Out Artists on the Rise
Team Gina’s expressive brand of rap combines their shared experience as children of the ’80s, and their love of all things pop.
The Seattle-based duo of Gina Genius, 27, and Gina Bling, 26, audaciously sample Sir Mix-a-Lot’s “Baby Got Back,” simultaneously referencing My Little Pony, and themes from the queer rights movement.
“We’re synthesizing all the elements of pop culture that we grew up with and mashing them up to create something new,” Genius. “We’re also trying to bring a perspective that’s kind of utopian—we want to represent the perfect queer paradise that doesn’t exist yet, that maybe exists at our shows.” Components? “Well, there’d be really great outfits,” muses Genius, giggling. “And really great dance moves.”
While Gina Bling is a Seattle-born former “musical theatre junkie,” Genius, who hails from D.C. via Brooklyn, is a former folk singer. The beat-heavy duo, who met in 2006 at a Scream Club show, sport matching attire (think booty shorts, wristbands) when they break it down every first Friday at Seattle’s Wild Rose bar. Their debut CD, gina gina revolution, was released this year by Crunks Not Dead and Don’t Stop Believin’ Records.
The two giggly femmes, who just finished touring with MondoHomo Dirty South, share one other love: butch girls. Hence these memorable lyrics from their Sir Mix-sampled track “Butch/Femme”: “I like butch girls and I cannot lie/You other femmes can’t deny/When a butch walks in all the femmes wanna fuss/’Cause it’s like one of them and thirty of us.”
For more on Team Gina, visit myspace.com/teamgina. –Melody Wells
Hip-hoppers to country crooners, this year’s up-and-comers are here, queer and ready to entertain
Michelle Carr
Chanteuse and songwriter Michelle Carr offers a diverse array of styles that demonstrate a lifetime of training. Her warm, bronze vocal tone moves effortlessly between classical, jazz and R&B rhythms that are colorfully exhibited on her 2005 debut Change.
Before becoming a local favorite in the jazz circuit, the Alto Loma, Calif. native successfully completed her classical voice studies at The Julliard School. The singer later put her vocal breadth to use when landing parts in Tony Award-garnering theatre productions Showboat and The Man of La Mancha. Carr returned to New York to work on her solo career, eventually earning residency at the coveted Blue Note club in the Village.
Carr’s self-produced debut, Change, includes her original songs as well as a popular cover of Ani DiFranco’s “32 Flavors.” The independent artist has denied solicitations from major record labels, opting to mirror the “do it yourself” credo akin to DiFranco. This path ultimately proved successful, when she landed a semi-finalist position in the 2006 ASCAP International Songwriting Competition.
Carr feels that her status as an out lesbian musician has only rewarded her with embracing fans and a bigger queer presence at her shows. “It’s welcoming and feels like coming home a bit,” she says. “I feel more comfortable, happier, and more connected with myself.”
Fans can look forward to a new album to be released in 2008 with accompanying tour dates in New York and California. Check cdbaby.com/mcarr for more details. –PC
