Bronx gay clubs
An old Port Morris motorcycle repair shop will soon develop the only queer bar in a borough with not many spaces for the LGBTQ community.Audrey de Jesus said she is hoping to open the three-story club and restaurant, which will main attraction drag and burlesque shows, in August.
With exposed pipes and yellow walls, the stucco-fronted space looks like it has weathered some storms. But so has de Jesus, 58, who has opened three gay bars in the Bronx since 2006. Each closed within about three years, for reasons ranging from motorcycle gang violence to a barrage of neighborhood 311 calls. But in the face of a changing South Bronx and a more supportive business collective, de Jesus believes her fourth enterprise will be the one that sticks.
“I think this is my time,” said de Jesus, adding that she hopes a rooftop garden at the East 132nd St. venue is also in the works.“The unusual thing about this establishment is that I’m open to everything. I crave everybody to be comfortable.”
To ensure that that is the case, de Jesus says she will poll area residents to determine a name for the bar, and to learn what lgbtq+ and straight residents alike would love to see enter from it. Additionally, the winner
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Closed: The gay nightlife scene in the Bronx goes out of business
Every Friday evening at the Bronx’s only gay bar, a queen of the night held court.
Specializing in Whitney Houston, Kelly KaBoom also keeps Beyoncé and Ariana Grande on heavy rotation. As Identity’s resident drag artist, she danced and lip synced in 4-inch heels, shimmering costumes and wigs — “the bigger, the better.” Kelly KaBoom, also known as JyQuan Reede outside the club, did medleys, took requests and always staged “a reveal,” a dramatic costume modify mid-set.
“The crowd that comes in — they’re recording, they’re screaming your name,” says Reede. “I love entertaining people; seeing people smile and have a excellent time.”
But in mid-February, Reede learned there would be no more “Lit Fridays with Kelly Kaboom” at Identity in Woodlawn Heights. The bar closed permanently, vanishing the Bronx with no LGBTQ nightlife space — again.
“We had so many LGBTQ places in New York, but most of them got shut down,” says Reede, a North Bronx resident who’s been doing drag for 20 years. “For us to have one that was local in the Bronx, it was great. When things start to change up, it’s just fond, ‘What i
From their friend Junior serving his hot pot meal in the lounge and outdoor patio to door host and head of security St. Lawrence welcoming guests on the door, the Warehouse was built around a sense of community. “That’s the family we had right there and the love we had for each other,” adds Kevin Omni. “We really extended ourselves as family. The Warehouse not only gave us the music, the crowd and the dancing – it gave us a feeling. And New York Capital had lost that feeling that you had at places like Better Days. When the Warehouse opened I really thought of it as a Improve Days for the ’90s.”
The Warehouse also became the place to notice some of the superb DJs in a giant room atmosphere. “We were one of the most powerful clubs in Recent York, and Mike and I thought we should invite guests to compete so they could take their following to mix with our crowd,” says Jackson. During its eight years many of Andre Collins’ own DJ idols appeared at the Warehouse. “I got to act with Louie Vega, Kenny Carpenter, Teddy Douglas and Danny Krivit – there was a whole bunch of them,” recalls Collins. The club also welcomed many live acts onto its stage, including Colonel Abrams, Taana Gardner, Barbara