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Business Insider
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Business Insider
I'm a drag queen in NYC whose bookings for Pride Month have plummeted this year. I'm trying to work smarter, not harder.
Brita Filter, 39, is a household name in drag entertainment. Her popularity went mainstream when she appeared on season 12 of "RuPaul's Drag Race," and she's made appearances on "Saturday Night Live," "Broad City," and "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah." I first heard of Brita in 2023 when my then-employer, PayPal, was trying to book her for a Pride happy hour near our NYC office. But Google had already booked her for the same coveted time slot: post-work drinks the Thursday before New York City Pride — what Brita says was usually her busiest time of year. This year, she says her corporate bookings are down by about 60% compared to last year. Another drag entertainer Business Insider spoke to, Holly Box-Springs, said the few June Pride bookings that have come through for her have been last-minute. Corporate interest in Pride is softening elsewhere; around 25% of corporate donors for NYC's Pride parade (taking place Sunday, June 29) have reportedly canceled or scaled back their support, citing economic uncertainty and fear of retribution from the Trump administration. We asked Brita about how this shift in interest is affecting her career. These are her words, edited for length and clarity. 'I've never had this much downtime in June' I started doing drag over a decade ago — around the same time as Holly Box-Springs, actually. And I've seen the highs and lows. This year feels especially slow. I've never had this much downtime in June since I started. All year long, at least twice a month, I fly all over the US to perform — Alabama, Boston, Seattle, Denver, Detroit, Atlanta, Hawaii. Usually I'd fly out on a Thursday, do a show on a Friday or Saturday, and fly back by Sunday for my regular set at a bar in New York City. But during Pride, drag queens are like Santa Claus during Christmas — everyone wants to book them at the same time. A typical week leading up to New York City Pride used to be nonstop for me. In 2019, during World Pride, I worked 43 days in a row — no breaks. I was hired by big companies. Some days, I had multiple gigs, back to back. I kept count because it was the year I filmed "RuPaul's Drag Race." In one month alone, I made enough money to buy a brand new Toyota Prius. This year? I only have eight gigs total for the month. It's a complete 180. I used to have a manager, assistant, and publicist, but I've been doing it on my own for the past two years. I don't have any corporate bookings at all this year. I'm just working a regular bar shift on the 29th — the day of the Pride parade — at Hardware Bar in Hell's Kitchen, where I perform weekly year-round. This week, I hosted a big activation event in Union Square for National HIV Testing Day. The community events — the more politically-focused or pro-LGBTQ charity events — are still happening, but the corporate big-ticket gigs just aren't there. 'We'll do anything for a comma' When I was booked solid during World Pride in previous years, I'd take as many gigs as humanly possible. If that meant waking up at 6 a.m. and being in drag until 4 a.m. the next day, I did it. We all did. Sleep, skincare, physical exhaustion — it didn't matter as long as the check had a comma in it. We used to say, "We'll do anything for a comma." You just pushed through because that kind of money didn't come year-round. July was for recovery. This year, I'm not taking July off. I might have to work straight through the month. I'll pick up more shows and cover for people who are out of town. Moneywise, I'll have to figure things out; I'm not sure how. I'm grateful. Because of my situation [being on TV], my rates are higher. I'm given more opportunities and at times bigger checks. I'm working smarter, not harder. About 50% of my income is from influencer partnerships and content creation for private companies that pay me to spread political messaging. But I'm spending money as soon as it comes in. For every gig, I have to talk to designers, get a new dress, a new wig, take new photos, do new press. Almost everything I make has to go back into the craft because it's all about the look. My entire job is the look. Or I'm spending money on getting 10 dancers, a rehearsal room, a choreographer, costumes — I'm like my own little Broadway show, except I'm the producer, the artistic director, and the star. 'Corporate interest has changed' A few years ago, Pride was global. You could feel it. People flew in from all over the world. This year's World Pride in D.C. earlier this month didn't feel global at all. It was mostly Americans. I barely met anyone from outside the country. I think a lot of folks are hesitant to come to the US right now. Things have shifted. Budgets are different. Corporate interest has changed. But the work that supports the community directly, such as Pride galas — that's still going. That's what's always mattered most to me anyway.
Elle
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Elle
Abby Elliott on the ‘Vanderpump Rules' Character that Inspired Her Feud Scene in ‘The Bear'
Spoilers below. If Carmen Berzatto ultimately decides to leave the restaurant from which FX's hit dramedy The Bear draws its name, fans are certain to riot—but Natalie 'Sugar' Berzatto will have done her job well. As the older sister to Jeremy Allen White's emotionally stunted chef Carmy, Natalie has spent her entire life looking out for her mother and brothers, gamely putting up with their 'bullshit,' as actress Abby Elliott puts it. But at the beginning of the newest season of The Bear, she's a new mother and an operations manager at a struggling restaurant—and, frankly, too exhausted not to be forthright. 'I think because she's exhausted, because she's a new mom, she's able to really express a little more to Carmy what she's feeling,' Elliott says. 'So she's telling Carmy, 'If you're not in love with [the restaurant business] anymore, that's okay.' And that may not have been something that she could have said before.' The scene Elliott is referencing takes place in episode 2, and is one of several moments that underscore season 4's focus on emotional release after the pressure-cooker pace of season 3. 'Catharsis: I feel like that is exactly what this season is,' Elliott says. As an actress, she found it increasingly difficult to separate herself from what Natalie was undergoing on-camera. 'I really, really feel all of her feelings, which is a new thing for me on TV shows. I go through the emotions of Natalie now and feel like I am living in it.' But, of course, Natalie's role isn't simply as The Bear's budget-minded brain or its emotional engine. Elliott's comedic background—she was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 2008 to 2012, and has starred in several sitcoms since—goes a long way toward legitimizing the FX series' status as a bona fide comedy. A standout scene arrives during a much-hyped wedding showdown in episode 7, during which actress Brie Larson makes a guest-star appearance as Natalie's frenemy, Francie Fak. Elliott's inflections around phrases like, 'Francie Fucking Fak!' and 'You were drunk as shit!' make an otherwise overwhelming shouting match a treat to watch. 'Tonally, you really have to ground it and sell it,' Elliott says. 'It really is about playing everything super-grounded and real, trying to feel those feelings, to get to a place of, 'I'm fighting with her because I'm genuinely heartbroken by what she did.' And then trusting that it will be edited and directed in a way that feels [both funny and dramatic].' Below, Elliott discusses working with White on strengthening Carmy and Natalie's bond; how Vanderpump Rules inspired her performance with Larson; and what that crucial finale scene means for Natalie's future in The Bear. When we read [the scripts], it makes so much sense to us. And with Jeremy, our relationship has naturally evolved on-camera, and I feel closer to him now off-camera. I genuinely didn't know how [the scene in episode 2] was going to come out in the moment. I didn't know how emotional it would feel, and that's how [show creator] Chris Storer approaches everything: It's all really fresh and not overly rehearsed. And every time I'm [filming a scene] on the phone, there is an actor also on the [other side of the] phone. Jeremy was really on the phone with me, and Carmy's felt so different this time than the times that he's apologized in the past. Now that Carmy and Natalie are in this emotional place together and she says this thing, it almost feels like a seed she's planting. It brings him to a different place. And then we see her come into the restaurant with the baby, and his face lights up. The way it's shot is so light; the directorial choices were so beautiful in that moment. Everything's coming to light, literally and figuratively. Absolutely. I think, now more than ever, she needs support. She's a new mom, and she still has this very complicated relationship with [her mother] Donna. Them coming together and connecting in the labor episode [last season]? That wasn't really this reconciliation. She's still like, 'Fuck this' when her mom calls her. I think she knows she needs support now. And Pete is a huge part of that. He's the antithesis of how she grew up, and you see her being grateful for him. In the wedding episode, she's reassuring him that she wasn't in love with Francie; it's always been Pete. I love those moments with him, and I love the moments in bed where Nat and him are being affectionate. I think they're so important for Nat's character, to see her not just being walked on and giving too much of herself to Carmy and the restaurant. Chris Storer and I have been having conversations about this since season 2, when the concept of Francie first gets introduced. We were like, 'Who is she?' We talked about Stassi [Schroeder] from Vanderpump Rules. And we were like, 'I think she's kind of like Stassi.' Then, I think it was between seasons 2 and 3, I was at the L.A. Natural History Museum, and I saw Stassi. I was like, 'Oh my God.' I was so embarrassed because my kid was having a tantrum and her kid was so well-behaved, and [Storer] was like, 'This is perfect. This is so Natalie and Francie.' Another thing that Chris and I talked about: I was watching a reality show with all these women at this wedding in those Hill House nap dresses. And I was like, 'It'd be so funny if [Francie and Natalie] are going at each other in these Little-Bo-Peep pastel dresses.' So we tried to do that with the wardrobe in episode 7; she's wearing a headband and I'm wearing a headband. Everything's very cute, and then we're going into this dark drunken backstory. It was my favorite thing to shoot. That episode felt so much like My Best Friend's Wedding and The Wedding Singer and all of those kind of '90s/2000s movies that you watch and you're like, 'Oh, I wish I was at that wedding.' There was a scene in My Best Friend's Wedding, which takes place in Chicago, and [Julia Roberts and Cameron Diaz] are in the bathroom at Wrigley Field. Cameron's wearing a little headband and she's in pastel, and she goes off on Julia's character. I kept watching that scene before [filming episode 7] to really get me into it. So much goes down at weddings. It's such a perfect backdrop for drama and comedy. And then when Brie stepped in, it made it all the more perfect. We really hit it off. I think we're pretty similar, and she's so funny. I love her. We were simpatico from the start, which was so much fun to play. And even though we do, sort of, find out [the source of Natalie and Francie's feud], it's still a little unclear! When I was in the scene and when I performed it, I just felt heartbreak for Carmy. I felt heartbreak that he couldn't bring himself in to Mikey's funeral, that he was there and he couldn't get himself to go in. But then I think Sugar's overcome with pride for how far he's come. In that moment, she wants him to be okay. That hug is a hug of support: I got you. I'm going to lift you up and get you to where you want to be. If we were to have that opportunity, I'd love to see her continue supporting Carmy—to have this relationship with him that is now in a good place, a loving place on both sides. I think that she's so capable. She has this healthy work-life balance where... Yes, she's ambitious, but she's not going to [drive herself to the brink] over this restaurant. This was never really her dream. She's here for her brother, to support him, and then she fell in love with it and loves the Bear family. She has her home life, which is very satisfying to her, but she also knows how to operate the restaurant. She knows what she's doing. I'd like to see her continue down that path. For entertainment purposes, I would love to see her with Donna. I'd love to see Donna coming over to babysit. And then having something happen. [Laughs.] This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Miami Herald
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
‘SNL' Star Thought a Beloved Comedy Icon's ‘Spirit' Was ‘Talking' to Her
With over 50 years on the air, Saturday Night Live isn't just a television show, it's an institution that has brought us some of the biggest names in comedy, many of whom credit their predecessors for introducing them to the genre. And for women in comedy, one SNL alum in particular gets mentioned quite a bit: the sweet and charming Gilda Radner, who died of ovarian cancer less than a decade after leaving the show. But her legacy has continued, from her fellow founding cast members' homage to her at the end of the SNL50 Anniversary Special, where they held up a framed photo of Radner to the camera, to a current SNL star's conviction that Radner is cheering her on from the beyond. Sarah Sherman recently told Vulture's Good One podcast that after joining the show, she "got a giant envelope in the mail" that contained a handwritten letter from a member of Radner's family. Sherman shared that the letter said, "Hey, I'm Gilda Radner's brother. Weird thing happened where I've been receiving all of your residuals checks for the past few months…by the way, you're really great on the show," prompting an emotional reaction from the actress. "I started hysterically sobbing, obviously, because I'm like, 'okay, God's speaking to me right now.' The fact that my SAG residuals checks, shout out union, my SAG residuals checks have been sent to Gilda Radner's estate," she continued. "I texted Lorne, I was like, 'Oh my God, my checks have been sent to Gilda Radner's estate. Isn't this, like, a crazy coincidence? I feel like this is like a miracle or like, I feel like this is a spirit talking,'" Sherman said she wrote to SNL chief Lorne Michaels. As for Michaels' response? "Lorne was like, 'That's sweet.'" Next: Why a Request From Taylor Swift Was Once Turned Down By 'SNL's Lorne Michaels: 'I Don't Negotiate With Terrorists' Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Reneé Rapp Says Her Mom Manifested Her Career By Giving Her a ‘Pop Star' Name
Reneé Rapp can thank her mom for her career in music. Speaking on podcast Good Hang with Amy Poehler, Rapp shared that her mom, Denise Rapp, specifically chose her name to ensure success. 'My mom chose my first and last name to be—well, okay, arguably chose my first and last name to both have R's,' Rapp told Poehler. 'She was like, 'Alliteration, just in case she wants to be a pop star.' Like before I was born.' She added that she's aware the decision was 'conceited,' but said 'I'm obsessed with the way she did it. I'm like, 'Thank you, God.'' More from Rolling Stone Reneé Rapp Gets Sexy at the AMAs With Live Debut of 'Leave Me Alone' Reneé Rapp Comes Back to Break NDAs and Spill Secrets on New Single 'Leave Me Alone' 2025 AMAs: Benson Boone, Reneé Rapp, Lainey Wilson to Perform Poehler replied, 'She gave you a pop star name just in case, because Reneé Rapp is a huge pop star name.' Rapp agreed: 'It's a really good one!' Poehler added, 'And Reneé Rapp is a huge pop star.' Elsewhere in the interview Rapp spoke about developing as a singer, meeting Beyoncé, and coming out on Saturday Night Live. She recounted being on SNL and how some of the writers wrote a sketch where she would be referred to as a 'little bisexual intern.' 'At that time I was very publicly bisexual,' Rapp said. 'I had been for a very long time. In private I was talking with my girlfriend and a lot of my friends for the last maybe eight months before that of being like, 'I actually don't really feel very bi at the moment. I feel very much like a lesbian and it feels so nice and that word feels amazing.'' She asked the writers to change the sketch to 'lesbian.' 'Labeling yourself publicly is really, really, really empowering,' Rapp added. 'And also, I think, can be kind of intimidating.' She said that coming out as a lesbian on SNL was 'pretty cunty,' but it felt 'so fucking good' and she 'didn't even look online' at the response after. Earlier this week, Rapp live debuted a new song, 'Leave Me Alone,' at the American Music Awards. 'Leave Me Alone' marked the first release from Rapp as a lead artist since sharing the deluxe edition of her debut album Snow Angel in 2023, and is a glimpse into her forthcoming second LP, Bite Me, out Aug. 1. On the single, Rapp takes jabs at her departure from the recently-cancelled HBO Max series Sex Lives of College Girls and her label chasing her down for new music. 'Signed a hundred NDAs but I still say something/Leave me alone, bitch, I wanna have fun/Took my sex life with me, now the show ain't fuckin',' she sings over banging percussion and blaring guitars. 'Can I tell you a secret/I'm so sick of it all.' Rapp left Sex Lives after two seasons to focus on her music career. The series was cancelled following the conclusion of its third season. By that point, the singer had already moved on to headlining tours in support of Snow Angel, packed festival sets, and a lead role in the film adaptation of Mean Girls: the Musical. Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
Courier-Mail
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Courier-Mail
Bill Hader exposes ‘terrible' celeb encounter
Don't miss out on the headlines from Celebrity Life. Followed categories will be added to My News. Bill Hader has the tea on Martin Kove. Over 10 years before Martin kove, 78, bit his co-star Alicia Hannah-Kim at a fan convention this past weekend, Hader, 47, spoke about a bizarre encounter he had with the Cobra Kai actor on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast. During the 2013 episode, Hader recalled that at age 20 his job was to drive actors to sets. One day, Hader was tasked with bringing Kove to a film shoot, reports the New York Post. 'I'm driving him around in my s***ty car, and he got me lost on purpose,' Hader claimed, adding that Kove 'hadn't read the script yet,' so he gave the Barry star the wrong directions. Hader said that after they arrived late, he got 'screamed at' by his boss. 'It was a terrible day,' Hader said of the moment, which only got worse. 'On the way back, we're driving,' Hader recalled. 'It's at night, and we're driving down the freeway. He was like, 'Bill, are you mad at me?'' Hader named and shamed the celebrity he had a 'terrible' experience with. Picture: Andrew Lipovsky/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images The Karate Kid actor then allegedly forced Hader to stop at a McDonald's and promised to get him a cookie and a milkshake. 'He comes back out eating the chocolate cookie and the milkshake,' the Saturday Night Live alum remembered. 'And he just sits in the back and goes, 'Come on, let's go.' It was the biggest f**k you.' 'It was a weird mind f**k of, like, 'I'm gonna get you this thing,' and then he ate it in front of me,' Hader added. 'And then I just drove home in silence.' Hader, who referred to the interaction as his 'first 'welcome to Hollywood, kid' moment,' noted that he had to keep driving Kove to work for a few more days. 'And I didn't talk to him after that,' Hader said. 'I just kind of stared straight ahead.' Despite Kove's rudeness, Hader said he gave the martial artist a pass. 'I heard he was going through a divorce, or something was happening with him,' Hader noted. 'He might be a really nice guy, but I just … rubbed him the wrong way. I don't know what was going on.' Martin Kove at the 1923 premiere earlier this year. Picture:for Paramount+ The Post has reached out to Kove's rep for comment. On Sunday, Kove was accused of biting Hannah-Kim, 37, in the arm at Washington State Summer Con. The actress, who played Kim Da-Eun for seasons 5 and 6 of Cobra Kai, claimed the alleged attack happened when she tapped Kove on the shoulder to greet him at their cast booth, according to a police report obtained by People. When he was questioned about the incident by police, Kove reportedly 'admitted to biting' Hannah-Kim but claimed 'he did it out of jest.' 'He thought he was being funny, and they play fight all the time on the set of Cobra Kai, and he did not think it was a big deal,' the report stated. Hannah-Kim declined to press charges against Kove, who was reportedly escorted out of the fan convention. Kove gave a full apology for the incident in a statement obtained by TMZ. 'I deeply regret and apologise for my actions regarding the incident with Alicia, a genuinely kind and wonderful person who didn't deserve to be put in this position,' he stated. This article originally appeared in the New York Post and was reproduced with permission. Originally published as Bill Hader exposes 'terrible' celeb encounter
