John Gram
Artists
Mrs. Kasha Davis
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Mrs. Kasha Davis’s famous catchphrase on RuPaul’s Drag Race season 7? “There’s always time for a cocktail.” But since 2015, Davis has been sober, which has profoundly impacted her life and work for the better. “In the process of clearing my mind over those eight-plus years, I have discovered the importance of giving back and being a light that was not there for me growing up.”
And Davis is a light, be it on season 8 of All Stars this year or the drag story hour she has helmed for almost seven years at Blackfriars Theatre in Rochester, N.Y. In the face of right-wing attacks on drag artists entertaining and educating kids, she has doubled down. In fact, her proudest accomplishment is securing a partnership with a production company to create a children’s TV show that she would cohost with her husband, Mr. Davis (a.k.a. Steven Levins).
“We are winning,” says Davis, who is a stepparent of two. “No matter how loud, angry, or even violent the haters are we win by being exactly who we are. Through these difficult times we have continued to build allyship and awareness and, I hope we continue to see the progress that is being made as we continue to stand in our truth and light.”
Coming up, Davis will be playing the role of Barry in a production of The Prom and will teach a course on drag at SUNY Brockport as an adjunct professor. She also continues to be an advocate for LGBTQ+ people struggling with addiction. “There are many paths to recovery, and the biggest message is that we can’t make it alone,” says Davis, adding, “I live my recovery openly so that others in the LGBTQ+ community can see it’s possible. One day at a time.” @mrskashadavis
Photo by Stuart Winecoff
Troye Sivan
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Photo by Stuart Winecoff
It’s been five years since Troye Sivan’s second studio album, Bloom, was released to much acclaim. And Something to Give Each Other, which came out this October, was well worth the wait.
Sivan and his art routinely spark conversation in pop and LGBTQ+ culture. “Rush,” the album’s lead single that dropped in July, is no exception. It became (along with Kylie Minogue’s “Padam Padam”) the queer song of the summer. The steamy music video, an explosion of dancing, abs, and hedonism, unleashed its own rush of think pieces about popper use and body diversity in queer spaces.
Sivan, who as an actor had a role this year on The Idol — Max’s much-skewered scripted show on pop stardom— also made headlines for his candor this year. He revealed on the High Low podcast that, despite the reputation he received from 2018’s “Bloom,” which was widely received as a bottom anthem, he is, in fact, not a “power bottom.”
Whatever his preferences, Sivan has proven himself a versatile artist. The release of Something to Give Each Other was Troye’s proudest accomplishment of 2023 — along with the launch of Tsu Lange Yor. The Australian lifestyle and homeware brand, for which Sivan serves as creative director, sells candles and scents as well as home objects. “My brother and I started it together, had to trust our guts, find incredible people to work with, and have learnt so much along the way,” the 28-year-old says.
In art and in life, Sivan remains inspired by his community. “Through so much adversity, the LGBTQ+ community pushes to be a safe space for all — pulled together by pillars of love, support, chosen family, and freedom,” he says. “Queer people everywhere need to be protected and be able to celebrate themselves as loudly as they want.” @troyesivan