Bluegrass Pride, a California-based non-profit with a mission to uplift LGBTQ+ folks in roots music, is proud to announce the first weekend of their month-long pride celebration and virtual festival, Porch Pride, which will feature Lavender Country Live! On Sunday, June 6 at 1p.m. PDT / 4p.m. EDT Bluegrass Pride members, followers, and fans are invited to join the organization in kicking off Pride Month with music, conversation, and fellowship with seminal Pacific Northwestern queer country group, Lavender Country, featuring Patrick Haggerty. The event will be hosted by Bluegrass Pride board member, acclaimed roots musician, and scholar Jake Blount. (IV-PR, 2021)

All Porch Pride events are FREE to attend, but Bluegrass Pride encourages those who are able to donate to support all of the artists on the Porch Pride lineup as well as supporting the ongoing work of Bluegrass Pride.

Lavender Country blazed onto the PNW country scene in 1973 with a beautifully transgressive and controversial self-titled, self-released album that made waves with its first single, prompting the industry to blackball Lavender Country and frontperson Patrick Haggerty for decades. Since then, Haggerty and the band have remained committed to their radical, activist, anti-fascist roots. In recent years, they have received ample acclaim for their trailblazing efforts in the ‘70s and beyond and they have collaborated with artists and icons such as Trixie Mattel and Orville Peck.

Bluegrass Pride is excited to open their Porch Pride festivities with Lavender Country, deliberately and overtly paying tribute to the radical, progressive, and anti-fascist roots of the modern queer rights movement, of LGBTQ+ Pride, and of American roots music.

Tune in on Sunday, June 6 at 1p.m. PDT / 4p.m. EDT for Lavender Country Live with Bluegrass Pride! via Bluegrass Pride’s website, YouTube Channel, or Facebook page.

Porch Pride is the headline fundraising event for Bluegrass Pride, raising more than $22,000 in its first year. All of the event’s virtual programs are free to view and attend – and will be available to view on their website and channels after air – members, fans, followers, and listeners are encouraged to donate to support the musicians performing on Porch Pride, as well as the ongoing work of BGP.

Porch Pride will take place all month long during June 2021. Over the course of Pride month, Porch Pride will feature performances by folks like Lavender Country, Rainbow Girls, Gangstagrass, Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, Jake Blount, Sunny War, and many more, plus a virtual Bluegrass Pride Brunch and open house, a beginner-friendly jam-along, and so much more. Schedule of events include:

June 6, 2021 – Lavender Country Live with Bluegrass Pride, hosted by Bluegrass Pride Board Member Jake Blount

June 12, 2021 – Bluegrass Pride Brunch & Information Session, an informal gathering and Q&A period hosted by Bluegrass Pride Board Members. Open to all members, fans, followers, and folks new to Bluegrass Pride.

June 13, 2021 – Beginner-Friendly Jam-Along with Luisa Lopez, “bring” your instruments and voice to play and sing along with protest songs and movement music. Lyrics and chord sheets provided

June 19, 2021 – Juneteenth: A Rainbow Revival, featuring Sunny War, Jake Blount, Yasmin Williams, Faith Nolan, Jackie & Resa, Stephanie Anne Johnson, and Lenworth O’neal. An evening of musical performances curated by Brandi Pace of non-profit Decolonizing the Music Room that will highlight the essential contributions of Black queer, trans, and non-binary folks to roots music and the Pride movement.

June 26 & 27, 2021 at 3p.m. PDT / 6p.m. EDT – Porch Pride: 5th Anniversary Celebration. The headline festival returns celebrating five years of Bluegrass Pride and featuring performances by:
Saturday, June 26:
Mya Byrne
Ben Garnett
Crys Matthews
BOOJUM
Po’ Ramblin’ Boys
Gangstagrass

Sunday, June 27:
Willi Carlisle
Maddie Witler
Amanda Fields
Hasee Ciaccio & Friends
Stephanie Anne Johnson
Rainbow Girls