EASTHAMPTON — A new festival created by the LGBTQ+ community and its allies will debut on Saturday, Sept. 28 at CitySpace in QueerCore Fest.
The event will serve as a celebration of BIPOC, queer, trans, gender-diverse and femme voices, uniting music, art and activism for a day of collective empowerment and joy.
Organizing the event is the QueerCore Collaborative, a group of local Western Mass. musicians, artists and organizers out of the current DIY punk music scene in the region.
“What it came from was looking at the magic that’s really being created in some of the DIY underground punk scene here in the valley area, particularly centered in the Five Colleges Area,” said QueerCore Collaborative member and an organizer of the festival Ben Delozier. “There’s a lot of college kids and bands made up of college kids that are putting on these fantastic shows, basement shows, house shows, shows in classrooms that are just full of just rich, inclusive, excited energy.”
Noticing the growth in this scene, Delozier and other artist formed the collaborative earlier this year and set out on how they can create spaces for these groups. QueerCore Fest was eventually born out of an inspiration to create a space for LGBTQ performers and concert goers in the region as the community has been at the forefront of this local scene.
“It’s just like wow, look at these bands that are just showing up as themselves, but being who they are and offering up a particular form of representation to folks who are attending these events. Bands that have queer members, and showing up with that representation just kind of immediately sends this signal out to the community of queer folks that this is a space you can show up and you’re going to be received and celebrated for exactly who you are and feel that inclusivity in those spaces.”
Inspired by the energy of DIY punk shows, QueerCore Fest amplifies that magic with a stellar lineup of punk and hardcore bands, resource tables from 2SLGBTQIA+ affirming organizations and a maker’s market in partnership with Yet Another Queer Pop-up Market. The festival aims to bring attendees together and creates a space for connection, healing and a shared sense of belonging.
The day of performances will also serve as a benefit show raising funds for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, a non-political humanitarian organization providing essential care to children and families in Gaza and beyond.
“We believe live music has the power to bring people together and inspire collective liberation,” said Delozier. “QueerCore Fest is our way of showing the world that we’ve always been here, and we belong.”
Queercore Fest will start at 2 p.m. with the maker’s market opening and music beginning at 4 p.m. The market is free to enter, and tickets will begin at $20 in advance and $25 day of. There will be an on-site food truck and no food or alcohol is permitted inside. N-95 masks are required at the event by QueerCore as a means of radical community care and solidarity, and a limited quantity will be available at the door.
To view the performance lineup, get more information and tickets, visit https://events.humanitix.com/queercore-fest.
Delozier reiterated a big piece of forming the QueerCore Collaborative was in recognition that LGBTQ+ friendly spaces do not exist everywhere so to establish the first ever festival under their umbrella is important for he and other members in their mission.
“It’s much easier to feel like you can go to a show or anywhere when you don’t have to be concerned about if you’re going to be received or worry about how you’re being perceived and what you represent and if that is going to be welcomed in the space or not,” Delozier said.
Add in representation of the performers the space has lined up to be a safe space for celebration and concert fun.
Delozier said those interested in connecting with the QueerCore Collaborative can follow them on Instagram, where they are currently most active.
He added he thinks the collaborative can continue growth and become a hub of information and offer events and spaces for the LGBTQ+ community and its allies, expanding much further than just the valley. Delozier hopes QueerCore Fest can be the start of much to come from the collaborative and specifically an annual music event.
“I think part of the vision is wanting to basically be a clearinghouse for all information at the intersection of punk music and the queer community, especially in the New England area,” Delozier said. “We want to kind of be doing everything we can to create more visibility to folks that are creating art, sharing their art, creating spaces, shows that are hosting folks to get to experience that music and art.”
