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Seth Grass The Great Lakes Pride Band Barbara Payton Fallsway Downs Josh Zuckerman Just Jill Lazy Sunday Joan Stevenson Nickki Stevens FEATURED NATIONAL ENTERTAINER: Singer One of the most flamboyant and talented house divas of the 1990s, Ultra Naté stayed true to the dance mainstream despite major-label interference. Though she began her career with Warner Brothers, by the late '90s she was recording for the indie-dance heavyweight Strictly Rhythm and enjoying more success than she had before. Born and raised near Baltimore, she was studying pre-med during the late '80s when she began to get into the city's dance scene. At one nightclub, she was introduced to two DJs who had recorded as the Basement Boys. The trio got together to record a single called "It's Over Now" and gained a contract with Britain's WEA Records. The single became a large international dance hit, and though Ultra Naté was already more famous around the world than in her native country, her debut album Blue Notes in the Basement was released in America as well, on Warner Brothers. From the LP, the follow-up singles "Scandal," "Is It Love" and "Deeper Love.""Free" became her biggest hit yet, with Top Ten entries throughout Europe and the number one spot in France and Switzerland. “Free” and “If You Could Read My Mind”
©2007 Motor City Pride, All Rights Reserved. |
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Honorary Grand Marshall
Seth Grass employs clever twists of phrase, subtle harmonic
arrangements, and a broad dynamic range all designed to
woo the listener for a closer listen. Ater years with a
successive band, Seth decided to start his own solo career as
a musician. Realizing the horrid cliche of this transition from
rocker to singer-songwriter, he recruited Ron Thieleman on
upright double bass to thicken the arrangements and add creative input. Now only a
year later, they are making a splash in the Michigan music scene with their intimately
crafted songs, genuinely entertaining live shows, and head-turning levels of
musicianship."
The Great Lakes Pride Band is the top LGBT and allies
marching band in the state. Great Lakes Pride Band has
organized to play and march for pride parades and other
important community events everywhere. They hope to
provide a safe and fun environment for gay, lesbian,
bisexual, transgendered people and their allies to feel empowered to make music
together, challenge and inspire our audiences toward equality and freedom. Motor
City Pride is proud to welcome the Great Lakes Pride Band to downtown Ferndale
this year!
For more than two decades the raw sensuality of
Barbara Payton and her band has continued to be one of
the largest draws in Detroit. Proving once again that loud
luscious guitars, powerful keyboards, a driving bass and
thundering drums joined by an unforgettable, fiery voice is
the perfect combination of rock and soul.
Fallsway Downs hails from Ypsilanti. This
guitar/drum duo has an unforgettable sound that is
inspired by whatever happens to be on the radio at the
time. Fallsway Downs has played for many important
events including the Motor City Pride youth zone, and
countless campus appearances around the state for
GLBT issues. The sound of this two-piece band is
strong: acoustic rock...with a twist.
Josh Zuckerman's music is a cross between Modern Rock
and Modern Country with pop influences. It's an eclectic style
that is evident in today's music. Without pretense, Josh is the
gay everyman of recording artists. With his light rock/country
sound and honest lyrics, Josh isn't prone to play into the
industry's standards set by pop-culture pretty boys. Unlike many other "metrosexual"
musicians, hiding blunt gayness behind waxed hair and lies, out-n-proud Josh sings,"I don't give a damn, as long as I am true to who I am," in his sophomore album, Out
From Under. And, evident by the album's title track holding first place for many weeks
on the Sirius Out Q Radio Hot List, audiences everywhere love him for it.
Just Jill is an acoustic rock band that performs in bars,
nightclubs, summer festivals and coffee houses around the
Midwest. They are a Bose Featured Artist and have been
labeled the "Inspiring band to look out for" by Detroit's 89X
Home Boy Show - Motor City Round Table. Comprised of
four diverse musicians featuring two female leads, Just Jill combines rock, folk and
pop to deliver an exciting stage show that keeps the audience engaged and
entertained.
Lazy Sunday has quite a few shows under its belt, ranging
from college coffee houses to main stages at festivals. Their
social consciousness and passion have struck a wonderful
balance between what music does for them personally and
what it can do to support events like Motor City Pride. Deep
soulful strength is delivered as the vocal harmonies come
together over exchanging layers of guitar, piano, mandolin, harmonica, banjo, violin,
cello, and drums. These women weave their stories with sounds and silence. 
A few years ago Joan began a recording project of her own
with singer/songwriter, producer Marq Speck. Joan and Marq
have worked together off and on for about ten years on various
commercial projects, including special presentations for Ford
Motor Company. Another such project was a recording Joan
made of one of Marq's songs that appeared in the independent
film "No Two Masters". Marq's group, Sweet Crystal recently
released a new album, Still Standing, that includes some of Joan's vocals.
This year's Motor City Pride's Mistress of Ceremonies is none other
than Detroit's very own Nickki Stevens. Celebrating her 20th year in
gay entertainment in 2007 and her 16th year as the show director of
Gigi's in Detroit, Nickki has earned a mountain of crowns and titles
and is the most awarded female impersonator in Detroit's history.
Known for her quick wit on the microphone, she can be seen at many
events and in many venues in the Detroit Metropolitan area as well as throughout the
Midwest. Join her this year at Motor City Pride when she introduces you to the best
entertainers that Detroit and the nation has to offer.
Ultra Naté