Todrick Hall
A multi-talented singer, rapper, actor, director, choreographer, and social media personality who rose to prominence on and after his appearance on American Idol. His popular YouTube channel has over 3.5 million subscribers and 740 million channel views, consisting notably of original songs, musical collaborations, and choreographed flash mobs for Beyoncé. Todrick also appears regularly on RuPaul’s Drag Race and season two of The Greatest Dancer on BBC.
Todrick distinguished himself as a Broadway star completing successful runs in Chicago, The Color Purple, Kinky Boots, Memphis, and Waitress. He visited over sixty cities worldwide with sold-out tours of “Straight Outta Oz”, “Forbidden”, and “Haus Party”; and won the 2019 “Video for Good” VMA as co-executive producer on Taylor Swift’s LGBTQ+ anthem “You Need to Calm Down”. His newest EP “Quarantine Queen” is currently available on all media platforms; his groundbreaking visual albums are available for streaming via youtube/todrickhall. Follow him on Instagram, Tiktok, and twitter at @todrick
Pussy Riot
Conceptual artist and activist Nadya Tolokonnikova is the founding member of Pussy Riot, a global feminist protest art movement. Today, hundreds of people identify as a part of the Pussy Riot community.
In 2012, Nadya was sentenced to two years in prison following an anti-Putin performance. She endured a hunger strike protesting savage prison conditions and ended up being sent to a Siberian penal colony, where she managed to maintain her artistic activity, and with her prison punk band, tour around Siberian labor camps. In 2013, Pussy Riot’s Punk-prayer was named by The Guardian among the best art pieces of the 21st century (“feminist, explicitly anti-Putin, protesting the banning of gay pride and the Orthodox church’s support of the president”).
Nadya is the co-founder of independent news service and media outlet, Mediazona, and has spoken before the U.S. Congress, British Parliament, and European Parliament. She appeared as herself on season 3 of House of Cards and collaborated with Banksy on his Dismaland exhibition. Nadya is endorsed by Marina Abramovic and Ai Weiwei, has created an immersive experience in the Saatchi gallery in London, and published a book “Read and riot: Pussy Riot’s guide to activism.”
Pussy Riot joined the NFT community in early 2021, co-founded UnicornDAO and formed UkraineDAO which has raised over $7m for Ukraine. Nadya is a PleasrDAO member, and a supporter of a stronger female representation in the NFT space.
Pussy Riot stands for gender fluidity, inclusivity, matriarchy, love, laughter, decentralization, anarchy, and anti-authoritarianism.
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Pussy Riot, Todrick Hall top St. Pete Pride concert set for June
Multi-platinum D.C. trio SHAED spent much of 2018 and 2019 supporting their global breakout single “Trampoline.” With nearly 2 billion streams to-date, “Trampoline” first made waves after being featured in a MacBook Air ad campaign for Apple, which led to feverish radio play. In free moments between international festival dates and headline tours, SHAED found themselves co-writing on the road with renowned songwriters and producers, creating an album-worth of songs under the pressure of following-up their first commercial hit. SHAED’s debut album High Dive was released in May 2021. The album features collaborations with Two Feet, Lewis Del Mar, and the newer version of their breakout single “Trampoline” featuring Zayn. Tracks produced by SHAED, Ariel Rechtshaid (HAIM, Vampire Weekend, Madonna…) and Josh Fountain (Benee), and mixing by Rob Kinelski (Billie Eilish, Finneas, Karol G…) as well as strings throughout the entire album recorded via international pandemic zoom sessions performed by FAMES Macedonian Symphonic Orchestra, co-composed by SHAED and Jherek Bischoff (Brian Eno, Angel Olsen).
This article appears in May 26 – Jun 1, 2022.