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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 16, 2007)
38 I JUStjOUt FEBRUARY 16.2QW music ' LIVING RnnM , THEATERS k Admission Pnces. ; He Buys His Socks on 14th Street [Showtimes Week Feb 16 - 22[ 12 And Holding 2:45 4:55 7:05 9:10 Little Jerusalem 1:55 3:55 6:15 8:20 Cazwell comes to Portland for a one-night stand Head-On 2:15 4:45 7:15 9:40 by Tony le Tigre Late Night Shopping 2:05 4:05 6:05 8:00 azwell is the kind of modern-day artistic hybrid who would have been impossible a decade ago: an openly gay white rapper from New York City whose name is becoming known across the country and, indeed, around the world. From humble beginnings in Worcester, Mass., to a rough start as a hip-hopper in Boston, his hard work and unique talent are paying off. These days he hangs out with'■glamorous tranny Amanda Lepore, hobnobs with the rich and famous, and is on his way to celebrity status himself with hit singles like “All Over Your Face” working people into a lather on dance floors across the country. Recently Cazwell (his first name is Luke) took some time out to talk before hopping a flight to London for a club tour, and revealed there’s more to the man than lewd lyrics. This Film Is Not Yet Rated 2:25 4:25 6:35 8:45 Crossing The Bridge 2:35 Unknown 6:50 4:35 8:55 Friday & Saturday only: 13 Tzameti 9:55 DINNER AND» MOVIE? <w- à WE’VE GOT IT ALL FOR YOU. RESTAURANTS, A THEATER, Tony le Tigre: So, how easy is it to get in your pants, Cazwell? Cazwell: If you whip out two Ben Franklins it gets real easy. No, it’s not as easy as you think. I’m actually pretty particular. 1 don’t like when a guy is too forward. 1 know because of my public image people are gonna assume I’m this nympho maniac, but it depends what circles you travel in. There are times when I’m uptight. Like, 1 have friends who go to sex parties, and 1 feel awkward in those situations. The best way to get me interested in you is to just be a cool person, you know? AND justoutpersonals.com Men’s Wellness Center a space for men who like men providing information, social events, support, testing, and resources in the heart of where they live, work, and play ■■■ I J Men’s Wellness Center hours: Wednesday - Saturday, 4pm - 10pm 928 sw stark st., downtown Portland ______________________________ ______________________ 503.445.7699cityguys@cascadeaids.org Cascade AIDS Project >CAP cascadeaids.org TLT: Did you make any new year’s resolu tions for 2007? C: I’m doing my best to lay off the hooch. I made a deal with myself that i( I lay off drugs and alcohol for one year I’ll get a mil lion dollars. When you’re intoxicated things get blurry, and you have some friends who are too dramat ical, and you can’t keep things rolling in the right direction. So that’s a chal lenge I set for myself, and I probably won’t make it, but I’m going to try. TLT: 1 like what you said on your MySpace page about wanting to make gay people cool again, and how “Queer Eye for the Straight Quy is great, but not all of . us want to make over your house.” When did we stop being cool? C: Well, we have our ups and downs, but what I think is when we fool our selves into thinking we’ve got our rights now and everything’s good—that’s when we get uncool. You know, we’re doing people’s hair up, there’s Will & Grace on TV, it’s all good. Well, we should celebrate the freedoms that we have, but there’s so much more to do, and we’ll probably never be where we should be in our life time. One thing I’ve noticed is that you can tell people’s opinion on gay people from how they treat women. For instance: I went on The Doghouse in rhe middle of January, and it’s this really frat boy morning radio program in NYC, sort of like Howard Stem. And 1 went in there prepared, ready to rap, like whatever they want, I’m gonna hit ’em with it. It ended up being all right, but it was like “make fun of the gay guy.” And I forget how many people out there hate gay people, because I’m in my bubble. a ;- * *"■ . TLT: Me, too, here in Portland. I see this divide in the gay community today where some gay people want to prove, “We’re just like straight people!” And I’m thinking, “No, we’re not; queemess is this whole other sensibility, and we should celebrate and protect our otherness instead of trying to make ourselves acceptable and normal.” Do you feel me on that? C: Yeah, and that brings me to gay marriage. It’s like, yes, we should be able to marry who we love, but at the same time, 1 don’t want to be straight, you know? 1 started out in the hip-hop scene in Boston, and I never got anywhere, because all the people at my shows were straight, and 1 was out,-and no matter how talented 1 am, straight guys just don’t Cazwell considers glamorous tranny Amanda Lepore a friend first and a collaborator second.
