Chew Disco

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Chew Disco was a queer feminist art and cultural activism project founded in Liverpool, England in 2009 by Emma Obong and Khalil West.[1] Initially a series of club nights and house parties, it was known for its DIY ethos and aesthetics, the diversity of its performers and programmes, and political advocacy. Owing to the sexual flexibility and playfulness of its atmosphere, "large-scale art installations and live performance art", and emphasis on dancing, its live events and parties garnered comparisons to The Factory and DUMBA.[2][3][4] Bringing together both "queer icons" and a range of underground artists to raise money for grassroots initiatives for women, girls, and sexual minorities worldwide, the flagship party expanded into multiple forms and sites of live performance, curatorial work, exhibition, clubbing, and community activism, cementing its legacy "as one of Britain’s most important queer projects".[5][1][6][7]

History[edit]

External videos
video icon Interview with Khalil West for Tate Liverpool’s ‘’You Are Here - A Pop-Up Museum of LGBT+ History’’, YouTube video
video icon Vaginal Davis says hello to Liverpool, YouTube video

West and Obong met shortly after's West's relocation from New Jersey to Liverpool in 2006. In early 2009, the duo conceived Chew Disco as an alternative to both the city's gay quarter and its DIY and punk music scenes, directing their explicit focus to political partying, sexual and racial inclusivity, and musical diversity.[8][1]

The club night was launched on 7 August 2009.[9][10] From 2009 to 2016, the live event hosted performances by more than 40 bands, musicians, DJs, and multidisciplinary artists, including Vaginal Davis, Trash Kit, Mykki Blanco, Cakes da Killa, Shopping, Joey Fourr, MR TC, Queer’d Science, and Optimo Music acts Golden Teacher and Shift Work.[11][12][13][14][15] Funds raised through many of the events were donated to various LGBTQ+ and women's and girl's rights organisations, including Iraqi LGBT, the Iranian and Kurdish Women's Rights Organization (IKWRO), Icebreakers Uganda (part of Sexual Minorities Uganda), International Railroad for Queer Refugees, Panzi Hospital, and Coming Out (Russia).[16][8][1] By 2011, the project had begun to collaborate as stage and film curators with more formal arts institutions, collectives and festivals, including Islington Mill, Foundation for Art and Creative Technology (FACT), Cheryl, Homotopia, Abandon Normal Devices, and Sounds From The Other City.[11][17][18][19][20][21][22]

The party has been described as the “best alternative night in town” and was heavily influenced by Obong's Black feminist politics, West's formative years in the queer and punk club spaces of New Jersey and New York City's East Village, as well as their shared interests in hip hop, queercore, house, and post-punk music, scenes and movements.[23][8][1] The project's general design aesthetic drew equally heavily on American b-movies, underground or “cult” cinema, and vintage pulp paperbacks, and elements of its flagship events included free mix tapes, go-go dance performances (often incorporating fake blood and found objects), and “secret” afterparties.[8][1][24][6][25]

Hiatus[edit]

External videos
video icon I Am For You Can Enjoy: Excerpts from selected interviews, YouTube video
video icon I Am For You Can Enjoy - Opening at FACT, Homotopia 2016, YouTube video

Following the relocation of Obong to Berlin in 2015, the project entered hiatus. Between 2015 and 2019, the two continued to sporadically collaborate and DJ both as a duo and independently in the UK and Berlin.[26][27][28][29][30][31]

In 2015, West began an Arts Council funded multimedia collaboration with British artist Ajamu X. The project, I Am For You Can Enjoy, combines West's video oral history interviews with Ajamu's portraits to explore the lived experiences of queer, Black, male and masculine-identified sex workers.[32][33]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Roberts, Amy (28 January 2013). "Chew Disco Returns". The Double Negative. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  2. ^ "AND Festival events". Abandon Normal Devices. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Chew Chew Barney McGrew". The Devil Has The Best Tuna. 2 March 2010. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  4. ^ "Crack Magazine, Queer Britain, and Levi's present: Here, There, & Everywhere – Chew Disco". Crack Magazine. September 8, 2022. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
  5. ^ "Chew Disco Welcomes Shift Work With Donations To Iraqi Charity". Getintothis. 11 March 2015. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Jersey Cross The Mersey". Speaking From The Diaphragm: The Vaginal Davis Blog. Vaginal Davis. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  7. ^ "Crack Magazine, Queer Britain, and Levi's present: Here, There, & Everywhere – Chew Disco". Crack Magazine. September 8, 2022. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d West, Khalil (29 November 2016). "You Are Here - A Pop-Up Museum of LGBT+ History: Khalil talks Chew Disco" (Interview). Interviewed by Thinking Film. Liverpool: Thinking Film.
  9. ^ "Dandelion Radio – Past Events". Dandelion Radio. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  10. ^ "Facebook Protest". The Liverpool Echo. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Chew Disco – Past Events". Chew Disco. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  12. ^ Chan, Edwina (29 May 2013). "Mykki Blanco @ Islington Mill, Salford, 16 May". The Skinny. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  13. ^ Rowlands, Marc (11 November 2009). "This week's club previews: Chew Disco, Liverpool". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  14. ^ "Manchester: Cakes da Killa". TimeOut. 25 June 2015. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  15. ^ Guy, Peter (30 October 2013). "Liverpool Homotopia Festival: What's on guide to 10th anniversary". The Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  16. ^ "Chew Disco – Charities, Advocacy Organisations and Safehouses We Support". Chew Disco. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  17. ^ La Bruce, Bruce (21 September 2011). "L.A. Zombie / Bruce La Bruce Q & A". Abandon Normal Devices - Festival Journal (Interview). Interviewed by Khalil West. Liverpool: Abandon Normal Devices.
  18. ^ "Homotopia Brochure 2013". 3 October 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  19. ^ "Homotopia 2015". 6 October 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  20. ^ "Chew Disco – Events". Chew Disco. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  21. ^ Walters, Sarah (28 April 2016). "Sounds From The Other City: everything you need to know about Salford's one day music and arty party". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  22. ^ "Sounds From The Other City 2014". Sounds From The Other City. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  23. ^ "Chew Disco, hailed as the best alternative night in town, returns tomorrow at The Kazimier after nearly two years away". The Liverpool Echo. 7 May 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  24. ^ "Liverpool's gig calendar 2013: Guide to essential gigs not to miss in the new year". Getintothis. 9 January 2013. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  25. ^ "UK Tour Time!!!!". Sister Mantos. Sister Mantos. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  26. ^ "Crack Magazine, Queer Britain, and Levi's present: Here, There, & Everywhere – Chew Disco". Crack Magazine. September 8, 2022. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
  27. ^ "OHM: Berries – Hip Hop & Beyond". OHSCHONHELL. 9 December 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  28. ^ "Feminist and queer music, arts and culture #88 - Quay Dash, Ladybird, Beth Ditto, Chastity Belt, Perera Elsewhere". Listen Notes. 16 August 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  29. ^ "Berries: Friday 18 Mar 2016". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  30. ^ "Berries: Friday 9 Dec 2016". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  31. ^ "Bollox Queer Pride 2018". AfterDark. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  32. ^ "Grants for the Arts awards: 1 April 2015 - 31 March 2016". Arts Council England. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  33. ^ Primrose, Alice (14 October 2016). "This week: five top art shows to see, 14 – 20 October". Royal Academy of Arts. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
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