If you’re overwhelmed by the sheer amount of music festivals happening this summer, I can definitely relate: There’s so many lineups and so little time. But as an avid concertgoer, I can say that if there’s one Pride music festival you should be going to this June, it’s LadyLand on June 28-29.

Every June since 2018, LadyLand has brought the most relevant artists in queer culture to Brooklyn, and this year’s lineup is no exception: The two-day event is bringing headliners Tinashe, Arca and Tokischa, and other queer artists like Baby Tate, Bob the Drag Queen and Cakes da Killa. Basically, all your Internet faves.

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It’s the kind of lineup that can only be built out by producers who are keenly in touch with the culture: And Ladyfag, who curates the festival, is exactly that.

If you didn’t know, Ladyfag is the queer nightlife staple that has survived multiple eras of NYC nightlife and the mastermind behind classic parties like Battle Hymn and Holy Mountain. Before LadyLand, there weren’t a lot of boutique festival experiences for the underground queer clubkids, and Ladyfag wanted to create something she describes as a queer-centered Coachella.

After years of sitting on the idea, she finally threw the first LadyLand seven years ago. “If no one’s going to do this I’m going to do it because it needs to be done,” Ladyfag told Time Out. She planned the first one out of her kitchen and just winged it. “I put together a festival than me and my friends would actually want to go to,” she says. Aside from all that partying, there will also be sections to eat, to rest, to drink, to sit by the water and to have all sorts of intimate encounters, potentially.

When curating the lineup, Ladyfag thinks about having artists for a variety of taste and also books artists that might not be that big yet but have shown promise of getting bigger. In the past, they’ve booked artists before their careers exploded, including Kim Petras, Rina Sawayama, SOPHIE, King Princess, Honey Dijon and many others.

Most of LadyLand’s artists are queer, and if they’re not, they’re artists that queer people are really excited about right now. This year, they’ll have three stages under the K Bridge. The third stage will be a DJ truck that will give different kinds of DJs with different skill levels an opportunity to play a big stage during Pride. It’s a good place to see who might become bigger in the near future. “We’re just a small team that wants to make big things happen for people and for New York,” Ladyfag tells Time Out. 

That’s what, in my opinion, makes LadyLand so great. Despite having big artists, it still feels grassroots—it’s uplifting artists that are coming up and queer DJs who might not have the biggest platform yet. It’s a festival that feels like it’s still in conversation with the people who have supported them from the beginning. When so many events are chasing the biggest names without much substance behind their curatorial choices other than bringing in cash, LadyLand stands out as a queer festival to support. “We just want to have more and more and more gay,” Ladyfag says. 

You can get your tickets for June 28 or June 29 here. 

* This article was originally published here

Juneteenth, a significant American holiday that celebrates the emancipation of enslaved people in Texas on June 19th, 1865, is almost upon us. Falling on Wednesday, June 19th, 2024, Juneteenth will be a cause for celebrations all across the city, from concerts to fests, and even special lights for the Empire State Building.

If you look to skies next Wednesday, you’ll catch the NYC monument glowing in red, black and green for the national holiday. The Empire State Building typically commemorates important dates and moments throughout the year with an ever evolving lights calendar. Most recently, the Empire State Building commemorated National Gun Violence Awareness Day.

The lights will be most visible around sunset, which is at 8:30pm on Wednesday, through 2am. Following Juneteenth, the Empire State Building will glitter in split lights of blue and orange for the New York Mets and pinstripes for the New York Yankees on Tuesday, June 25th.

The post The Empire State Building Will Shine Red, Black & Green Next Wednesday For Juneteenth appeared first on Secret NYC.

* This article was originally published here

Utopia Bagels has been busy–they just opened their first-ever Manhattan location earlier this month and now, just a few days later, we’ve come to learn that they already have eyes on a third location!

The news was first reported by Commercial Observer, who found out from tenant broker Winick Realty Group. According to the broker Utopia Bagels has signed a 15-year lease for a 6,800 square foot space in Long Island City at Rockrose Development’s 26-11 Jackson Avenue.

Utopia Bagels was founded in 1981 in Whitestone, New York, and has been implementing the old world process of individually hand-rolling their bagels and kettle boiling them before baking them (in a 1947 carousel oven, might we add) ever since.

Over the years the bagel shop has grown to become a NYC staple with generation after generation of New Yorkers coming to love them dearly–that’s why they’re obviously one of our favorite bagel spots in NYC.

And once you’ve tried it for yourself–if you haven’t already–you’ll understand why. Their bagel and roll options are plentiful, they have tons of spreads to choose from like their Walnut Raisin Cream Cheese or Lox Spread, and there’s also so many other sandwiches and platters that are bound to leave you drooling.

As of now we’re not sure when Utopia Bagels plans to open their LIC location, but while we wait we can at least still grab a bagel at their Whitestone or Midtown locations.

Learn more about Utopia Bagels and see their full menu here.

The post Queens’ Beloved Utopia Bagels To Open Third Location In LIC appeared first on Secret NYC.

* This article was originally published here