Latest news with #Queertopia
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘The loss of Mickey and Jordan hits too close': Friends react to death of Allentown artists
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Allentown community is still in shock trying to process the loss of two prominent artists who were tragically killed in their home. Now, friends are speaking out making sure everyone remembers the people Michael Harmon and Jordan Celotto were. Flowers and candles now line the Stonewall mural on Allen Street, a piece of artwork that Harmon helped create. On top of being an artist, Harmon was a board member of the Buffalo-Niagara LGBTQ History Project, an organization that aims to preserve local LGBTQ history. 'Mickey wasn't the type of gay person who would make himself smaller and more palatable in order to be acceptable to the community and society at large,' explained Ana Grujic, one of the founders of the project. 'He celebrated all the complex, amazing parts of queer history and LGBTQ culture.' Grujic went on to say Harmon always took the time to stop and give people attention, showing how deeply he cared about every person he connected with. Community shares condolences after two Allentown artists found dead in home Friends of Mickey and Jordan say the two had an incomparable bond. They described Mickey as the light of every room he walked into. They say Jordan kept more to himself but had a personality like no other. 'Jordan and Mickey would just show up and show out and always show love and support,' said Jay Aquarious who met Mickey over 10 years ago. 'We'd praise each other, tell each other that we're doing good, support each other. We were truly there for each other.' Aquarious says both men were committed to making sure all of the events they put on were inclusive to everyone. He says there was never a moment he felt left out or looked at differently when he was around the couple. 'They didn't care about how anybody felt about them,' Aquarious explained. 'They didn't deserve to go out like that. None of them deserved it.' Harmon would oftentimes collaborate with the Buffalo AKG Art Museum where he was a part of the Public Art Initiative. 'Mickey was a pillar of our community in every sense. We were honored to collaborate with him many times throughout the last ten years,' the Buffalo AKG Museum said in a statement. 'Mickey was always himself, and he was beautiful. The work of his life permeates the fabric of Buffalo and Buffalo is better for it.' An event called 'Queertopia', a performance of art, music, and dancing all by queer artists was supposed to be taking place this weekend. Instead, the event will be a night of remembrance for the two men taken too soon. You can find more information on the event here. GoFundMe pages have also been created to help pay for funeral expenses. You can find Jordan's GoFundMe here and Michael's GoFundMe here. Trina Catterson joined the News 4 team in 2024. She previously worked at WETM-TV in Elmira, a sister station of WIVB. See more of her work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Independent
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Heidi Montag to perform at Mighty Hoopla 2025
Heidi Montag will perform at this year's Mighty Hoopla festival in London, The Independent can reveal. The pop singer and reality TV star, 38, has been the subject of renewed interest this year, as she and her husband Spencer Pratt received public support after losing their home in the Palisades Fire. Fans swiftly began streaming Montag's music, including her debut album Superficial and the track 'I'll Do It', which became one of the top-trending songs on TikTok as the singer was urged to record new music. Pratt shared an emotional video last month after the 2010 album hit No 1 on iTunes, 15 years after its release. 'We spent all of our money on this album, Superficial. 15 years ago, three days ago, so January 10, 2010, it came out,' he said. 'We weren't trying to be reality stars; we were like, 'We are gonna make Heidi a pop star.' We were a team. Every night when you thought we were watching The Hills, we were in the recording studio working with the best.' Pratt continued: 'Every dollar we made from The Hills we put into this album, Superficial. And for it to freakin' finally get No 1 in America, 15 years after. Do you know how many times we've cried and how much regret we've had about spending all of our money and investing it and believing in Heidi's music even though we knew it was so good, and for it to finally come out and be a f***ing hit.' Montag, who will perform on Sunday 1 June at Mighty Hoopla, shot to fame while appearing in the reality TV show The Hills in 2006, starring in six seasons until the series ended in 2010. She and Pratt went on to star in shows including Celebrity Big Brother and Celebrity Family Feud. Other artists on the lineup for Mighty Hoopla 2025 include headliners JADE, Ciara, Kesha and Loreen, pop singers Jojo, Jamelia, Daniel Bedingfield, Kate Nash with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, and Pixie Lott, drummer and singer G Flip, Vengaboys and Lemar. The festival will also bring back Queertopia, a specially crafted stage that will showcase 'the best up and coming names within the queer space'. Among the artists performing at Queertopia will be headliner Moonchild Sally, Turkish artist INJI, singer-songwriter Hannah Diamond and drag stars Barbs and Yshee Black. This year also sees the renewal of The Independent 's partnership with Mighty Hoopla, bringing readers exclusive news, interviews and ticket offers. Mighty Hoopla takes place between 31 May to 1 June. Tickets are on sale now: Saturday tickets start from £74.50 plus booking fee, Sunday tickets from £69.50 plus booking fee, while weekend tickets start from £149 plus booking fee.
