For Pride Month 2021 this past June, the Recording Academy's Los Angeles Chapter reintroduced the Facebook Live panel event "Stay In, Come Out, Let's Talk." Following last year's inaugural livestream, a new cast of musicians and industry pioneers led conversations about LGBTQIA+ inclusivity, allyship and paving their own lanes in music.
The four 30-minute panel segments included a keynote highlight from actor and singer Billy Porter. The event opened with a brief introduction from Qiana Conley, Executive Director of the Recording Academy Los Angeles Chapter and Brittany Presley, Membership Manager of the Recording Academy Los Angeles Chapter.
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"In an incredibly difficult year that has prompted confrontation with our most challenging questions of social equity, it's been critical to create spaces of community and comradery to promote productive dialogue that leads to real progress," Conley said.
The two then introduced a surprise greeting from Lil Nas X, who recently dropped new single "SUN GOES DOWN" after breaking the internet with his provocative visual for "MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)" in March. "Finding acceptance in myself helped me push my creativity to a new level within my music and many other areas in my life," he shared.
Below are some of the other highlights and takeaways from the event.
Find Your Voice and Own It
Screenshot from Stay In, Come Out, Let's Talk 2021 | Screenshot: The Recording Academy
The first panel, Mask Off: Who Are You Underneath It All?, featured a lively conversation between singer/songwriters Durand Bernarr, Asiahn, Hayley Kiyoko, and Neverending Nina, who also served as the panel's moderator. Navigating a largely heteronormative and male-dominated industry, the four didn't shy from voicing their thoughts on struggling to find a community; instead they have created their own.
"I'm a proud Black trans woman in the industry, so there's never been a blueprint before me. I use some people's experiences to navigate thus far, but I still have to carve out my lane," said Nina, who seldom uses pronouns in her music so all her listeners can feel visible. "I know that if I go through it, somebody else behind me will not have to go through the challenges that I had to face."
Asiahn added that she wasn't able to thrive as an artist until she understood her purpose, something she has been able to translate in her lyrics. ""Everything I sing about, I've been through and it's my real life," she said. When people get their heart broken, it's the same no matter what your [sexual] orientation is. The more I'm verbal about it, the more human it makes our experience."
Bernarr has long observed the behind the scenes effort of the music industry, which prompted him to establish a team of fellow artists and supporters in his circle.
"You have to be so determined about what it is that you want, that if there wasn't a door open, create your own door. Surround yourself with people that understand your vision, embellish it and take it to the next level," he said.
Kiyoko emphasized that persistence was key to challenging new listeners. "Know that your existence and your representation and what you stand for is just helping another generation to break barriers for themselves and find space in this music industry," she said.
Create Your Own Reality
Screenshot from Stay In, Come Out, Let's Talk 2021 | Screenshot: The Recording Academy
In the second panel, Producers & Engineers: What's My Sex Got To Do With It?, featured GRAMMY-winning engineer and producer Leslie Ann Jones; songwriter, producer and composer, Catherine Harris-White ("SassyBlack"); singer/songwriter, producer and founder of Holy Graffiti Music, Shane Stevens; and producer and engineer Lynne Earls, who moderated the panel.
Becoming a country singer in the '90s, Steven moved to New York City where he received his first publishing deal in 2000, followed by a recording deal in 2001, which was soon derailed following the 9/11 attacks. Feeling displaced, he returned to Nashville where he was often criticized for being queer, but later received advice from Bob Doyle, longtime manager and publisher for Garth Brooks, who respected Stevens' identity.
His advice to the next generation was: "Write what you know, don't lie and everyone will believe it."
Coinciding with her start of engineering, Jones shared that she's been out for 40-plus years. "People will ask me about being a woman in my career and I'll never know the jobs I didn't get. I am who I am and it's never affected anything," she said.
Harris-White, who came out at 12-years-old and later attended school for jazz, looked up to Black women producers like Alice Coltrane and Patrice Rushen, deciding that she didn't want to perform standards.
"Knowing that I didn't have a lot of role models that fit my personal criteria, I had to start creating my own reality. I created my own genres because people were like 'That's not R&B, that's not jazz," she said. "It's hologram funk and psychedelic soul. I'm a scientific musician--I'm just tinkering and making it up, and basing it in a spiritual, healing, fun evolution. That's my thing."
Celebrate LGBTQIA+ Year-Round
Screenshot from Stay In, Come Out, Let's Talk 2021 | Screenshot: The Recording Academy
In the panel Allyship: Why It's So Important, music industry executives Ryan Aceto, Head of A&R at PEG Records and Sr. Talent Manager at Producer Entertainment Group; Douglas Morris, Coordinator at PEG Records; and Jen Schwartz, Director of Creative Music Strategy at ViacomCBS were led in discussion by Cheryl Pawelski, GRAMMY-winning producer and co-owner of Omnivore Recordings.
While Morris was the only cisgender person on the panel, he supported Schwartz and Aceto who discussed their strategies for up-and-coming LGBTQIA+ musicial acts.
"Authenticity is really key. If you see an artist that is singing or speaking their truth, that comes across very genuine," Schwartz said. "You want to place artists and do things for these artists that are coming across in that way. You become a fan and the audience can tell, as well."
"It's nice to be wanted during this month, but we make music year-round. Our job is to build off of that so that we're doing more things than just in June," Aceto added. The opportunities are coming more, I would just like to see it grow outside of one month."
Black, Queer Lives Matter
Screenshot from Stay In, Come Out, Let's Talk 2021 | Screenshot: The Recording Academy
The final panel, Intersectionality: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion In The Music Industry, was jokingly coined "The Cut-Up Crew" by Ryan Butler, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the Recording Academy and panel moderator, who was joined by singer/songwriter Tiana Major9, GRAMMY-nominated singer/songwriter and actor Mykal Kilgore, and singer/songwriter, producer and former "RuPaul's Drag Race" contestant Peppermint.
Kilgore referenced his 2019 GRAMMY-nominated album, A Man Born Black, unapologetically defending his identity as a queer Black man. "In creating this project, my main thought was 'you cannot have the art without me.' If you want this art, you've got to take my Blackness, you've got to take my queerness--you cannot snatch this art from me without having me," he said. "I don't want anyone to give me an award because I'm gay, I want you to see the art and go 'This art is worthy of praise.'"
