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Hot Femme in the City

Tag Archives: Celebrities

Interview with Musician Sierra West

24 Wednesday Oct 2012

Posted by natasiarose in Celebrities, Music, Sexy Ladies

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Alternative Rock, animal, artist, Break ups, Celebrities, coming out, ellen, Entertainment, healing, Interview, joan baez, lesbian, LGBT, Love, music, Queer, relationship, Sierra West, U Haul

Image courtesy of http://www.sierrarocks.com

Sierra West is the latest talented queer lady to hit the music scene hard. West released her latest LP, “Hold Your Fire” in early September. Her sound is soothing, with an edge and her lyrics are sprinkled with metaphors referencing nature. West turned to music after the sudden loss of her brother to a drunk driver and her pain, love and hope is reflected in her sound. The openly lesbian animal lover chatted with me about music, break-ups, U-hauls and animals. What more could you want in a gay lady interview?!

Hot Femme: When did you discover your passion for music?

Sierra West: I’ve always loved living and creating music. I suppose it became my passion in high school after a difficult break-up.  However, it became my career focus at UVM in Chittenden Hall when my new friend Dawn made me play in the hallway for all the girls on our floor. I never had so much fun. I later became one of the first performers at Radio Bean (Burlington, VT), which was quite a change from secretly playing and writing in my room at home. I have been playing out ever since. I will always be a writer and musician, perhaps I always was.

HF: What was your first song about?

SW: My Aunt Joanie secretly taped me singing in my room when I was around the age of 5. She mailed me the tape for my 18th birthday and one song was about my best friend Brooke, her older sister, and gymnastics. It’s pretty funny. I wrote other songs in 8th grade that were more environmental. I remember submitting to a magazine as a school assignment in which Jackson Browne would cover the song if it won. Mine was not chosen, but it was about saving dolphins and I bet it made someone smile.

HF: You’ve mentioned that Joan Baez and Bob Dylan are two of your most important musical influences, what is it about their music that you relate too?

SW: I really connect with the raw content, the lyrics, and the history behind the stories. They are the artists who opened my eyes to folk music. Actually, Ani DiFranco made me aware of folk artists like Woody Guthrie and Utah Phillips much along the same path. They were creating a movement, a community, a way of living. They didn’t just write songs, they changed lives…and still do.

Image courtesy of http://www.sierrarocks.com

HF: You’re here and queer; has that had any impact on your music?

SW: Absolutely, it keeps it interesting. In fact, I have performed at several Dyke March Fundraisers and opened for a few drag shows. One more recently in Northampton, MA called “Suicide is a Drag” for the Mass Coalition for Suicide Prevention. Being “here and queer” requires combating a lot of hatred, fear, and loneliness. It is important to be open and help other people feel supported and less alone.

HF: You’re a super huge animal lover, working as a vet tech and donating regularly to animal shelters….which is pretty par for the course for lesbians. Why do you think we all love animals so much?

SW: I actually never correlated the two together aside from knowing how much Ellen DeGeneres supports animal causes, but now that you ask I can see why. I wanted to be a veterinarian since I was four years old, but I didn’t realize I was queer until my senior year in high school. I can’t speak for everyone, but I imagine it is because animals usually don’t judge people or discriminate against them. They love unconditionally. Judgment comes with a history of abuse or trauma. I think it is our duty to speak for them and help calm their fear. We practice compassion and forgiveness because we are challenged on a daily basis. We combat fear every day.

HF: Have you ever U-hauled with a girlfriend and then written a song about it?

SW: I haven’t, but I did just U-haul all the way across the country for love. Maybe now is the time for that song to come out!

HF: To take a serious turn, fans may not know this, but you lost your brother to a drunk driver suddenly when you were a teenager. How has music helped you heal from your loss?

SW: Music is the only thing that keeps me sane when I think about it. I not only lost a brother and all of the friends we shared at the time, but I lost my unconditional best friend for life. The healing is never complete; it just changes form and reveals itself in new ways. He was a musician as well, an extraverted, fun-loving people person. I was very shy and quiet, but we shared music all the time. I know we would be performing together if he were here. He is with me every time I sing.

HF: Which songs (both of yours and in general) would you recommend for people who are suffering from the loss of a loved one?

SW: I wrote a song called “21” for Jay when I was 17 on my self-made album Depleted Oxygen. I have written others, but have yet to put them on an album. The three songs that currently jump out at me are “Send Me On My Way” by Rusted Root (which was dedicated to him at a live show the summer after it happened), “Horses” by Rickie Lee Jones, and “Goodbye” by Patty Griffin. In general, anything that gets the emotions out.

HF: Your latest album, “Hold Your Fire,” was released earlier this month. What are some of the themes you explore and what message do you want listeners to walk away with.

SW: I explore various themes, but the most important message from the album comes from “Good Enough” because it deals with rejection and self-doubt. My favorite line from that song is “you want the castle, but not the sand”. I want listeners to overcome not being accepted. If a person doesn’t like you, a college doesn’t accept you, a radio station won’t play you, a job falls through, you don’t get picked for the team, or you don’t win the contest of your dreams or get the gig…just keep trying. Someone will think you’re good enough the way you are if you keep trying. It’s about stamina.

HF: You recently moved from Boston to San Diego, where can locals go to hear you?

SW: I will be attending and volunteering at the Independent Music Conference in LA October 18-21st (http://www.indiemusicon.com) and attending the HMMA as a nominee for “Hold Your Fire” (http://www.hmmawards.org) in LA November 15th. As a new artist unfamiliar with the area, I will explore the open mic circuit, especially at LeStat’s Coffee House on Tuesday nights. I will have a performance with ListenLocalSD (http://www.listenlocalsd.com) in the future and am very excited to build a fan base here. I hope to become well acquainted with the Belly Up (about a ten-minute walk from my new home) and have a community much like the one I had back east at Passim. For now, the best way to hear my music is online through my website, which will connect you to me through any link of your choice (http://www.sierrarocks.com).

Play “Who Would You Rather” with Tania Katan on Valentine’s Day! Plus: Lesbian Cupcakes!

14 Tuesday Feb 2012

Posted by natasiarose in Relationships, Sexy Ladies, Social Disease

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

bisexual, Celebrities, cupcake, cupcakes, Dating, ellen, ellen degeneres, Jillian Michaels, kd lang, lbq, lesbian, lesbian celebrities, Love, Portia de Rossi, relationships, romance, rosie O'donnell, sweet, tania katan, The Biggest Loser, V Day, vagina cupcake, valentine's day, who would you rather?

Say "I want to be on you" with queer cupcakes!

Whether you hate Valentine’s Day because your coupled friends are shoving it in your face or because you are crumbling under the pressure of making the day perfect for your significant other, let’s all take a deep breath and take this a little less seriously.

Comedian, performer and author Tania Katan is here to relieve your Valentine’s Day blues with a rousing game of “Who Would You Rather: Famous Lesbian Edition.” I bet you all these girls are hotter than the ex that dumped you last week and stole your cat on her way out.

Does This Make Me Look Like a Lesbian?

13 Tuesday Sep 2011

Posted by natasiarose in Am I a jerk?, Beauty, Social Disease

≈ 22 Comments

Tags

Burberry, Celebrities, Chelsea Handler, Chelsea Lately, DKNY, E!, Fashion Police, Fashion's Night Out, hugh grant, jewel, lesbian, LGBT, NYC, NYC Fashion Week, Patricia Field, Peter Som, Queer, Sex and the City, Sporty Spice, Thakoon, Ugly Betty

Sporty Spice Pictures, Images and Photos

You thought Sporty Spice was a lesbian didn't you? We don't all wear wallet chains, wrist cuffs and have tribal tattoos! Ok, well...some of us don't.

Last week was Fashion’s Night Out in NYC. As I strolled Burberry with a glass of citrusy champagne in my hand, looking for the next tray of appetizers, I realized I was surrounded on all sides by straight women and gay men. Particularly of interest was one gay man in a spiky leather jacket that could take my eye out. I enjoy the gift of sight, so I scurried away.

The whole night got me thinking about the invisibility of gay women in the fashion industry in general, despite the fact that Patricia Field is arguably the most famous stylist in the world. While fashionistas know that she is the stylist for Sex and the City and Ugly Betty, fewer of them know that she’s a lesbian. Comedian Chelsea Handler also has a lesbian stylist on her super popular show “Chelsea Lately.” Despite this, lesbians aren’t exactly synonymous with fashion. Jokes about lesbian’s bad fashion sense are everywhere in the media and on the internet (I’m looking at you, every man on E!’s ‘Fashion Police’) The basic gist of these jokes are:

  • We wear plaid/flannel.
  • We look like men (as if there is anything wrong with that. Hi Rachel, I heart you)
  • We wear ugly, comfortable shoes. (Just ask country singer Jewel, who wears “lesbian shoes” while not performing)
  • We don’t wear make-up. (Hugh Grant thinks he looks like an old lesbian!)
  • We don’t have curves.

Even for people who don’t make jokes, if someone asks you “does this make me look like a lesbian?” We all know what that means and it’s not good. So, lesbians don’t get fashion right all the time. But neither does anyone else. Maybe the question we ask ourselves shouldn’t be “Does this make me look gay?” but “Does this make me look stupid?” Let’s take a look at some of this year’s fashions.

Por example, Burberry things you should wear a skunk on your head this fall/winter.

Skunk or beaver? If it's beaver, than you would look like a lesbian.

DKNY has decided that Spring 2012 is going to the dogs…because even a color blind laborador retriever will see these red and blue floral shorts…and matching bikini top…and matching hat…and jacket…and shoes.

Curb your dog

Peter Som and Thakoon want you to embrace plaid and teflon this winter.

Non-stick all the way, baby!

I may not understand fashion, but I do understand not looking like a nut job. And isn’t that the most important fashion rule of all?

Ask the Femme: The Real L Word Edition

18 Thursday Aug 2011

Posted by natasiarose in Ask the Femme, Celebrities, Sexy Ladies

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

ask the femme, bisexual, Celebrities, femme, friends, lesbian, lesbians, LGBT, Queer, reality tv, Sex, Stereotypes, The Real L Word, trashy, TV

Real L Word Pictures, Images and Photos

This is the way, it's the way that we...lie topless in a heap?

I get a lot of questions about The Real L Word. Even though I only watched two or three episodes of season two, I devoted about 100 hours to thought, discussion and recapping the first season. Also, Rose from season one called me a bitch on Facebook and Nikki and Jill second that emotion, which means I’m still qualified to answer your questions. I’ve compiled a list of my most popular Real L Word questions into one post, for your convenience. Let us continue to beat this dead beaver into the cold, cold ground.

Are the Real L Word girls on Facebook?

Yes, yes they are.


Real L Word Pictures, Images and Photos

Mikey is probably the only person in this picture who wouldn't punch me in the face. So she's my fav.

Can I friend them?

You can try, but most of them are at or are close to the 5000 friend limit or value their privacy. Many of them have fan Facebook pages, where you can “like” them and keep on top of their comings and goings and sometimes see pics of them naked/in bikinis. Yay!

Are they on Twitter?

Yes, google search their names plus twitter and it will pop up. I would list it for you but I’m lazy.

Can you tell me what Whitney’s tattoo’s mean?

No, see above lazy comment.

Do you have any pictures of Whitney lying down naked?

BOOTYBAR CLUB SKIRTS Pictures, Images and Photos

Fuck yea #Romiboobs!

Um no. How would I get those?! I don’t have any personal pictures of any of the women. You can try to get your own by going to one of the queer parties they frequent. One of my readers even saw boobs.

How do the girls on The Real L Word have sex?

Dude, you are obvs a str8 person who wants me to describe lesbian sex to you. just watch the show! They will show you how they do it. You don’t need to hear it from me or any other lesbian. Please, never ask a lesbian you meet in real life this question, it’s really insulting/annoying/creepy.

What do lesbians think of The Real L Word?

Dear Str8 Person- this is a completely reasonable and respectful question to ask. Thanks for restoring my faith in humanity. Okay, I can’t speak for everyone. From what I see, most younger (teen-20ish) lesbians love it and aspire to live it. The 25-35 bracket loves to hate it and when we are at our worst, we can admit that sometimes…it is disturbingly accurate of all the crazy. The 35plus bracket is too smart to watch this crap.

Natalie Hornedo Pictures, Images and Photos

Maybe if Natalie had come back for season 2, I would have watched.

I have to admit that I love trashy reality TV and I’m addicted to it like a mofo. The first season of The Real L Word lagged in terms of interesting storylines and for some reason the second season just didn’t keep my attention. I can’t pinpoint the exact reason why.

My main problem with the show is that I don’t like that it shows the full blown act of sex. Most reality shows just imply it, but for some reason, the lone lesbian reality TV show has explicit porno scenes. In the original series, “The L Word,” there is a scene where Jenny’s book, “Les Girls” is being made into a movie. The str8 male director wants the actresses to actually have real sex, instead of just simulating it, like most movies. Jenny and Tina are disgusted, roll their eyes and nix the idea. Maybe Ilene Chaiken forgot about that scene, as she is the creator of both series. It’s great to have representation on TV, but we aren’t being treated like everyone else and that really grinds my gears.

If you have any Real L Word comments or questions, get them out of your system in the comments!

Songs About Your Ex Girlfriend

09 Tuesday Aug 2011

Posted by natasiarose in Music, Relationships, Sexy Ladies, Social Disease, Uncategorized

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

bisexual, Celebrities, dancing, Dating, drinking, ex girlfriends, exes, femme, heartbreak, lesbian, lesbians, LGBT, music, NYC, Queer, rock, village

Last Saturday night Cleveland dyke band 11 After was performing in my hood. So I meandered on over to drink and listen to some grrl-band music. After a long week at work, it’s nice to kick back and listen to some grrls rock out.

11 After kills it at The Village Lantern. Check 'em out: http://www.reverbnation.com/11after

It got emotional.

My favorite song was an 11 After original Psycho Psycho. It reminded me of someone. Yeah, that chick was a total psycho! Amirite?! She was obsessed with me because I’m the effing shiz. High five bra! Half a vodka tonic I realized it would probably remind someone else of me. Actually, I know exactly who it would remind of me. Sobering thought. Need more alcohol.

Mistake.

When 11After’s frontlez starting wailing a kickass version of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Games, I might have

passionately yelled, “It was a wicked thing to do! God it was so wicked.” before clutching someone’s shoulder and wondering if tears would be too over the top. Then I noticed that one of the 11 After girls was unzipping her pants and lifting up her shirt. Crisis averted…this time.

Insert dirty caption here.

There are some songs that are going to trigger beer tears over an ex. Let’s take a stroll down ‘Suck it Romance’ lane and look at some of my favorite lesbian break up songs.

“Give Me One Reason”- Tracy Chapman

Give me one reason to stay here/ And I’ll turn right back around/Because I don’t want to leave you lonely but you gotta make me change my mind.

This song means: I don’t want to break up with you but you never call me and are sleeping with my best friend/ex-girlfriend/boss/mom. So unless you stop we can’t work it out. You are pretending to break up with the other person in order to save the shreds of dignity you have left, but at the end of the day we all know what’s happening. Ouchies. Lie to yourself enough and you’ll survive.

Pick me, choose me, love me. Or download 11After's new single, 'Choose Me' on itunes!

“Like the Way I Do”- Melissa Etheridge

Tell me does she love you/like the way I love you/Does she stimulate you/Attract and captivate you?

Why will this song make you cry into your mic on lesbian karaoke night? Because it’ll make you think “I’M SO MUCH BETTER THAN HER WHY DO YOU LIKE HER MORE OH GOD WHO WANTS TO DO SOME SHOTS?” Ladies, let me tell you, the shots will make things worse not better. Now take a breath.

“Rolling in the Deep”- Adele

The scars of your love remind me of us/They keep me thinking that we almost had it all. You had my heart inside of your hand/And you played it to the beat.

Technically Adele isn’t a lesbian, but she still gets to be on this list cuz it’s my list and my rules. This song will make you think of the girl who who painted rainbows onto your heart and promised to love

you forever…but then she decided to hook up with the chick on her football team instead. That one. You can’t even get away from this song because of it’s awesome club remix. Nice. There is no way to stop the tears this time. Go outside and bum a smoke off someone sexy before your mascara runs.

Your future ex girlfriends

“She Only Loves Me When She’s Wasted”- Hunter Valentine

I have a mini-wienermobile http://www.robingelfenbien.com

The title of this song speaks for itself. You know that ‘relationship’ you had with that straight girl? Yeah. She’s not really your girlfriend. You know that but this song hammers it home. You watch your queer girlfriends make out with their queer girlfriends and effffff. Here come the tears. You’re never going to really have her! This blows! Just like the str8 chick. Man up and make out with the hot single lez with the wallet chain and vow never to touch a str8 woman again.

Speaking of straight chicks. During the 11 After show, a straight girl slipped me her wiener while her date was in the bathroom. She was a comedian who likes to drive vans that look like wieners.

Do you have any songs that remind you of your ex? Leave them in the comments!

Dear Femmes: Don’t Cut Your Hair This Summer

22 Wednesday Jun 2011

Posted by natasiarose in Beauty, Celebrities, Sexy Ladies, Uncategorized

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

bisexual, body image, Celebrities, Extensions, femme, Hair, lesbian, LGBT, Queer, Summer

Alice Pictures, Images and PhotosEvery summer girlie mags everywhere scream “SHORT HAIR IS IN” at us and provide examples of celebrities with cute short locks. “THIS IS WHAT YOUR HAIR NEEDS TO LOOK LIKE.”

Ladies, don’t fall for it. Here’s why:

1) Your girlfriend loves your long hair. She does, I know it, you know it and she hates whenever you talk about cutting it short. Now, you shouldn’t wear/look a certain way to make your partner happy. But you want her to be hot for you right? Just take her feelings into consideration.

2) In the Fall, guess what length of hair will be back in? Long! The same celebrities you saw sporting short hair two months ago will all of a sudden have hair that flows down to their waists. How do they grow their hair that long in just two months? They don’t. They buy thousands of dollars worth of hair extensions. Single women in their 20s are the most likely people to file for bankruptcy. Probably because we spend our money on fashion, beauty needs & hair extensions.

Here is what you should do instead of cutting your hair this summer:

1) Keep it trimmed by going to your hairstylist on the regular. Six to eight weeks is optimal.

2) Buy a hair masque or oil treatment from your local drugstore. Don’t get anything too fancy, you can find great Garnier, Herbal Essences or Suave products for under five bucks. Shiny hair always looks great in the summer, but it won’t just happen on it’s own.

2) Style it instead of cutting it. There are a million different ways to rock out even a simple ponytail. Play with low pony’s, high ponys, pony’s with a part, double ponies. Play with bobbypins to see what hairstyles look good on your face.

3) Invest in a good hot barrel curler. Soft loose curls and sexy waves are always popular in the summer and it’s an easy, no fuss way to look great at the beach.

Have fun and stay beautiful this summer.

The Hate Mail and I

25 Wednesday May 2011

Posted by natasiarose in Am I a jerk?, Celebrities, Social Disease

≈ 11 Comments

Tags

Celebrities, Hate, Hate Mail, LeAnn Rimes, Real Housewives, Tammy Lynn Michaels-Etheridge, The Real L Word

Hate Mail Pictures, Images and Photos
I get a lot of hate mail. As an entertainment blogger, I make it my MO to make fun of celebrities. Most of the time I keep it light and funny but sometimes I kick them when they are down. It usually doesn’t matter too much, if you have enough money you are always going to win. So I don’t usually feel too guilty. I stay away from trainwrecks like Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan. Their lives have evolved into some thing sadder than the fluffernutter articles I regularly put out into cyberspace.

My writing results in one of four reactions.
1) I get a ton of readers. The meaner, snarkier, more willing to call someone out on their BS I am, the more readers I get.
2) Readers love me. I say what they are thinking! We get it, we connect. This is why I write.
3) Readers hate me. We all have our favorite celebrities and varying degrees of loyalty to them. When readers leave me hateful comments or send me angry messages on Facebook, it makes me sad. I’m so sensitive! That’s why I write about celebrities instead of trying to be one! My publisher and other writers love hate comments. They love the challenge, they love the back and forth. I’ve been called every name in the book and maybe I deserve it…but I hate reading it and it’s slowly getting to me. I have had to take breaks from reading comments in the past, so that I don’t ruin my day.
4) I’ve gotten chastised by certain celebrity handlers and once in blue, by the celebrities themselves.

LeAnn Rimes tweeted about me. Tammy Lynn Michaels-Etheridge wrote me a poem and threatened to mail her her thong. PR people for Real Housewives and even State Senators have told me to cut it out and not all cute like Full House Uncle Joey style. Like stop. Now. Stop now or someone is going to call a lawyer kind of stop.

“That’s great!” is tReal L Word Pictures, Images and Photoshe usual reaction that people give me when I tell them how much I have pissed someone famous off. “You’re going to be the next Perez Hilton! This could be your break.” Only it never is my break and I lack the type of follow through needed. I could have jumped harder on LeAnn, could have ridden her like a pony into the sunset of 15 minute infamy. But that’s not really what I want to be known for. It isn’t who I think I am. When I’m caught up in the moment and I write something that makes me laugh so hard I do a spit take, I put it out there. I want the world to see it and laugh with me, even if we are laughing at someone else.

My latest mini-celeb showdown is with Nikki from the first season of Showtimes “The Real L Word.” When previewing the show, I threw in this two liner just for fun.

This year is going to kick last year’s butt. Gone are the older, mature partners in anorexia  and life (Sorry Jill! You aren’t gay! Sorry Nikki, you’re boring!) [Source]

You know what’s not fun? That Nikki actually read it. I have an unread Facebook message from her sitting in my inbox. She wrote in the subject line, “The boring anorexic married to “not gay” Jill.” Ouch. I’m a bitch.

I can’t bring myself to read it. I can’t read it because I feel bad that I hurt her feelings and because I can’t give her what she wants, which is probably an apology. I can’t give it because I’m not sorry, I mean it. Maybe I can’t read it because my reaction to her hate mail says too much about me and what I’m capable of. A woman who doesn’t know me is making me face the fact that I frequently dance across the line between funny and cruel and have surprisingly little remorse for it.

Maybe she’s right and maybe…just maybe…she needs a sandwich.

Recent Posts

  • Interview with Drae Campbell of Prime: The Queer Party for Grown Folks
  • Ask the Femme: Is it OK to Cheat on my Husband with a Woman…Again?
  • Ask the Femme: How do you Handle Racist Family Members?
  • Interview with Musician Sierra West
  • Interview with Stephanie Schroeder, Author of “Beautiful Wreck”

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