Loud and Proud
- UpRising Editors
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
[THE ENDORSEMENT]
This is not a drill—Pride Month has begun. To help you celebrate, we’re presenting this 2025 culture pack with selections to make you think, dance, and simply live your best (and boldest) life.
READ: Isaac’s Song, Daniel Black
Award-winning author Daniel Black takes us back to Chicago in the late 1980s for his most recent novel—a story of a queer Black man sorting through racial and generational trauma on a quest for self-discovery after his father’s death. The coming-of-age hardcover is a companion work to Black’s 2022 book, Don’t Cry for Me, revising the story’s characters while offering a new perspective on its events.
Long known as the Black gay mecca, Atlanta waits until October to throw its biggest Pride events. But this weeklong annual June celebration stands on its own. Southern Fried Queer Pride is a grassroots organization devoted to uplifting Black queer and trans communities in the South. Its 11th annual festival, which takes place from June 23-29 in Atlanta’s Little 5 Points neighborhood, offers a wide range of programming, including dance parties, workshops, seminars, a variety show, film screening, thrift shop, pageant, and more.
LISTEN: Bloom, Durand Bernarr
Durand Bernarr had a viral moment back in 2023, when his lively, vibrant, and fun Tiny Desk performance became the talk of social media. But real ones know the Cleveland singer has been grinding for more than a decade (a 2010 Erykah Badu tribute project led to her hiring him as a background singer). His latest album, Bloom, is a musically eclectic celebration of platonic relationships that shows off his silky voice and unmatched range. If you’re sleeping on Durand Bernarr, let this be your sign to wake up and smell the flowers.
The UpRising newsletter is a mixtape for your mind filled with information that's intellectual and irreverent—no skips. Whether it's film, music, art, food or the culture full stop, UpRising will serve as the starting point to your deep dives.
