lgbtq

Queer Joy Podcast Series [Episodes #273, #274, #275]

We are thrilled to finally introduce Queer Joy, a new podcast series by Homoground featuring queer-identified artists sharing what queer joy means to them through storytelling and songs. 

Queer Joy was created as a response to the lack of positive representation of the queer experience in popular media. Homoground asked artists to share their songs celebrating the things that bring them joy! We received beautiful, vulnerable, and thoughtful pieces from musicians all over the world.

In each episode, you’ll hear those songs along with anecdotes from the creators themselves.

Homoground is incredibly grateful to everyone who submitted. Your voices brought this Queer Joy series to life!

PART 1 – BE YOURSELF

We danced, we cried, and we’re honored to release Queer Joy Part One: Be Yourself.

Listen to anthems celebrating the process of being comfortable with who you are from Papa Molly, JayceJanae, Boy Bowser, and Kamerin. Stream the episode below or on whatever you listen to podcasts.

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“Lifetime” by Papa Molly (San Francisco, CA)
“Monologue” by JayceJanae (Norfolk, VA)
Abort Mission” by Boy Bowser (Fullerton, CA)
“To Finally See The Sun” by Kamerin (Northampton)
We are an independent podcast.
This podcast is available for free, but it is not free to make.
If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support our work.
http://patreon.com/join/homoground

Our wonderful Patreon supporters will have access to extra tracks submitted by the artists along with some extended interviews.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by D Orxata.
Our executive producer is Lynn Casper.
Artwork for this series was created by Morgan Diep.
Our social media coordinators are Morgan Dean and Rowan Blackwood.
The segment on Focus/Time was produced by Cheer up Charlye of Breakfast and Beats.

Major thanks to our sponsors SPACES, Workfrom and our Patreon Supporters 

PART 2 – LOVE CRUSH

This is part 2 of our Queer Joy series featuring songs and personal stories from LGBTQ musicians.

On this episode we’re celebrating Queer Joy with rose-colored lenses and songs about love and crushes from Giuliano from Worcester Massachusetts, Hana Katana from Austin Texas, Rascal Miles from Minneapolis Minnesota and Lucy Opazo from Brooklyn NY. ENJOY!

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Giuliano 
Worcester, MA
website | Instagram: @musicbygiuliano
Songs: “Joshua” and “The D”
Cover Design: Joshua Croke, Photo: Erika Sidor
Hana Katana 
Austin, Texas
website
Instagram: @TheHanaKatana
Songs: “Friends Don’t Make You Cry”
Photo credit: Nicole Lemberg
Rascal Miles 
Minneapolis, MN
website
Instagram: @rascalmiles 
Song: “Baby Baby”
Photo credit: Sam Gehrke
Lucy Opazo
Brooklyn, NY
Instagram: @lucyopazomusic
Song: “Isolation Station”
Photo Credit: Crisoula Lazaridis
We are an independent podcast.
This podcast is available for free, but it is not free to make.
If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support our work.
http://patreon.com/join/homoground

Our wonderful Patreon supporters will have access to extra tracks submitted by the artists along with some extended interviews.

CREDITS

This episode was produced, mixed and engineered by CheerUpCharlye, Breakfast & Beats.
Our executive producer is Lynn Casper.
Artwork for this series was created by Morgan Diep.
Our social media coordinators are Morgan Dean and Rowan Blackwood.
Major thanks to our sponsors SPACES, Workfrom and our Patreon Supporters.

PART 3 – THE FUTURE WAS ALWAYS QUEER

Four queer time travelers sent us records of queer joy from the past, the present, and several possible futures. If you’ve ever found yourself trapped inside of a moment, this episode is for you.

Part 3 of our Queer Joy series features songs and personal stories from Creatrx, Sara Renberg, Oxeye, and Carry The Branches.

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creatrx 
Instagram: @creatrx
Songs: “Baptism” and “Sunday”
Photo credit: Danika Karolinski

Sara Renberg 
Pittsburg, PA
sararenberg.com | Instagram: @sara.renberg
Songs: “It’s a Beautiful Day to be Gay”
Photo credit: Leah Brennan

Oxeye 
Stockholm, Sweden
Facebook| Instagram: @oxeye.music
Songs: “Standing Proud”, “Det Här Är För Oss”, “The Only Good Thing”
Photo credit: Clara Veneziano Coen

Carry The Branches
Brooklyn, NY
Instagram: @carrythebranches
Songs: “Zombie Telegram”

We are an independent podcast.
This podcast is available for free, but it is not free to make.
If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support our work.
http://patreon.com/join/homoground

Our wonderful Patreon supporters will have access to extra tracks submitted by the artists along with some extended interviews.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by D Orxata.
Our executive producer is Lynn Casper.
Artwork for this series was created by Morgan Diep.
Our social media coordinator is Rowan Blackwood.
Major thanks to our sponsors SPACES, Workfrom and our Patreon Supporters.

SPONSORS

This episode of Homoground and this Queer Joy series is sponsored by SPACES, an app that lets LGBTQ+ people find and build the communities we wish to exist. Initially conceived as a response to the shortcomings of heteronormative social platforms SPACES is designed by queer people, for queer people. You can create your own space about whatever topic you want, or you can search to join the many SPACEs that others from around the world have already created. It’s a cool way to connect with others, in a safe and like-minded atmosphere. Personally, for me,  joy is when I’m able to connect with people I can be my true authentic self around. 

How do you experience joy? 

Join us on the SPACES app and tell us your stories of queer joy! It’s easy! Download the app from the App Store, create an account and search for Queer Joy to join our space. Or visit homoground.com/queerspaces for more info.

Be Yourself. Find Your Space.

Focus/Time is a dedicated virtual space for LGBTQIA folks to work on their personal and/or work projects in an accepting environment. It’s the perfect place to work on projects you’ve been putting off or to start the projects that have been incubating in your mind. This is a space for you to focus on the things you want to do but struggle to do. Sign up to attend a guided session.

Homoground’s Virtual Cafe is powered by a platform called Workfrom that lets us customize the space so we have an inspirational mural as our background along with a killer playlist and some ASMR options like rain sounds.  It’s a cool online space that we use to bring the Homoground and Focus/Time community together. Folks pop in and out and we share updates about our lives and what we’re working on in the chat box. It’s a great place to socialize while working from home while also getting some chores and work tasks done.

Anyone can create their own virtual coworking space using Workfrom and you can control the privacy and customizations.To try out your own space visit homoground.com/workfrom.

Cruisin Records: Lonesome Leash / LAL / Holodeck Heart / Wizard Apprentice / Loamlands / Nana Grizol / Slashed Tires / ManDate / Danny Denial / Old Dark House [Episode #266]

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If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support this free podcast.

In this episode of Homoground, you’ll hear music from bands on Cruisin Records.
 
Cruisin Records is a label created to support Queer artists. It is run by Theo Hilton (Nana Grizol), Clyde Petersen (Your Heart Breaks/ManDate) and Darby Cox based in New Orleans, Anacortes, and Philadelphia. The label emerged from long conversations between Clyde Petersen and Theo Hilton about how to support the amazing musicians they’ve met over years of creating music and touring.
 
Theo, Clyde and Darby will be joining us at this month’s HomoTime event on Sunday, February 28 at 3pm ET to discuss what its like running a record label and answering any questions you have. We’ll also be joined by Cruisin Records artists: Danny Denial and Wizard Apprentice who are also featured on this episode. This event is free but you will need to RSVP to get the zoom link.
 

Below are the artists featured in this episode in order of appearance. Their artist name, location and song featured is listed beneath their photo.

Lonesome Leash – Los Angeles, California – “Ghost in The Garden”

LAL – Toronto, Canada – “Wild Flowers”

Holodeck Heart – Seattle, Washington / Portland, Oregon – “Janeway & Seven”

Wizard Apprentice – Los Angeles, California – “Betrayal Internalized”

Loamlands – Durham, North Carolina – “How Do You See Me”

Nana Grizol – New Orleans, Louisiana – “We Carry the Feeling”

Slashed Tires – Seattle, Washington – “Lost Distance”

ManDate – Seattle, Washington – “Alternate History”

Danny Denial – Seattle, Washington – “White Tears, Fake Queers” (Feat. Rat Queen, Dirty Dirty, Slow Elk & Razor Clam)

Old Dark House – Seattle, Washington – “Through The Trees”

 

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Casper

Homoground Theme Song by data.data.data

SPONSOR

Struggling with business financials? Homoground uses SusieQ Bookkeeping, a motley crew of queer bookkeepers and accountants who love the finances as much as you love your business. At SQB they know that entrepreneurs of all kinds need to spend their time doing what they love and growing, not worrying about payroll and taxes. SQB provides financial and administrative support to all industries tailored to your needs.
Schedule a consultation today!

POD RING

On this episode you heard promo trailers from:

Queer Public A podcast about real-life queer life. Each episode asks critical questions about queer identity, queer politics and our queer culture. Their first season is available for binging! 

Pixel Therapy Podcast A bi-weekly podcast bringing you new perspectives on video game culture and current events while centering the relationships queer folks, trans folks, people of color, disabled folks, and other marginalized players have with games. 

Track IX / Thee Suburbia / Gorgeous / Electrosexual / Darkswoon / Jupiter Gray / rIVerse [Episode #264]

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If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support this free podcast.
http://patreon.com/join/homoground

Below are the artists featured in this episode in order of appearance. Their artist name, location and song featured is listed beneath their photo.

Track IX – Los Angeles, California – “Lipstick”

Track IX is a beatboxer/a cappella artist who creates multi-layered tracks using just her voice. She uses her beatbox techniques to make her sounds less traditionally a cappella sounding and closely imitates the style of electronic Music.

“The beatbox community, which I have grown my music in, is predominantly heterosexual male. While there are some kinder members of the community, there is also too much homophobia that is left unaccountable due to the lack of people simply not caring for the well-being of the LGBT beatboxers. I’ve been distancing myself from the community for a while as a closeted beatboxer, trying to reach to an audience that will appreciate what I have to offer while also being accepting of my sexuality.”

Thee Suburbia – Brooklyn, NY – “Bitchwitch”

Thee Suburbia is a Brooklyn-based drag performer. She is also the founder of the POC Drag Art Collective in NYC. Queer visibility is how Thee Suburbia began.

“If it wasn’t for connecting with my queer brothers and sisters my music wouldn’t be alive. So, I want to be on HOMOGROUND because it’s prerogative is to share queer music and make is visible to the LGBT community and beyond. My biggest challenge is getting my queer allies to understand that everyone within the LGBT community has a different story that’s just as telling as the other. In life, in my music, at the venues were I perform my aim is always to lift and inspire. With that said some people walk through all doors not wanting the same for whatever reason. So, I make it my duty to be vision for those who need to escape from negativity.

Gorgeous – Oakland, CA – “Do Cowards Get Ahead”

Oakland’s Ana Ayon and Lucy Bayne have taken their anger over the passivity of the privileged and channeled it into their saucy debut track, “Do Cowards Get Ahead?” Planning a self-titled EP release this Halloween, the two lovers are looking to put a dent in the dance floor. Taking their inspiration from the likes of Sneaks, The B-52’s and many of the electro-punk bands from the early aughts, they create a surprisingly political and refreshing take on the post-punk genre.

“We want to be a political source of inspiration to radical lesbians and trans girls.“

Electrosexual – Berlin, Germany – “I’m Your Machine (Feat. Hard Ton)

Activism, feminism, queerness and electronic music! This is the combination of Electrosexual, brainchild of Romain Frequency. While remaining independent in the queer music scene for 10 years, Electrosexual has teamed with artists like Peaches, Aerea Negrot, Hard Ton and Hanin Elias (of Atari Teenage Riot). The content of Electrosexual’s world deals with gender, art and alternative sexualities: the latest album ‘Art Support Machine’ explores the machine as a supreme vision of the human condition, as well as the sexual fantasies and relationship with robots (notably in the songs ‘Automatic People’ I’m your machine and ‘Fetish’ [ASFR] (alternative sex fetish robots).

“I love that Homoground supports queer artists all over the world and especially the most independant and underground ones, this is SO important for our community and culture! voila! The biggest challenge is visibility and the feeling of not being heard, both artistically and personally.”

Darkswoon – Portland, OR – “Human Faults”

Darkswoon is a queer electrohaze band from Portland, OR with elemental post-punk roots, and musical moments bordering on dream pop to darkwave. Originating as the bedroom project and primary creative outlet of composer Jana Cushman, Darkswoon has since evolved into an energetic trio, with Cushman crooning on vocals and guitar, Rachel Ellis stacking the electronic backbone of danceable beats and haunting synth lines, and all of it punctuated by the intelligent, rhythmic bass lines of Andrew Michael Potter. The band evokes old school goth and post-punk of early 4AD label darlings, but maintains a modern edge and originality.

“I think queer representation in music is really important. We are known as a ‘goth band’ of sorts but we are also all queer and our songs are very queer at the heart. Rachel and I are partners and getting gay married soon and our bandmate, Andrew is also queer identified. It’s a big part of who we are. I’ve literally devoted my whole life to the music industry. I’ve spent my entire adult life working on music in a variety of projects. I make a living bartending at the famed music venue The Crystal Ballroom. I’ve worked there for 6 years. Returning to work and playing shows are a distant idea-my dreams and livelihood are postponed indefinitely. I feel like I’ve lost my identity. It’s real-this collective grief we are experiencing. Everyone I know has lost something. For now, I continue to focus on what I have and can be grateful for. My loved ones are healthy. I am healthy. I have what I need in this very moment. Day by day, I am trying to remember to be gentle, to breathe, to maintain hope.”

Jupiter Gray – Columbus, OH – “High Note” (Feat. Kidd Misfit)

Jupiter Gray is a trans rapper, singer and musical artist from Columbus, Ohio.

“Creating music is meaningful to me because growing up, I was never into sports and stuff. My family is very competitive and athletic. I never found that entertaining. I ended up getting into singing and rapping by doing orchestra when I was in middle school. One day my orchestra teacher walked in on me singing a song by OneRepublic. I was playing the piano, and she said, “Oh, you can sing.” So she put me in choir, and I just went with it. I started off playing instruments. I played the cello, clarinet, drums at some point. I don’t know. I just found music exciting.”

rIVerse – Toronto, Ontario, Canada – “Stand Up”

rIVerse’s mission statement has always been to represent the underrepresented — members Dizz, Khadija, Zak and Monroe meet across lines of race, gender and sexual orientation in their devotion to music as a force for positive change.

On Juneteenth, rIVerse released what may be their most powerful video to date: “Stand Up,” a searing call-to-action in the current global fight against police brutality and systemic racism. The track empowers listeners of all races to fight back against police violence, racial profiling and a corrupt system that targets Black men, women, and children. Watch above.

“Nobody deserves to have done to them what’s been happening to people of color,” says rIVerse songwriter Dizz. “At the foundation, this track is an anthem for basic human rights and justice for Black people. It’s a reminder of what our purpose is: as a band, we need to stand up and maybe our listeners will be influenced to do the same.”

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Casper

Homoground Theme Song by data.data.data

SPONSOR

Struggling with business financials? Homoground uses SusieQ Bookkeeping, a motley crew of queer bookkeepers and accountants who love the finances as much as you love your business. At SQB they know that entrepreneurs of all kinds need to spend their time doing what they love and growing, not worrying about payroll and taxes. SQB provides financial and administrative support to all industries tailored to your needs.
Schedule a consultation today!

POD RING

On this episode you heard promo trailers from:

Tampon Rock a scripted podcast – equal parts musical and comedy featuring characters and creators from the LGBTQ community. Tampon Rock follows the dating foibles of the two lead lesbian characters – Deja and Chloe – as they luckily and unluckily navigate the Oakland love and music scene. 

The Novel Queers is a bi-weekly queer novel read-along meets book club podcast.

CHAV / Wildcard Characters / Powderpaint / Bebop Rocksteady / Danielle Grubb / Odd!Drey / Arami [Episode #263]

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If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support this free podcast.
http://patreon.com/join/homoground

Below are the artists featured in this episode in order of appearance. Their artist name, location and song featured is listed beneath their photo.

CHAV – Los Angeles, California – “Fashion Ho”

CHAV is a pop star from an alternate timeline who somehow found themselves in our today. They’ve come to remind us of who we are and who we could be, bringing with them a sweet and delicious taste of another world. CHAV currently chooses to communicate with this timeline through popular music, loading their verses with complex and nuanced ideas around race, gender, love and loss.

“As an artist with intersecting identities–black, queer, nonbinary, and someone who grew up with limited resources, I’m constantly having to prove how I’m viable in the music industry. Homoground using their platform to center the voices of people with marginalized identities is so in line with the community work that I do through Flat Pop Records, the label my partner and I started last year, as well as many of my other initiatives.”

Wildcard Characters – Worcester, Massachusetts – “Louder”

Music is dark matter. Magic is the stars. The future is x. Wildcard Characters is an unquestionably queer duo inspired by the nature of things that are fluid and ever changing. From gender and expression to exploration of things unknown, these characters leave things open to possibility and imagination.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has severely limited our ability to work as independent contractors. Between cancelled gigs and terminated projects, maintaining economic security has become a main concern. We believe that as queer artists, we are strongest when we raise our voices together. We grow and learn from sharing our experiences and our visions. Resources and community building platforms like Homoground are powerful avenues for the amplification of queer voices.”

Powderpaint – Brighton, East Sussex, England – “Fall Together”

“We want to be more visible as trans artists, celebrating queerness with big joyous tunes and danceable bangers. Particularly at a time when there is a national ‘debate’ in the UK orchestrated by high-profile TERFs who have set the agenda of every mainstream media outlet, we just want to be there to make our community feel like they can dance. If a few more queers out there get to hear us it’d be wonderful.”

Bebop Rocksteady – Brooklyn, New York – “Break in Case of Emergency”

Bebop Rocksteady is a radical nonbinary harm reductionist and drug policy reform advocate, activist, and philanthropist who DJs and makes music.

Danielle Grubb – Dallas, Texas – “Untitled”

The non-binary artist, Danielle Grubb, calls out to a lover in an attempt to deliver a message that they never sent. Their new song, Untitled, is an eclectic mix of classical piano motifs and pumping synths over house influenced rhythms. The song also presents the feeling of mourning in a less traditional sense.

“It’s the beginning of the loss of self into another person. I used to try to always paint the happy picture, and by doing so, left out the intricacies of what happens to a person’s identity when they fall in love,” says Danielle.

I just came out as trans masc, and it’s hard to get people to adjust to using my pronouns. I was recently misgendered on a radio show. And I thought to myself, this is probably no longer the platform for me. I’m having to navigate spaces all over again. It’s been a trip.

“I’m finally in the right emotional and mental state to make the music I’ve always wanted to be making, and I’m happy to be here,” Danielle says.

Odd!Drey – Jakarta, Indonesia – “Lofi”

“Just an 18 year old trying to put out my stories, and hoping that people will relate and find some semblance of comfort.

This track, Lofi, was inspired by my view on flings and passionate yet short-lived relationships and the word LoFi itself. The title itself is a wordplay. Lofi is the shortened form of Low Fidelity, a music genre that refers to music that is ‘low in quality or raw’. Fidelity itself means loyalty. I chose to use the word Lofi to imply low levels in loyalty. The song itself is slightly raw and lofi, in symbolism to those quick but passionate relationships I’m singing about. In this song, I let all my vulnerability be seen by the other person, and I hide nothing; but it’s because I have nothing else to lose since I won’t be with them for long. And thus with the music. It’s imperfect, but it’s real and authentic with nothing hidden.

I’d love to connect with people who I relate to, who are like myself, who are people I could look up to and want to grow with. I’d love to be heard by those very same people.”

Arami – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – “Whatcha Like”

“I am a singer/songwriter, producer, audio engineer, and poet from Philadelphia, PA. I’ve been making music for about 4 years give or take and I feel like my sound is Alternative Soul. I love all genres and take from them all so I try to implement that into my music. My influences come from everywhere but a couple of artist who have inspired me lately are Cleo Sol, REIYO, Alex Isley, and Victoria Monet.

I feel like I would be perfect for Homoground because I am a queer, non-conforming artist and I feel like we don’t get enough exposure in the media. Kids and teenagers only have “straight” music to listen to especially in the mainstream media and it sucks because not only is there better music out there but it’s really narrow minded and non-progressive.”

CREDITS

This episode was produced by D Orxata

Executive production and intro/outro by Lynn Casper

Homoground Theme Song by data.data.data

SPONSOR

Struggling with business financials? Homoground uses SusieQ Bookkeeping, a motley crew of queer bookkeepers and accountants who love the finances as much as you love your business. At SQB they know that entrepreneurs of all kinds need to spend their time doing what they love and growing, not worrying about payroll and taxes. SQB provides financial and administrative support to all industries tailored to your needs.
Schedule a consultation today!

Young Kaii – Providence, Rhode Island [Episode #262]

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Young Kaii is one of those rare artists that effortlessly brings raw emotions using just her talent and her powerful lyrics. In this episode, Homoground correspondent Maia Macdonald chats with Young Kaii about the life of being an artist, smoothies, swimming with dolphins and choosing happiness.

Songs featured: “Careless”, “Speechless” and “Memories”

You can stream the episode above, on homoground.com or via your favorite podcast app.

Connect with Young Kaii:
Official Website
Instagram @iamyoungkaii
Twitter @YoungKaii
Youtube

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider contributing to our Patreon to support this free podcast.
http://patreon.com/join/homoground

To help us create a transcription of this episode, please donate to our Patreon to support our transcription efforts.

CREDITS

This interview was recorded and produced by Maia Macdonald.

Executive Producer: Lynn Casper

Intro Jingle by data.data.data

SPONSORS

Struggling with business financials? Homoground uses SusieQ Bookkeeping, a motley crew of queer bookkeepers and accountants who love the finances as much as you love your business. At SQB they know that entrepreneurs of all kinds need to spend their time doing what they love and growing, not worrying about payroll and taxes. SQB provides financial and administrative support to all industries tailored to your needs.
Schedule a consultation today!

This episode is sponsored by Adam Male, your most trusted source for sex toys, products and information. Whether you’re looking for something to share with someone special, or you’re wanting to spice up your “me” time, from dildos to dongs, they’re putting the power of pleasure in your hands. Get 25% off plus free shipping with the code AMPOD

Mylo Choy – Brooklyn, NY [Episode #256]

Episode #256 features the words and music of Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Mylo Choy. In this episode, Mylo talks about artistic expression and collaborations within a solo music project, how to experience sadness without getting stuck dwelling in the feeling, lessons learned from being raised in a Buddhist family and more.

The songs featured in order of appearance:
“All The Sun”, “Meet Me in the Middle” and “Tides” from their EP “Night is Like the Ocean” plus “Kolea’s First Journey” from their 2017 album “Delta“. 

Follow Mylo online at mylochoy.com
Buy their music on bandcamp mylochoy.bandcamp.com

Full Transcription of Mylo’s story:

Hello, I’m Mylo Choy. I live in Brooklyn, New York. Most of my career has been working with youth and making art and music. They seem different, but a lot of them are the same because all of it is about how people feel. *laughs* This E.P “Night is like the Ocean” was recorded upstate in Livingston Manor, New York. A friend of a friend is the engineer and producer on it. I’ve worked with him several times. First, with my old band Small Talk and I just really liked his vibe. And also the recording studio is this house that has windows all the way around and you can see the snow. Winter is such a great time to record because you really can’t do much else. I just always like working with him. It’s really nice to work with someone where you could ask someone their honest opinion and they’ll tell you and they’ll always go with your decision at the end of the day, because I am such a control freak, especially when it comes to art things. I think because it’s so personal. I’d like to get to a point where I’m a little more collaborative.

You can read the full transcript of Mylo’s story on our patreon.

CREDITS

This episode was recorded and produced by Maia Macdonald.

Executive Production and End Credits hosted by Lynn Casper

Intro Jingle by data.data.data

Transcription was made possible by Queer Public Podcast who let us use their transcription software.

Our affiliate sponsor for this episode is Pride Counseling. Homoground listeners receive a 1 week free trial when they sign up through this link. We also receive commission from each sign up that becomes a paid member. These funds helps us produce episodes like this 🙂

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