Tracks of Our Queers

Travis Alabanza, writer

Welcome back to Tracks of Our Queers.Travis Alabanza is an award-winning writer, playwright, and theatre maker from Bristol. They've sold out the Southbank Centre, toured their writing globally, and their Edinburgh Fringe-award-winning play BURGERZ is currently on it's return visit to Australia.You can catch Travis performing BURGERZ in:Sydney at the Carriageworks from January 7-18Melbourne at the Malthouse Theatre from January 21-31We recorded this episode live in Sydney – and it was so good! Travis came with some brilliant musical selections, and I hope you enjoy hearing about them.Follow Travis on Instagram, or at their website.Tracks of Our Queers is produced and presented by Andy Gott on Ngarigo land.Support the show Follow the pod on Insta at @tracksofourqueers, or email me at tracksofourqueers@gmail.com Help keep the show ad-free by shouting me a coffee right here Enjoy the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers Spotify playlist Thanks besties.

Tracks of Our Queers is back

Trailblazers, queeroes, and fascinating folk feature in Season 6, launching in early January.Support the show Follow the pod on Insta at @tracksofourqueers, or email me at tracksofourqueers@gmail.com Help keep the show ad-free by shouting me a coffee right here Enjoy the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers Spotify playlist Thanks besties.

John Benjamin Hickey, actor and director

Tony Award-winning actor and director John Benjamin Hickey joins me on Tracks of Our Queers.From his breakout role in Terrence McNally's Love! Valour! Compassion! to his devastating turn in Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart, John has been at the heart of some of theatre's most important queer work. Far from being typecast, John has appeared in hundreds of roles across TV, film, and theatre (I loved him in The Big C, and of course, the dad in Pitch Perfect).Outside of acting and directing, John once presented his own music interview series on SiriusXM, My Favorite Song. It's a thrill to turn the interviewing tables on him and hear about some of his most cherished music, through a queer lense. The other bits:Tracks of Our Queers is recorded and edited between Gadigal and Ngarigo land in Australia, by me, Andy GottListen to all of the music discussed in the pod with the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers playlistYou can email me your own queer tracks or guest recommendations at tracksofourqueers@gmail.comOur beautiful artwork is illustrated by Luke Tribe.Support the show Follow the pod on Insta at @tracksofourqueers, or email me at tracksofourqueers@gmail.com Help keep the show ad-free by shouting me a coffee right here Enjoy the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers Spotify playlist Thanks besties.

William Yang, photographer and artist

William Yang is one of Australia’s most vital storytellers. For over five decades, he's documented queer life in Sydney -- its parades, parties, politics, and people -- through photography, performance, and prose. Born in 1943 in Far North Queensland, William came out as gay in the early 1970s during the wave of gay liberation, and later came out again -- this time as Chinese -- after reconnecting with his heritage through Taoism and travel. His landmark exhibitions and live slide shows, like Sydneyphiles, Sadness, and Friends of Dorothy, have cemented his place as a queer cultural archivist.I've wanted to interview William since beginning Tracks of Our Queers, and have  to thank Benjamin Law for connecting us. This is a special episode, recorded in-person at Forbes Street Studios in Sydney, and William shares five songs that resonate with him, and his life as a queer person.The other bits:Tracks of Our Queers is recorded and edited between Gadigal and Ngarigo land in Australia, by me, Andy GottListen to all of the music discussed in the pod with the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers playlistYou can email me your own queer tracks or guest recommendations at tracksofourqueers@gmail.comOur beautiful artwork is illustrated by Luke Tribe.Support the show Follow the pod on Insta at @tracksofourqueers, or email me at tracksofourqueers@gmail.com Help keep the show ad-free by shouting me a coffee right here Enjoy the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers Spotify playlist Thanks besties.

Kate Pierson of the B-52s, singer songwriter

Kate Pierson is a founding member of the B-52s: The World's Greatest Party Band, and a beacon for weirdos and queer-does since the late 70s. After decades of collaborating with the likes of Iggy Pop, R.E.M., and her Japanese side-band NiNa (more on that in the episode), Kate began writing and recording her entirely solo output in 2015. Last year, her second album Radios and Rainbows was released, and at the age of 77, Kate is bubbling with inspiration and drive to create. Between the B-52s' legendary back catalogue (which I've only recently started discovering myself), Kate's solo work, and her reflections on her own queer legacy, there's a lot to get through in this conversation. Strap in.The other bits:Tracks of Our Queers is recorded and edited between Gadigal and Ngarigo land in Australia, by me, Andy GottListen to all of the music discussed in the pod with the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers playlistYou can email me your own queer tracks or guest recommendations at tracksofourqueers@gmail.comOur beautiful artwork is illustrated by Luke Tribe.Support the show Follow the pod on Insta at @tracksofourqueers, or email me at tracksofourqueers@gmail.com Help keep the show ad-free by shouting me a coffee right here Enjoy the Selections from Tracks of Our Queers Spotify playlist Thanks besties.