I Come Alive: A Conversation With @GrabYaJimmie

[00:00:00] [DJ Sir Daniel]: The View Thoughts & Opinions Express are the speakers own and do not represent the View Thoughts & Opinions of Queue Points.

[00:00:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Welcome to I Come Alive Stories of Black Gay Atlanta Nightlife.

[00:00:12] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I'm your host, DJ Sir Daniel.

[00:00:15] [DJ Sir Daniel]: This series strives to tell the stories of Atlanta's gay nightlife from the perspective of the people who lived it.

[00:00:22] [DJ Sir Daniel]: For many, living in nearby states such as Alabama, Mississippi, and even Florida, Atlanta represented a safe haven because being seen going into a gay establishment could need risking your safety.

[00:00:40] [DJ Sir Daniel]: This episode you will meet Jimmy and hear his stories of working in a juke joint as a teenager to now embracing his role as an elder in the black gay community.

[00:00:53] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Enjoy the show.

[00:00:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I've been in Atlanta for 31, 32 years.

[00:01:11] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I've seen quite a few things and I've just one of the things that really caught my attention or piqued my curiosity as I got older, as I witnessed the city grow and change was the diminishing presence of a lot of black and queer spaces.

[00:01:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Mostly due to the fact that black people didn't necessarily own quite a few spaces or we got pushed out because of the city's growth or we got pushed out into further away from the city.

[00:01:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: There's lots of different reasons as to why the Atlanta black gay culture has shifted, but I'm still curious as to know what other people think about it.

[00:02:03] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And their perspective on everything and what do they foresee for the future.

[00:02:09] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So with that being said, I have another fantastic guest for you all.

[00:02:14] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I met this young man probably well over a decade now.

[00:02:20] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And we prior to us starting this recording, we were talking about growth and I think we've witnessed each other grow.

[00:02:30] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And I one of the things that's changed about him is that his his names and his personas evolve over the years.

[00:02:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So I'm going to let him introduce himself because I just call I lovingly calling him call him Jimmy because that's how I was introduced to him.

[00:02:50] [DJ Sir Daniel]: But Jimmy, I want you to go ahead and tell the people what you're going by these days and and how they would know you because you've had your online presence as well.

[00:03:01] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So please introduce yourself to the audience.

[00:03:04] [Jimmie]: Hi everybody, I am grabbing Jimmy.

[00:03:07] [Jimmie]: I just that's the name I really go by.

[00:03:10] [Jimmie]: I initially started as Jimmy Valentino.

[00:03:13] [Jimmie]: I have wrote on different blogs, even including my own.

[00:03:19] [Jimmie]: Most of you may be familiar with what's T calm.

[00:03:22] [Jimmie]: Not what's the tea actually is what's the T calm so online was the T calm with Tron.

[00:03:30] [Jimmie]: Also was semi a pseudo intern for the better days radio for a moment.

[00:03:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I forgot about that.

[00:03:40] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You are absolutely right.

[00:03:42] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I forgot about that.

[00:03:43] [DJ Sir Daniel]: We really have witnessed each other's evolution over the years.

[00:03:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And I think one.

[00:03:51] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So as a DJ, one of the I remember one of the spaces that I I gained my chops in and got my practice in was our good friend Michael Slaughter's house parties.

[00:04:04] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes, Michael Slaughter is legendary for having wonderful house parties in the home he used to have in the cascade area of Atlanta.

[00:04:14] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Some of you may be familiar with that area very well to do old Atlanta old Atlanta money all the old black Atlanta money.

[00:04:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes, for sure, for sure.

[00:04:25] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And you know, once upon a time I I don't know.

[00:04:30] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I think I asked him I was like, you know, I'm starting this DJ thing.

[00:04:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I can have my own controller and my laptop.

[00:04:37] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You know, can I come through and play because I think he used to use.

[00:04:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: What was his name?

[00:04:44] [DJ Sir Daniel]: He was a dancer as well.

[00:04:47] [Jimmie]: No, no.

[00:04:47] [Jimmie]: Oh, he's my junior.

[00:04:53] [DJ Sir Daniel]: He does now he is he's an entertainment field and more so on the adult side of entertainment now.

[00:05:03] [DJ Sir Daniel]: But I know he used to.

[00:05:04] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And a shelf.

[00:05:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Exactly.

[00:05:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And Tony, your best friend Tony.

[00:05:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes.

[00:05:11] [DJ Sir Daniel]: For years I I lovingly called the both of you the two of you or my Sydney and Shireen because no matter where we were, the music was playing.

[00:05:25] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Jimmy and Tony were like the first ones out on the floor cutting a rug and just I just love I live to see y'all dance together.

[00:05:33] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yeah, I just used to do my heart good and I would be like those two and they you all are y'all a little bit.

[00:05:39] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You know, quite a bit younger than me for years younger than me, but you all have the spirit of dance and really appreciate music, all of them, all music.

[00:05:49] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And I really appreciated that about you and Tony.

[00:05:54] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So as we get this conversation started.

[00:05:57] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Okay.

[00:05:57] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Let the audience know where you from originally and what brought you to Atlanta.

[00:06:03] [Jimmie]: Okay, so I was actually born in Cincinnati Ohio so which explains my music my musicality because of course Ohio is known for all the funk new disco artists like midnight star the Isha Brothers Ohio players can function.

[00:06:20] [Jimmie]: And the OJ so I grew up around that kind of music but once I moved down south I think I was like a kid I don't remember the time we moved Alabama.

[00:06:33] [Jimmie]: Cup and listening to which is so funny I just watched the stats music documentary with my aunt and uncle's played stats music blues.

[00:06:42] [Jimmie]: And so when you talk about the musicality of why I know so much music is because of that because my dad, I got introduced to more music through my Godfather.

[00:06:52] [Jimmie]: And so that's when I learned about house music techno in all the different things that I was used to that in the south I really miss I hated it for them route, because I thought I wanted to be in the force.

[00:07:08] [Jimmie]: I wonder bubble goose.

[00:07:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So you mentioned your Godfather.

[00:07:12] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You told me this story before but tell the audience about the establishment that your Godfather ran and how you got and the role you played in your Godfather's establishment.

[00:07:27] [Jimmie]: Okay, so my Godfather used to have what I don't know how I don't know what a joint hole in the wall is.

[00:07:35] [DJ Sir Daniel]: But so I'm about to describe it for them a juice.

[00:07:38] [Jimmie]: So a joint is very like a southern thing where they play blues and old school music itself very much holding one one way in one way out.

[00:07:50] [Jimmie]: If they started fighting you better try to find the news is it as much as you can.

[00:07:55] [Jimmie]: Can I first draw niggas and bitches.

[00:08:01] [Jimmie]: Okay.

[00:08:01] [Jimmie]: Drink it.

[00:08:04] [Jimmie]: Moonshine and whiskey corn liquor, you know that's a and they heart broken so there you go.

[00:08:11] [Jimmie]: And so I actually used to clean his club out every weekend for $2050 that was my allowance to clean the club, which included putting the records back up and all that stuff.

[00:08:28] [Jimmie]: So eventually I started DJing him.

[00:08:30] [Jimmie]: I'm sorry for them.

[00:08:31] [Jimmie]: I thought that could sound off my bad.

[00:08:34] [Jimmie]: I thought I started DJing for him illegally because I'm under age.

[00:08:40] [DJ Sir Daniel]: How old were you at this time?

[00:08:42] [DJ Sir Daniel]: How old were you?

[00:08:44] [Jimmie]: I want to say either 1516.

[00:08:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So so you're 1516 at that time.

[00:08:50] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So when do you start, I guess getting the itch to hang out on your own and hang out with your peers and did that happen in Alabama?

[00:09:03] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Was there a place?

[00:09:04] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Was there anywhere to go in Alabama for you to hang out?

[00:09:07] [Jimmie]: Are you talking about the gays or the general?

[00:09:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Well, I mean because they might be some overlap.

[00:09:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Let us know.

[00:09:15] [Jimmie]: So that's an overlap to this.

[00:09:16] [Jimmie]: Okay.

[00:09:17] [Jimmie]: So when I, so I will admit I never hung out with my peers at any one of my age.

[00:09:22] [Jimmie]: I try not to because I'm not seeing that I was better than anybody but my mom told me two different things.

[00:09:29] [Jimmie]: So I hope one moment I listen to this, but you probably know this now.

[00:09:34] [Jimmie]: At 1516, 17, I just stick in the straight clubs and it was this club called the Rose where they didn't check ID.

[00:09:41] [Jimmie]: And they used to have a college night.

[00:09:44] [Jimmie]: And so that's what my first experience to the club outside of me working in Duke joint was.

[00:09:50] [Jimmie]: And so when I was in upper bound, which is upper bound we used to go to the Rose.

[00:09:58] [Jimmie]: It's liquor never miss curfew and all that.

[00:10:01] [Jimmie]: So because the Rose is like really maybe five minutes while for out on state.

[00:10:07] [Jimmie]: Okay.

[00:10:08] [Jimmie]: So all the kids that didn't have us didn't have a car.

[00:10:12] [Jimmie]: They used to walk through the hood to the Rose.

[00:10:16] [Jimmie]: Drank them cheap ass blue motherfuckers in a 40 ounce go up for $10.

[00:10:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: That sounds terrifying.

[00:10:26] [Jimmie]: It sounds good as a 20 year old 21 year old or below they can.

[00:10:32] [Jimmie]: Why don't you probably be drinking what you was drinking?

[00:10:33] [Jimmie]: It sounds good, but all the means like, oh, that's a headache and that's a disaster.

[00:10:38] [Jimmie]: Oh my God.

[00:10:40] [Jimmie]: So that's how I actually got into the club and then especially my idea of the club was very much and I got I can't.

[00:10:48] [Jimmie]: I know he counseled now, but it was very much puffy bad boy.

[00:10:52] [Jimmie]: I think that's what I'm talking about.

[00:10:52] I'm talking about the way.

[00:10:53] [Jimmie]: How you see like very much that walking to the house parties and all that stuff.

[00:10:59] [Jimmie]: So when the when the tweet said early, I missed the air when the club was like hot in here with the sweat and all this stuff.

[00:11:07] [Jimmie]: Like, no, that actually did have you just wasn't there.

[00:11:10] [Jimmie]: And fortunately for me, I was there when when in Alabama was which is crazy.

[00:11:16] [Jimmie]: We're busting rhymes in Alabama where people would have dance routines that were put your hands for your eyes to see and they were doing the muffin baby dance.

[00:11:24] [Jimmie]: I remember that to this day.

[00:11:26] [Jimmie]: The girls used to twerk to before I let go by Mays, which was so weird to me, but it's Alabama.

[00:11:36] [Jimmie]: They just shake hands.

[00:11:38] [Jimmie]: So it's a lot of things that I'm going to try to say in this podcast that Alabama was turned today.

[00:11:44] [Jimmie]: The first time I actually heard Jill Scott getting away with that strip club because the girls take it close off to get in the way and Charlie.

[00:11:55] [Jimmie]: By answer.

[00:11:56] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes.

[00:11:58] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Wow.

[00:11:59] [DJ Sir Daniel]: That's a that's a pretty big range.

[00:12:02] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes, but I get it.

[00:12:05] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I get it.

[00:12:06] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And so now.

[00:12:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So you set the scene as from what was happening with your peers when you were in college and I'm assuming this was on the straight side of things.

[00:12:15] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes.

[00:12:16] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So when you where did you go when you wanted to sew your oats as a as a were you were you closeted where you want the deal.

[00:12:26] [DJ Sir Daniel]: What did you consider yourself?

[00:12:29] [Jimmie]: I will say a lot of people because I'm laughing at it because I'm laughing at it now.

[00:12:36] [Jimmie]: They were considered me trade back then which was so funny to me.

[00:12:38] [Jimmie]: I'm like, but because I was very good at that time I was very much a I'm not gonna say I was very much good.

[00:12:48] [Jimmie]: I was very much close baggy attitude everything which was totally different because keep in mind excuse me.

[00:12:56] [Jimmie]: It was like 99 2000 before when the quote unquote homo thug era was kicking in which I didn't even know there was an era until I had a older gay tell me this.

[00:13:09] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Oh you never you never saw any of the offer hook series at that time when you never not at that time it was just very much like because I'm

[00:13:18] [Jimmie]: like still 1819 when it was happening.

[00:13:22] [Jimmie]: And so I was very much willing to nearly I was very much not want to take people like I'm not like them gaze.

[00:13:30] [Jimmie]: I'm not that type of gay this way.

[00:13:33] [Jimmie]: And so what I did do how I ended up finding out by different places was college club.

[00:13:43] [Jimmie]: So college club is college club was basically a the first one of the first things around with LL messenger, you know other things.

[00:13:53] [Jimmie]: I can't say I want to say it's like the first one of the first era social media but more like a bulletin board chat line.

[00:14:01] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yeah, we didn't have Yahoo 360 so I know what you mean you had those kind of chat rooms and bulletin boards and whatnot.

[00:14:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So yes.

[00:14:11] [Jimmie]: So you found out about about I thought about it is actually the first club that the first gate club that I actually been to was tracks of Lucky Street.

[00:14:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Okay, so your first gay club you left from Alabama.

[00:14:27] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Now was this a solo trip?

[00:14:30] [DJ Sir Daniel]: No, no, this was a scene who was in the ride.

[00:14:34] [Jimmie]: How did you Tony Tony Tony, Tony of course.

[00:14:39] [Jimmie]: One of my friends I think his name is Travis.

[00:14:42] [Jimmie]: His boyfriend that was I, I older from no he wasn't out of he was on he was a Sigma from Mississippi State.

[00:14:54] [Jimmie]: I forgot his name and how we ended up going with my birthday.

[00:14:58] [Jimmie]: But we have went to the sweat championships because the school that we went to was in the sweat championships at that time and I can't think of the year.

[00:15:05] [Jimmie]: No, I do remember who it was.

[00:15:07] [Jimmie]: It was I love it.

[00:15:08] [Jimmie]: I love him and him and Grammy said because I remember the people had because the grounding girls had just been the 10 fast commercial we let it with and they were throwing 10 plus they were throwing 10 funds at the girls but wow.

[00:15:24] [Jimmie]: But I remember when they're because we was in Birmingham and at the end Birmingham did have a gay club but we just we didn't really go or we didn't know what was that so we like, let's go to Atlanta because we've heard about Atlanta.

[00:15:40] [Jimmie]: And so I remember on college club post it like hey, I've come to Atlanta where is there to go.

[00:15:50] [Jimmie]: So I had a question that I ended up finding the email that I said, but I printed out this is how we are printed out the email.

[00:16:00] [Jimmie]: And somebody has me the guy to all the club and Atlanta to go to and what they and what they in the scene was so there was a guy so there was on the college boards they were sharing a guide of clubs.

[00:16:12] [Jimmie]: No, I don't know.

[00:16:13] [Jimmie]: I don't know if it was a guy but the person said something set me up right now like a list of places for you to go. Yes, interesting.

[00:16:23] [Jimmie]: So so our trash is on there and trash and basically what I remember trash and this is where everybody goes to on Saturdays.

[00:16:31] [Jimmie]: You can see that this I learned to check my terminologies as well like the film queen, the butch queens, the muscle girls, the hood rats all be at this club.

[00:16:43] [Jimmie]: The and they broke they broke it down like the hip hop rooms on the third floor is smallest fuck.

[00:16:48] [Jimmie]: The house the house is on the second and the main floor and main floor.

[00:16:54] [Jimmie]: And they were like, don't get confused.

[00:16:57] [Jimmie]: They can get your man because you can see a man but he can be a woman with third thoughts come on.

[00:17:03] [Jimmie]: And so they like don't be good about the body.

[00:17:06] [Jimmie]: So did the other club was like 708 you go to 708.

[00:17:11] [Jimmie]: This is for younger days is little Benji.

[00:17:15] [Jimmie]: But the drinks are good.

[00:17:16] [Jimmie]: It stays open late.

[00:17:17] [Jimmie]: I think in every club at the time stay open late back then.

[00:17:20] [Jimmie]: Then it was colors.

[00:17:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yeah, color.

[00:17:26] [Jimmie]: Colors is what mixes now.

[00:17:30] [Jimmie]: There was there was the lion's den towers which got burnt down.

[00:17:37] [Jimmie]: We got burnt down tonight.

[00:17:38] [Jimmie]: Close.

[00:17:40] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You know, I forgot about that one towers.

[00:17:44] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Was the Marquette on your list?

[00:17:47] [DJ Sir Daniel]: No.

[00:17:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Really?

[00:17:49] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Because Marquette has been around forever.

[00:17:51] [Jimmie]: So I don't know why the Marquette is not on our list and I don't.

[00:17:56] [Jimmie]: And I don't I think that back.

[00:17:57] [Jimmie]: I don't know if it was.

[00:17:58] [Jimmie]: I don't remember it being on a list.

[00:18:00] [SPEAKER_03]: Okay.

[00:18:01] [Jimmie]: So but definitely the towers was on there lines then the chapel Rebels on there.

[00:18:09] [Jimmie]: It was another couple clubs that I can't remember.

[00:18:12] [Jimmie]: Backstreet was on there.

[00:18:13] [Jimmie]: There's like this is 24 hour you want to go use your drugs go there.

[00:18:17] [Jimmie]: At that time, Bulls dogs wasn't was denied.

[00:18:22] [Jimmie]: Why didn't they like black people in there?

[00:18:23] [Jimmie]: So I'm spoiled alert kids bulldogs and like like your asses in there.

[00:18:29] [Jimmie]: Um, so it was like a list of that year again.

[00:18:32] [Jimmie]: This was like probably 2000 2001.

[00:18:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Okay.

[00:18:37] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So so at this point, hip hop has taken really has taken over because I recall.

[00:18:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So if we want to go back to tracks, you're absolutely right.

[00:18:47] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Right.

[00:18:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: The they called it the boom boom room, which was the hip hop room,

[00:18:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: which was all the way at the top in the penthouse.

[00:18:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And that's where they had a DJ up there playing spinning nothing but hip hop.

[00:18:59] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And it was the, you know, the radio stuff, Missy Elliott,

[00:19:04] [DJ Sir Daniel]: everything that was popping back in the early 2000s.

[00:19:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And do you recall when when hip hop went from that small room up top and took

[00:19:15] [DJ Sir Daniel]: over the main floor?

[00:19:17] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Do you recall that transition because you're to your point,

[00:19:20] [DJ Sir Daniel]: house music was the prominent music for the gay club night scene,

[00:19:24] [DJ Sir Daniel]: especially at tracks for, you know, where the people like to come.

[00:19:28] [DJ Sir Daniel]: They used to do the high cakes and and the vogues used to walk,

[00:19:32] [DJ Sir Daniel]: walk the runway.

[00:19:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: But now hip hop, this is 2000 hip hop just like completely took over

[00:19:39] [DJ Sir Daniel]: and came downstairs to the main floor.

[00:19:42] [Jimmie]: I want to say I noticed they're probably 2002, 2003 for sure.

[00:19:53] [Jimmie]: Because tracks you have to our Tuesdays.

[00:19:56] [Jimmie]: Yes.

[00:19:57] [Jimmie]: So that's what's nothing but hip hop night.

[00:20:00] [Jimmie]: And they will play house at the end.

[00:20:04] [Jimmie]: And so I want to say once hip hop really became popular in the 2000s,

[00:20:11] [Jimmie]: like that that wave in 2000 2001 with look him was kind of looking

[00:20:18] [Jimmie]: became mainstream.

[00:20:19] [Jimmie]: He Missy Jay-Z and all of them when there was no choice because

[00:20:25] [Jimmie]: they were on the pop charts.

[00:20:27] [Jimmie]: They was playing the music.

[00:20:28] [Jimmie]: So but also once the pop girls start influenced pop bomb started

[00:20:35] [Jimmie]: putting their music on to hip hop like Britney Spears work with

[00:20:37] [Jimmie]: the Neptune's Christian Aguilera doing rock,

[00:20:40] [Jimmie]: viola Justin Timberlake with Pharrell.

[00:20:44] [Jimmie]: It became that main that main thing because you use it went

[00:20:48] [Jimmie]: from that small, that small penthouse room that was crowded

[00:20:53] [Jimmie]: packed sweat glistening for real to like the main the main room

[00:20:59] [Jimmie]: attracts.

[00:21:02] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Absolutely.

[00:21:03] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So like I think that people have to understand that was so 2000.

[00:21:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Of course, we've already had the Olympics.

[00:21:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes.

[00:21:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: We've had we've had about four to five years of an influx

[00:21:19] [DJ Sir Daniel]: of people coming in from different states after they've experienced

[00:21:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Freak Nick after they've experienced the 96 Olympics.

[00:21:28] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You know, Atlanta was a beacon and this is a place for people

[00:21:33] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to go especially if you were young and gay and you just

[00:21:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: became you saw the nightlife that was here and it was a hook.

[00:21:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Do you.

[00:21:44] [Jimmie]: So let me go back.

[00:21:45] [Jimmie]: I'm sorry to catch off.

[00:21:46] [DJ Sir Daniel]: No, go ahead.

[00:21:46] [Jimmie]: So I'm at it to that because Atlanta for us,

[00:21:49] [Jimmie]: especially from the south, especially for the kids that came

[00:21:52] [Jimmie]: from Mississippi, Southern Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina,

[00:21:56] [Jimmie]: Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Florida, well, up, Florida,

[00:22:00] [Jimmie]: North Florida.

[00:22:02] [Jimmie]: Atlanta was the place because most of those places did not

[00:22:05] [Jimmie]: have gay clubs or they had like the one gay club and so

[00:22:10] [Jimmie]: even in Montgomery, they had a gay club but it was month

[00:22:14] [Jimmie]: a month.

[00:22:15] [Jimmie]: Wow.

[00:22:16] [Jimmie]: Or so everybody literally in Alabama would travel to

[00:22:20] [Jimmie]: Birmingham, which was the choice because there was like the

[00:22:24] [Jimmie]: only black gay club.

[00:22:25] [Jimmie]: Technically, I will say Alabama that may have been open

[00:22:28] [Jimmie]: and weekly.

[00:22:29] [Jimmie]: So that's why all the girls you see like Sabisha Munn,

[00:22:34] [Jimmie]: Nicole, the pre all of them came from Birmingham and they

[00:22:37] [Jimmie]: started out in Detroit is performing when they moved over

[00:22:41] [Jimmie]: to Atlanta.

[00:22:42] [Jimmie]: So I think Atlanta being the mecca that became and Atlanta

[00:22:48] [Jimmie]: was also the safe one of the safest places for gay people

[00:22:51] [Jimmie]: at that time.

[00:22:52] [Jimmie]: Well, still is so black guys because we're coming from the

[00:22:56] [Jimmie]: Bible Belt for real where our clubs open literally the

[00:23:01] [Jimmie]: club, the club in Birmingham and out in Montgomery, they

[00:23:05] [Jimmie]: they open to like 12 one o'clock in the morning

[00:23:09] [Jimmie]: because they went to all they literally waited to all the

[00:23:12] [Jimmie]: straight people were off the streets.

[00:23:16] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Went to bed.

[00:23:17] [Jimmie]: He went to bed.

[00:23:18] [Jimmie]: So we come out and so and and the little bit of terminology

[00:23:22] [Jimmie]: that especially growing up in living in Birmingham at the

[00:23:25] [Jimmie]: time is that you did not want to be clocked.

[00:23:28] [Jimmie]: I know you cannot say that now, but you could not be

[00:23:32] [Jimmie]: clocked because you were trying you got to be

[00:23:34] [Jimmie]: unclockable because at the end of the day, you were

[00:23:37] [Jimmie]: trying to get to be you got to get to where you need to get

[00:23:39] [Jimmie]: home safely as you cannot look as you can't be seen to be

[00:23:42] [Jimmie]: looking gay.

[00:23:43] [Jimmie]: And even if you're trans, you cannot proceed and unfortunately

[00:23:46] [Jimmie]: I don't know about the other time.

[00:23:48] [Jimmie]: You cannot you cannot look like you used to be a man.

[00:23:52] [Jimmie]: You had you had to be unclockable.

[00:23:54] [Jimmie]: So that's why they I believe that's why they open our

[00:23:58] [Jimmie]: clubs up in Alabama at the time 1230 and we used to

[00:24:01] [Jimmie]: close.

[00:24:02] [Jimmie]: They used to close about five or six.

[00:24:04] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So Atlanta offered an unlimited amount of time to go at

[00:24:11] [DJ Sir Daniel]: any time of night.

[00:24:12] [DJ Sir Daniel]: It offered numerous places to go every day.

[00:24:16] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Every day you could go and not worry about running into

[00:24:21] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Big Mama or any of your family members.

[00:24:24] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Right.

[00:24:25] [DJ Sir Daniel]: You and your friends can go and have a great time.

[00:24:28] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Like you said, any day of the week, it used to be

[00:24:30] [DJ Sir Daniel]: let's run it down.

[00:24:32] [DJ Sir Daniel]: So I remember Monday nights was a century for a

[00:24:35] [DJ Sir Daniel]: star century.

[00:24:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes, then back at tracks for thugged out to Wednesday.

[00:24:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I don't recall.

[00:24:42] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I think there was like I think most people went to church

[00:24:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: service like literally went to church service on

[00:24:47] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Wednesday.

[00:24:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Right Thursdays you go to 708 aka.

[00:24:51] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yeah.

[00:24:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And Friday was doing Friday.

[00:24:56] [DJ Sir Daniel]: It was the tracks.

[00:24:57] [DJ Sir Daniel]: It was the tracks of colors.

[00:24:59] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Probably colors and then tracks on a Saturday night for

[00:25:02] [DJ Sir Daniel]: sure.

[00:25:03] [Jimmie]: Sunday was lines then towers and chaparral and the

[00:25:08] [DJ Sir Daniel]: chaperon.

[00:25:09] [DJ Sir Daniel]: And of course you mentioned the palace.

[00:25:11] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yes, which was that is downtown close to the notes to

[00:25:17] [DJ Sir Daniel]: the court.

[00:25:18] [Jimmie]: Close to the jail right behind the jail.

[00:25:20] [Jimmie]: Yep.

[00:25:21] [Jimmie]: And my just it.

[00:25:22] [Jimmie]: And he's from the street made it popular because

[00:25:26] [Jimmie]: of rooster.

[00:25:27] [Jimmie]: Rooster.

[00:25:27] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Oh my God.

[00:25:29] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I wonder if the rooster is rooster with us.

[00:25:32] [Jimmie]: Yes, rooster still rooster still with us.

[00:25:34] [Jimmie]: Bless his heart.

[00:25:34] [Jimmie]: And oh my God.

[00:25:36] [Jimmie]: What's her name?

[00:25:37] [Jimmie]: Oh my God.

[00:25:39] [Jimmie]: Used to be there all the time.

[00:25:41] [Jimmie]: I'll wait for you at the door.

[00:25:42] [Jimmie]: Foxy Foxy.

[00:25:44] [Jimmie]: Foxy.

[00:25:44] [Jimmie]: Foxy.

[00:25:45] [Jimmie]: Yes.

[00:25:46] [Jimmie]: And Miss like Miss Foxy is like I met Miss Foxy

[00:25:49] [Jimmie]: years ago.

[00:25:49] [Jimmie]: She and she was a sweetheart back then but she would

[00:25:52] [Jimmie]: she would cut a bitch.

[00:25:53] [Jimmie]: That's what's up.

[00:25:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: But if you had to guess why have Atlanta's black and

[00:26:01] [DJ Sir Daniel]: queer spaces all but disappear?

[00:26:06] [Jimmie]: You want the blue career so the real I want the

[00:26:08] [Jimmie]: Jimmy answer.

[00:26:10] [Jimmie]: The gym answer is simple.

[00:26:11] [Jimmie]: Um, just a case you.

[00:26:12] [Jimmie]: Mm hmm.

[00:26:13] [Jimmie]: Um, because so what it is now most of the places

[00:26:17] [Jimmie]: that are places were became high value meaning they

[00:26:23] [Jimmie]: became high commodities for when Shirley Frank say

[00:26:28] [Jimmie]: every day to new opening day in Atlanta devil so slow

[00:26:30] [Jimmie]: in your little review became that.

[00:26:33] [Jimmie]: Um,

[00:26:34] [Jimmie]: once tracks closed down our lucky street became the

[00:26:37] [Jimmie]: aquarium.

[00:26:38] [Jimmie]: It was the beginning of I'm not gonna say beginning

[00:26:42] [Jimmie]: everything but that's when this will change and then

[00:26:46] [Jimmie]: what added to the closures went and this is one

[00:26:49] [Jimmie]: to see these dead if it happened to the gaze it

[00:26:52] [Jimmie]: happened to straight to.

[00:26:53] [Jimmie]: Um,

[00:26:54] [Jimmie]: once the bucket started eliminating their club scenes.

[00:27:00] [Jimmie]: It started tricking down.

[00:27:02] [Jimmie]: That's just my thought this trust in tricking out to

[00:27:04] [Jimmie]: the gaze because yeah, even with the club scenes and

[00:27:08] [Jimmie]: bucket that was like okay this is land that we can

[00:27:12] [Jimmie]: have and so, um, so once tracks closed and moved

[00:27:17] [Jimmie]: to excuse my one say somewhere in the K I want

[00:27:22] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to say oh yeah it moved to offer Columbia Drive

[00:27:26] [Jimmie]: and getting rink at all skating.

[00:27:28] [Jimmie]: Yeah, all skating rink and then it was another location

[00:27:31] [Jimmie]: but um.

[00:27:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Oh, it moved to beautiful highway before how it

[00:27:37] [Jimmie]: gets to club club Vegas.

[00:27:39] [Jimmie]: Yes, so once that happened at the end of course.

[00:27:46] [Jimmie]: The lines then burnt down not the lines then

[00:27:49] [Jimmie]: the lines in towers burnt down but there was.

[00:27:54] [Jimmie]: I'm sorry, there was still driving there was still

[00:28:01] [Jimmie]: driving but it was still some close up because I

[00:28:03] [Jimmie]: think we still had like, um, Vita was still was

[00:28:08] [Jimmie]: open at that time.

[00:28:10] [Jimmie]: Another club but these weren't even close.

[00:28:13] [Jimmie]: They're like restaurants.

[00:28:13] [Jimmie]: I'll say that.

[00:28:14] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Yeah, because it's what you're describing and for

[00:28:17] [DJ Sir Daniel]: the listeners that don't know because like your

[00:28:20] [DJ Sir Daniel]: established clubs like tracks was starting to close

[00:28:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: down and like Jimmy was saying a lot of the.

[00:28:29] [DJ Sir Daniel]: The bars and saloons were closing down in Buckhead

[00:28:32] [DJ Sir Daniel]: where a lot of mostly white college kids were

[00:28:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: hanging out so that would force them to come

[00:28:38] [DJ Sir Daniel]: into the city to party so there will have to be a

[00:28:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: lot of negotiating for places or black gay men

[00:28:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to go party and a lot of what they did was the

[00:28:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: promoters would find restaurants and there was

[00:28:52] [Jimmie]: yeah, they found restaurants and they will find

[00:28:55] [Jimmie]: actually straight clubs that would actually let us

[00:28:59] [Jimmie]: have their night because even rain was open at

[00:29:01] [Jimmie]: the time which was a straight club during the

[00:29:02] [Jimmie]: day and that's not to get confused with

[00:29:04] [Jimmie]: I was getting on rain but it was rain.

[00:29:08] [Jimmie]: Then there was the chaperone was still open

[00:29:11] [Jimmie]: of course and then there was a shift with

[00:29:15] [Jimmie]: bulldogs that actually started letting colors in

[00:29:18] [Jimmie]: because they were losing losing the and I'm

[00:29:21] [Jimmie]: going to say bulldogs all the way through this

[00:29:22] [Jimmie]: but they thought and let them the colors in

[00:29:27] [Jimmie]: without the three IDs because they the white

[00:29:29] [Jimmie]: people will lose it with this idea they didn't

[00:29:30] [Jimmie]: want to be there was so once that occurred

[00:29:37] [Jimmie]: I think it kind of trickled down because

[00:29:40] [Jimmie]: the rent of getting these places are

[00:29:46] [Jimmie]: commercial spots became a spacer because

[00:29:48] [Jimmie]: they really didn't want the people there

[00:29:49] [Jimmie]: because they wanted their land to become

[00:29:51] [Jimmie]: where they are now apartments are empty or

[00:29:53] [Jimmie]: stuff like that then also I also think it was

[00:30:00] [Jimmie]: I had a thought in my head I also think

[00:30:05] [Jimmie]: they priced out a lot of people oh I'm

[00:30:08] [Jimmie]: sorry I don't know what I'm saying and

[00:30:10] [Jimmie]: also this which I don't know the city of

[00:30:12] [Jimmie]: Atlanta has made it impossible for any

[00:30:14] [Jimmie]: anybody gay straight to open the club so

[00:30:18] [Jimmie]: that's why you see a lot of people open

[00:30:20] [Jimmie]: lounges and turn it into a club because

[00:30:24] [Jimmie]: it's easier to open a lounge bar than a

[00:30:27] [Jimmie]: club in the city of Atlanta because they

[00:30:29] [DJ Sir Daniel]: changed it at one point where everything

[00:30:31] [DJ Sir Daniel]: had to be closed at two o'clock yes that

[00:30:33] [DJ Sir Daniel]: that's a major that was a major major

[00:30:37] [DJ Sir Daniel]: in the city of Atlanta when everything

[00:30:39] [DJ Sir Daniel]: had to be closed at 12 o'clock liquor

[00:30:42] [DJ Sir Daniel]: sales had to stop at midnight so if you

[00:30:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: weren't a supermarket or a package store

[00:30:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: the package stores would be closed by

[00:30:49] [DJ Sir Daniel]: midnight because they created some new

[00:30:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: ordinance that cut every you're absolutely

[00:30:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: right that cut everything off by a

[00:30:57] [DJ Sir Daniel]: certain time so yes so there had to be a

[00:30:59] [DJ Sir Daniel]: shift in how people were going to do

[00:31:01] [Jimmie]: business Atlanta has lost they felt the

[00:31:05] [Jimmie]: loss of the money and somehow the

[00:31:09] [Jimmie]: word of mouth like freaking it gay pride

[00:31:11] [Jimmie]: Atlanta gay pride took off with still to

[00:31:15] [Jimmie]: this day as people may have shade a

[00:31:16] [Jimmie]: lot of at the end of that you still bring

[00:31:19] [Jimmie]: your black asses down here every

[00:31:20] [Jimmie]: lately and every in every mk because

[00:31:23] [Jimmie]: you ain't got no what's to go but um

[00:31:27] [Jimmie]: they saw that money come in because

[00:31:29] [Jimmie]: every hotel was booked now I'm not

[00:31:31] [Jimmie]: gonna say they got paid at the end of

[00:31:32] [Jimmie]: the night but

[00:31:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: you're a stunt to credit cards Jimmy is

[00:31:37] [DJ Sir Daniel]: that what you're referring to

[00:31:38] [Jimmie]: I don't know what you were referring to

[00:31:41] [Jimmie]: but they may have stayed there but they

[00:31:44] [Jimmie]: may not get you but you may not have

[00:31:46] [Jimmie]: got your money but that brought it

[00:31:49] [Jimmie]: back and black gay pride brings their

[00:31:52] [Jimmie]: money to the city in the surrounding

[00:31:54] [Jimmie]: areas or it did at one point in time

[00:31:56] [Jimmie]: um added to the fact that to the

[00:31:59] [Jimmie]: point that they start reporting on the

[00:32:03] [Jimmie]: news that this is like gay pride

[00:32:04] [Jimmie]: weekend which is very rare for a city

[00:32:07] [Jimmie]: to every mention it so

[00:32:10] [Jimmie]: between that what else goes on come

[00:32:13] [Jimmie]: and come um oh yeah the dragon con is

[00:32:17] [Jimmie]: what they would dragon come yes dragon

[00:32:18] [Jimmie]: con um which drag drag all day

[00:32:24] [Jimmie]: girls and drag overlap overlap

[00:32:27] [Jimmie]: yes and then you got the the kids

[00:32:29] [Jimmie]: come in for the um the college games

[00:32:33] [Jimmie]: um at that time literally weekend

[00:32:35] [Jimmie]: was a thing and or germany debris was

[00:32:37] [Jimmie]: having the thing so Labor Day not just

[00:32:41] [Jimmie]: for the gaze it was like literally

[00:32:43] [Jimmie]: everybody came in so everything

[00:32:46] [Jimmie]: overlap everything overlap to the

[00:32:49] [Jimmie]: point that the city of Atlanta in

[00:32:51] [Jimmie]: this one area is like when they saw

[00:32:53] [Jimmie]: dollar bill is money is money

[00:32:57] [Jimmie]: just to start seeing it and but I

[00:32:59] [Jimmie]: also think at the same time this

[00:33:01] [Jimmie]: city is known for taking their money for

[00:33:03] [Jimmie]: granted where's how the new comes in

[00:33:06] [DJ Sir Daniel]: so and taking the people that are

[00:33:09] [DJ Sir Daniel]: bringing the money in for granted as

[00:33:11] [DJ Sir Daniel]: well yes you know you're absolutely

[00:33:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: right I was just thinking about

[00:33:17] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Atlanta has gotten better with not

[00:33:20] [DJ Sir Daniel]: double booking per se because like

[00:33:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: you were saying Atlanta will have

[00:33:26] [DJ Sir Daniel]: 511 events going on at the same time

[00:33:29] [DJ Sir Daniel]: on the same weekend it'll be black gay

[00:33:31] [DJ Sir Daniel]: pride it'll be dragon calm

[00:33:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: brawner brothers here show everybody's

[00:33:37] [DJ Sir Daniel]: convening on the city all at once

[00:33:39] [DJ Sir Daniel]: yeah and it brought a lot of money and

[00:33:42] [DJ Sir Daniel]: it brought a lot of traffic to the

[00:33:43] [DJ Sir Daniel]: city yeah let me ask you this have you

[00:33:47] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I'm sure you venture to different cities

[00:33:49] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to party what would you say is the

[00:33:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: main difference between partying in

[00:33:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Atlanta and partying to whichever

[00:34:00] [DJ Sir Daniel]: major city with a gay big gay population

[00:34:03] [DJ Sir Daniel]: DC New York whichever way you want to pick

[00:34:05] [DJ Sir Daniel]: but what would you think was the major

[00:34:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: difference between your experiences

[00:34:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: here and going outside of the state

[00:34:13] [Jimmie]: of Georgia back in the day I will say

[00:34:18] [Jimmie]: DC gave a lot of this gave DC

[00:34:21] [Jimmie]: gave Atlanta run for his money and

[00:34:25] [Jimmie]: and I haven't been to DC in a minute

[00:34:26] [Jimmie]: but from what I hear is this going to run for

[00:34:28] [Jimmie]: his money and why I say that I

[00:34:31] [Jimmie]: because I'm gonna get counsel but I don't

[00:34:32] [Jimmie]: care DC is very much old like a

[00:34:36] [Jimmie]: old rich auntie and Atlanta is like a

[00:34:38] [Jimmie]: little red cousin they have their mayor

[00:34:39] [Jimmie]: a rapper alright mayor a celebrity

[00:34:44] [Jimmie]: got money athlete is very much that

[00:34:47] [Jimmie]: so but very much a party scene but

[00:34:51] [Jimmie]: unfortunately DC also loves it has lost

[00:34:55] [Jimmie]: their gay spaces black gay spaces as well

[00:34:57] [Jimmie]: up until recently with thrust here

[00:35:00] [Jimmie]: but is a new gay club that's owned by

[00:35:02] [Jimmie]: black person right so where they have

[00:35:06] [Jimmie]: been pushed out in D&D and getting into

[00:35:08] [Jimmie]: places where people want their money

[00:35:10] [Jimmie]: but they really don't want them there

[00:35:11] [Jimmie]: they will take the money and don't

[00:35:13] [Jimmie]: want them there and it's similar to

[00:35:15] [Jimmie]: here where bars really don't want us in

[00:35:19] [Jimmie]: there but we'll take your money we're not

[00:35:21] [Jimmie]: gonna play your music but we'll take

[00:35:23] [Jimmie]: your money so that was that's a that is

[00:35:27] [Jimmie]: different where there's beautiful black

[00:35:28] [Jimmie]: gay man that at the time had their

[00:35:31] [Jimmie]: spaces they was playing this almost

[00:35:33] [Jimmie]: similar music or on the difference is

[00:35:36] [Jimmie]: they might play Google instead of base

[00:35:38] [Jimmie]: music like they explain down here

[00:35:44] [Jimmie]: going to the west coast is a little bit

[00:35:46] [Jimmie]: different especially in Vegas because

[00:35:49] [Jimmie]: Vegas doesn't really have a big black

[00:35:51] [Jimmie]: gay population where everybody has no

[00:35:55] [Jimmie]: choice but the commingle so at the

[00:36:00] [Jimmie]: time they really wasn't playing anything

[00:36:01] [Jimmie]: up to date for his black music the

[00:36:05] [Jimmie]: first time with the Vegas you're very

[00:36:06] [Jimmie]: much have you played a new pretty

[00:36:08] [Jimmie]: spirit you play the new

[00:36:11] [Jimmie]: new Katy Perry but in the play

[00:36:13] [Jimmie]: bootylicious but parts of black people

[00:36:15] [DJ Sir Daniel]: right and that's like 10 years old

[00:36:18] [Jimmie]: already yes but I think it has gotten

[00:36:21] [Jimmie]: better as even though it may

[00:36:25] [Jimmie]: jump about online that rap music and

[00:36:28] [Jimmie]: urban music has is the most dominating

[00:36:30] [Jimmie]: music that's out there that I think

[00:36:33] [Jimmie]: has gotten better with it so it's

[00:36:36] [Jimmie]: still one of things where I have a

[00:36:38] [Jimmie]: lot of friends that stayed in like

[00:36:40] [Jimmie]: test places like Texas or Tennessee

[00:36:44] [Jimmie]: where they say we take our club for

[00:36:46] [Jimmie]: granted because we still at least we

[00:36:48] [Jimmie]: still have black gay clubs you know

[00:36:50] [Jimmie]: they're not on black gay people or

[00:36:53] [Jimmie]: black people in general minus one or

[00:36:55] [Jimmie]: two people one or two places but we

[00:36:57] [Jimmie]: still have places that are

[00:36:59] [Jimmie]: dedicated to black people black

[00:37:01] [DJ Sir Daniel]: gays do you so that brings up a

[00:37:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: little bit of a question it makes me

[00:37:11] [DJ Sir Daniel]: think of you mentioned going to

[00:37:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: spaces where you're tolerated you're

[00:37:17] [DJ Sir Daniel]: not necessarily necessarily

[00:37:18] [DJ Sir Daniel]: celebrated you are tolerated there

[00:37:21] [DJ Sir Daniel]: have been a few cases here in

[00:37:22] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Atlanta where club owners were

[00:37:25] [DJ Sir Daniel]: hurt were overheard or it was

[00:37:28] [DJ Sir Daniel]: reported that they may very

[00:37:29] [DJ Sir Daniel]: disparaging comments about their

[00:37:31] [DJ Sir Daniel]: black patrons and not wanting them

[00:37:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: there and you know there's another

[00:37:39] [DJ Sir Daniel]: bar that caught on fire recently and

[00:37:43] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to me there were those places where I

[00:37:46] [DJ Sir Daniel]: think black men would go to those

[00:37:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: places to kind of get away from the

[00:37:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: black community if you ask me those

[00:37:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: spaces were kind of welcoming or they

[00:37:58] [DJ Sir Daniel]: wanted to infiltrate those spaces

[00:38:00] [DJ Sir Daniel]: because they figured that they would

[00:38:02] [DJ Sir Daniel]: be the only ones there what do you

[00:38:03] [DJ Sir Daniel]: think have you ever ventured out to

[00:38:06] [DJ Sir Daniel]: what is that blakes on the park or

[00:38:09] [DJ Sir Daniel]: any of those other you know ambiguous

[00:38:13] [Jimmie]: spots years ago years ago I have I

[00:38:16] [Jimmie]: definitely don't try to go now because

[00:38:20] [Jimmie]: I'm like I'm one of the people like

[00:38:22] [Jimmie]: if you don't want me there you're

[00:38:24] [Jimmie]: not gonna get my money and you and

[00:38:27] [Jimmie]: they have been blatantly about that

[00:38:30] [Jimmie]: they didn't vote not because I'm not

[00:38:32] [Jimmie]: gonna say based on dress code because

[00:38:34] [Jimmie]: it'd be simple to say that every black

[00:38:36] [Jimmie]: person dressed like that but it's very

[00:38:39] [Jimmie]: much we don't want how that we're not

[00:38:41] [Jimmie]: gonna play your music

[00:38:45] [Jimmie]: successfully we've been able to get

[00:38:46] [Jimmie]: rid of one club that's on to the

[00:38:48] [Jimmie]: ego because there was very much they

[00:38:51] [Jimmie]: didn't want the people there either

[00:38:53] [Jimmie]: right and the club next to the

[00:38:55] [Jimmie]: bar that's next to

[00:38:58] [Jimmie]: Blake's that everybody was going to

[00:38:59] [Jimmie]: Mississippi month which was a restaurant

[00:39:02] [Jimmie]: when they changed their whole video

[00:39:03] [Jimmie]: because they didn't want us there but

[00:39:06] [Jimmie]: now they said oh we get the business

[00:39:08] [Jimmie]: so we do want y'all back and so I'm

[00:39:11] [Jimmie]: very much a champion of their black

[00:39:14] [Jimmie]: there's black restaurants y'all could go

[00:39:16] [Jimmie]: to their virgils two locations and

[00:39:19] [Jimmie]: this is free this is not they are

[00:39:21] [Jimmie]: not to pay by virgils at all

[00:39:25] [Jimmie]: there's Cirque there is the

[00:39:27] [Jimmie]: factory that's open but that's open

[00:39:29] [Jimmie]: back up if you want to go all the way

[00:39:31] [Jimmie]: to Kennesaw there's my friends Darnell

[00:39:33] [Jimmie]: DJ and Darnell they have stuff why

[00:39:36] [Jimmie]: are we going to places that down

[00:39:40] [Jimmie]: when I asked there and I'm very much

[00:39:43] [Jimmie]: a champion of support your support your

[00:39:46] [Jimmie]: community this this is Atlanta is

[00:39:49] [Jimmie]: one of the biggest if not the

[00:39:51] [Jimmie]: biggest black gay population in the

[00:39:54] [Jimmie]: world why we supported people that

[00:39:56] [Jimmie]: don't want us where there's people in

[00:39:58] [Jimmie]: our community that we could easily go

[00:40:00] [Jimmie]: yes you know Mark where is ghetto and

[00:40:02] [Jimmie]: you might get shot but it is our own

[00:40:06] [Jimmie]: it's our own it's our play is our

[00:40:08] [Jimmie]: own spot why are you trying to make

[00:40:14] [Jimmie]: former teeth and pee might work when

[00:40:16] [Jimmie]: they told y'all asses now we're going

[00:40:17] [Jimmie]: to do to loon food nobody don't eat

[00:40:19] [Jimmie]: to loon food no why are you trying

[00:40:22] [Jimmie]: to make that happen why so at least

[00:40:25] [Jimmie]: with mix now mix very much except the

[00:40:31] [Jimmie]: black crowd because at the end of

[00:40:32] [Jimmie]: the day they had a crowd in the first

[00:40:34] [Jimmie]: place so so you either you can either

[00:40:39] [Jimmie]: you either lose money or you get with

[00:40:41] [Jimmie]: the program but you can't be racist

[00:40:43] [DJ Sir Daniel]: at the same time how much impact do

[00:40:46] [DJ Sir Daniel]: you feel like COVID had on that I

[00:40:50] [Jimmie]: don't think over it had any impact

[00:40:52] [Jimmie]: on either anything because it because

[00:40:55] [Jimmie]: I think the shift was there before

[00:40:59] [DJ Sir Daniel]: we even happen okay the shift came

[00:41:02] [DJ Sir Daniel]: before COVID so a lot of these spaces

[00:41:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: that you named like your 10th and Pied

[00:41:09] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Monts more so lounges restaurants and

[00:41:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: bars the thing about that what I've

[00:41:15] [DJ Sir Daniel]: noticed is that our spaces have been

[00:41:20] [DJ Sir Daniel]: co-opted and they're co-ed in the sense

[00:41:23] [DJ Sir Daniel]: that there are it's not just exclusively

[00:41:27] [DJ Sir Daniel]: black and gay but you know there's

[00:41:30] [DJ Sir Daniel]: women in the spaces of course trans

[00:41:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: people have always been in the spaces

[00:41:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: but now women are in the spaces

[00:41:38] [DJ Sir Daniel]: your you know back in the day used

[00:41:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to be your occasional fag hag that

[00:41:43] [DJ Sir Daniel]: came along with you but now a lot

[00:41:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: of women are coming on their own

[00:41:47] [DJ Sir Daniel]: and incorporating these spaces even if

[00:41:50] [DJ Sir Daniel]: they are there with or without a gay

[00:41:53] [DJ Sir Daniel]: friend and of course you know white

[00:41:55] [DJ Sir Daniel]: people are always always co-opting

[00:41:58] [DJ Sir Daniel]: spaces and you know inviting themselves

[00:42:01] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to the cookouts as it were so how do

[00:42:05] [DJ Sir Daniel]: you feel about that about not things

[00:42:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: not being exclusive anymore does that

[00:42:13] [DJ Sir Daniel]: take away the magic of of a place

[00:42:16] [DJ Sir Daniel]: like do you think we could even

[00:42:18] [DJ Sir Daniel]: appreciate exclusively black spaces

[00:42:20] [Jimmie]: anymore it's the gift in the curse

[00:42:25] [Jimmie]: and why say that is the gift because

[00:42:27] [Jimmie]: we all want to accept this we all want

[00:42:29] [Jimmie]: to love we all want it we all want it

[00:42:32] [Jimmie]: equality we wanted the be accepted by

[00:42:36] [Jimmie]: our straight brothers and sisters

[00:42:38] [Jimmie]: black our family and all that stuff

[00:42:42] [Jimmie]: the curse is the fact that we don't

[00:42:45] [Jimmie]: have those spaces and we don't

[00:42:48] [Jimmie]: appreciate the spaces we don't

[00:42:49] [Jimmie]: appreciate the sacrifice that many

[00:42:53] [Jimmie]: of our ancestors are four fathers

[00:42:56] [Jimmie]: that created these spaces for us keep

[00:42:59] [Jimmie]: in mind the reason why these spaces

[00:43:01] [Jimmie]: were built is for us to be safe isn't

[00:43:03] [Jimmie]: it wasn't and not saying that we're

[00:43:05] [Jimmie]: not safe around straight people being

[00:43:07] [Jimmie]: on our spaces but it was the time

[00:43:10] [Jimmie]: that we could let us and be our

[00:43:13] [Jimmie]: true self or who we want to pretend

[00:43:16] [Jimmie]: to be that night but be safe in that

[00:43:19] [Jimmie]: space and I think we take for granted

[00:43:22] [Jimmie]: that the purpose of the gay club and

[00:43:24] [Jimmie]: the gay bar the punk bar was for us to

[00:43:27] [Jimmie]: conjugate and but I also think the

[00:43:31] [Jimmie]: social media played a role into how

[00:43:34] [Jimmie]: the depth of the night scene and

[00:43:37] [Jimmie]: communication and community of have

[00:43:40] [Jimmie]: the reason why we had to get close one

[00:43:43] [DJ Sir Daniel]: last thing I do want to ask you before

[00:43:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: we get up out of here I've known you

[00:43:47] [DJ Sir Daniel]: for I've known you forever and if you

[00:43:49] [DJ Sir Daniel]: know Jimmy we all know who Jimmy's

[00:43:51] [DJ Sir Daniel]: favorite artists of all time is which

[00:43:54] [DJ Sir Daniel]: brings me to another another point

[00:43:59] [DJ Sir Daniel]: in our history do you recall so every

[00:44:04] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Mary J. Blige is Jimmy's all-time

[00:44:07] [DJ Sir Daniel]: favorite artist I know this trust me

[00:44:10] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I don't have to I don't need his clothes

[00:44:12] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I know Mary J. Blige is his favorite

[00:44:14] [DJ Sir Daniel]: artists of all time do you recall

[00:44:18] [DJ Sir Daniel]: when mainstream artists like Mary J.

[00:44:21] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Blige started making pop-ups at the

[00:44:24] [DJ Sir Daniel]: gay clubs and what of and what

[00:44:27] [DJ Sir Daniel]: affected that have on you as a fan

[00:44:31] [DJ Sir Daniel]: of those artists in their music so

[00:44:34] [Jimmie]: I know they did it they've been doing

[00:44:37] [Jimmie]: it for a while even before I was able

[00:44:40] [Jimmie]: to go in the club Donna Ross pop-up

[00:44:42] [Jimmie]: Donna Ross pop-up Grace Jones of course

[00:44:46] [Jimmie]: is infamous for pop-up at Studio 54

[00:44:49] [Jimmie]: Paradise Garage Janet Jackson will go

[00:44:52] [Jimmie]: there to learn how to go Madonna

[00:44:56] [Jimmie]: Beyonce showed up without her makeup

[00:44:59] [Jimmie]: one year if you didn't know it's

[00:45:02] [Jimmie]: Beyonce forever but it was her Janet

[00:45:03] [Jimmie]: Jackson show that as far as the

[00:45:05] [Jimmie]: century Mary J. showed up for me

[00:45:10] [Jimmie]: little Kim all of them and this is

[00:45:12] [Jimmie]: before paid they would and they weren't

[00:45:13] [Jimmie]: getting paid to show up so let me

[00:45:15] [Jimmie]: emphasize they weren't getting paid

[00:45:17] [Jimmie]: it was literally just show up

[00:45:19] [Jimmie]: for me it shows that they know who

[00:45:22] [Jimmie]: they who they they know they

[00:45:25] [Jimmie]: appreciate they gave fan base they

[00:45:27] [Jimmie]: know who they the fan base

[00:45:28] [Jimmie]: recognized them for me is I was

[00:45:33] [Jimmie]: like I feel seen and it's like oh my

[00:45:36] [Jimmie]: queen is there so seeing I never

[00:45:39] [Jimmie]: see Mary J. the club but she showed

[00:45:40] [Jimmie]: up when little Kim showed up which

[00:45:43] [Jimmie]: little if y'all know me I'm not going

[00:45:46] [Jimmie]: to say little Kim my father not

[00:45:47] [Jimmie]: paid me a fee and fell to my favorite

[00:45:49] [Jimmie]: female rapper she hit she's one of

[00:45:52] [Jimmie]: my influences when it comes to

[00:45:53] [Jimmie]: female rap seeing little Kim at

[00:45:56] [Jimmie]: the gay club and she give me a

[00:45:57] [Jimmie]: kiss that was the highlight of my

[00:45:59] [Jimmie]: life because that was on my

[00:46:01] [Jimmie]: that was that was on my high

[00:46:02] [Jimmie]: school vision for double good

[00:46:03] [Jimmie]: kiss I love Kim I didn't know it was

[00:46:05] [Jimmie]: gonna be two years later but still

[00:46:07] [Jimmie]: Vita yes okay so but it was very

[00:46:12] [Jimmie]: much is they know they fan base

[00:46:14] [Jimmie]: because gay men we like strong

[00:46:17] [Jimmie]: women who like strong boys like

[00:46:19] [Jimmie]: strong women that's the reason why

[00:46:22] [Jimmie]: we have these gay icon that's

[00:46:24] [Jimmie]: reason why we love Beyonce we love

[00:46:26] [Jimmie]: beautiful women at that that's why

[00:46:28] [Jimmie]: we have Beyonce as a gay icon we

[00:46:30] [Jimmie]: have Mary J we have little Kim we

[00:46:33] [Jimmie]: have Megan the style you now in

[00:46:34] [Jimmie]: part of the yeah yes part of the

[00:46:37] [Jimmie]: gay icon some kind of way I like

[00:46:39] [Jimmie]: how to be we have these girls these

[00:46:42] [Jimmie]: women Rihanna because they have

[00:46:44] [Jimmie]: they have this attitude of I'm

[00:46:49] [Jimmie]: performing for a crowd I don't take

[00:46:50] [Jimmie]: no shit while looking good and

[00:46:53] [Jimmie]: I'm also seeing a powerful

[00:46:55] [Jimmie]: empowering music that is a

[00:46:58] [Jimmie]: listen to the community so even

[00:47:00] [Jimmie]: with house music divas like Robin

[00:47:01] [Jimmie]: s Martha wise Barbara Tucker

[00:47:05] [Jimmie]: gave me any divas as I was gonna

[00:47:07] [Jimmie]: be there they've been this that's

[00:47:08] [Jimmie]: been that way since Billy hot and

[00:47:09] [Jimmie]: they was singing in the fact bars

[00:47:12] [Jimmie]: on the law right and even with

[00:47:15] [Jimmie]: bull daggers and I can say that

[00:47:17] [Jimmie]: because they will call bull daggers

[00:47:18] [Jimmie]: back in the 40s when they were

[00:47:20] [Jimmie]: dressed that's what they call

[00:47:21] [DJ Sir Daniel]: themselves mm-hmm but yeah because

[00:47:24] [DJ Sir Daniel]: from what I from what I understand

[00:47:27] [DJ Sir Daniel]: bull daggers strictly a term that

[00:47:28] [DJ Sir Daniel]: was created for black women yes and

[00:47:32] [DJ Sir Daniel]: they were yet to this day dude we

[00:47:35] [DJ Sir Daniel]: don't call white lesbians studs we

[00:47:37] [DJ Sir Daniel]: reserve that term for black women

[00:47:39] [Jimmie]: yes so that's the story so that's

[00:47:43] [Jimmie]: so that the history is there so

[00:47:45] [Jimmie]: when you see these artists and it's

[00:47:47] [Jimmie]: also in today's society that we

[00:47:50] [Jimmie]: see these are still support us

[00:47:51] [Jimmie]: because as you know which we

[00:47:54] [Jimmie]: really bring I'm gonna bring it

[00:47:55] [Jimmie]: up anyway we're gonna go back

[00:47:57] [Jimmie]: underground soon because of the

[00:47:59] [Jimmie]: way she is happening with the

[00:48:00] [Jimmie]: legislation against LGBTQ so we

[00:48:04] [Jimmie]: gonna have to go back to

[00:48:04] [Jimmie]: underground eventually it feel

[00:48:07] [Jimmie]: like we're going back to

[00:48:07] [Jimmie]: underground so they were still

[00:48:11] [Jimmie]: we're gonna we're gonna need

[00:48:13] [Jimmie]: their support we still gonna

[00:48:14] [Jimmie]: have we still gonna play that

[00:48:15] [Jimmie]: music we still gonna listen to

[00:48:17] [Jimmie]: Pink Friday I'm not but you

[00:48:18] [Jimmie]: can still listen to Pink Friday

[00:48:19] [Jimmie]: but we're gonna still gonna play

[00:48:24] [Jimmie]: Madonna we're gonna play these girls

[00:48:26] [Jimmie]: because that's been they being the

[00:48:27] [Jimmie]: soundtrack of our not only our lives

[00:48:30] [Jimmie]: but our liberation as well thank you

[00:48:32] [DJ Sir Daniel]: for listening to I come alive

[00:48:34] [DJ Sir Daniel]: stories of black gay atlanta

[00:48:36] [DJ Sir Daniel]: nightlife brought to you by

[00:48:38] [DJ Sir Daniel]: Q points productions special thanks

[00:48:41] [DJ Sir Daniel]: to the counter narrative project

[00:48:42] [DJ Sir Daniel]: 2024 media roundtable for their

[00:48:45] [DJ Sir Daniel]: support as well make sure you

[00:48:48] [DJ Sir Daniel]: become a Q point subscriber so that

[00:48:49] [DJ Sir Daniel]: you don't miss the next episode of

[00:48:52] [DJ Sir Daniel]: I come alive