The only thing that would hold people back is finding the venue to throw parties at if their venue doesn’t exist anymore. As soon as we get the green light, I’m sure that it’s going to be a pretty explosive summer. I don’t think anything will slow us down. Will it be difficult to readjust to going out again? It’s such an integral part of who we are and how we create. I’m sure everyone had a really hard time with it, but I do think that in the queer community, it’s so important to have each other, to have dinners with each other, to go out for drinks with each other, to just kind of party with each other. There was a lot going on, nationally, and even just within Portland, that it felt like those things were more important.ĭo you feel like, in a cultural sense, the queer community got hit particularly hard by the pandemic in terms of losing the ability to congregate and meet in these spaces? We did a couple events, but we’ve been going pretty hard for about five years and realized maybe this was the time just to take a step back. People are just so used to being able to at least have a little party at their house. To not throw Pride was pretty significant, I think. People go out there for community and to see other people, and it’s really a nice time in their week to let go of whatever’s going on. I had been going to DJ at least five times a month, so for things to go quiet was super-different. When things first shut down last year, can you recall what was going through your head? Meghan Holmes: I’m going through six chemo treatments and I’ve gone through four, so I have two left and they’ll probably end just around Pride time. WW: First off, you were diagnosed with ovarian cancer earlier this year. (Aaron Lee) Megan Holmes, aka Troubled Youth They’re so happy to have entertainment again. I can’t go down and talk to them like we used to, but I know from the reaction, without having to discuss it, that the reactions are wonderful. Now that you’re back performing in the club, do you have a sense of what it means for the audience to be able to see you up close again? I worked hard to get it there, and now that it’s there, we still work hard. I would not have imagined that would ever happen. Could you have ever imagined that happening? In between numbers, they brought me blankets, and I was all wrapped like I was in Alaska.ĭarcelle’s was added to the National Registry of Historic Places last year. It was fun, it was hard work, and it was also very, very cold. Most of the shows were sold out-I think 200 cars. We were approached by a producer, and we did five shows in three days.