era such as Mission of Burma, Human Sexual Response, and ‘Til Tuesday. I moved to D.C. in the mid-1980s to go to grad school, and at the time, the music scene there was dominated by go-go music, and a smaller indie music featuring BETTY and the late Tommy Keene, among others. What do you remember about the music in D.C. as someone who grew up there?

MARY TIMONY: That’s interesting. We kind of did a switcheroo. I’m from D.C. and I moved to Boston. (In D.C.) I learned, as a teenager, about rock shows and rock music from being involved in the punk scene, the post-hardcore scene of kids here. Those are the shows I went to in high school. Basically, the Dischord (Records) bands and stuff. I saw every single Fugazi show from when they started in ’87. Before that, whatever was happening in 1985, hardcore shows by Swiz and Soulside and Kingface and I loved Ignition. Other than that, I would go see bluegrass out in Virginia and I loved go-go. I would go to see (go-go bands) Rare Essence and Trouble Funk. I was very into that stuff; that was really exciting. I think I liked go-go the most out of all of it, actually [laughs]. I would go to DC Space and 9:30 (Club), mostly for local (acts). I don’t think I ever saw BETTY, but I was a teenager then.

BLADE: Was the active music scene in Boston in the early 1990s part of the appeal for you when it came to relocating to Boston to attend Boston University?

TIMONY: The reason why I went there was because I wanted to go to a music program that was in a big university, in case I didn’t wanna study music the whole time, which is exactly what happened. I studied classical guitar for a year and then I didn’t really like the program much, so I transferred to study English. I found out about the (Boston) music scene from friends. We went to The Middle East (nightclub) and TT’s (T.T. The Bear’s nightclub). Then after college, I ended up living right down the street from The Middle East and I was there constantly.

BLADE: Good old Central Square! As a performer playing in bands including Autoclave, Helium, and Ex Hex, and as a solo artist with her own band, it’s not unreasonable to say that Mary, you are someone who plays well with others. 

TIMONY: [Big laugh.]

BLADE: What makes you such a good team player?

TIMONY: I didn’t know I was [laughs]. I’ve gone back and forth between doing solo stuff and being in bands. Mostly, I’ve done projects where I’ve written a bunch of songs and I’m trying to…I haven’t done a ton of collaborative stuff really. Ex Hex was fun because it was more collaborative. Wild Flag, the same thing, totally 100% collaborative in every way. But Helium was really my thing, but I got some great people that totally influenced it. I’ve always been doing my own thing but tried to find really good people. Music really is about connection. It’s never as good if it’s only one person’s vision. Usually, if it’s good it’s good because of the connection between the musicians. Music is a social art form, I think.

BLADE: “Untame The Tiger” is the title of your new album. In 1999, Joni Mitchell titled her album “Taming The Tiger.” Are you, in any way, making a nod to Joni?

TIMONY: A little bit because I am a huge fan. I have been since I was 18. But, it sort of came to me because I have a song called that on the record and I’m sure that probably came from ripping off Joni Mitchell. Then I just thought that’s a cool name for a record. Then I thought, “Oh, shit!” [Laughs] It’s already been taken! Then I thought about it and then I forgot about it. Then I thought about it again and finally, I was like, “It’s OK. It’s a little bit different.” And I love her!

BLADE: I’m currently reading Ann Powers’ book “Traveling: On the Path of Joni Mitchell,” which comes out in June.

TIMONY: Oh, I’m definitely going to have to read.

BLADE: Yes, please add that to your reading list. “Untame The Tiger” is your first new solo studio album in 15 years. Are there things you write and sing about on your solo records that might be out of place on an album you would record with another one of your musical outfits?

TIMONY: Yes. That’s why this ended up being a solo record. I guess it was because of the tuning of my guitar. They were more or less finished songs. I wanted the songs to sound kind of acoustic. I also wanted to play with a bunch of musicians who I really love. All those things just made it seem like a solo record. If I’m writing for a band, like Ex Hex, which is basically the other band that I do right now, they’re not finished. I bring them in (to the band members) with that band in mind.

BLADE: I love the lush instrumental section on “Thirds” and the psychedelic sounds of “Looking For The Sun” and “The Guest.” Were there things you were listening to while writing the songs for “Untame The Tiger” that were inspiring to you?

TIMONY: I was listening to a lot of music, a ton of stuff. I don’t ever try to purposely emulate anything very often, but I can’t help it. I’d rather be influenced by stuff without really thinking about it too consciously. I always have loved listening to The Left Banke’s instrumentation and The Moody Blues’ string parts. Most of the string parts come from trying to emulate The Moody Blues [laughs] or The Left Banke. I’m obsessed with The Left Banke.

BLADE: “Walk Away Renée,” right?

TIMONY: Yes. This guy, Michael Brown, was such a genius. He wrote so much stuff as a teenager. His dad was a string arranger. Anyway, I love those string parts. I was listening to this prog-rock band The Strawbs and this early (Ronnie) Dio band Elf. (The Flying) Burrito Brothers and The Byrds, too. I love Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span. Richard Thompson and I was really obsessed with Gerry Rafferty’s early solo record called “Can I Have My Money Back?” I love that record. I was listening to it a ton when I was arranging the songs.

BLADE: Why was the song “Dominoes” selected as the first single from “Untame The Tiger?”

TIMONY: I don’t know. I let other people tell me [laughs]. I really hate sequencing records and I hate choosing singles. I’m just too close to it. I can’t tell what people are going to like or not. A lot of times, the ones that I like are not the ones that other people like. I asked (the people at) the label and they suggested that. I think it’s more poppy sounding. Dave Fridmann mixed that one and “Don’t Disappear” and he’s a genius mixer. and these mixers are always very pleasing and accessible sounding. I think that has something to do with it, too.

BLADE: Earlier, we talked about your long history of playing music with others, which reminded me of your guest spot singing “All Dressed Up In Dreams,” written by gay singer/songwriter Stephin Merritt for his band The 6ths’ “Wasps’ Nest” album. 

TIMONY: He’s such a genius!

BLADE: How did that come about?

TIMONY: When I moved to Boston, for a year I lived with Claudia (Gonson of Merritt’s band The Magnetic Fields), who is his drummer. I lived in a group house in Cambridge. I was friends with Claudia, and Stephin lived a few blocks away. She told me he was making this record with guest singers they wanted to go over and sing on it. I went over there one day and he taught me the song and I sang on it.  I think he’s one of the best songwriters of the last 50 years or whatever.

BLADE: I completely agree. As someone who has collaborated with Stephin, are you aware of an LGBTQ+ following for your own music?

TIMONY: I don’t know. I think maybe a little bit. I’d love that. I love everybody who can connect with it, because all I’m trying to do is connect with people.

Mary Timony (Photo by Chris Grady)
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Sherry Vine is turning 60 — and she’s not quitting anytime soon

Legendary drag queen coming to D.C. for new show, ‘Smoke and Mirrors’

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Sherry Vine performs in D.C. on March 9. (Photo courtesy of Sherry Vine)

There are many things Sherry Vine is proud of. Throughout her 33-year-long career, the drag queen has accomplished so much — she’s released music, launched her own variety show and toured across the United States and Europe. 

But what she loves the most about her career is making people laugh. 

This calling to be a comedy queen started before her formal drag career. In high school, she remembers taking part in the musicals, and Vine would find joy in making people laugh by wittily changing song lyrics. 

“Then it just evolved into doing that as the act,” Vine said in an interview with the Blade. 

From the beginning of her career, she’s made singing live parodies a central part of her performance as a drag queen. And for her 60th birthday, she knew she wanted to put on an extravaganza. 

Vine is coming to the Woolly Mammoth on March 9 while on tour for her new show “Smoke and Mirrors,” performed and written by her. It’ll include new parodies, from Bruce Springsteen to ABBA. The D.C.-based drag queen Tara Hoot will be a special guest at the show. 

There’s a lot that led up to this milestone year for Vine. It all started with developing her character more than 30 years ago. 

Developing Sherry Vine

Vine describes her persona as a down-on-her-luck showgirl from Las Vegas with a heart of gold. 

She was always obsessed with stars like Joey Heatherton and Stella Stevens. Not to suggest those stars are down-on-their-luck showgirls, Vine said, but she wanted to evoke a sex kitten mentality. Her character eventually morphed into what it is today from these inspirations. 

But at first, Vine said she thought she had to look funny to be funny. 

“I didn’t care about the makeup. I didn’t wear big breasts. I just thought I had to look like a clown,” Vine said. 

When she moved to New York City in 1992, she was surrounded by queens who balanced being funny and gorgeous simultaneously. That was eye-opening for her, she said. 

Now, she relishes surprising people, she said. She’s been told she looks “too pretty” to be taken for a comedy queen, but that’s OK with her. 

“I want to walk out on stage, and anyone who’s never seen me, maybe they’re like, ‘Oh, she looks good,’” Vine said. “And then I started singing about poop and penis and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s so stupid.’”

When she was starting out as a drag queen, Vine reflected that she didn’t envision doing drag as a career. She remembers not wanting to commit to it. She wanted to be a movie star, she said. 

“I kind of fought it. I loved it,” Vine said. “But I was like, I’m not doing this as a career.’”

But once she let go of fighting it, her career exploded. She got connected with RuPaul and was on two television specials in the 1990s. That support was crucial, Vine said, and helped her believe in herself more. 

“I was like, ‘Oh, OK. If this person thinks that I have something, then maybe I do,’” Vine said. 

Drag has changed — a lot 

(Photo courtesy of Sherry Vine)

The drag scene has changed drastically. Vine credits a lot of this transformation to “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” 

“When we started doing drag 30 years ago, no one in their right mind would have been like, ‘I’m going to do drag so I can make a lot of money and be famous,’” Vine said. 

Before RuPaul’s iconic single “Supermodel (You Better Work),” one of the only examples of drag the average consumer saw was “Mrs. Doubtfire,” Vine said.  

“You had to have a passion for it,” Vine said. “You had to have a calling.”

When Vine started, drag was a fringe art form that had an audience of mostly gay men. 

Nowadays, it’s mainstream. Drag is enjoyed by a much wider audience, and is more of a way to become famous. When Vine was coming up in the industry, there were few ways to get on TV and in films as a drag queen, short of playing a character that was murdered on “Law & Order,” she said. 

But even though drag has evolved and grown in popularity, Vine’s advice to drag queens has stayed the same over the years. 

“Don’t try to do something because you think someone else is doing it successfully,” Vine said. “Find what you do, and then exploit and explore that.”

Looking back, looking ahead 

Out of her multi-decade run as a drag queen, Vine said she’s most proud of the longevity of her career. There are a few people who have been in it as long as she has — Lady Bunny and Miss Coco Peru, for example. Few others have made it as long as Vine, she said.  

She stresses that she can’t take credit for creating things, but she takes pride in being one of the first drag queens to go viral on YouTube in the 2000s. Her “Bad Romance” parody, released in 2009, racked up more than 6 million views over the years. 

In the next few years, she’s looking into doing more television and film projects. Her latest show, “The Sherry Vine Variety Show,” just wrapped filming its third season. Creating this show is fulfilling a childhood dream of hers, she said. It’s an homage to “The Carol Burnett Show,” which Vine grew up watching. 

Whether it’s performing on camera or onstage, Vine doesn’t see herself quitting anytime soon. 

“I love performing and drag as much now as I did 33 years ago,” Vine said. “So I don’t see ever stopping.”

To get details on how to buy tickets to “Smoke and Mirrors,” visit woollymammoth.net/productions/sherry-vine.

(Image courtesy of Sherry Vine)
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Girls Rock! DC empowers young people through music, social justice education

Organization founded in October 2007

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Youth leaders of Girls Rock DC! (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Girls Rock! DC, an organization operating at the intersection of art and activism, is dedicated to empowering young people through music and social justice education. 

Since its founding in October 2007; Girls Rock! DC has been creating a supportive, inclusive and equitable space that centers around girls and nonbinary youth, with a special emphasis on uplifting Black and Brown youth. At the core of Girls Rock! DC’s mission is a unique approach to music education, viewing it through a social justice and equity lens. 

“It’s a place where people can come explore their interest in music in a safe environment, figure out their own voice, and have a platform to say it,” Board Vice Chair Nicole Savage said.

This approach allows D.C.’s young people to build a sense of community and explore their passion for social change through after-school programs, workshops and camps.

The organization’s roots trace back to the first rock camp for girls in August 2001 in Portland, Ore. Similar camps have emerged worldwide since then, forming the International Girls Rock Camp Alliance. Girls Rock! DC is a member of this alliance, contributing to the larger community’s growth and advocacy for inclusivity in the music industry.

Girls Rock! DC’s annual programs now serve more than 100 young people and 20 adults, offering after-school programs and camps. Participants receive instruction on the electric guitar, the electric bass, keyboards, drum kits and other instruments or on a microphone and form bands to write and perform their own original songs. Beyond music, the program includes workshops on underrepresented histories in the music industry, community injustice issues and empowerment topics that include running for office and body positivity.

“I’ve been playing shows in the D.C. music scene for about six years, and I feel like Girls Rock! DC is the perfect amalgamation of everything that I stand for,” said Outreach Associate Lily Mónico. “So many music spaces are male dominated and I think there is a need for queer femme youth in music.”

Lily Mónico (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The organization’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is evident not only in its leadership but also in the way it creates a safe space for queer and nonbinary individuals. Language is a crucial component, and Girls Rock! DC ensures that both campers and volunteers embrace inclusivity. 

“It is a very open and creative space, where there’s no judgment,” Zadyn Higgins, one of the youth leaders, emphasized. “It is the first time for a lot of us, to be in a space where we’re truly able to be ourselves.”

In creating a safe environment, Girls Rock! DC implements practices that include name tags with preferred names and pronouns, along with pronoun banners that help kids understand and respect diverse identities. 

“It’s really cool to watch these kids understand and just immediately get it,” said Higgins. 

Zadyn Higgins (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Girls Rock! DC is also more than a music education organization; it’s a community where individuals can embark on a transformative journey that extends beyond their initial participation as campers. Many start their Girls Rock! DC experience as enthusiastic campers, learning to play instruments, forming bands and expressing their creativity in a supportive environment. The organization’s impact, however, doesn’t stop there. This inspiration leads them to volunteer and intern within the organization. 

The unique progression from camper to volunteer or intern, and eventually to a full-fledged role within the organization, exemplifies Girls Rock! DC as a place where growth is not confined to a single week of camp but extends into an ongoing, impactful journey. It’s a testament to the organization’s commitment to nurturing talent, empowering individuals and fostering a lifelong connection with the values for which Girls Rock! DC stands.

One of the highlights of Girls Rock! DC is its summer camp, where kids between 8-18 learn to play instruments, form bands, write songs and perform in just one week. Higgins shared a poignant moment from a showcase,

“To see them go from, like, crying a little bit about how scared they were to going out on the stage and performing their little hearts out was so sweet,” said Higgins.

(Photo courtesy of Frankie Amitrano of Girls Rock! D.C.)

Nzali Mwanza-Shannon, another youth leader, agreed that the camp is the highlight of the program. 

“The summer camp, I’ve met so many friends, and it’s always kind of scary coming up to the end, but after we get to perform and everything, I’m so grateful that I’ve gotten the opportunity to perform and meet new people and be so creative and do it all in a week,” said Mwanza-Shannon.

Forty-three young people who showcased their original songs and DJ sets at D.C.’s legendary 9:30 Club attended the first Girls Rock! DC camp in 2007. They performed to a crowd of 700 enthusiastic fans. The organization since then has grown exponentially, with each passing year bringing more energy, vibrancy and fun to the camp experience.

Since the pandemic, however, the organization has struggled financially, experiencing a funding shortage as well as reduced growth in attracting new members. 

Augusta Smith, who is a youth leader and a member of the band Petrichor, expressed concern about the potential impact on the unique and friendly environment that Girls Rock! DC provides. 

“We’ve kind of been really slow and barely making enough money. And this year, we’re having a funding shortage,” said Smith. 

The impact of Girls Rock! DC extends beyond musical skills, fostering leadership, self-expression and a passion for social change through creative collaboration and community power-building. Mwanza-Shannon hopes to be a part of Girls Rock! DC for a long time, 

“I want to keep on meeting new people,” said Mwanza-Shannon. “I want to keep on being able to perform at these different places and have different experiences.”

(Photo courtesy of Frankie Amitrano of Girls Rock! DC)
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