On the eve of The Belgian Pride 2022, AB presents 'OUTRAGEOUS’: a night of film, live music and DJ sets by activist LGBTQIA+ icons.    

Our stage will be taken over by LGBTQIA+ icons, who each in their own way fuse their identity with their work and art. The line-up includes Mykki Blanco, Lotic, Authentically Plastic, COBRAH, BRYN, TYGAPAW, Promis3 and TAAHLIAH. With a radical musical programme, 'OUTRAGEOUS' proves what the power of art is: generating visibility, involvement, and recognition.  

‘OUTRAGEOUS' aims to be a safe(r) space for those who feel or have felt discriminated, underrepresented and misunderstood, both inside and outside the world of LGBTQIA+ activism. A place for community and celebration. A place for pride. 

 We start the night with the screening of 2 VICE films:

Colours of the Rainbow: We Are Family, 2020, VICE, Bozar, equal.brussels (20')

What does ‘family’ mean to the LGBTQIA+ communities in Brussels in 2020? In order to gain a better understanding of non-traditional or rainbow family life in Brussels in 2020, VICE, BOZAR and equal.brussels invited a number of members of the LGBTQIA+ communities to visually share their experiences in the documentary 'Colours of the Rainbow: We Are Family'.

Out Of This World, 2017, dir. Matt Lambert (40')

This short documentary journeys with American rapper and activist Mykki Blanco as he explores queer culture in Johannesburg. Captured intimately in an experimental hybrid-documentary by director Matt Lambert, Mykki meets boundary pushing artists Umilio and FAKA, designer Rich Mnisi and Bradley and Nkulsey, a model and dancer of the 'Born Free' generation - all using their platforms to give a voice to issues surrounding the politics of their sexuality, gender, identity and humanity. As we make our way through the creative epicentre that is South Africa's biggest city, join us in celebrating the thriving alternative queer scene.

LINE-UP: 

Mykki Blanco 

Mykki Blanco is a visionary rapper and performance artist. They have pushed hip-hop to some of its most untethered bounds, melding noise and experimental elements with club and trap sounds. While they are widely recognized as a pioneering trailblazer in the so-called ‘queer rap’ sub-genre, the music of their new chapter represents a significant evolution toward eradicating the confines of genre categories. As of early 2021, Mykki is signed with London-based Transgressive Records and the music of this new era introduces a more nuanced and genre-spanning set of work. After the last few years working with their Executive Producer FaltyDL and other collaborators, Mykki has two albums finished and ready to be introduced to you soon. 

COBRAH 

COBRAH started her music career playing unreleased music at fetish and underground clubs and festivals in Sweden. She’s known for her strong visual aesthetic, experimental sound and high energy live performances. In 2019, she self-released her first single IDFKA, and received a Swedish Grammy nomination for her directional work on the music video. That same year, she started her own label and released her debut EP 'ICON', which was met with great reviews from tastemakers like Nick Grimshaw and Charli XCX. In the spring of 2021, she released her self-titled second EP 'COBRAH', which “drills down deeper into the interior, exploring queer identity and self-confidence" and is “a celebration of pleasure in every sense”, according to NME. 

BRYN 

Brussels based pop singer songwriter BRYN (Bryan Mugande) followed his dreams into the music world against the advice of his teachers and parents. Influenced by artists like Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, and the young star Greyson Chance, he started writing songs in 2011 and in 2013, whilst living in an asylum seeker center and taught himself how to play guitar on the Internet. He regularly played his compositions to his friend there who used to call him “The Brain” as a way to encourage him in his passion: that’s how the project BRYN (pronounced “brain”) was born.  

Lotic 

Producing intense, provocative music informed by ballroom culture, noise, R&B, and hip-hop, Lotic is one of the most notable figures associated with the loosely defined experimental club scene. Originally from Texas, the Berlin-based artist released a series of well-received mixtapes during the first half of the 2010s, including 2014's Damsel in Distress. Following 2015 EPs Heterocetera and Agitations, Lotic released their full-length debut, Power, in 2018, marking a shift toward vocal-based songwriting. On 2021's Water, they further refined their avant-garde pop sound. 

Authentically Plastic 

‘Authentically Plastic’ is an Artist, DJ & Producer based in Kampala, Uganda. Their genre-bending sets, at once dark and playful, use Gqom, Vogue & Techno as a base for exploring other unknown sounds. Their music is influenced by anything from quasi-electronic Northern Ugandan rhythms, to early acid experiments, and live noise/industrial shows. They got their start playing at secretive queer parties in the city (Kampala); which eventually led to their first festival gig at Nyege Nyege Festival. Authentically Plastic’s forthcoming debut solo album is to be released in May 2022. 

Tygapaw 

TYGAPAW is a Producer, DJ and Artist, originally from Mandeville, Jamaica, and based in Brooklyn, New York. Through creating Fake Accent, an event series established to create safe spaces for the Black queer and trans community in nightlife across New York, TYGAPAW was able to break into the New York club scene. This shift inspired them to move into founding an independent record label, a solo music career and lead to multiple tours around the world. Today, TYGAPAW stands firmly in a fast-paced music culture. Since their debut release on Sweat Equity in 2017, they’ve established themself as a force within the electronic music scene. TYGAPAW is releasing their debut album “Get Free”, November 13. 

Promis3 

Carving out their space in the cyber-pop world, Belgian duo Promis3’s captivating productions, mesmerising visuals and striking aesthetic are a testament to the special chemistry between members Andras and Brent. Crediting their intense connection in giving them confidence to write their songs in an autobiographical way, it’s clear that Promis3’s shared influences span far and wide, their repertoire shaped by gaming soundtracks, anime, 00’s trance, dubstep, europop, and so much more. Self-releasing through Simulated Paradise, the duo set up the imprint as their own creative agency and as a platform to release music and to collaborate with other artists, with a focus on not just their own work but also that of other artists. 

TAAHLIAH

One of the most exciting names from the Scottish electronic scene is TAAHLIAH. The Glasgow-based artist is a jack-of-all-trades, having just completed her studies in painting and printmaking at the Glasgow School of Art, is a frequent catwalk performer (most recently at London Fashion Week), produces her own music and is also a very good DJ, often playing the underground scene in Berlin outside of her home city. Last year saw the release of her first album "Angelica", and judging by the sound, her DJ set will be full of energetic electro and hyper pop that will take you to higher spheres.

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Some of these shows are Liveurope concerts:

The first pan-European initiative supporting concert venues in their efforts to promote emerging European music.

Visuals by Yemadi