Jonny Seymour, producer and activist

Jonny Seymour is a producer, activist and sound stylist, and one half of Stereogamous.

We discuss “I Need Somebody to Love Tonight" by Sylvester, Age of Consent by Bronski Beat, and SOPHIE.

You can follow Jonny on Instagram here.

Tracks of Our Queers is produced, presented and edited by Andy Gott, with the support of Forbes Street Studios, Sydney. A big thank you to Anthony Garvin.

You can listen to our Spotify playlist, Selections from Tracks of Our Queers, and find Aural Fixation in your favourite podcast provider. 

Transcript

Jonny Seymour
===

Andy: [00:00:00] Johnny.

Thank you

so much for being

here.

Jonny: It's a pleasure 

Andy: treasure. . I really have been looking forward to this conversation for quite some time.

Your mission, so I have read online, is to collaborate in all mediums, share platforms for inducing positivity and resonate joy for all. How does music play into that mission?

Jonny: It's a beautiful conduit to. Well, it's a beautiful drug. Music is a drug and it's addictive, but you can't overdose on it, and it's can be shared indefinitely.

And it's an infinite resource. You're never gonna hear all the music that's out there to be heard. and being a hug dealer and a music dealer it, yeah, it, it sets me up in this beautiful positioning community where I can share what I love and, you know, go. Have, you know, obsessive compulsive [00:01:00] music disorder.

But I can pass on all the beauty that I find and. And lift people's hearts. And I think heal

and galvanized community, you know, we can with a, with a dance floor. Especially within our comu queer community. It's such a sacred and beautiful place.

to,

experience.

So the privilege I have of pressing play is immense. And I'm grateful that it can be received.

Andy: Yeah. What an exciting privilege that is of just pressing

Jonny: absolutely. Yeah.

Andy: You've raised it before I have. So I think we go off in this direction. One of the first things, I noticed about you was this warm enveloping hug that I found myself in around you, and you are a self-confessed hug dealer, but the hugs that you deal Johnny have always felt to me so sincere and genuine. And [00:02:00] as I'm sure many people you hug, feel that way. And I think, you know, our first hug was long before the pandemic, but I'm now thinking how did that maybe change in the pandemic or afterwards for you?

Jonny: Well, I love to hug. The beautiful thing about giving a hug is you get a hug. So it is this beautiful return serve thing about it. Especially in our spaces, our, you know, our community gatherings, our dancers and so on. We're, we're set up that it is a safe. So hugging someone with intent and with a sense of unconditional love.

It's great because the environment is set up like that. And now, and again, obviously people I know and I can hug them on a train or something like that. But meeting people the first time, I, I think it's a really healthy way to connect. So the pandemic, you know, bringing people together and hugging, which my two [00:03:00] abilities were put on hold.

Indefinitely. And even coming back into it, I always say they're consensual hugs. I won't just randomly grab someone and will offer us like, is it okay to hug? So that was, that was really difficult because it is part of my therapy, being able to receive hugs, being able to give hugs, being able to make people feel at ease being able to, Let people feel loved.

Is, yeah, that was you know, it became the new bear backing. Like really not, not allowed to do that. And even, you know, barebacking was kind of made easier with prep, but Yeah. You know, before vaccine rollout and all that kind of stuff was like, this was something that I had to somehow rebrand myself, which I didn't really manage to do.

So yes, I'm really glad that we are getting on top of this virus. It, it certainly hasn't gone away. I don't think it's ever gonna go [00:04:00] away, but people are more open to being hugged again. So I just make them go a little bit longer. because people have, there was, you know, the, the great Hug drought mm-hmm. Is finally the drought's 

Andy: mm-hmm. drought is 

Jonny: breaking. Yeah. So that's a, that makes me and my mental health in a much better space. 

Andy: You were born in Tasmania.

Can you

tell me how you made it to Sydney?

Jonny: Well I grew up in Tasmania and growing up there it was, even a very young age. I was like, why are we on the furthest place?

on the planet away from everything. And even as a young child, I was like, why are we so far away from Sesame 

Street?

Mm-hmm. . 

And I was literally, it was the furthest away from Sesame Street. And Mom reminded me, I asked her like, did you deliberately, you know, move to Tasmania because I was a painful birth and you wanted to be far away? Sesame Street. [00:05:00] No, darling, you know Yes. And you know, the, the privileges of growing up on that space I became aware of the further I was away from it.

And that was learning how to surf and learning how to ski and being able to go whitewater rafting, be in pristine world. Heritage forests. There was. Huge connection with mother Nature that I thought everyone on the planet got to experience. But it was unique to being on an island and everything was kind of great up until riding into puberty And Tasmania was the last place in the country to decriminalize homosexuality or sodomy specifically, and that was a really hard thing for me to come to grips with because, having the premier of the state get on television during the news and say, we welcome people from all [00:06:00] across the country from doesn't matter what nation or creed you, we welcome.

Asylum seekers, refugees doesn't matter what language you speak, as long as you're not gay. And these are the only people that aren't welcome on this island. And, you know, we don't, we know where homosexuals from a very early age. And that was one of my biggest fears is coming to terms with that. So I knew that if I was gonna love the way I needed to love, I had to leave the island.

And I was pretty horrifically gay bashed when I was 19 and jumped by an anonymous group of hateful people. And I was bashed, unconscious. And the last words I heard before I blacked out was die aids

and had my [00:07:00] head bashed in with an iron bar and sort of woke up and was in traction and

Hadn't, you know, explored my sexuality physically.

And knew from that point it was like I could have died without ever being able to love the way I was meant to love. And the government had induced that violence by going out there saying that this will bring aids to our island. You know, these homosexuality is linked with pedophilia.

All the horror memes and, and stories that were out there were being, you know, used by our government to encourage people to be violently homophobic. So I Made it a mission to like, okay, I've gotta get off this island and go to a place where I can love the way I, I, I can, and no disrespect to the amazing gay activists who [00:08:00] I marched with and fought with and so on, who were determined to stay on the island.

Andy: Yes. 

Jonny: That just wasn't my story. And it's two beautiful, mature age students. Brought me to Sydney one summer and After two weeks, I just came home, packed up all my stuff and moved here and, you know, came to, moved into Crown Street, Darlinghurst into a beautiful share house. And quite soon after that got my first DJ gig at the stronghold, which was a.

Clandestine Leather bar underneath the clock. Hotel. 

Andy: Welcome to Sydney. 

Jonny: Yeah. And it was beautiful because, you know, I made up a bunch of demo cassettes and took them around to different gay bars and basically was told I was too weird and inappropriate and you know, I didn't play enough gay music. 

Andy: Was gay music in quotation

marks? 

Jonny: Kylie, right? Yeah, that was, that was it. But at the stronghold, I took my demo cassette in there and the beautiful [00:09:00] men, Tim and Dan, who ran that bar, just looked me up and down and was like, you've got the gig. You, I was like, oh. It was the first time where, you know, I was yeah, I was, felt sexualized and it was great.

Because I'd never sort of been, I'd never been able to use that as, as sex as a weapon 

or anything like that. And, to be platformed like that. If, if they're like, the men are gonna love 

you. 

I'm like, do you wanna listen to my music? And they're like, no. Just wear those shorts. So, yes. That was, yeah, my first show and things just grew from there.

Not long after that, I started working at the Bentley Bar, which is again, on, you know, on Crown Street and they had a, a beautiful Sunday morning. Thing that would open at 5:00 AM and I live just up the street. So often they, I would just get a knock on the door saying, nobody showed up. Can you come and play some music? had this one thing was very much [00:10:00] chemical, chemical, youth, and old school. Leather daddies.

I managed to be immersed in both those communities and as the years got on, they kind of merged 

and, twinks become bears and yeah. And there's, there's a beautiful amalgamation. That becomes one.

Andy: Hmm. Yes. Let's crack on. You brought a track, an album, and an artist. 

Jonny: Fantastic

way to set up a podcast, darling. Like it's a beautiful, just cross view of and cuz music is so deeply related to who we are as people and music forms our beings. So an honor to come and share this with you.

Andy: Which track did you pick?

Jonny: I picked a track by Sylvester called I Need Somebody To Love Tonight. [00:11:00] It was produced by incredible composer named Patrick Cowley, and he collaborated with Sylvester. On many tracks, and unfortunately both of them were murdered by aids and fortunately their legacy is eternal and.

This track is, I think it's 105 beats per minute, which, if you don't know what that means, you know. Beautiful. Yeah. Gen generally, you know, a lot of the stuff you'll hear in the clubs will be 125 and up, and 105 is, is very much, you know, low slung. And it's a ballad, but it's also beautiful. Make out music [00:12:00] and, you know, as.

everybody

has that sense of longing, but I think it's more so for queer people because we're taught from a very young age that our love is forbidden and so on. And to have a song that soundtracks that sense of longing so beautifully is, a wonderful thing. 

I usually cry when I play it out and I think, Crying as a DJ is.

Okay.

Andy: First of all, yes, it absolutely is. But what makes feel

that emotion about this song specifically?

Jonny: There's definitely having this Goddess Sylvester sing and. And knowing that couldn't hear the emotion in her voice and how beautifully it's put together. And originally it was just [00:13:00] instrumental that Patrick released and Sylvester taking it to the next level.

I think we lost so many amazing artists and people within our community were stolen from us. With this hideous fucking virus. Excuse me. I don't mean to be obscene, but that virus is obscene. And the people that were taken from us that died really heroic deaths because it's, it takes people out in such an ugly way.

And there was so much shame connected to it as well. And Sylvester went out quite publicly. He, she, they had interchangeable 

pronouns. 

But one of her last public appearances was at San Francisco, pride in a wheelchair. And she had no shame [00:14:00] about being ravaged by this virus and her last moments of being on the planet.

People gathered and sang songs to her Which is just a beautiful community response. And going to San Francisco and meeting her ex-boyfriend and people that were around her informed me just of how, just what a, a, a wonderful person she was and how much advocacy she gave to people with the virus and to live fearlessly and 

with pride.

So yeah, there's something sacred about this song. I think, you know, in churches they have hymns and I think for queer people we have hers. 

So, and yeah, this is one, it's one, one piece that, you know, I'll generally always play it at the beard tit because it isn't a dance floor focused, you know, space and without, without fail, someone will either come over and.

How much [00:15:00] this song means to them or what the fuck is this? Being in a position where I can put this song in people's hearts and put it in their minds and put it on their playlist is yeah. I love being able to do that.

Andy: Not only for the people who come over and say,

thank 

you so much for 

playing

this because of the connection I already have with this song, but for the person who might not have heard this song, who puts it on their playlist, goes away, discovers Sylvester, discovers Patrick Cowley and the worlds that emanate from that.

That is queer

service. Yeah.

Service to others.

Jonny: Yeah. And just, I think, you know how lucky we are as a community to have these people, I call them angels and that they are singing the songs and telling the stories that.

That we need to hear, that. We need to [00:16:00] know that, you know, we do exist outside the binary. Outside of the heteronormative, disposable music that's out there, that is, yeah. This, this music that is so endearing and so vital for us to own mm-hmm. and, and place in our place, in our ears and in our hearts.

Andy: And especially more so because there's so many angels who are no longer here to do that for 

Jonny: us.

I know. You know, you and I are here by virtue of the fact of you know, luck. If we were born 20 years beforehand, we probably wouldn't be telling these stories, so it's a really, we're super fortunate.

I've been HIV positive for 28 years now, and, back in the day it was, You know, so brutal to be given that diagnosis. Even to the point where my doctor, you know, crying in, in his surgery saying, oh, you know, don't, don't be too upset. You'll probably make it to 25. [00:17:00] and, you know, thank the medical, it's just the medical community and the people that came before me that took experimental drugs and.

We managed to find, unlock the key to the combination therapies which is fascinating you know, within all the sort of marginalized groups, the L G B T community with the highest one, one of the communities that had the highest vaccinations for this last epidemic that we've been going, going through.

So I. Really disappointed to hear people within our community being anti-vax. Because we certainly didn't have that privilege with i v and you know, there's, an incredible movie called the Dallas Byers Club. , which there was a Darlinghurst Buyers Club and we had trolley dollies bringing back experimental drugs and having [00:18:00] meetings and dividing them up.

And the untested. And it was this high risk unknown, not knowing the toxicity or the long term effects or something like that. But this is. You know, something we went through and touchwood, thanks to people like Dolly Parton

donating

this money to Moderna, which, during the, the research of that, they, they, you know, fell across.

A vaccine for hiv. That's, they're rolling out trials of that. Now,

Andy: Did Dolly need any more reasons for us to worship her? Was there anything else she could

have 

Jonny: done? Yeah, 

you know, I, and that's why, you know, we're so fortunate to have goddesses out there 

Andy: Yes. 

Jonny: who believe in. You know, sharing the wealth and caring about the people that have bought their records and so on.

And it was a donation, you know, it wasn't an investment. [00:19:00] She just donated this money yeah, blessings to Dolly. It was great when I got my Moderna, vaccine at Erskineville Pharmacy.

this

beautiful queen nurse who was giving out, she goes, when I put this in your arm, say thank you, Dolly Parton.

I was like, oh cool. Sorry. Thank you Dolly Parton. Bang 

Andy: you 

Jonny: and sit down for 15 minutes so you know, don't get too wobbly. And I was sitting there, the next person, I was like, just hear this, don't you, Dolly Parton. 

Andy: Which 

Jonny: is such a, you know just a lovely way to center, you know, getting a whatever. Do you know, we didn't know what the side effects would be, this vaccine, didn't know if they're gonna work or anything like that, but just have one of our goddesses having her blessing.

Yeah. A wonderful thing. 

Andy: Thank you so much for sharing. There could be an entire podcast in our future, Johnny, on the Darlinghurst Buyers Club. That leads very neatly into the album that you selected. 

Jonny: Yes. [00:20:00] So the album is Age of Consent by Bronski Beat, and I thought everybody knew what Bronski beat, you know, what it was about and stuff like that. But literally on the train today, there was a young queen who like, what's a Bronski beat?

I was like, oh it's, a 

band. 

And they got their name because it was kind of like a play on Roxy Music. 

And Steve Bosky, who unfortunately passed away just recently. It was a three piece electro pop band fronted by Jimmy Somerville and Age of Consent. The whole idea was about the age of consent for homosexuals, and in Europe it was reduced from 21 down to 18, but England had stayed and Scotland until 1981. Homosexuality was illegal. 

And so you know, queer activists via electro music and their hit small town boy [00:21:00] was, you know, about leaving the provinces and going to a large city to be safe.

And growing up in Hobart, this song resonated with me, but it's resonated with every single queen from a small town, and just knowing just how, how tough it was and and, and dealing with homophobia through just the glory of Jimmy's incredible falsetto voice. But also the joyousness of their music.

And there were other songs on that album that all related to gay rights and gay pride and This was something that you just couldn't access through media because we didn't have the internet. You know, we didn't have gay street press. We didn't have any of those sort of things. [00:22:00] So being in Hobart, it was such a lonely, really difficult time to come to grips with your sexuality and I lost so many friends to suicide who just.

Yeah. Couldn't, and, you know, my and myself, you know, I had a moment where I crawled over a barrier on the Hobart Bridge and was gonna, and it was a place where, it was famous for people take to take their lives. And fortunately somebody rode past on their bicycle and was just like, what, what are you doing?

You know? And I was like, oh, I, I can't handle being gay. And he was like, oh, Come and smoke a joint with me before you if you're gonna, I'm not gonna try and stop you, but why don't you just smoke a joint with me? And so, and I hadn't ever smoked a joint so he pulled me back over the bridge and.

And smoked a joint. And his [00:23:00] whole thing was like, look, if you commit suicide, you the liberal party and the homophobic people win and there's one less homosexual on the planet. And this beautiful straight dude who is just so wise and it's like if you fall in love this is the most political thing you can do and this is the most revenge you can get to all those hateful people out there is to fall in love given yourself the opportunity to do that. 

You know, we've been told that our love is wrong and and fortunately, you know, this album. Was something that spoke to me to say, keep going and, and don't give up.

I was also gifted an amazing book called Tales of the City. It's by Armistead Maupin, which [00:24:00] you know, is so.

And so grateful. My older sister, who unfortunately, you know, passed away from a heroin overdose when I was quite young, she knew that I was a homo and we never actually had the conversation, but she gave me that book and I didn't read it until she ascended. And then that was another thing. It was like, oh wow, there is this place, you know, which is San Francisco, it's the Mecca, it's the Jerusalem.

For queer people, and thanks to people like Sylvester and Harvey Milk and Armistead Maupin Right across the country, people have left their small towns and landed in San Francisco and their community there is so strong. And so, yeah, this record, I was like, you know, I can remember listening to it on my cassette Walkman.

Underneath the covers and recording it. First of all, we're recording it off radio, but then, you know, finding a record store and making sure nobody was there when I bought it on cassette and hid it [00:25:00] of course. I was ashamed to show it to my f you know, a lot of friends at school, but I would listen to it underneath the covers. You know, looking back it was like music.

Is a safe space for queer people. It's probably one of the first safe spaces before we found our gay bars or find, found our communities or online groups or something like that, because the intimacy of having that voice whispering into your ear yeah, you just knew that there was something else. There was something that we can, that there's something worth living for.

So yeah, this album. You know, I listened to it so many times. I can say the cassette broke and, you know, bought it again. And now, you know, when like Jimmy Summerville's voice is so angelic and so beautiful and playing small town boy, or why, or it ain't necessarily, ain't [00:26:00] necessarily so, or their cover of I Feel Love.

The joy that it sparks on a dance floor and people run to the dance floor and sing along and. So many of us are small town boys and small town girls that have ended up in this beautiful, beautiful city called Sydney to form our logical families. You know, that we've left our biological families, some, you know, some people have, have both.

A lot of us, our logical families are our families and we grow together and we live together and we celebrate and mourn together. But we have such a beautiful soundtrack. So yes, this album super important I was fortunate enough to meet Jimmy Somerville when he was out here for [00:27:00] the gay games and worked on a track together that didn't really go anywhere, but that wasn't, that's the beautiful thing about collaboration is cuz it's not about making a hit, it's about the 

process and being in the studio with them.

They were so out about their HIV 

status. and yeah, their living legend who have saved so many people's life and he's hilarious and, you know, filthy and still, you know, believes in community, still believes in using their beautiful voice, and they've just recently collaborated with Oliver Sim from the xx. 

And they've done a lot of backing vocals on that album as well. Oliver's song, [00:28:00] hideous, the, the last line is, you know been HIV since I was 17 and he's 33 now.

So he's carried that with him for a long time. And Jimmy was basically like, you know, you don't have to do this. You know, you're doing this for yourself, right. And. Yeah, I, I love the fact that he could be there and inspire Oliver to tell this story for this generation. Now

Andy: it's unbelievable to be there for Oliver, but also to be there for the listeners who are on the journey with Oliver and. For Jimmy to play this role, actually to use the word gain, angel again, he appears in both the song and the music video as literally a 

gain angel coming to Oliver and the line, the line that stuck with me is just be willing to be loved. The power of those words from. Elder [00:29:00] who's been through what you are going through and more telling you that you should love yourself is just beyond. And his falsetto is literally angelic. So I just thought that was a really, really special moment of recent culture.

Jonny: And you know, there's so many beautiful young queers out there who are being introduced to him. Fire Oliver, which is a beautiful thing. And then sort of, oh, I, you know, I do know that song. I love it. And, yeah, so this is, you know, I, I love the, the fact that our community, that we can honor our elders and, and introduce them to, The kids coming through.

Andy: Yes, absolutely. And the power, the, that small town boy and this album has, in terms of everything that you've said, but also the. It's a bloody banger, and there's a reason that it went to number three in the UK charts. I just adore the idea of this powerful political message being delivered [00:30:00] across, not just dance floors, but radios and cassette tapes.

And it would've taken much more than queer people to get a record to number three in that time. And I love the idea of that message reaching such a wide audience.

Jonny: And you know, on, on their vinyl, they had the sort of gay. Support line. Yeah. Like engraved into the vinyl and, and just even releasing an album, a concept album called Age of Consent was, you know, so visionary and so caring and such a duty of care to, to our community.

Andy: The artist. 

Jonny: Yes. This artist is another gang jewel. She ascended. Way too prematurely, but has a legacy that is quite phenomenal, and their name is Sophie. I was super, super fortunate to [00:31:00] connect with them in 2010 we ended up on a, on a piece of vinyl together.

Remix of a really incredible band named Light Asylum,

So Sophie back then was working in as part of a group called Motherland.

And this, you know, received this gorgeous piece of clear vinyl. Without remix on one side and then this other incredible mix by Motherland and sort of reached out and connected with Sophie back then.

I love your How great that we share a side of an album together, which is almost like. Having a flatmate or something like that, you [00:32:00] know, cuz you, you exist on this really antiquated form of, you know, yeah. I mean, vinyl is just so fucking retro and such, and it's, there's something so beautiful for your ego to have.

Your work trapped on this, you know, piece of 

plastic locked 

in. Yeah. She wrote back going love yours too. You know, I am like, we love to play your mix out. She love to play our mix out. And then a few years later was in Berlin, fortunate enough to play live at Panorama, 

Bar. and she came to the gig and she was starting to do more production stuff, which was like, holy fuck, you know, and you can hear her sound back in that mix. You know, this like this sort of plastic other world, some science fiction thing going 

on on micro pop. 

Yeah. Yeah. Even, you know, back [00:33:00] in, back in the day, she was already on.

On that trajectory. So got to spend some time with her in Berlin, which was great. And then a couple years later she came out here and played at Good God Small Club which was a real, no disrespect, but it was a straightaway potato gig 

Andy: I have heard that for the first time today, and that will be my key takeaway from this conversation,

Jonny: And, and she was so, so excited that I showed up, you know, and sometimes that is, you know, the greatest gift you can give to someone. It's, you know, just, it's just being there for their little DJ gig or their birthday drinks or something. Especially when people have traveled.

Across the oceans, which is, you know, it's a, it's a slog to come[00:34:00] 

to this place, you know, to, to play tiny little bars and stuff like that. And so, yeah, we got to smoke a big spliff together. And after her set, got her in a car to get her back to where she was staying.

But straight across the road from Good God, small club, there's a gay sauna. I was like, do you wanna come? Yeah, I, I'm really happy you are going but yeah, no, so yeah, so having these, you know, just tiny little fragmented moments with her and what she did for music production was just bring it forward into a space that was such a new territory.

And you can see her influence now on so many releases. Right. And the people she collaborated with, you know, from Shy Girl to Charlie Xcx and everything. Everyone holds her in such a high regard and[00:35:00] I feel very blessed that I was able to enter her orbit and connect with her and not only, you know, see.

Her production techniques, but also just her joyousness and her way of wanting to connect to developing artists cuz she collaborated with Madonna and Rihanna and Kanye and all these people. But she was also pulling up young queer, trans performers and, and centering them as superstars. And always talking them up and would always send me new mixes and so, and yeah, just it was a good reminder for me to, you know, I've been fortunate enough to work with some huge artists, but the magic happens when. [00:36:00] You get the developing artists into your studio and center them like superstars and make them understand that their practice is so vital and so important to community.

She remains

internal

inspiration to me. And that's why we have her on the side of our house as a mural next to St. George, Michael, and. It's been beautiful to have memorials to these artists because people come from all over the planet to visit this space and even through no programming of us, but through the AI robots when you Google my house, it comes up as a memorial park and it's been the St. George.

You has been tagged as a patron saint of Parks at night,

which 

Yeah. Comes. Yeah. Look, it's so, it's so [00:37:00] beautiful and I have, you know, every now and again you'll hear somebody with their Bluetooth speaker playing George Michael 

or Sophie. 

that.

Yeah. 

And come out and just chat with people and, and where the, the original George Michael was painted over. We've left the black paint and that becomes a chalkboard. Yes. So people write beautiful memorials and, and things like that, but people also leave notes.

They leave candles. They leave flowers and just to chat with people that loved both of these artists. It's, yeah, it's a gorgeous. We don't have RSL clubs, we don't have churches, you know, we have gay bars, which are very specific in, in what they do. But for people to actually sit and grieve and honor these two saints yeah.

And hopefully Sylvester will be there for next Mardi Gras. That's the next artist we would love to have on the wall.

Andy: Speaking of Sylvester and Sophie and Mr. Somerville, I can't help but notice. The three artists that you've picked across [00:38:00] your selections all have their own strands of other worldliness and yes, innovation.

Innovation in their own fields, but exist across gender binaries, across genres, and hopefully have all made listeners.

Consumers of music and dance floor dancers question what they might think or know about identity queerness. There's a through line from Sylvester to Sophie.

Jonny: Oh my God. Completely.

Andy: I can see that clearly.

Jonny: Yeah. And how lucky are we as queer people to, you know, have these, have these people to look up to, you know, to, to honor, you know, today I, to to let us know that. The way we love, the way we look, the way we exist is just 

perfect. I [00:39:00] know they celebrate us just the same way we celebrate them.

And how amazing the after party is up there with Patrick Howley and Sylvester and Freddie Mercury and George. 

Michael and Sophie, you know, all these incredible people. It's like, you know, don't feed the afterlife. It's gonna be the best after, after, after, after party ever. Yeah. 

Andy: Johnny, I'd just love to thank you sincerely for your presence, for your gravitas that you bring, you bring. Authority in the most positive way you bring connection. Like I said earlier, you are a through line that I feel having not been born in this country or raised here, having come here later on in my life, you are a conduit that I hope I don't You know, you as, I hope that there's a transactional relationship here, that you are a connection to the queer history of the city that I've chosen to make my home in.

And I really am so grateful for [00:40:00] that 

without people like you. , it's easy to feel a little bit alone again. And it's like, you know, we've done the loneliness we, we've moved past that. It's important to always find your community where you live, so thank you for that role that you play for so many people like me, so many people have been touched by you in that way.

Jonny: Yeah. You, you're so welcome darling, and know that it is an equal exchange because I need people on my dance floor. Mm-hmm. , I need people to respect that dance floor and bring their people into it. And it's, you know, a lot of the, a lot of things I do, they aren't. Posters on telegraph poles and stuff like that.

If you are gonna be come to kooky, somebody's brought you to kooky, or if you're gonna come to the beard tit, someone's brought you there, and, you know, I can't play to an empty dance floor. I need people to set themselves up and let themselves go and be really mindful and respectful of who they're sharing that dance floor with. And you know, [00:41:00] I've never seen a fight on my dance floor in my history of, I've never seen someone throw a punch. I've never, we've never had to shut anyone down. That is testament to people like you who bring an intention and sense of care and duty to community. And so

I don't see a, a hierarchical thing. Being able to tell my story like this, bless you for, for getting me in here. And I, it's such a wonderful concept and you're gonna get so many beautiful stories of people that you know, need to be told.

Andy: Johnny

Seymour, you are queer. And thank you for your tracks.

Jonny: My pleasure, darling.

And yeah, much love to anyone out there that's, that's listened in.