Rants and Raves
Rants and Raves is the podcast that gets down to brass tacks about what’s too often sidelined in dance music discourse- YOU. And the culture we collectively create. Yeah, the DJs are important and all, but they’re hardly the center of the dancefloor- or the universe. The life of the party is all of us.
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Have an insatiable appetite for all things rave? Subscribe to rantsandraves.substack.com for weekly columns and audio emailed to you.
Host x Tovah Feinberg
Music x Claude Young Jr
Logo x Michael Magnan
IG: @rantsandraves__
Rants and Raves
The Ebbs and Flows of Nightlife: Connie Girl, Eric De La Cruz and Shawn Dickerson
Connie Girl, Eric De La Cruz and Shawn Dickerson join host Tovah Feinberg for a live panel discussion recorded at Libera in NYC on March 13, 2025. These esteemed and legendary luminaires- each in their own right, shed light through their lenses of experiences and wisdom to guide, inspire- and perhaps help steady worries during these turbulent times. Because though they can seem unprecedented, dancefloors over the decades have weathered crises of similar scale- such as the AIDs epidemic, the Reagan era and NYC Giuliani nightlife laws.
Just how can we better tap into music at parties? Those essential escape hatches to release and recharge. Because when each of us translates sound into movement, we collectively vent bottled up energy, anxieties, dreams and fears; feeding directly into the delicate ecosystem of nightlife.
Connie Girl: A trailblazing icon whose indelible influence began as an 80's club kid, fashion model and muse for designers such as Thierry Mugler and Vivienne Westwood. Today, Connie’s far-reaching impact also extends to visual arts and mentorship further evolving global culture. @therealconniegirl
Eric De La Cruz: An international nightlife veteran with a career spanning over four decades in event management, promoting and booking. Eric has been there, done that- has stories in spades…and continues to shape queer nightlife. @the_real_ericdlc
Shawn Dickerson: Longtime NYC nightlife gatekeeper and forever dancer extraordinaire. Shawn’s unmistakable twirls, enigmatic energy and distinctive laugh take just about any dancefloor from meh to magical. @akamrdickerson
Have an insatiable appetite for all things rave? Subscribe to the Rants and Raves newsletter on Substack for columns and audio emailed directly to you. And to listen in on future interviews with nightlife legends, follow Rants and Raves on your favorite podcast platform.
Music x Claude Young Jr / Logo x Michael Magnan
