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At the age of 14, Bowie Brae uncovered his singing talent within the confines of his local church in Denton, North Texas. He honed his skills by passionately singing worship songs such as “Good Good Father” and Hillsong’s “Oceans.”
Brae’s gender transition reached a significant milestone six years later when he commenced testosterone treatment, resulting in a notable change in his voice.
“I didn’t sound great,” he admitted, expressing his fear that he might never regain the ability to sing.”
Afterwards, he stumbled upon a support group specifically for transgender artists in Denton. With the assistance of this group, he successfully regained his ability to sing in his newly found octave.
Brae and his band Nip Slip have found their groove within his vocal range, and they are thrilled to be headlining the Trans Pride Fest in the city this coming Saturday.
The third annual event in this North Texas city comes amid several legislative setbacks for Texas’ LGBTQ+ community. New state laws take aim at health care access for trans youth and certain performances by drag queens. Many of those laws echo legislation passed by state legislatures across the southern U.S. and have been challenged in court.
According to Brae and event organizers, these laws add significance to the pride celebration, scheduled to take place at a private concert venue in downtown Denton.
Despite the new state laws, Brae said he feels safe in Denton, but it saddens him to witness others having to conceal themselves for their own safety.
Texas’ largest cities have long hosted LGBTQ+ pride events, typically during the summer. A growing number of smaller and more suburban cities have increasingly hosted their own events. The Denton event stands apart for its focus on the transgender community. Denton is in one of the fastest growing counties in the state, with a population of more than 100,000. The city, home to the University of North Texas, can act as an LGBTQ+-friendly and liberal enclave in an otherwise conservative suburban sprawl.
The fest organizers consider it an integral part of the event’s success, as it originated on the university campus.
According to Alex Stock, the head organizer for the event and a local community volunteer, there may not be any events in the entire state that can be compared to this one. If there are any similar events, they might not be as large in scale.
Denton Left, a local activist group, will be organizing its inaugural event on Saturday. The group, in collaboration with the University of North Texas’ Young Democratic Socialists chapter, stepped up to host the event when the original organizers realized they lacked the necessary resources for another gathering.
Initially, the trans pride event commenced as a response to protest.
In March of 2022, UNT’s chapter of the Young Conservatives of Texas hosted an event featuring Jeff Younger, a prominent anti-trans figure. Students gathered to protest the event, which gained national attention, and began a series of other protests across the campus.
Then came Trans Pride Fest.
The first event took place on the sidewalks at UNT, just outside the university’s student union. Compared to this year’s extravaganza at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios, featuring three stages and 22 bands, it was a much more modest affair. This event marked the end of the campus protests, offering a refreshing break from the continuous outpouring of grievances over the past month.
The bands brought their own amplifiers, and the vendors arranged plastic tables on the union’s lawn for attendees to peruse while enjoying the music.
Students and concertgoers outnumbered anti-LGBTQ+ protesters at the initial event.
LGBTQ+ events in the North Texas area, especially performance-based occasions such as drag shows, have drawn small pockets of far-right protests. But as of now, no one involved with the fest has received any complaints about the upcoming event. Organizers say that despite the political climate they are unbothered by any potential protest.
Chad Withers, the manager of Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios, shared that people frequently inquire, “Aren’t you afraid or concerned about this? Isn’t it a risky move?” He further added, “Fortunately, we haven’t encountered any protests or objections so far. However, even if we did, it wouldn’t bother us.”
The city of Denton offers Brae and others a venue to host events like the fest, as well as a break from the prevailing conservative attitudes towards LGBTQ+ individuals in the state.
Brae expressed, “Whenever I enter Denton and drive through, I feel a sense of relief and increased comfort.
As preparations for this year’s fest are underway, organizers are simultaneously strategizing the future of Trans Pride Fest in the upcoming years. Stock expressed his organization’s aspiration to develop a sustainable event.
“Given the current circumstances, and particularly in Texas and Denton, this is an incredibly significant event,” Stock expressed. “Denton is home to a vibrant trans and queer community, and we were eager to spotlight its incredible presence.”
Disclosure: University of North Texas has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
