See Martha Wash of the Weather Girls singing “It’s Raining Men”. At Tampa PRIDE May 22, 2021
See Pepper Mashay singing “Dive in the Pool” at Tampa PRIDE May 22, 2021
Did you get your Hair Brush???
There has been a lot of talk about the Tampa Pride WET BRUSH. The WET Corporation very generously donated 100’s of cases of Rainbow WET Hair brushes to Tampa PRIDE. Tampa Pride put stickers on the brush boxes to announce the up coming May 22, 2021 Tampa Pride. Then the cases were donated to organizations and business thru out Tampa Bay. This past week Tampa Pride Volunteers got together and put stickers on several 1,000 more. Business passing out wet Brushes are Southern Nights, metro inclusive Health, Snap House Tampa, Ybor Youth Clinic, Bradley’s on 7th, The Showbar Ybor, City Side and many more. Thank You WET Brushes.
New Hamburger Mary’s to Open soon in Wilton Manors
Are the rumors true? Could Mary be coming back to Tampa? Follow Kurt Kings Facebook posts and decide for yourself. Cheers.
One of the most loved people in Ybor City is Joshua. His birthday celebrations will last a month long if not longer. It was diner out this week at El Puerto https://www.facebook.com/ElPuertoYbor This Ybor City restaurant is family-owned and serves up a creative fusion of Argentinean and Peruvian cuisine. It is mush do on our list. Happy Birthday Joshua!!!
Meet AJ McLean
In his 28 years with the Backstreet Boys and on his own, AJ McLean has pushed the boundaries of style and gender. Now, in another bold move, the 43-year-old musician dresses in drag while dancing around a dollhouse to celebrate the transgender community in the video for his new solo single, “Love Song Love.” https://youtu.be/vcwu4OjPfdo
One very interesting building in Ybor City is the W. T. Grant Co. building located at 1507 E 7th Ave. The W.T. Grant Co. started in 1906 and were famous as a 25-cent store. Its biggest completion was Kresge Kmart. W. T. Grant’s bankruptcy in 1976, was the then-second biggest in US history. The building then fell into very hard times. In the early 1990’s a group purchased the building. The main designer was River Jude Phoenix, American actor, musician, and activist. River wanted to design his Ultimate Club. Here is where it starts to get very interesting. River wanted the 1st floor to be completely open with no post to hold up the second floor. The building was gutted and only saved the 4 outside walls. The iron posts that were inside holding up the second floor, were saved and were used outside to hold up the balcony Infront. Inside, the side walls were doubled in side to cut down the sound and to hide the iron beams that went up to the top of the 2nd floor. The roof of the building was then built like an arch. Coming down from the new arch roof were beams to hold the 2nd floor up. The ends of the arch roof were all glass to let light in (now painted over) . In the middle of the 2nd floor is a large opening so you can see the dance floor and stage below. This opening is all glassed in and even has drapes that can be lowered so you cannot see the VIPs on the 2nd floor. On the mezzanine level is the DJ booth and green room. River designed the green room with its own restroom and a separate extra private VIP room. From this level there are also a private stairs to the alley outside. This way tour buses could park out side and the stars could walk right onto stage. When River opened there was a steak house restaurant on the 2nd floor with a kitchen on the 1st floor. The light thru the windows filled the room all day and spilled down to the 1st floor. Toward the front was a spiral stair that went to the 1 ½ floors. These stairs were nicknamed the “The Stairway To Heaven.” The stairs were soon removed when it was discovered that cocktails, high heels and spiral stairs just didn’t mix. LMAO The stairs were rescued and today are in the courtyard of a home in Ybor City. In the early 2000’s a young girl was reaching for beads from the balcony during a parade and fell to her death. She had liquor in her system and was a minor. The club closed. In 2008 The Honey Pot turned this space into a World Class LGBT Dance Club. Many Stars performed here including Andy Bell. That hot summer July night of GaYBOR Days Concert the owner D. Stephen and Andy met. Later were married. Recently vacated due to covid. It will be fun to see what new memories will be created in this historic and memorable space, rich with history and love.
Join Bradley’s on 7th this Friday April 23rd, Mr. and Miss Royal Pride of Nations in Review with performance by National King Aries M Kelly and National Queen Jasmine International along with special guest Rupaul’s Drag Race’s Alexis Mateo as well as our MC Amy DeMilo and Esme Russell! Showtimes are 11: 30 pm and 1 am! DJ Mike Sklarz in the Video Bar & DJ Charles Machado in the Dance Bar starting at 10 pm! Bradley’s Boys will be in the house all night! Limited capacity! Must be seated to drink! Masks required when standing! As always, NEVER A COVER!
TONIGHT at Southern Nights
GREAT NEWS
Wat Mongkolratanaram of Florida, Aka The Thai Temple on the Palm River
IS NOW OPEN SUNDAYS for drive thru!!!! The weekly menu is posted on their Facebook page. Remember starving bartenders love food from here! Wink Wink
New to Ybor City is The Snap House. They have become a $2,500 level Tampa Pride Sponsor!!! That is True Community Spirit!!! Below is their Press release.
Contact: Davontay Moore, The Snap House, LLC FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Phone: 813-533-0033
Email: info@thesnaphouse.com
Website: www.thesnaphouse.com
The Snap House, Tampa’s First Selfie Studio Opens in
Ybor City
– The new 1-Hour Photo Experience that delivers family-oriented, kid-friendly fun to
Ybor City
– Feature’s artwork and designs of local artists
Tampa, FL, Jan 2021 – Find the perfect background … strike a pose … and start snapping away
with your mobile phone. Everyone is doing it for “likes” in today’s social media driven and
interconnected network of friends and followers: the perfect selfie! No longer do you have to
drive around town to find the perfect background, scenery or mural. The Snap House, Tampa’s
first Selfie Studio, opening in Ybor City is your one stop shop for a selfie shot or special event
photography.
Three families with roots in the Tampa Bay area, who represent several diverse and
under-represented demographic groups in small business have launched The Snap House in
Tampa’s Historic Ybor District. With doors set to open to the public on Sunday, January 23rd,
the new 1-hour photo experience comes just in time for the anticipated influx of fans and
celebrities visiting Tampa for Super Bowl LV. The Snap House is a self-portrait inspired studio
consisting of 23 styled scenes or backgrounds, each uniquely decorated to cover the
full-spectrum of your social media mood. Designs range from chic, to whimsical, to inspirational,
to colorful and edgy street art — all of which are sure to help you gain views and likes across all
of the social media platforms.
The Snap House features detailed murals painted by local artists and will continue to highlight
the works of others as the studio plans to change the designs several times throughout the
calendar year. “We want to put the talents of Tampa artists on display and allow them to inspire
and pay homage to the city and surrounding area that we all know and love”, says Rick Moore,
co-owner of The Snap House. “This photo experience is not your average department store
portrait studio. There are photo studios in town, but none with the access and price point The
Snap House offers. Here you get to play the role of the director, the cinematographer, and the
star, and in the end have instant gratification with the results of your final product ready to post
and share across your socials.”
In mid-2019, Google reported 93 million selfies were taken per day on their Android devices.
The vision The Snap House is to deliver a safe, family-friendly, and fun-filled event space where
guests of all ages can come together and create expressive self-portraits in a professionally
designed photo studio environment. The Snap House transcends all socio-economic
boundaries, delivering moments in time palettes that offer photogs of all skill levels in a
controlled setting to create and engage in a fun environment that fosters creativity and
individuality. Whether your style is everyday casual or haute couture, The Snap House will
deliver your desired scenes and range of emotions that will raise eyebrows and likes!
If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Davontay Moore at
813-533-0033 or at info@thesnaphouse.com
Tampa PRIDE
The Food Court & VIP Sponsors Party are SOLD OUT!!! There are only a few spaces left in the Festival & Parade. Reserve yours today!!! www.TampaPride.org
VOULNTERS are Needed!!!
Hello!
Tampa Pride is fast approaching and we are looking forward to hosting you all for our most fun, safe, and inclusive celebration yet… but we can’t do it alone! The best thing about Tampa Pride are the people who support it – our community volunteers! Each year our volunteers dedicate hundreds of collective hours to support Tampa Pride’s mission and give back to their community.
We currently have shifts available for the following events. If you would like to volunteer at Tampa Pride 2021, log on to www.tampapride.org/volunteer to learn more!
Tampa Pride 2021 VIP Sponsors Party at The Florida Aquarium
Tampa Pride 2021 Street Festival Support
Tampa Pride 2021 Diversity Parade Support
Tampa Pride 2021 Cuban Club Courtyard Festival and Concert
Netflix have done it again. A diverse film with a great and realistic Gay subplot. Who every knew that there were so many great films produced in Mexico? For us this was a 2-night binge watch. Can not wait for season 2!!!
https://youtu.be/hfikdvpj228
What a Storm in Ybor City
It was a crazy windy weekend. There were tree limbs everywhere and some major damage too.
SUNday FUNday @ The Showbar Ybor City
Did April Cooper & Esme Russell survive their Birthdays? Come find out this Sunday.
