Public Image Ltd. New Single “Hawaii” Available Now; PiL to Compete to Represent Ireland at Eurovision 2023

Public Image Ltd. (PiL) are confirmed to take part in the competition to represent Ireland at the 67th annual Eurovision Song Contest with the most personal piece of songwriting and accompanying artwork that John Lydon has ever shared called “Hawaii,” which is now available for streaming and download here.

The song is a love letter to John's wife of nearly 5 decades, Nora, who is living with Alzheimer’s. A pensive, personal yet universal love song that will resonate with many, the song sees John reflecting on their lifetime well spent, and in particular, one of their happiest moments together in Hawaii.

The powerfully emotional ballad is as close as John will ever come to bearing his soul. “It is dedicated to everyone going through tough times on the journey of life, with the person they care for the most,” says John. “It’s also a message of hope that ultimately love conquers all.”

The competition will take place from 9:30pm GMT (4:30p ET/1:30p PT) on Friday, February 3, 2023 on Ireland’s The Late Late Show and can be live streamed here.  

Celebrating their 40-year anniversary in 2018, Public Image Ltd. haven’t been going quite as long as John and Nora, however, the band is widely regarded as one of the most innovative and influential bands of all time.

Hyphen Hyphen - Own God

 

Queer Pop/Rock Band Hyphen Hyphen reveals  “Own God,” a new extract from their upcoming album C'est la Vie to be released on January 20, 2023 via Parlophone France. 

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Billy Idol honored with first Hollywood Walk of Fame star of 2023

On Friday, rock icon Billy Idol was honored with the first Hollywood Walk of Fame star of 2023. Dedicated at 6212 Hollywood Boulevard in front of Amoeba Music, Idol was awarded his star in the category of Recording. The historic event featured guest speakers Henry Rollins and Shepard Fairey alongside emcee Lupita Sanchez Cornejo of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.
 

Of the honor, Idol says, “I raised my family here and I’ve recorded a lot of my albums here. So, it’s fantastic to be honored like this. It’s something I could never have imagined or ever entered my mind. But I’ve made a lot of my creative choices here, so it makes sense.” Watch/share his full induction speech HERE via Variety.

This career milestone follows the release of Idol’s latest project The Cage EP which is out now via Dark Horse Records. The new music follows Idol’s 2021 The Roadside EP, which received praise from fans and critics alike. As on The Roadside EP, Idol once again joins forces with his longtime collaborator, co-writer and guitarist Steve Stevens. The Cage EP also features production contributions from Tommy English (Kacey Musgraves, BØRNS), Zakk Cervini (Blink 182, Machine Gun Kelly), Joe Janiak (Ellie Goulding, Adam Lambert) and Butch Walker (Green Day, Weezer) while English also co-wrote three of the EP’s tracks with Idol.

WORLD OF WONDER’S DRAG RACE BELGIQUE RU-VEALS JUDGES JOINING HOST RITA BAGA

 

Today, during RuPaul’s DragCon UK 2023, World of Wonder revealed the resident judges joining host, Rita Baga, on the latest international version of the Emmy-award-winning RuPaul’s Drag Race phenomenon - “Drag Race Belgique.” Lufy and Mustii will be judging the charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent of the finest Belgian queens all vying to be crowned Belgium’s first Drag Race Superstar.

Lufy was one of the first Belgian creators to establish herself on YouTube and has amassed more than 3 million followers across Instagram, YouTube and TikTok. As an entrepreneur and content creator, Lufy and her love of aesthetics will bring an expert eye to the fashion and glamor that is synonymous with RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Mustii is a Belgian singer and actor. He has worked in theater and television for nearly a decade, winning a prestigious Magritte for best male newcomer in 2019. Alongside his acting success, Mustii is just as passionate about music and is a powerhouse performer. He has recorded 2 solo albums: 21st Century Boy, in tribute to David Bowie - his hero, and The Darkest Night, a personal album about mental health. A true chameleon - artist, singer, actor and performer, Mustii will use his expertise to guide the queens on their stage performances.

Coming later this year, the series will air locally on Tipik and Auvio in Belgium and premiere exclusively on WOW Presents Plus in the US and select territories worldwide. This new version of the global franchise, which will air in French with subtitles, joins existing formats across Thailand, Chile, Canada, Holland, the UK, Spain, Australia and New Zealand, France, the Philippines and Italy.

Drag Race Belgique is produced in Belgium in conjunction with World of Wonder Productions, with Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato, Tom Campbell and RuPaul serving as executive producers on the series.

Eric Raven Releases Debut Album 'The Shape Of Pain' on January 13

New Jersey based artist Eric Raven's upcoming debut album The Shape Of Pain, out January 13, is a unique blend of industrial, techno, punk, and hardcore that takes listeners on a journey through Eric's battle with alcohol addiction, anxiety triggers, and urges listeners to lean on their support systems when needed.

OUT on DVD & Digital: What We Know

What We Know - Trailer from Ariztical Entertainment on Vimeo.

In What We Know, Carla, a young waitress, is invited to spend an afternoon at the beach with handsome classmate Victor and his peculiar friends.

Says director Jordi Nunez, “What We Know arises from a need to tell stories that respond to and go along with my vital pulse. As in my short films, I am interested in characters who face love for the first time, who have to learn to manage it along with the fear of loss. I am also curious about the chance that cinema offers to navigate through time, to investigate the relationship between what could be and finally was not, together with the need to accept the past and the present in order to build a future."

Shania Twain - Giddy Up!

 

Strutting into 2023, five-time GRAMMY Award-winning legend and the best-selling female artist in country music history Shania Twain shares a brand-new single entitled “Giddy Up!” today.
 
The track sets the stage for her eagerly awaited new album, Queen of Me, arriving on February 3, 2023.

The Words That Remain, a Haunting Gay Novel from Brazil

A letter has beckoned to Raimundo since he received it over fifty years ago from his youthful passion, handsome Cícero. But having grown up in an impoverished area of Brazil where the demands of manual labor thwarted his becoming literate, Raimundo has long been unable to read. 

As young men, he and Cícero fell in love, only to have Raimundo's father brutally beat his son when he discovered their affair. Even after Raimundo succeeds in making a life for himself in the big city, he continues to be haunted by this secret missive full of longing from the distant past. 

Now at age seventy-one, he at last acquires a true education and the ability to access the letter. 

Exploring Brazil's little-known hinterland as well its urban haunts, this is a sweeping novel of repression, violence, and shame, along with their flip side: survival, endurance, and the ultimate triumph of an unforgettable figure on society's margins. The Words That Remain explores the universal power of the written word and language, and how they affect all our relationships.

Denver Art Museum Announces Untitled: Artist Takeover 2023 Lineup of Local Creatives, Artists and Collaborators

The Denver Art Museum (DAM) is proud to announce its lineup of local creatives, artists and collaborators for the 2023 season of Untitled events. Emerging in the new year with a new title “Artist Takeover,” the re-envisioned moniker clearly highlights collaborators’ roles in creating these exciting quarterly opportunities for a night of creative celebration.

Untitled events connect the community with local creatives and offer immersive programming featuring performances, artmaking and one-of-a-kind experiences along with the opportunity for connecting and socializing. Each event is led by a duo of artists and selected collaborators, showcasing the artists’ perspectives and practices and providing a unique lens into the museum’s collections and exhibitions, activating the museum in participatory ways.

 

At each Untitled, featured artists showcase their work while providing an unexpected and engaging atmosphere. Experiences are developed around current exhibitions and programming, and 2023 Untitled events will create a platform for Denver’s creative community to engage the public in celebrating the museum’s global collections and exhibitions on view.

 

The Ponti restaurant and Café Gio at the DAM will both be open for visitors to dine during the special late-night hours of the quarterly Untitled events. Reservations for The Ponti can be made at thepontidenver.com.

 

“Creativity is an essential part of community building. We aim to create connections between creatives and visitors by highlighting artists’ voices in a social environment,” said Sarah Rockett, Manager of Creative and Public Engagement at the DAM. “Untitled is an opportunity to connect with creativity while enjoying entertainment, artmaking, and other participatory experiences.”

The 2023 Untitled season kicks off January 27 with an eventful evening led by local creatives Melissa Ivey, whose work centers around music and advocacy for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives (MMIR), and Sofie Birkin, illustrator and installation artist. Creative experiences across the campus will be part of the event, inspired by Her Brush: Japanese Women Artists from the Fong-Johnstone Collection. On view through May 13, 2023, Her Brush traces the pathways women artists forged for themselves in their pursuit of art during the 1600s to 1900s Japan and explores the universal human drive of artistic expression as self-realization for these artists who navigated cultural barriers during a time with strict gender roles for women.

Exhibitions highlighted during the 2023 Untitled season include a diverse mix of ancient to contemporary presentation, such as Speaking with Light: Contemporary Indigenous Photography, Near East to Far West: Fictions of French and American Colonialism, From Chaos to Order: Greek Geometric Art from the Sol Rabin Collection and Islands Beyond Blue: Niki Hastings-McFall and Treasures from the Oceania Collection. Additionally, programming will feature reinstalled collection galleries for African Arts and Modern and Contemporary Art, which will open to the public in spring 2023.

Are You Gay With Something To Say? Bloggers Wanted to Write About Denver's Gay Community

Are you a new or experienced writer or blogger? Do you want to be? Or maybe you're just some gay guy with something to say? Well, what better forum for you than MileHighGayGuy?

MileHighGayGuy is looking for regular and guest bloggers to write about local news and events, do music and movie reviews, or write opinion or feature pieces from a gay perspective.

These are unpaid positions but offer the opportunity to be published in Colorado's Best Gay Blog (2010, 2011, 2012 OUTstanding Awards, Denver 2012 #WebAwards), expand your audience and gain valuable experience. There's also swag available in the form of free movie and concert tickets, music, books and other cool stuff.

If interested, shoot an email over to Drew Wilson at drew@milehighgayguy.com. And if you've got column or story ideas to pitch, this is the place to do it.

Pride Journey: Jacksonville, Florida

 

By Joey Amato
 
The last time I visited Jacksonville, I was probably in my early-mid 20s and living in Orlando. It was a very long time ago. I was eager to visit again as I know much has changed in the city since the early 2000s. If you are ever planning on visiting Jacksonville, I would highly recommend renting a car. Jacksonville is the largest city in the country by land mass and many of its popular attractions are spread out, especially if you want to get a good idea of all the city has to offer.
 
I decided to stay downtown for this trip as much of my itinerary was within a few miles of city center. The Residence Inn Downtown Jacksonville is a beautiful property located within walking distance to some of the city’s attractions, great restaurants, and a block from one of Jacksonville’s popular LGBTQ nightlife spots, Incahoots. The bar offers some incredible drink specials so be sure to check their social media before you go so you can capitalize on those. It is also the place to catch a fabulous drag show while in town.
 
I wanted to make the focus of this trip about budget travel. Many times, people tend to not visit certain destinations, or travel at all, because they think it isn’t affordable. Before setting out on my Jacksonville adventure, I did some research and discovered some restaurants and attractions that are not only affordable, but also some of the highest recommended in the city.
 
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and the Residence Inn offers a complimentary breakfast for guests, but if you are in the mood to try out a local breakfast spot, head to Cool Moose Cafe. I met my friend there and we both had a delicious meal for around $10. Everything was scratch made and the service was wonderful.
 
Next, head over to the Cummer Museum of Art, which offers free admission on the first Saturday of each month. I visit so many art museums that sometimes they can become monotonous, but this museum happened to be exhibiting two very cool exhibitions during my visit. The first was The Age of Armor, an incredible collection of dozens of pieces of armor dating back hundreds of years. Most of the pieces in the collection were of European descent but there were a few pieces from other civilizations.
 
Another interested exhibition is a display of movie posters from Norman Studios. Jacksonville was the filmmaking hotspot prior to Hollywood with 26 movie companies calling Jacksonville home during the silent movie era. In the earliest years, Black actors and actresses were only cast as extras in films, which were mostly catering to white audiences. Richard Norman purchased the Eagles Studio complex and went on to create one of the top production companies featuring prominently black cast members. Unfortunately, Norman was forced to close his studio during the Great Depression, but his legacy can be seen in this wonderful exhibition at the museum. The Norman Studio building itself is the last known silent film studio still standing in Jacksonville and efforts are underway to make it into a museum.
 
For a quick lunch, head over to Arepa Please, just a few blocks from the museum. Try their signature Pabellon arepa which contains shredded beef, sweet plantains, queso blanco, and black beans. It was delicious and filling but didn’t break the bank.
 
I always like to visit local art galleries when I travel. On the way out to Jacksonville Beach is Gallery 725, one of the top galleries in the city. The gallery was showcasing the works of late animator Ron Campbell which included artworks based on the Beatles Yellow Submarine and the Beatles Saturday Morning TV Cartoon Series as well as Scooby Doo, Smurfs, Rugrats, Jetsons, and Flintstones. The gallery also features works from internationally renowned pop artists Peter Max and Roy Lichtenstein among other artists.
 
Jacksonville’s beaches are beautiful and not as crowded as South Florida’s so I would recommend spending the morning or afternoon exploring the area which also includes Atlantic Beach and Neptune Beach. You’ll find a ton of wonderful seafood restaurants in the area as well.
 
The highlight of my trip was a visit to Catty Shack Wildlife Sanctuary, which provides a safe, loving and forever home to endangered big cats. The sanctuary’s mission is to educate the public about their plight in the wild and in captivity. The sanctuary is home to a variety of big cats, but the majority of the residents are tigers. While most of them have their own individual space, the siblings share an enclosure.
 
I was most intrigued by the black leopard. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one before. Khala Hala was born at Catty Shack Ranch on June 16, 2004. She was happily positioned on her perch and made eye contact with every visitor who passed by her enclosure.
 
Catty Shack is undergoing a large expansion which will include some additional large enclosures to give the cats more room to roam and play.
 
If you are in the mood to do some shopping during your stay, head to St. Johns Town Center, a beautiful outdoor shopping experience featuring a variety of retailers ranging from Tiffany and Louis Vuitton to Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware. There are many dining options available there including a great Mediterranean fast-causal chain called Cava, but if you are looking for a local option, head back downtown and try S & R Dim Sum, which is located not too far from Memorial Park. I ordered the shrimp dim sum as well as the sweet and sour chicken and both were wonderful. I especially liked the chicken dish as it was only lightly breaded and sauteed rather than deep fried like in other Chinese restaurants.
 
For one last cocktail in Jacksonville, head to Park Place Lounge, just a short 5-minute drive from downtown. Park Place boasts an extensive Happy Hour from noon until 7pm and you can mingle with the locals on their outdoor patio.
 
If you are looking to escape the harsh winter but avoid the crowds of other beach cities, then Jacksonville is a great option. The city provides a variety of indoor and outdoor activities for every budget. River City Pride will take place in November, so there more than enough time to make your Jacksonville pride plans.
 
Enjoy the Journey!

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4th Annual "Film Maudit 2.0" Festival Now Online

The fourth edition of Film Maudit 2.0, a showcase and celebration of outré films, takes places in person at Highways Performance Space and online at watch.filmmaudit.org, is now extended through February 11, 2023.
 
This year, Film Maudit 2.0 will once again feature over 100 works of cinema from 25+ countries including films rarely, if ever, seen in festivals: works addressing socio-political issues and taboo subject matter that challenges conventional artistic assumptions and sexual mores.  The wide range of shorts, narrative, documentary and experimental films selected are  deliberately bold, extreme, confrontational and unusual. 

With its hybrid physical and virtual format, Film Maudit 2.0 is moving forward into the exciting future of the festival-going experience, breaking down an exclusivity that has previously marred the indie landscape and its films/filmmakers, while at the same time allowing the participation and conversation of filmmakers across time-zones who wouldn’t have the ability to travel to festivals. This dual power of both a theatrical experience and a streaming landscape for independent filmmakers allows local audiences back  to experience the richness of the live filmgoing experience with films that typically would not screen locally in such a context, while at the same time, making most of the films accessible to a wider national and international audiences in an online portal @ watch.filmmaudit.org.

American Raptors Rugby Join Super Rugby Americas Competition

The American Raptors are excited to announce joining the revamped Super Rugby Americas. Formerly known as SLAR, this new competition will include:

• A competition between teams in North and South America
• New name, new logo 
• 7 franchises participating - Peñarol Rugby (2022 Champions), Pampas, Dogos XV, Cobras Brasil XV, Selknam, Yacare XV, and American Raptors
• 45 games, including semifinals and the final 
• Each team plays home and away games
• Regular season will start February 18, 2023
• Semi-finals and finals will be in South America 
• Final will be June 9, 2023
• Games will be live on ESPN and Star+ (in South America)
• All American Raptors home matches will be streamed in North America on AmericanRaptors.com.

This new competition will be extremely useful in preparing the three teams from South America - Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile - that will compete in the 2023 Rugby World Cup. 
 
Super Rugby Americas will begin on February 18, 2023, and will end with the final matches on June 9, 2023. The competition will be made up of seven franchises focused on the development of players. Colombian players will also participate in the continental tournament. Representing South America there will be, for the first time ever, two franchises from Argentina, and one from Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay; in North America, the American Raptors, based in Glendale, Colorado will represent the continent. 
 
The competition format will be traditional, with teams playing home and away games. The regular season will consist of 42 games followed by the semifinals and the grand final on June 9, 2023. The time and location of the final will be announced at a later date.