*Queen Latifah arrived with her royal court to an amped and enthusiastic crowd of subjects summoned to celebrate the 29th Annual Long Beach Lesbian & Gay Pride Festival on Saturday, May 19.
The annual event held in Long Beach, California boasts of drawing approximately 100,000 attendees each year, making it the 2nd largest Pride festival in California and 4th largest in the nation. With such star power like Queen Latifah embracing this year’s event and taking the stage, attendance was presumably higher because everybody loves to see and hear a queen. And there was only one way for Her Highness to make her grand entrance, and that was upon the wings of rap hits like “U.N.I.T.Y.” and “Ladies First.”
Similar to the title of her 2003 film Bringing Down the House, Queen Latifah came hyped, energized and ready to do just that. She “brought it” in more ways than one, bridging songs with inspiring and encouraging words by telling the crowd to “let their inner light shine in the world” and “to conquer hate with love.”
It wasn’t just her Covergirl glow that radiated from the main stage and mesmerized festival goers; it was the light of her transparency emanating from within. The moment she uttered, “I’ve been waiting to do this for a long time,” the crowd knew she was prepared to reflect all sides of herself throughout her musical performance.
She was as free as she wanted to be and as honest as she needed to be, from bumping and grinding onstage to acknowledging that she was proud to be among “her people” to the predominantly LGBT crowd.
In my opinion, for a highly respected African American celebrity to display that kind of courage was “Simply Beautiful” – the Al Green remake she rendered midway through her performance.
It was a celebration and party onstage as well as offstage as Queen Latifah performed from a smorgasbord of musical genres ranging from rap, hip hop, jazz, R&B to reggae as well as performing songs from various artists and paying homage to a plethora of female rappers.
Boldly proclaiming that today’s hip hop is “missing the female voice,” it wasn’t too many moons ago when Queen Latifah first busted onto the scene as a socially conscious East Coast female rapper to debut her album All Hail The Queen. It represented both strength and softness, and provided a positive image of beauty, class and self-confidence for young African American women.
Although originally from the East Coast and retaining a residence there, Queen Latifah took a moment to express her love and appreciation for the West Coast by performing the Roy Ayers’ hit “Everybody Loves The Sunshine.”
The multi-talented artist has always been ready and willing to share her gift with the world which enabled her to skyrocket to fame in music, film, television, and as a spokes-model where she remains at the top of her game.
Her first musical appearance at the Gay Pride Festival was a testament that Queen Latifah not only wants to be true to her loyal fans, but that she is willing to stand up and be herself, perhaps gaining even deeper respect and appreciation from her supporters.
Dana Stringer is a freelance writer based in Southern California. Contact her via stringd1@yahoo.com
Roy Ayers isn’t dead yet! He still performs….Stay informed before you prematurely kill of what legends are still around!
Correction is being made. Thank you.
So is this her official coming out party? As if we didn’t already know lol!
After all of this she still hasn’t come directly out and said. LOL She doesn’t have to but she is making this spectacle and saying what? Shyt I don’t care I still got a crush on Khadijah James !!!!
Celebs perform at gay pride events all the time. Lil Kim just to name a celeb has performed at several events.
We all know what she is, she knows we all know and just leave it at that…..I hate how the media just try to force her to admit it. Leave her alone. Raven too.
Zzzzz Zzzzz Zzzzz
Who Cares she ani’t botherin me.
She needs to admit it. Nobody likes a liar!
Aw, leave them ‘ol dykes alone.
Queen Latifah doesn’t have to admit and/or acknowledge shit! It’s nobody’s damn businesss who she screws gay or straight. Mind your own damn business and closely guard that glass house of yours!
I swear I can’t stand nosy ass people. Damned co-worker almost broke her neck trying to get in my business when she saw me standing talking to this absolutely gorgeous guy I know. Mind your business! If you ware worthy of knowing anything personal, you’ll be given the info. If not, too damn bad for you. I don’t know where this attitude of everyone must know everything came from but, a bunch of fools are literally gonna start getting their asses kicked if they don’t remember to stay in their lane.
Celebrities perform at pride festivals all the time, both gay and straight. If you know that QL is in fact gay, why would her performing at this pride event be an issue? Omitting information doesn’t make a person a liar; calculating, perhaps. However, QL was placed and continues to shine on the scene because of her talents, not because of where her affections lie.
Whether QL is a gay or not, it does not have an impact on my life either way. Frankly she does not owe the public anything about her personal business and sexuality. It shouldn’t even matter who she go to bed and wake up with. As far as I’m concern, if QL wants to eat some fish then that is nothing more than her choice and business.
Alot of people think she is gay just based on sterotype big, kind of tom boyish, never being seen with a man its sad really how people think you dont have to be half naked and screwing the world to prove your not playing for the home team.
I guess you haven’t seen photos of her with gal pal. Anywho…she can’t help being gay.
Who the hell made this quadruple plus size entity a queen anyway?
god she is more annoying than celine dion and maria kerry put together!!!!
Somebody needs to de-crown this b@#$H! ….by shooting her and then poking her in the eye with a dull deer antler!