Those who have been following our blog for a little while will be aware that last year we embarked on our international pride tour. As a part of this, we went to our first-ever Brighton Pride event (which you can read about at https://rhysreviews.com/2023/08/08/brighton-pride-day-one-experience-review/#:~:text=While%20I%20spent%20most%20of,4.5%20stars%20out%20of%205!) and at that event, we were introduced to the fabulous Jamie Heward who delivered a series of camp classic. After that performance, we knew that we had to make sure to catch his performance again and this time he was even better! Taking to the stage in a wonderfully sparkly navy-inspired outfit, Jamie launched into a series of camp classics combined with a brilliant vocal showcase while displaying a wonderful sense of showmanship that made sure the audience was entertained and engaged throughout! Jaime opened their set with a rendition of the iconic “Waterloo” by ABBA which was a great way to begin the routine as everyone in the audience was able to (and did) sing and dance along. This is a deceivingly difficult song to sing however Jaime was totally comfortable with the ABBA classic! My favourite sequence came in the closing moments of Jamie’s set as they delivered a high-energy village people medley, starting with the classic “in the navy” which made perfect sense with the outfit he was wearing. This routine included a series of the village people’s greatest hits and an incredible shorts reveal (which were they flung onto of the tech van) which the audience went absolutely wild for! I think that the convergence of the navy-infused outfit, high-energy campness and the reveal made for a fantastic close to the entire routine!
Just over three years ago we were invited to a Mama G family pride event (which you can read about at https://rhysreviews.com/2021/07/06/mama-gs-family-pride-celebration/) where we were lucky enough to interview the BGT golden buzzer recipient and queen of crumble Lorraine Bowen (which you can watch at – https://youtu.be/fjQ6-CJF2oA?si=-UHygJ3klB6G36nt) and so it seems almost full circle moment when I was invited to help Lorraine with her set at Brighton Pride! This position involved me having to help Lorraine with on-stage costume changes, helping audience volunteers to get involved with the routines and even being invited on stage for a little dance but it did come with a backstage pass which you know we loved showing off to absolutely everyone! Lorraine and I were picked up from the train station by the official Brighton Pride vehicle (which was later used to pick up many of the headliners) to be taken to the artist entrance where I do have to see there was clearly some miscommunication between the security/artist teams which resulted in my having to walk the entirety of the massive site to get verified. Despite being backstage and making sure costumes/props were ready, it was clear that the audience absolutely loved Lorraine’s performance as the massive hoard of people did not stop cheering and singing from the moment the queen of crumble took to the stage! Lorraine’s set got off to an explosive start as Lorraine took to the stage brandishing a unique handlebar/hanger hybrid as she ran around the stage for her unique, original song ‘Bicycle Adventure’ which saw literally every single person in the audience taking part in an energetic congo around the queertown stage. Having been at multiple Congo locations in my lifetime, I have never seen such an engaged and energetic crowd with every single person joining the massive queue! Following a very unexpected but highly entertaining lecture on the history of the Casio organ (which she preceded to use to accompany her performance), Lorraine launched into her iconic ‘Polyester song’ which had two people from the audience join Lorraine on stage in a plethora of vibrant outfits waving a massive flag conveniently also spelling Polyester which fitted the spelling section of Lorraine’s song perfectly. Talking about audience participation, Lorraine later decided to pick another two people from the audience (and myself) to join her on stage for a unique interpretation of salsa dancing for her about the Yumbo Centre in Gran Canaria. Each dancer was allowed to showcase their own dance abilities during solo performances and then acted as a backing dancers during the verses of the song. I thought it was a very clever idea to end the entire set with a rendition of the crumble song as this is what many people know Lorraine for and the reggaeton infusion made sure every single person left the area feeling energised for the rest of the day/weekend!
One of the biggest names to headline Brighton Pride day one was none other than the amazing Sophie Elis Bextor (who recently performed at Cardiff Pride earlier this year.) Similar to Lorraine Bowen earlier in the day, a massive tsunami of people suddenly appeared mourners before the English singer/songwriter took to the stage! I think Sophie’s set was the busiest the main stage was all day which shows how much of a recognisable name she is! One of my favourite moments of their set was their rendition of “Crying at the Discotheque” which had every single person in the immense crowd singing and dancing along. I actually did not know that this song was one of Sophie’s as so on top of a good grove it was also somewhat educational which I personally really enjoy! Obviously, it would not be a Sophie Elis Bextor performance if the audience were not treated to a rendition of the iconic “Murder on the Dance Floor” which again was an absolute crowd-pleaser that was only amplified by the incredible vocals of Sophie! Being two of her biggest hits, I expected to hear them at some point in her set however I did not expect her to cover some of the campest songs to ever exist! She decided to cover songs such as “Gimme, gimme, gimme” by ABBA (we recently attended an ABBA brunch that you can read about at https://rhysreviews.com/2023/09/24/mama-mia-brunch-experience-review/) and “Like a Prayer” by Madonna which were instantly recognisable songs that the audience was more than happy to sing along with!
I have to be honest that going into day of this year’s Pride in Brighton the person I was most excited to see on the main stage was the one and only Billy Porter. There will be two notable places where casual fans will recognise the icon Billy Porter from. Either it’s from his role as the flamboyant Prey Tell on Ryan Murphy’s show Pose or (for me specifically) it’s his legendary looks from the Met Gala. What I was not particularly aware of however was how much of a talented performer Billy truly is! One of the highlights of his set saw him showcase his original song “Children” (which you can listen to at https://youtu.be/_4aqOKoSArw?si=EmRTaJv6p-aw79a5) which helped Billy to showcase all of his wonderful talents in one high-camp spectacle. The emotionally driven opening of the number allowed Billy to really focus on the raw vocals which sounded absolutely amazing live and the more upbeat sections allowed him to show the high-energy vogue-inspired choreography that is synonyms with the show pose which he helped popularised. This was a show stunning number that was perfect for those in the audience who were not too familiar with Billy as it allowed him to showcase the array of talent he possesses in a very on-brand way while also promoting his original music! My favourite part of his set however would have to be when he paid homage to Kinky Boots as he originated the role of Lola on Broadway! I do have to admit that from where I was stood in the audience, I felt like I was one of the few people in the audience who was able to truly appreciate the kinky boots medley that Billy decided to perform on the main stage. It makes sense why Billy was chosen to originate this role so many years ago as every single detail fits the character perfectly! From the stunning vocals, incredible choreography and all-around sassyness, Billy delivered every song with the standard of a fully produced Broadway show!
Overall, Brighton Pride allowed me an opportunity to see a glimpse of all the work and organisation that goes into organising one of the largest pride festivals in the world. While the communication between the workers behind the scenes could have been more effective, this was a fantastic opportunity that I will never forget! The rest of the performers were able to perfectly balance the sense of fabulous celebrations with the political protest that any pride is underpinned by. I would rate day one of Brighton Pride 5 out of 5 stars!
Ps – you can check out our highlights of this event at https://www.instagram.com/rhys.reviews/reel/C-f-CavoO9j/?igsh=cmtjOG44emNzdG9u
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