BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) -- A musician known for being the first drag performer to reach the number one spot on the iTunes Christian Chart will be making a stop at Woodlawn Theatre in January.
"I'm speaking about my experiences, and certainly the broader experience of what it is to grow up as a queer person in conservative religious spaces where we're ostracized or where we're compelled to try and deny who we are or change who we are in order to fit in with these communities," said drag queen Flamy Grant, who hails from Asheville, North Carolina.
"I'm not subtle about any of it. I mean, I named the album 'CHURCH,' you know, I named myself 'Flamy Grant.' There's an obvious connection there to, the world's, you know, most famous Christian singer," Grant continued.
Grant's debut album, titled "Bible Belt Baby," topped the iTunes Christian Chart and was submitted for consideration in the Christian category for the 2023 Grammy Awards. However, the album was moved to the pop category prior to voting.
"Ultimately they said it was because of language, you know?" Grant explained. "It didn't meet their standards."
Grant's sophomore album, "CHURCH," will be submitted for consideration for the Christian category of the 2026 Grammy Awards.
"I think it's important to have representation for queer folks everywhere," Grant said. "I was a queer kid who grew up listening to Christian music, so that's exactly where I'm putting my music now. So that kids who are like me, still coming up in those spaces can have something to look at and realize that, hey the future is not as scary and horrible and hopeless as I'm being told by this culture, and there's actually a bright, hopeful future for me as a queer kid in Christianity."
Grant describes herself as a folk musician.
"Folk music has always been about, I mean, protest songs have a long tradition in folk music. Lament songs, songs about cultural change and social unrest. And so, for me, I'm living it. I live it every day, and every day I'm encountering people online or sometimes in person at shows. If there's a protester there, who may be butting up against how I live my life and who I am and my art form. And so that's what I have to sing about," Grant said.
Despite being from Asheville, North Carolina, Grant spent about 20 years living out west, primarily in San Diego.
"I wasn't out when I grew up in the south. I was 21 or 22 when I left, and, you know, I wasn't out then. So, I've only been in the south and out for the past year when I moved back. It's been kind of a new experience to come back home and finally feel like I'm being my full authentic self in the place where I was born and raised," Grant said.
Grant says that one reason she returned to the southeast was to be closer to communities being impacted by anti-drag legislation. Soon after returning to the south, she experienced this legislation face-to-face a week before she was set to headline at Blount County Pride in East Tennessee in 2023.
"A week before the event, the pride organization got a letter from the district attorney saying he was going to enforce Tennessee's drag ban, which at that time, had been ruled unconstitutional in Memphis," Grant said. "He said he was still going to enforce it, and if there was drag at the pride event, that he would follow through, whatever that meant. Like arrests, or prosecution, it was kind of unclear."
Grant explained that ACLU got involved and sued for a temporary restraining order so the pride event could go on as planned.
"That case is still relevant because drag is still being contested," Grant said. "This happened right as I was moving back to the southeast, and part of the reason why we moved back was so that we could really be on the front lines and be closer to these communities that are most impacted by these ridiculous pieces of legislation that are trying to equate drag with adult entertainment," Grant said. "It was just really crazy to find myself in that position. Immediately on moving back to the south, it was like, oh, okay, I'm already up against an actual legal challenge to my art, just doing what I do."
Through her work, Grant supports the Campaign for Southern Equality's Trans Youth Emergency Project.
"I think there are now around 25 states with some sort of legislation in place that bans families with trans youth from accessing medically necessary healthcare," Grant explained. "The Campaign for Southern Equality created this program called the Trans Youth Emergency Project, where they provide all sorts of resources and support to the families experiencing this."
"When I'm out on the road, I always put up a little bit of information on my merch table and a little donation box for them, and I give a pitch like this to the audience, and I invite the audience to join me in supporting them," Grant continued. "I think this year we've raised over $7,000 for them already. People have been really generous, and it's been great to see folks support this organization that I love so much."
Grant will be performing at Birmingham's Woodlawn Theatre on Jan. 23, 2025.
"I would just remind folks who might feel hesitant about seeing a drag queen who sings Christian music that the Savior they say they follow was someone who listened to people who no one else listened to," Grant said.
"Also, I'm like, the easiest, least scary entrance into the world of drag that you could ask for. My show is very accessible. If you're curious about drag at all, I promise this is a safe space for you," she continued.
More information on her concert can be found here.