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Get Out! GAY Magazine – Issue 431 August 14, 2019

Featuring content from the hottest gay and gay-friendly spots in New York, each (free!) issue of Get Out! highlights the bars, nightclubs, restaurants, spas and other businesses throughout NYC’s metropolitan area that the city’s gay population is interested in.

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THOMAS<br />

TALKS<br />

ABOUT: CATFISHING<br />

I started catfishing<br />

my ex on a phone<br />

app, and now I can’t<br />

stop. Two weeks ago,<br />

I was on an app and<br />

saw a cropped off pic<br />

that I instantly knew<br />

was my ex. We don’t<br />

talk anymore and it<br />

freaked me out, so I<br />

quickly blocked him.<br />

That night, I was still<br />

thinking about how I<br />

missed talking dirty<br />

with him, so I opened<br />

up another account<br />

(stupid, I know),<br />

grabbed a few pictures<br />

off the Internet and<br />

sent him a message.<br />

He replied right away. I<br />

made up a whole story<br />

about myself, and<br />

now the messaging<br />

has been continuing,<br />

and he wants to meet<br />

up. Obviously this is a<br />

terrible idea, but I’m<br />

loving talking to him<br />

again. Can you see any<br />

way out of this where<br />

I’m not a monster?<br />

-Male, Gay, 22<br />

You basically have two<br />

options: 1). Tell him the<br />

truth, or 2). Delete the<br />

account and knock it<br />

off. Neither of those<br />

are probably what<br />

you’re hoping for, but<br />

I don’t see any way<br />

this is going to end in<br />

your favor. You didn’t<br />

mention why you guys<br />

ended the relationship,<br />

but if you’re not able to<br />

talk at all, it probably<br />

wasn’t good. If you<br />

continue to do this, he<br />

is probably going to<br />

lose interest anyways<br />

after not meeting, and<br />

if you don’t stop now,<br />

it’s just going to hurt<br />

more later. Actually, it<br />

would be in your best<br />

interest to just tell him<br />

it’s you. Be honest and<br />

see what happens.<br />

The worst is probably<br />

that you’ll stop talking<br />

again; the best, you<br />

rekindle it.<br />

This is going to sound<br />

crazy, but for the last<br />

three years I’ve been<br />

“dating” someone,<br />

and now I think he<br />

might be catfishing<br />

me! We met in a<br />

chatroom—yeah, very<br />

old school. We talk<br />

constantly, but we’ve<br />

never Facetimed; he<br />

always has an excuse<br />

not to. Any time I try<br />

to get him to, he tells<br />

me I need to trust<br />

him. We haven’t met<br />

because he lives in<br />

Germany. I’d travel for<br />

him, but he tells me to<br />

save my money. I’m so<br />

in love with him, but<br />

I’ve also only spoken<br />

to him a few times.<br />

How can I tell if he’s<br />

real or not? -Male,<br />

Gay, 36<br />

I feel like this is an<br />

actual episode of<br />

“Catfish.” Three years<br />

is a long time to be<br />

talking to someone who<br />

you’re not even sure if<br />

they are who they say<br />

they are. And I have so<br />

many questions! Have<br />

you asked him if he’s<br />

catfishing you? Would<br />

you not want to be with<br />

him if he is lying? Are<br />

you planning to move<br />

to Germany, or him<br />

here? Is there a future<br />

plan for you guys? And,<br />

are you in therapy? I’m<br />

concerned about how<br />

you feel about yourself<br />

that you’re willing to<br />

ignore a lot of red flags<br />

to stay in a relationship<br />

that I can’t imagine is<br />

satisfying. There is a<br />

good chance this guy<br />

is hiding something<br />

from you, and you<br />

gotta face that. Pro tip:<br />

Google search those<br />

pics and see what else<br />

comes up! They may be<br />

someone else.<br />

Sex/Love/Relationship advice? Send your questions to: ThomasTalksAbout@gmail.com<br />

@ThomasWhitfield84


M<br />

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ISSUE #<strong>431</strong><br />

AUGUST <strong>14</strong> <strong>2019</strong><br />

COVER<br />

JAI RODRIGUEZ<br />

PHOTOGRAPHER<br />

RUBEN TOMAS<br />

PUBLISHER MICHAEL TODD<br />

MIKE@GETOUTMAG.COM<br />

DESIGN AGOTA CORREA<br />

AGOTA@GETOUTMAG.COM<br />

CONTRIBUTOR THOMAS WHITFIELD<br />

THOMASTALKSABOUT@GMAIL.COM<br />

CONTRIBUTOR IAN-MICHAEL BERGERON<br />

@IANMICHAELINWONDERLAND<br />

CELEBRITY INTERVIEWER EILEEN SHAPIRO<br />

@EILEENSHAPIRO3<br />

NIGHTLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER WILSONMODELS<br />

JEASO86@HOTMAIL.COM<br />

The publications of MJT/GOOTH ENTERTAINMENT, getoutmag.com or any<br />

other related print or Web publications or social media accounts, their images,<br />

quotations or articles should not be construed to be an indication of the sexual<br />

orientation of anyone portrayed therein.<br />

All Content © Copyright <strong>2019</strong><br />

MJT/GOOTH ENTERTAINMENT<br />

25-21 45TH STREET ASTORIA, NY 11103<br />

GET OUT OF THE HOUSE ENTERTAINMENT EST. 2009


691 Tenth Avenue Off West 47 th Street NYC<br />

Across from Hell’s Kitchen Park<br />

WWW.NANOBARNYC.COM


BY EILEEN SHAPIRO<br />

CELEBRITY CORRESPONDENT<br />

J A I R O D R I G U E Z<br />

‘Channel Q’<br />

CREDIT: COURTESY OF JAI RODRIGUEZ<br />

Good morning, New York! On your drive to and from<br />

work, you can now listen to Channel Q and you can<br />

listen to it in New York on 92.3 HD3, the premier<br />

LGBTQ+ Talk Radio Network, “dedicated to celebrating<br />

the LGBTQ+ community and their allies.” The brand<br />

new radio station is all about diversity, inclusion, pop<br />

culture, LGBTQ+ news and new music. Entercom Radio<br />

launched the station’s expansion to six new cities,<br />

including New York, in February bringing the number of<br />

national affiliates to over 30 markets, including LA, SF,<br />

DC, Chicago, Boston, Miami, Dallas, Las Vegas, Denver<br />

and Seattle to name just a few. The program can also<br />

be heard nationwide via the Radio.com app.<br />

I spoke with morning host and TV personality Jai<br />

Rodriguez, who appeared on the original “Queer Eye,”<br />

and even received an Emmy for it. He vibrantly narrated<br />

the characteristics of his radio show, “The Morning<br />

Beat,” and what it is all about. The show began as a<br />

passion project in Los Angeles and quickly grew, and it<br />

is constantly expanding.<br />

INTERVIEW______________<br />

Tell me about your radio<br />

show. Is it mainstream?<br />

What is your definition of<br />

mainstream?<br />

I can listen to it in my<br />

car, and it’s not Sirius or<br />

satellite radio.<br />

It’s mainstream in the car,<br />

which is, I think, the more<br />

shocking thing for a lot of<br />

friends to stumble across<br />

a familiar voice and say, “I<br />

thought you were doing a<br />

podcast!” Why would they<br />

think that? This is an actual<br />

coast-to-coast radio station<br />

that’s available, like you<br />

said, in your car.


CHANNEL Q morning show host Jai Rodriguez hosted PRIDE in San Diego last year<br />

It’s also available on the Radio.com app<br />

and on HD radio, and you can even shout<br />

that to your smart speaker Alexa and just<br />

say, “Play Channel Q on Radio.com.” So<br />

you can literally listen to it everywhere that<br />

you could possibly imagine.<br />

How did you get started?<br />

Channel Q came out of an innovation<br />

team at Entercom Radio. We asked<br />

ourselves what was missing from the<br />

current radio landscape and discovered<br />

there was a need for an audio platform for<br />

the LGBTQ+ community and our allies, a<br />

destination that included not just music,<br />

but opportunities for meaningful dialogue<br />

and discussion of the news of the day and<br />

current events impacting both the LGBTQ+<br />

and progressive communities.<br />

What do you want your listeners to take<br />

away from Channel Q?<br />

That Channel Q is a destination where<br />

members of the LGBTQ+ community and<br />

our allies can come to hear themselves<br />

being represented and reflected back. A<br />

place where their stories are being told,<br />

and a place where they feel they are being<br />

heard.<br />

If I want to listen to Elvis Duran, I put on<br />

Z100. If I want to listen to Jai Rodriguez,<br />

what do I put on?<br />

In New York it’s 92.3 HD3. We have four talk<br />

breaks an hour, like Z100 and a lot of the<br />

other radio stations, where it’s music and<br />

commercials and then four talk breaks.<br />

They are about 5 to 7 minutes<br />

depending if there’s a celebrity<br />

guest or whatever. It’s a similar<br />

format. Our program director,<br />

Brian Holt, was the creator<br />

and executive producer of<br />

Ryan Seacrest’s first nationally<br />

syndicated radio show. I have to<br />

say, after listening to that show<br />

for years I do feel that we have a<br />

structurally similar vowel. So it’s<br />

going to be really familiar to the<br />

ear. The first time friends heard it,<br />

it was really interesting, because<br />

it was the first time that a lot of<br />

my friends had been listening to<br />

something on terrestrial radio that<br />

was specifically geared for our<br />

community, that wasn’t just dance<br />

music. It actually has contests<br />

to politics to popular culture to<br />

health—I mean, you name it, we<br />

cover it. Certainly in the morning<br />

we cover all those kinds of<br />

morning-relevant topics.<br />

Are you familiar with WBLI, a<br />

Long Island station?<br />

I grew up with BLI. I’m from Long<br />

Island. I lived on Long Island<br />

until I was 18, and then I starred<br />

on Broadway for half a decade,<br />

and then I got my first Emmy<br />

with “Queer Eye” and moved to<br />

California after the episodes of<br />

“Queer Eye” in New York. So I’m<br />

familiar with WBLI.


CHANNEL Q morning show host Jai Rodriguez celebrated his 40th birthday alongside<br />

Carson and Shira and his CHANNEL Q co-host Mikalah Gordon<br />

How would you compare Channel Q<br />

with a station like BLI?<br />

I would say that Channel Q is a party<br />

with a purpose.<br />

It’s fantastic to know that I’ve been<br />

working in this industry for 22 years.<br />

1997 is when I started, and I’ve really<br />

been doing this for a good amount of<br />

time professionally. So let’s face it, when<br />

I try to compare something to another<br />

thing, I say we are covering the same<br />

headlines of Kardashian to Trump.<br />

Our station, for the first time, gives a<br />

voice the LGBTQ community. We’ve<br />

never had one in radio. Our media in<br />

the U.S. covers Gay Pride and things<br />

like that, but they don’t tell our story.<br />

They don’t make headlines in the way<br />

that Channel Q makes them a priority.<br />

When you see something or you hear<br />

about something, it makes you more<br />

compassionate for that issue and gives<br />

you a broader understanding of what<br />

people who might be actually different<br />

than you are experiencing. That mutual<br />

experience is the thing that unites us to<br />

realize, hey, we are all going through a<br />

lot of the same stuff.<br />

What kind of music do you<br />

play?<br />

Brian Holt, , our program and<br />

music director, would like to say,<br />

“music that makes you want to<br />

move and inspires you.” So it<br />

tends to be things that have a<br />

good beat to them, we play a<br />

wide variety of pop, dance and<br />

EDM artists. Our playlist includes<br />

LGBTQ artists such as Sam Smith,<br />

Troye Sivan, Greyson Chance,<br />

Janelle Monae, King Princess,<br />

Adam Lambert and Erasure. We<br />

also play artists that support our<br />

community, artists like Billie Eilish,<br />

Lady Gaga, Halsey, Ellie Goulding,<br />

Robin Schulz, Avicii, Pink, Jonas<br />

Brothers, Panic at the Disco!,<br />

Calvin Harris, David Guetta,<br />

Kelly Clarkson, Ariana Grande<br />

and Lizzo, to name just a few!<br />

Whew! And of course we play the<br />

queen, Madonna, including a few<br />

songs from “Madame X” CD,<br />

including remixes by Tracy Young.<br />

And other artist are popping up<br />

weekly on our format.


Any success stories or<br />

interviews you want to share?<br />

A lot of the people that started<br />

with a small following now have<br />

17- to 20-something million<br />

followers and end up getting<br />

crazy radio play all over the<br />

world. I have the fortune of<br />

having a good friend that was<br />

at Coachella with the Channel<br />

Q Coachella house, and it was<br />

K-Rock, Amp and us, and many<br />

of the mainstream artists that<br />

performed at Coachella were<br />

overjoyed that there was an<br />

LGBTQ station and wanted to<br />

interview with us. That was not<br />

the expectation we were told<br />

coming in. We were told that<br />

we were new and that we may<br />

not get some of the big heavyhitters.<br />

But instead, the heavy<br />

hitters were more than eager to<br />

join us and have a chat in our<br />

Channel Q Coachella house.<br />

Were you in New York for<br />

WorldPride?<br />

I was not. I was actually in San<br />

Francisco in the parade, so it<br />

was a great opportunity to kind<br />

of see that as commercial as<br />

we think it has become, it really<br />

hasn’t. You go to San Francisco<br />

and are reminded the “+”<br />

of LGBTQ+. Those who are<br />

gender-nonconforming are<br />

having a hard time getting<br />

work and all those things.<br />

While I may have been working<br />

in this industry for 22 years<br />

and have accomplished things<br />

that are groundbreaking in<br />

terms of where we’ve come as<br />

a community, we still have a<br />

very long way to go. Until my<br />

brothers and sisters experience<br />

the same kind of life that I do,<br />

and I have that opportunity,<br />

I will continue to fight. Of<br />

course, selfishly, I would’ve<br />

loved to go to WorldPride,<br />

but honestly from May till like<br />

September I feel like my life<br />

isn’t mine.<br />

Where are you based? What are the<br />

best ways to tune in?<br />

Our main studios are based in Los<br />

Angeles. We also have studios in other<br />

markets like NYC, D.C., San Francisco,<br />

Chicago, Miami, Boston, Philly, Seattle<br />

and Palm Springs. Though Channel Q<br />

broadcasts coast-to-coast, the fastest<br />

and easiest way to connect and take us<br />

anywhere is to download the Radio.com<br />

app then just search for Channel Q.<br />

9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Eastern<br />

6 to 10 a.m. Pacific<br />

Morning Beat with Jai Rodriguez<br />

and Mikalah Gordon<br />

1to 5 p.m. Eastern<br />

Drop the Subject with Ally Johnson<br />

and Jarrett Hill Drop the Subject<br />

looks at politics and current<br />

event news of the day through<br />

the LGBTQ+ lens<br />

5 to 7 p.m. Eastern<br />

Two-hour Music Mix Show<br />

hosted by DJ Alex D<br />

7 to 10 p.m. Eastern<br />

Let’s Go There with Shira<br />

Lazar and Ryan Mitchell<br />

10 p.m. to 12 a.m. Eastern<br />

Loveline with Dr. Chris Donaghue


IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION<br />

What is the most important information<br />

I should know about BIKTARVY ® ?<br />

BIKTARVY may cause serious<br />

side effects:<br />

} Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV)<br />

infection. If you have both HIV-1 and<br />

HBV and stop taking BIKTARVY, your<br />

HBV may suddenly get worse. Do not<br />

stop taking BIKTARVY without first<br />

talking to your healthcare provider, as<br />

they will need to monitor your health.<br />

Who should not take BIKTARVY?<br />

Do not take BIKTARVY if you take:<br />

} dofetilide<br />

} r i f a m p i n<br />

} any other medicines to treat HIV-1<br />

What are the other possible side<br />

effects of BIKTARVY?<br />

Serious side effects of BIKTARVY may<br />

also include:<br />

} Changes in your immune system. Your<br />

immune system may get stronger<br />

and begin to fight infections. Tell your<br />

healthcare provider if you have any<br />

new symptoms after you start<br />

taking BIKTARVY.<br />

} Kidney problems, including kidney<br />

failure. Your healthcare provider should<br />

do blood and urine tests to check your<br />

kidneys. If you develop new or worse<br />

kidney problems, they may tell you to<br />

stop taking BIKTARVY.<br />

} Too much lactic acid in your blood<br />

(lactic acidosis), which is a serious but<br />

rare medical emergency that can lead<br />

to death. Tell your healthcare provider<br />

right away if you get these symptoms:<br />

weakness or being more tired than<br />

usual, unusual muscle pain, being short<br />

of breath or fast breathing, stomach<br />

pain with nausea and vomiting, cold<br />

or blue hands and feet, feel dizzy<br />

or lightheaded, or a fast or<br />

abnormal heartbeat.<br />

} Severe liver problems, which in rare<br />

cases can lead to death. Tell your<br />

healthcare provider right away if you<br />

get these symptoms: skin or the white<br />

part of your eyes turns yellow, dark<br />

“tea-colored” urine, light-colored<br />

stools, loss of appetite for several<br />

days or longer, nausea, or stomacharea<br />

pain.<br />

The most common side effects of<br />

BIKTARVY in clinical studies were<br />

diarrhea (6%), nausea (5%), and<br />

headache (5%). Tell your healthcare<br />

provider if you have any side effects<br />

that bother you or don’t go away.<br />

What should I tell my healthcare<br />

provider before taking BIKTARVY?<br />

} All your health problems. Be sure to tell<br />

your healthcare provider if you have or<br />

have had any kidney or liver problems,<br />

including hepatitis virus infection.<br />

} All the medicines you take, including<br />

prescription and over-the-counter<br />

medicines, antacids, laxatives, vitamins,<br />

and herbal supplements. BIKTARVY<br />

and other medicines may affect each<br />

other. Keep a list of all your medicines<br />

and show it to your healthcare provider<br />

and pharmacist, and ask if it is safe<br />

to take BIKTARVY with all of your<br />

other medicines.<br />

} If you are pregnant or plan to become<br />

pregnant. It is not known if BIKTARVY<br />

can harm your unborn baby. Tell your<br />

healthcare provider if you become<br />

pregnant while taking BIKTARVY.<br />

} If you are breastfeeding (nursing) or<br />

plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed.<br />

HIV-1 can be passed to the baby in<br />

breast milk.<br />

You are encouraged to report negative<br />

side effects of prescription drugs to<br />

the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch,<br />

or call 1-800-FDA-1088.<br />

Ask your healthcare provider if<br />

BIKTARVY is right for you.<br />

Please see Important Facts about BIKTARVY, including<br />

important warnings, on the following page.


KEEP<br />

EMPOWERING.<br />

Because HIV doesn’t change who you are.<br />

What is BIKTARVY?<br />

BIKTARVY is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat<br />

HIV-1 in adults. It can either be used in people who have never taken HIV-1<br />

medicines before, or people who are replacing their current HIV-1 medicines<br />

and whose healthcare provider determines they meet certain requirements.<br />

BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. HIV-1 is the virus that causes AIDS.<br />

BIKTARVY.COM


(bik-TAR-vee)<br />

IMPORTANT FACTS<br />

This is only a brief summary of<br />

important information about BIKTARVY ®<br />

and does not replace talking to<br />

your healthcare provider about your<br />

condition and your treatment.<br />

MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BIKTARVY<br />

BIKTARVY may cause serious side effects, including:<br />

• Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection. If you have both HIV-1 and<br />

HBV, your HBV may suddenly get worse if you stop taking BIKTARVY. Do<br />

not stop taking BIKTARVY without first talking to your healthcare provider,<br />

as they will need to check your health regularly for several months.<br />

ABOUT BIKTARVY<br />

BIKTARVY is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used<br />

to treat HIV-1 in adults. It can either be used in people who have never taken<br />

HIV-1 medicines before, or people who are replacing their current HIV-1<br />

medicines and whose healthcare provider determines they meet certain<br />

requirements.<br />

BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. HIV-1 is the virus that<br />

causes AIDS.<br />

Do NOT take BIKTARVY if you also take a medicine that contains:<br />

• dofetilide<br />

• rifampin<br />

• any other medicines to treat HIV-1<br />

BEFORE TAKING BIKTARVY<br />

Tell your healthcare provider all your medical conditions,<br />

including if you:<br />

• Have or have had any kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis infection.<br />

• Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.<br />

• Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed if you<br />

have HIV-1 because of the risk of passing HIV-1 to your baby.<br />

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take:<br />

• Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-the-counter medicines,<br />

antacids, laxatives, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your<br />

healthcare provider and pharmacist.<br />

• Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist about medicines that interact<br />

with BIKTARVY.


POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF BIKTARVY<br />

BIKTARVY can cause serious side effects, including:<br />

• Those in the “Most Important Information About BIKTARVY” section.<br />

• Changes in your immune system.<br />

• New or worse kidney problems, including kidney failure.<br />

• Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a serious<br />

but rare medical emergency that can lead to death. Tell your healthcare<br />

provider right away if you get these symptoms: weakness or being<br />

more tired than usual, unusual muscle pain, being short of breath or fast<br />

breathing, stomach pain with nausea and vomiting, cold or blue hands<br />

and feet, feel dizzy or lightheaded, or a fast or abnormal heartbeat.<br />

• Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell<br />

your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin<br />

or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine,<br />

light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea,<br />

or stomach-area pain.<br />

• The most common side effects of BIKTARVY in clinical studies were<br />

diarrhea (6%), nausea (5%), and headache (5%).<br />

These are not all the possible side effects of BIKTARVY. Tell your healthcare<br />

provider right away if you have any new symptoms while taking BIKTARVY.<br />

Your healthcare provider will need to do tests to monitor your health<br />

before and during treatment with BIKTARVY.<br />

HOW TO TAKE BIKTARVY<br />

Take BIKTARVY 1 time each day with or without food.<br />

GET MORE INFORMATION<br />

• This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY.<br />

Talk to your healthcare provider or pharmacist to learn more.<br />

• Go to BIKTARVY.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5.<br />

• If you need help paying for your medicine, visit BIKTARVY.com for<br />

program information.<br />

BIKTARVY, the BIKTARVY Logo, LOVE WHAT’S INSIDE, GILEAD,<br />

and the GILEAD Logo are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or<br />

its related companies.<br />

Version date: February 2018<br />

© 2018 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. BVYC0051 06/18


getoutmag.com week in pictures >> BY WILSONMODELS / wilsonmodels.blogspot.com<br />

FIRE ISLAND PINES PARTY WEEKEND


BY EILEEN SHAPIRO<br />

CELEBRITY CORRESPONDENT<br />

Singer<br />

SAMANTHA COLE<br />

Hitches Her Way Back to<br />

Recording and Performing<br />

Recording artist and<br />

songwriter Samantha Cole’s<br />

career began when she was<br />

the first artist signed to<br />

Universal Records at age<br />

19. Her self-titled debut<br />

album spawned the Top 40<br />

single “Happy With You“<br />

and fan favorite “Without<br />

You,” which was covered<br />

by “American Idol” alums<br />

Kimberly Locke and Clay<br />

Aiken.<br />

PHOTO CREDIT: BRENNEN J. COLE<br />

Cole has co-written with<br />

David Foster, Diane Warren,<br />

Nile Rodgers, Richard Marx,<br />

Robin Thicke, members of<br />

Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Boyz II<br />

Men, Hootie & the Blowfish<br />

and many other greats. She<br />

has toured with major acts<br />

such as Backstreet Boys,<br />

Shaggy and 98 Degrees.<br />

She is also well known for<br />

her hit “Luv Me, Luv Me”<br />

with Shaggy from his multiplatinum<br />

album “Hot Shot.”<br />

She has also released a<br />

number of successful dance<br />

music covers, including<br />

Animotion’s “Obsession”<br />

and Monica’s “Angel of<br />

Mine.”


Now Cole has released her first<br />

single in over 10 years, titled<br />

“Hitchhiker,” and she has taken a few<br />

minutes with <strong>Get</strong> <strong>Out</strong>! to talk about<br />

her career and her return with the<br />

brand-new single!<br />

INTERVIEW<br />

You took quite a long hiatus. What<br />

inspired you to return to making<br />

music?<br />

I never put behind music. I dropped out<br />

of “the scene” when I got married—and<br />

to have children.<br />

Now I am divorced... that’s another story...<br />

and my three beautiful kids [Max, Bella<br />

and Arianna] are at an age now where<br />

I can “return”! But, during most of the<br />

decade I was also doing voice coaching,<br />

consulting and mentoring of aspiring<br />

talents through my company, Celebrity<br />

Voice Coach.<br />

One of your most well-known songs is<br />

“Luv Me, Luv Me,” your collaboration<br />

with international superstar Shaggy.<br />

Have you worked with Shaggy since?<br />

Shaggy remains a good friend. I recently<br />

joined him on stage during a concert<br />

of his in Stamford, Connecticut. The<br />

audience goes wild whenever we sing<br />

“Luv Me, Luv Me.” It is a fan favorite for<br />

both of us. We have recorded a couple<br />

of times since, but we have not released<br />

anything. I am sure that we will record<br />

together again someday. You never<br />

know!<br />

You made a successful career out of<br />

making dance music following your<br />

pop recordings. What were some of<br />

the highlights of that era?<br />

My cover of the ‘80s band Animotion’s<br />

“Obsession” charted on Billboard and<br />

got me booked into a lot of nightclubs,<br />

but the biggest highlight of all was<br />

getting to perform in the LGBTQ clubs<br />

that were popular in the city back then,<br />

like Spirit and Splash. I even performed<br />

at an LGBTQ conference at the Jacob<br />

Javits Center, which was amazing! There’s<br />

no better feeling as a performer than the<br />

love you get from the fans, and those<br />

fans in the gay clubs really give you back<br />

the love that you give them. It’s so fun!<br />

Aside from my new single “Hitchhiker”<br />

and forthcoming EP, I also have a dance<br />

song called “Weekend Love” coming out<br />

soon in Germany.


Where do you draw<br />

inspiration from when you<br />

write songs, and what is<br />

your favorite part about<br />

the process?<br />

Lately, it’s been real life<br />

that has really inspired<br />

my writing. It sparked it. I<br />

believe that I have been<br />

through so much that I have<br />

matured, and so has my<br />

writing. I love coming up<br />

with a concept and then<br />

seeing the final product<br />

come to life.<br />

What inspired you to<br />

write and record your new<br />

single, “Hitchhiker”?<br />

The experience of being<br />

divorced and single again,<br />

and back in the dating<br />

world... it’s very surreal. So<br />

much has changed, and no<br />

one is personable anymore.<br />

Everything is a click away.<br />

I was on a Skype lesson<br />

with my student Lindsay.<br />

When she asked me about<br />

a certain situation, I said:<br />

“It’s OK, he was just another<br />

‘hitchhiker,’” and BAM,<br />

it came to me: This is a<br />

song! I was literally on the<br />

treadmill the next day, and<br />

all these ideas came pouring out of me!<br />

I had to stop and put them in my phone.<br />

I was also in a tanning bed—I know,<br />

it’s bad for you—and I had to jump out<br />

because the melody came to me for the<br />

chorus! It was insane! I was creative again<br />

just like that! The rest fell into place so<br />

perfectly with the music thanks to another<br />

student, Joseph, who guided me in the<br />

direction for the track. I wrote it in an<br />

hour once I had the music. It was just<br />

meant to be!<br />

Do you have plans to release an EP or<br />

full album?<br />

Yes! Following a few single releases I will<br />

be putting out an EP on October 23. I’m<br />

extremely proud of this project. It’s very<br />

close to my heart, and will be shared from<br />

my heart. It’s the chapter of the story of<br />

PHOTO CREDIT: JIMMY GRECO<br />

the last 10 years of my life, all wrapped<br />

up in one EP!<br />

How can we get your new single?<br />

You can stream my new single<br />

“Hitchhiker”—which was just released on<br />

<strong>August</strong> 7—on Spotify, and it is available<br />

from all the leading digital music stores:<br />

iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon Music,<br />

GooglePlay, Deezer, Tidal and more.<br />

There will also be a music video and lyric<br />

video on my YouTube channel. Remixes<br />

will follow.<br />

INSTAGRAM: @official_samantha_cole<br />

FACEBOOK: @OfficialSamanthaCole<br />

TWITTER: @SingerSamCole<br />

YOUTUBE: Samantha Cole Channel


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