Dream Police - Seattle Gay News

Kevin Aviance
keeps
the party going
by Larry Nichols
Philadelphia Gay News
Special to the SGN
[Editor’s Note: He has appeared
in several films, including
Flawless starring Robert De Niro
and the independent film Punks.
Besides his feature-film work
he has made guest appearances
on such shows as the The Tyra
Banks Show, and America’s Next
Top Model, also hosted by Tyra
Banks. His songs “Din Da Da,”,
“Rhythm Is My Bitch”, “Alive”,
“Give It Up” and “Strut”, have all
reached #1 of the Billboard dance
chart.]
Kevin Aviance is living proof
that you cannot keep a good diva down —
evidenced by his newly introduced line of
shoes, a new album in progress, his tour to
promote anti-violence and his overall story
of survival.
It’s been almost a year since the singer
and performance artist was the victim of
a vicious anti-Gay attack by a group of
men as he left a New York City club. What
followed was months of physical recovery
and a trial that ended with his four attackers
pleading guilty and receiving prison
sentences ranging from six to 15 years.
Aviance still feels the effects of that attack
today, but even when the incident was fresh
in his mind and his jaw was broken and
wired shut, he still poured his energies into
performing.
“I was back on some sort of circuit two
weeks afterward,” he said. “I shouldn’t
have been but I was back working because
I couldn’t really sit at home all day. I could
only do a little bit but I haven’t really
stopped that much. I pressed through this
whole thing with the support of doing
shows and the support of other people. If
I had to sit in my house the whole time, I
would be crazy right now.”
Even with the attackers in jail, Aviance
still lives with the fallout from the assault
and doesn’t have any sense of closure.
“It’s not over,” he said. “I still have to deal
with the pain and the mental stuff. Every
day I’m struggling with it. It’s just hard. It’s
hard even to describe it, the repercussions
of everything. I had no idea it was going
to be like this. I had no idea it was going to
be this much of a thing I have to carry on
my shoulders. I had no idea it was going
to weaken me the way it did. Every day
is about me building my self-esteem up,
my gratitude for being alive and having
my friends around. Things are good. It’s a
struggle every day but things are good.”
Aviance now tours with an anti-violence
message and said the tour continues to gain
momentum.
“It’s going really, really well,” he said.
“We only had a couple cities booked at
the time and then all of a sudden, because
of Gay pride celebrations, people are
requesting more from me. It’s great. Some
of the prides are running back to back, so
doing three cities in one weekend is going
to be kind of hard. I’m on that anti-violence
tour for the rest of my life as far as I’m
concerned. I survived this thing and if I can
start spreading any wisdom about the whole
thing, it will help other people that have
been beaten or attacked to have a stronger
voice.”
Aviance is also channeling his creative
efforts into the world of fashion with his
new line of shoes.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to
have my own shoe store,” he said. “This
is going way back to 10 or 12 years ago. I
was so lucky to get hooked up with Global
Footwear Partners. It’s been magic ever
since. It’s been a dream of mine ever since
I was a little kid. I love shoes. I have a big
fetish for shoes as you know.”
Aviance said he designed his shoes with
the club-goer who wants to turn heads in
mind.
“My shoes are for the party person,” he
said. “It’s for going out at night. You want
to stand in something that will show you off
a little bit. Our heels are a little high and the
platforms are high but they are shoes to be
worn out. I’m definitely trying to market it
for the red carpet. I market it to women of
course. I do have larger sizes because if I
didn’t do it, the queens would let me have
it. I just think it’s great to have these shoes
available for people that can’t afford $800
shoes.”
Aviance is confident that his line of shoes
will be a hit, but don’t expect to see them
strutting down any red carpet any time
soon.
“Right now, we’re still pretty young,”
he said. “We’re just trying to get people to
wear the shoes. We’ve had a great response
from the people I’ve sent them to. We’re
starting out and it takes a while to get it
known. Face it — there are a lot of shoe
companies out there and there are a lot of
things people are doing that have been done
already. All I’m doing is bringing my style
and wisdom into how strong these heels
and shoes should be and how comfortable
they should be.”
Amid all this activity, Aviance still finds
time to work on a new record.
“I’m recording my third album and the
new single should be done in a couple
weeks,” he said. “I’m excited about getting
that out there. I’ve always wanted to do a
tribute to the songs that I loved so much in
my life and do my versions of them. That’s
what we’re doing this time around, almost
like a standards album. We’re going back to
the ’80s and ’90s, finding songs I like and
reworking them and bringing them back to
the forefront. There are a lot of great songs
out there.”
Aviance also said that while the events of
the last year may color his new music, it
won’t affect the type of music he makes.
“My writing has gotten a little dark from
what’s happened to me,” he said. “I wanted
to touch on that a little bit but I didn’t want
to bring anybody down. I’m a party girl.”
For more information on Aviance’s tour
and shoe line, see www.kevinavianceworld.
com.
© 2007 Philadelphia Gay News
16 Seattle Gay News PRIDE ‘07 Music
June 15, 2007