Spoleto!
Culture abounds in historic Charleston
page 25
Interview
ultra Nate
page 25
Military Update
Navy re-enlists gay soldier
page 5
Noted. Notable . Noteworthy. LGBT News & Views
Volume 22 . Number 01 www.q-notes.com May 19.2007
The skin game: show and sell
Male celebs dare to bare for success
by Howie Sandoval
Skin has always been in, but now it’s more
out than ever before. Today, many artists and
public personalities are revealing themselves
to sell albums and tickets. But does it work?
“Showing skin has definitely increased my
tour’s visibilit)^’ says DJ Scotty Thomson, cur
rently spinning big room clubs across the
nation on the Show It! Tour, sponsored by
sportswear designer Andrew Christian.
Thomson is scheduled to bring his buffed
body and driving beats to Ibiza Nightclub in
Wilmington on July 28.
“I’m in the business of creating fun nights
and it is fun to let it all hang out,” he says.
Billy Prescott, a TV news anchor on
Canada’s “Naked News Daily Male,” agrees. “In
today’s overcrowded media climate, it’s impor
tant to find something that will make you
Stand out from the rest. If you got it, flaunt it,”
he says with a laugh.
It’s not only gay celebs daring to bare it all.
Seventeen-year-old actor Daniel Radcliffe’s
(“Harry Potter”) full monty in the London
stage production of “Equus” sparked an inter
national media frenzy. He’s nearing the end of
. his run with the show and blogs are reporting
that “Billy Elliot” star Jamie Bell will be taking
his place.
Blogs are also abuzz that “Beverly Hills,
90210” alum Ian Ziering, who is a contestant
on the current season of “Dancing With The
Stars,” will soon be appearing in Playgirl mag
azine.
“It would be the best decision for his
career,” says Thomson. “Ziering needs to shake
it up a little. Appearing in Playgirl would get
people talking about him again.”
But not everyone takes the issue as light-
heartedly. Seth Gold, an attractive young DJ
currently headlining Playgirl magazine’s Black
Out club tour, has declined requests to take his
clothes off. “I know sex sells but I don’t want to
be objectified. I prefer to gain attention with
my music,” he says.
Gold’s position is the prevailing sentiment
for many artists. But the problem, others say,
is that talent alone isn’t enough anymore.
Today, image is an undeniable building block
for constructing a successful career.
Perhaps no gay performer understands
Faith in America takes on
the right
‘Call to Courage’ campaign will
come to Greenville, S.C.
by Jim Baxter . Contributing Writer
When David took on Goliath, he wasn’t quite
so organized. Mitchell Gold’s slingshot, however,
is a full-scale media campaign. His target is
anti-gay bigotry couched in Bible verse.
Gold is CEO of “Mitchell Gold -I- Bob
Williams,” a successful furniture manufacturer
located in North Carolina. The company has
annual sales of more than $70 million and
employs over 700 people.
Last year Jimmy Creech and I realized that
an organization just didn’t exist that was focused
on educating people about religion-based big
otry?’ Gold said at a May 3 press conference.
Creech, a former minister, is now execu
tive director of Faith in America — the
organization started and funded by Gold.
Gold is 56, gay and Jewish. Creech is not gay,
62, and Christian.
Together, they’ve planned an advertising
Mitchell Gold and jimmy Creech with
Soulforce in Colorado Springs last year.
campaign to educate Americans about the
historical misuse of religious teachings.
“During my 29 years of ministry, it
became clear to me that the fundamental rea
son for the discrimination against lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgendered people is religion,”
Creech said. “As someone committed to the
Christian church and the ministry, 1 felt it was
incumbent upon me to begin to challenge the
misuse of religion.”
Challenge he did, and it cost him dearly.
Creech lost his minister’s credentials with the
United Methodist Church after he performed a
see organizadon on 18
this better than singer-songwriter Noa Tylo.
He has promoted the release of his new
album, “Let’s Do It!,” by appearing on sever
al LGBT magazine covers this year in vari
ous states of undress.
“I express myself through image and
music,” he explains. “My new album is
about freedom — not being constrained
by old ideas and expectations. It’s about
being yourself and not what others tell
you to be. Therefore, I think any nudity I
do with the release of the album is rele
vant. It’s part of my message.”
On the other hand, Tylo says, “I don’t
believe the media is only interested in me
for my body, however flattering that may be.
I think they write about me because I have
something to say. My ideas are as provoca
tive as my photos.”
A quick scan of the music aisle reveals that
the skin trend isn’t limited to artists willing to
reveal their own bodies. Sexy album covers
are ubiquitous on music marketed to gay
men. But does the image really equal ^es? “It
does,” says Ricardo Torres Ortiz, a gay man
and director of A&R at Ultra Records, one of
America’s top dance music labels.
Dj Scotty Thomson says his career has profit
ed from his propensity for showing skin.
see setfing on 21
Soulforce Equality Riders
head for home
Nationwide effort affects change
across country
by Page Schilt
Now the buses have stopped rolling, but
the impact of the 2007 Equality Ride is still
unfolding across the nation.
All of the colleges on the 2007 Equality
On April 26,52 Soulforce
Equality Riders bid farewell to
the massive buses that served
as their surrogate home for
eight weeks on the road.
Emblazoned with the slogan
“Faith Forward Social Justice
for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
Transgender People,” the two
buses carried these remark
able young adults to 32
Christian colleges on two sep
arate routes.
They began and ended in
Minneapolis, but traveled as
far as the Pacific Northwest
and the Atlantic Southeast on
their mission to start conver-
r i
sations about faith, sexuality, and inclusion.
Equality Riders onboard the eastern route make a stop
at Gordon College in Wenham, Mass. Photo: Adam Britt
see riders on 19
Making sense of finances
page 23
Lesbian fights for daughter
page 6
Cathollic gays challenge church
page 20