Arts & Entertainment
Queery: Brian Markowski
The honors graduate answers 20 gay questions
Brian Markowski (Blade photo by Michael Key)
It’s never easy to go back to school later in life, but through hard work and dedication, Brian Markowski managed to maintain a 4.0 GPA and graduate with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in information systems through Strayer University while balancing family life with his partner and two stepchildren, Rico and Myles.
The 43-year-old Air Force vet and Middletown, Conn., native, has been in Washington since the mid-‘90s after stints in St. Louis; Biloxi, Miss.; Pensacola, Fla.; Germany and more. Markowski, known as “Ski” among friends, was honored in June at the university’s commencement ceremony for his “commitment to academic excellence and the community.” He also volunteers with the Capital Area Food Bank and My Sister’s Place.
Markowski and his partner, David Gilmer, live in D.C.’s Bloomingdale neighborhood. They’ve been together six years. Markowski enjoys dancing and spending time with family and friends in his free time. (Blade photo by Michael Key)
How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?
Since 1997. It was hardest to tell my mom and dad because I did not want to be rejected. I actually had to make two separate trips to the upper East Coast to tell them. I told my mom one weekend and since my dad was not around on the first trip, I had to make a second trip to tell him. My mom and dad are not married so they do not live together.
Who’s your LGBT hero?
I would have to say Ellen DeGeneres. When Ellen came out she made her career and personal life an open window and society was waiting to throw stones. She held her own, stayed true to herself and those stones bounced right off.
What’s Washington’s best nightspot, past or present?
Tracks & Escandalo. Tracks was that club that everyone went to, gay or straight. Escandalo was one of the best gay Latin clubs. It had a family atmosphere and people were so real. It was small but would pack in the crowd and play that great music.
Describe your dream wedding.
To get married on the beach of Manatí on the island of Puerto Rico surrounded by family and friends. Once the wedding after party is done, would love to be carried away in a hot air balloon as my partner and I wave farewell.
What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about?
Besides having affordable health care for all, we need to remember to respect others. Everyone is so pre-occupied with who is getting a divorce, having a baby, gaining or losing weight and blasting out other people’s business on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Remember all people have the right to privacy. Instead of trying to be in the mix, take a few steps back and take a good look in the mirror. The reflection you get back may surprise you.
What historical outcome would you change?
The assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy. Their contributions to our country’s equal rights campaign were just the beginning. They both died too soon.
What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime?
OMG who did not like the ‘80s: balloon pants, big hair (male and female), crazy colors. Who would have thought Madonna would become such an icon? And I will never forget watching the Motown anniversary special when Michael Jackson did the moonwalk across stage and the crowd went crazy.
On what do you insist?
I insist on staying true to yourself and always doing your best. Life is not a DVR — there are no replays.
What was your last Facebook post or Tweet?
Giving thanks to all who posted happy birthday messages to me.
If your life were a book, what would the title be?
“My name is S K I … Like going down or up a hill”
If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do?
Nothing — I feel that being gay is what helps me stay special. It is the cherry on top of this ice cream sundae of life. Being gay is part of me but does not make me who I am as a man.
What do you believe in beyond the physical world?
I believe when your time here is done there is another place beyond where you will be with the ones you love.
What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders?
Don’t let your position allow you to lose focus on the prize: Equality for all.
What would you walk across hot coals for?
To dance side by side or face to face with Janet Jackson.
What LGBT stereotype annoys you most?
I hate them all. The fact that we have stereotypes does not help us gain overall equality.
What’s your favorite LGBT movie?
“To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything Julie Newmar”
What’s the most overrated social custom?
Holding the door for a lady. I think we should hold the door for the next person behind you, whether male or female. It does annoy me that when you do hold it for someone you cannot even get a thank you.
What trophy or prize do you most covet?
My outstanding graduate student award from Strayer University. I was recognized in front of all my family and friends, and thousands of others, a few weeks ago at commencement ceremony at the Verizon Center here in D.C.
What do you wish you’d known at 18?
Life is what you make it and not what you have.
Why Washington?
I moved to D.C. after a short time in North Carolina pursuing my post-military telecommunication career.
Celebrity News
My evening with Madonna
Gay icon headlined the World Pride Music Festival in Amsterdam
Editor’s note: International News Editor Michael K. Lavers and Photo Editor Michael Key will be on assignment in the Netherlands through Aug. 10. They will be covering World Pride in Amsterdam.
AMSTERDAM — Madonna and 6,000 of her closest friends celebrated World Pride at Amsterdam’s AFAS Live concert hall early Sunday morning. I was fortunate enough to be one of them.
Madonna last Wednesday nearly broke the internet when she said on social media in Dutch that “I got somethin’ I wanna talk about,” referring to an opening line in “Danceteria,” one of the tracks on her “Confessions II” album that has received rave reviews since its July 2 release. The track has been on near constant replay on my playlist since I first heard it.
— Madonna (@Madonna) July 28, 2026
MISTR — a telehealth platform that offers free access to PrEP, Doxy PEP, STI testing, and long-term care that has organized Madonna’s Club Confessions shows in the U.S. and the U.K. — later confirmed the rampant speculation. I woke up on July 30 to an email in my inbox from MISTR and the World Pride Music Festival PR team that said I was on the press list.
Madonna was indeed going to headline the World Pride Music Festival that Jake Resnicow and Insomniac produced, and I was going to be there. OMFG!!!!
The gay icon had one more surprise in store.
The Dutch internet on Saturday once again broke over speculation that Kylie Minogue was going to appear alongside Madonna. I was getting ready to leave our hotel in Amsterdam on Saturday night when I saw a video of the two of them together.
“Madonna is now teasing Kylie Minogue on her social media … she may be one of her ‘special guests’ tonight,” I wrote in a text to Washington Blade Editor Kevin Naff at 8:46 p.m.
“Have fun! This is turning into the gayest concert ever,” he responded.
I arrived at AFAS Live shortly before 11 p.m. My press contact walked me and two other Dutch journalists into the venue’s cavernous main room known as the Black Box. We made small talk for a few minutes before I started to walk around and listen to Josh Harrison who was on the decks.
Madonna was scheduled to take the stage at 1:30 a.m., but she is known for being late — she is Madonna and she does what she wants. Hayla, a British singer, and Bebe Rexha are among those who performed ahead of Madonna. Thousands of sweaty men — including a group of Australians next to me who were eagerly awaiting Kylie’s anticipated appearance — packed the Black Box and were dancing, anticipating what was to come.
MISTR CEO Tristan Schukraft at one point came on stage and declared Madonna was indeed in the building. The moment for which we were all eagerly waiting finally came shortly before 2:30 a.m.
“Mother is here and this is gay heaven,” said Madonna when she took the stage.
Stuart Price, who produced her “Confessions on a Dance Floor” album in 2005, manned the decks during Madonna’s set.
She opened it with “I Feel So Free” from “Confessions II.” Madonna then sang “Bring Your Love” and “Danceteria” to which this reporter — and everyone else — sang along.
Madonna then teased a surprise before she began to perform “Love Sensation.” Kylie soon appeared on stage. It was nearly too much for my fellow partygoers from Australia. It was indeed the gayest concert ever!
Madonna and Kylie performed “Love Sensation” together. They then sang “Hung Up” and “Sorry” from “Confessions on a Dance Floor” to round out the set that ended shortly after 3 a.m.
Madonna and I share the same birthday — Aug. 16 — and I would like to think she and Kylie gave me an early birthday present. In all seriousness though, it was an amazing night for me and for everyone else who was fortunate enough to be there.
“On the dance floor I feel so free,” says Madonna in the opening of “I Feel So Free.”
For those few precious hours at AFAS Live I did not think about the Trump-Vance administration and the myriad ways it is destroying the U.S. I did not think about the National Guard troops deployed to D.C. I did not think about the pointless wars that continue to ravage Ukraine and other countries around the world. I simply lost myself on the dance floor and celebrated an icon who has always stood with my community.
Thank you, Madonna.
The Petal Release Party and Drag Show was held at Spark Social on Friday, July 31. Performers included Tiara-Missou, Labianna and Darcy de la Cuadra.
(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)
Celebrity News
Madonna headlines World Pride Music Festival in Amsterdam
Kylie Minogue made surprise appearance alongside gay icon
AMSTERDAM — Madonna on Sunday headlined the final night of the World Pride Music Festival in Amsterdam.
The gay icon took the stage shortly before 2:30 a.m. local time (8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday) during Club Confessions, a set that MISTR, a telehealth platform that offers free access to PrEP, Doxy PEP, STI testing, and long-term HIV care, organized.
“Mother is here and this is gay heaven,” said Madonna when she took the stage inside Amsterdam’s AFAS Live concert hall that can hold up to 6,000 people.
Stuart Price, who produced Madonna’s 2005 “Confessions on a Dance Floor” album and “Confessions II,” which debuted on July 2, DJed the set.
Kylie Minogue made a surprise appearance. She and Madonna performed a new remix of “Love Sensation” from “Confessions II.”
(Washington Blade video by Michael K. Lavers)
“Throughout my career, I’ve always supported efforts to fight HIV and AIDS, and that fight begins with education and access,” said Madonna in a MISTR press release. “With MISTR, (CEO) Tristan (Schukraft) is expanding access to HIV prevention and sexual healthcare for everyone. Through this work, he’s helping preserve and strengthen LGBTQ+ spaces while investing in the communities and culture that have long sustained us.”
Minogue in an Instagram post thanked Madonna, Price, Schukraft, and MISTR.
Madonna appeared at The Abbey in West Hollywood, Calif., in April. Madonna in June celebrated Pride month with a pop-up performance in New York’s Times Square.
Jake Resnicow and Insomniac produced the World Pride Music Festival that also featured Bebe Rexha and Paris Hilton, among others.
“Pride has always been about bringing our community together,” said Resnicow. “At a moment when too many people are being told to hide or make themselves smaller, gathering openly, joyfully, and without apology matters more than ever. I couldn’t be prouder of what this festival brought to life in Amsterdam — one dance floor, completely free.”
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